Part 26
The date of the start of the trial came much faster than Caitlin expected. Not that she was at the courthouse she didn't have to be there until she was to testify. Which wasn't going to be for a couple of days. Both Cisco and Alex were scheduled to testify before her.
"You ok Caitlin?" asked Alex
"Uh yeah. Just not looking forward to seeing Hunter again."
"Caitlin, he can't hurt you any more. Facing him will prove that he hasn't won. That he didn't break you."
"Alex, I still feel broken. Maybe not as much as I did at first. But I am still broken."
"Look on the bright side. You have one of the best guys in the world as your boyfriend. I mean if I was into boys I would want a guy like Barry Allen."
"Well he is mine. So are you and Sara still seeing each other?"
"Yeah. I really like her. But we are taking it slow really getting to know each other. I don't want to go through what I did with Maggie all over again."
"That is understandable."
Caitlin looked over to where David was working and bit her lip. While David still wasn't the most organized worker he was improving.
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Cecile stood up and began her opening statement.
"Your honor, members of the jury. We intend to prove that the defendant Hunter Zolomon not only brutally beat but also raped his former coworker because she refused to date him. That he didn't like to hear the word no. That he hated that he couldn't control Caitlin Snow to do what he wanted her to. That when she and others reported him for harassment he became angry and decided to take what he wanted from her. We will prove that Hunter Zolomon only cared about what he wanted."
Cecile continued to paint the picture of Hunter as a cold hearted monster that only cared about what he wanted. Once she finished Harvey Dent stood up and began to address the court.
"The district attorney will have you believe that that my client is nothing but a monster. But that is far from true. He is just a little old fashioned by today's standards. He was raised to believe that women need to listen to men. He understands that not all see it that way. My client has anger issues that he is working on. He never meant to scare Dr. Snow. I will prove that my client is not the one that attacked the young woman."
In the back of the courtroom Carla Tannhouser sat listening to the blow hard defense lawyer. The defendant turned and she saw nothing but coldness in the man's eyes. A coldness she had never seen before. Though if she didn't know what she did about him she might see how some women would think he was good looking. Ms. Horton called her first witness to the stand. Detective Edward Thawne.
"Detective Thawne, you were the first officer to arrive at STAR Labs when the report of the attack had come in correct?" asked Cecile
"Yes."
"Did you see the victim?"
"Yes. Dr. Snow was unconscious when I arrived and being loaded into an ambulance by paramedics." Said Eddie
"In your expert option what would you say happened to Dr. Snow?"
"That someone beat her up. To me it looked like someone took a lot of anger out on her."
"Detective Thawne, did you have any suspects?"
"Just one. The defendant Hunter Zolomon. The victim had taken a restraining order out against him a week earlier. He had been harassing her at work until he was fired. He had grabbed her in the cafeteria after she reported him to Dr. Wells."
"Was there any other reason to believe Mr. Zolomon was the prime suspect?"
"Security footage of the STAR labs parking lot shows the attack."
"Prosecution exhibit 1 the security footage from the STAR labs parking lot."
Cecile hit play and the high definition video began to play. There were gasps in the courtroom as they watched Caitlin Snow being beaten. In the back of the room Carla wiped tears from her eyes seeing what this man had put her daughter through.
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Barry was waiting at Eddie's desk when he returned to the station.
"How did it go?" asked Barry
"Cecile showed the security footage. The men in the courtroom looked like they wanted to beat the crap out of him. Most of the women cried including Caitlin's mom. I actually spoke to her after I left court. I recommend that she skip being there when the ER doctor testified. Bare, you saw Caitlin after they cleaned her up a bit. I saw her as she was loaded into the ambulance. It was bad. Really bad."
"What about that creeps lawyer?"
"He is scum. Bare, I am going to be honest with you. After Caitlin testifies she will need you. Dent will try and twist her words make it seem like she was just playing hard to get. That she wanted rough sex with him."
"Thanks Eddie."
"Bare, I care about Caitlin. She didn't deserve for this to happen to her."
"No one does."
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"Ms. Horton?"
Cecile turned to face the woman that called out to her.
"Is there something I can help you with ma'am?" asked Cecile
"I'm Dr. Carla Tannhouser. Caitlin's my daughter."
"What can I do for you Dr. Tannhouser?"
"I want to know if there is any chance that monster is going to walk."
"Not on the physical assault or violating the restraining order. It will really come down to Caitlin being convincing on the rape charge."
"I will admit I was never the best mother to Caitlin. Especially after my husband passed away. But I love my daughter and I know the values I taught her. I can almost guarantee that she was a virgin until that monster raped her."
"Why do you believe that?"
"There is only one young man my daughter has given her heart to, and he has owned it pretty much since the day they met at ten years old. Caitlin is a hopeless romantic. She believes that you should only sleep with someone you could see yourself spending the rest of your life with."
"I promise you that I will do everything I can to make sure he pays for hurting Caitlin."
"Thank you."
"Dr. Tannhouser, your daughter is lucky to have Barry Allen in her life."
"I will always be grateful to that young man."
Carla walked off leaving Cecile alone.