Will You Teach Me… ?
Hello everyone ! Are you ready for this chapter? I don't think you are, honestly (just as Brianna isn't). I hope you'll enjoy it a bit more than she will, though. Just a friendly bit of advice: I love watching my favorite characters SUFFER. The Clover and the Tartan was a therapeutic romance because I needed my sweet pirate to be happy and well after his death in the show. But I'm back to basics here, so… LET THE DRAMA BEGIN.
Thank you weheartnoelle, Anthea-Adelaide, Rath101, LykkeF and bluecrush611 for the reviews, and Ashies, Thalyta-odr, supernatural318, heavenlyambrose80, Godblesslaci, Ocgirlygirl, reaganlanger24 and Imi for the follow/fav.
Weheartnoelle: No it's not going to be fun at all… At least for Brianna, but there's a certain pirate who will definitely have a great time ! xD Thanks for the review !
Anthea-Adelaide: I hope you'll enjoy the way things are going (spoiler alert: Brianna will not like it ahah)
Rath101: hey you! So glad you're still a faithful reader (one of my firsts ! 3). Believe me, you're not ready for this chapter!
LykkeF: thanks for the review! It does fit the canon (but not entirely, Bonnet might be a tiny bit more protected by powerful men than he was in the original story). But it just makes his own power and control over Brianna even more infuriating :p (which I enjoy very very very much ahahah)
Bluecrush611: Thanks! I hope this will not disappoint ! (I don't think it will, this chapter is quite…. Intense ahah)
oOo
2. …And Justice For All
After the disaster in Forbes' office, Brianna quickly realized that finding a lawyer would not be an easy task. From Cross Creek to Wilmington, they had visited every law firm they knew about, always managing to secure a preliminary meeting before being systematically kicked out when the opposing party's name was mentioned. Somehow, Stephen Bonnet had gone in three years from common thief and pirate to business partner of all the greatest names in North Carolina. Feared, he sure still was, judging by the lawyers' suspicious looks when they admitted they had a quarrel with the Irishman. But he was also influent now. And he had money. Lots of money, as it had been whispered to them several times. After three days, the Fraser-MacKenzies had therefore fallen back on their one and only option: a young lawyer, fresh out of law school, probably too young and carefree – or too desperate to make a name for himself – to refuse to defend them. Mr. John Bellingham, barely twenty-three, had taken on the difficult task of preparing in sixteen days a defense capable of standing up to a whole system that favored rich and influential men. In other words, everything Brianna wasn't in the eyes of the polite society of North Carolina.
On July 14th at 1 p.m. sharp, the whole family had gathered on the steps of the courthouse, impatiently awaiting Bellingham's arrival. He soon appeared, in a brand-new outfit he had certainly bought for the occasion, a stack of papers under his arm and a confident smile plastered on his lips. "Are you ready?", he asked Brianna, who only shrugged. "As I said to your daughter while we were preparing her testimony, our opponents are only going to call one witness to the stand, a drunkard Bonnet was playing cards with the night they met…"
"Raped. The night he raped her. Don't be afraid of using the right words, Mr. Bellingham", Claire snapped.
"You're right. The night he raped her. If your daughter's story manages to move the Judge, she should be able to have the upper hand in this case. Mr. Bonnet will very likely come out of this court handcuffed." The lawyer turned to Brianna again and put a comforting hand on her forearm. "Just tell your story the way we prepared it for the past few days, and I can guarantee you that this case will be closed before the end of the afternoon."
"May ye be reit...", Roger muttered as he walked up the courthouse steps to the entrance hall.
A few minutes later, they had taken seats in the courtroom and saw Forbes walk down the aisle, closely followed by his client. Stephen Bonnet was once again dressed up to the nines, but his outfit was plainer and less colorful than the one he wore three weeks earlier in Cross Creek.
"Don't look at him", Bellingham whispered in Brianna's ear. "That would only confuse you even more. You need to stay focused and in control."
Brianna nodded and turned around in her chair to admire her wonder, her Jeremiah, babbling happily on his grandmother's knees. The sight of the boy, so oblivious to the drama unfolding before him, reassured her somewhat and she smiled. On the left, Roger was glaring furiously at Bonnet on the other side of the aisle. Her husband had hardly spoken to her in three weeks, but she had put up with it, convinced that everything would be settled the minute the Court decided that yes, he was indeed Jeremiah's rightful father. Roger was like that: he always had to shut himself off in difficult times, until he had come to terms with the problem or until it was solved. He would come back to her eventually. As he always had. Given how long he's been doing this to you, you should be used to it by now…, she thought, in that bitter voice that resurfaced from time to time when Roger was getting difficult to live with. And lately the bitterness had made a big comeback. Far too often to her liking.
Shortly before 2 p.m., dozens of onlookers had settled in the room, while guards stationed here and there, preparing the magistrates' and the Judge's entrance. They soon appeared through a door in the back of the room, and strode to their seats on the stage. Everyone stood up, chairs scraping on the floor, and there was a muffled hubbub until one of the guards allowed them to sit down. Brianna took a deep breath, keeping her promise not to look at Bonnet. With a loud sigh, the Judge opened the file he had brought under his arm and put a pair of small round glasses on the tip of his nose.
"Before we begin, would you please confirm that both lawyers have received all the trial records, as well as the lists of witnesses who will be called to testify?"
"Absolutely, your Honor. The defendant has no witnesses to present", Forbes confirmed, proudly raising his chin, and Brianna had to force herself not to glare at him.
"According to the documents we received, the plaintiff will present one witness-", Bellingham began, only to be interrupted by Forbes' annoying voice.
"Excuse me, my dear colleague, but you are mistaken. The documents we sent refer to two witnesses and an expert..."
The young lawyer rummaged nervously through his papers, but there was only one witness reported there – the man from the tavern – he was sure of it. On his chair, the Judge was already showing signs of impatience.
"So?", he grumbled.
"I... I only have one witness here..."
"That's preposterous! We sent all documents together. Do you have the acknowledgement of receipt?", Forbes asked, sounding spuriously annoyed.
"Yes, I do..."
"Then, if you are in possession of the receipt, you must have received all documents. Perhaps you have misplaced them?"
"No, that is impossible...", Bellingham defended himself, his cheeks burning red. "I always file everything as soon as-"
"As Mr. Forbes said", the Judge continued wearily, "if you have the receipt, then you have had the entire record. What you do with your documents once they are in your office is no longer our business. Let's move on, if you don't mind."
Brianna couldn't believe her ears. They could not start the audience with such a legal flaw? And judging by Forbes' smirk, the file had likely never been complete to begin with. Bellingham was young, but he wanted to earn his spurs by all means, and he would never risk his chances of winning with such a big mistake. A hand rested on her shoulder and Brianna turned anxiously to her mother.
"No need to make a fuss, Bree… This is how it goes here. Consider yourself lucky to have a lawyer because it's not even systematic..."
Brianna nodded and turned back to the Judge. Beside her, Bellingham had lost his smile and his dilated nostrils fluttered gently to the rhythm of his breathing. He too understood that he had been played like a fiddle.
"The case before us is that of Mr. Stephen Bonnet and Mrs. Brianna MacKenzie, who interferes with his parental rights over their child, Jeremiah. Usually, this kind of case is settled out of court, but the defendant has informed the Court of her desire to defend herself and justify her decision to alienate the child's father. We will start with the plaintiff's testimony. Mr. Bonnet, would you please take the stand…", the Judge said, stretching out a hand towards the stand, next to him.
"Why is he the first to go? Isn't there a 'ladies first' rule, for once?", Brianna grumbled as her lawyer leaned towards her.
"The defendant always comes second, Mrs. MacKenzie. This is why you have to be convincing, because the Judge often no longer has the patience to listen to the testimony of the defendant after the plaintiff's, and he can interrupt you before you had a chance to finish…"
"Are you kidding me?", she hissed, but he shook his head.
"It's common practice. They assume that if the defendant cannot prove his or her innocence with one valid argument, then he or she is guilty..."
"You could have warned me?!"
"I didn't want to upset you…", Bellingham apologized.
"Well done, John, I'm not upset at all!"
Brianna looked straight ahead, realizing at that moment that she couldn't avoid Bonnet now that he was almost in front of her. A shiver ran down her spine, but she still managed not to show any sign of panic. Forbes had also stood up, to guide his client's speech with a few well-prepared questions.
"Mr. Bonnet, can you tell us exactly how you met the defendant?"
Bonnet bit his lip, frowned and, in a perfectly studied manner, smiled as tenderly as he could, which was almost ridiculous when you knew the man. "It was in Wilmington, at the Willow Tree Tavern, near the harbor. Was playin' cards when Bri-I mean Mrs. MacKenzie entered the room."
"How was she?", Forbes asked.
"As she is today… Beautiful…" He brushed his index finger across his lips and shrugged. "Buht sad. She looked like she had shed quite a lot o' tears, her nose was swollen and she was disheveled. She passed by me and I offered her to blow on a ring I was bettin', for luhck. Was hopin' this would bring a smile to her face..."
Brianna was living an actual nightmare. Bonnet was giving the Court a little show, playing the perfect gentleman who had fallen in love at first sight. She felt Bellingham turn his head and motion for her to keep calm.
"What did the defendant do, then?"
"She looked at the ring and claimed it was her mother's, buht I had won that ring in a card game a few weeks earlier. I had no idea where it came from."
It was Jamie's turn to tense behind the dock. His chair creaked loudly and Brianna's lawyer whirled around, shaking his head.
"She seemed very eager to get the jewel, though. "How moech d'you want for it?", she said. I joked and said that I was hopin' for a different kind o' payment. Since she didn't seem to mind, I offered her to follow me into another room to negotiate the terms of our… bargain… and she did."
"And then?"
"I repeated me request, more directly this time, and went to shut the door before returnin' to her..."
Brianna shook her head in disgust. Bonnet was completely twisting the truth. It was indeed what had happened, but he deliberately left out all the squalid details of his actions. She would not fail to add them later, though.
"And after that?", Forbes urged.
Bonnet let out a small laugh and turned his head to the Judge. "Do I really have to explain what we did after that?"
"You do, Mr. Bonnet", retorted the Judge in the same tone he had adopted since the hearing had started.
"Well… we…", his eyes went straight to Brianna and the young woman suddenly felt so naked and vulnerable that she lowered her nose. "We had carnal knowledge of each other."
"Did the defendant consent to it?"
"Well, she followed me after a few dirty innuendos, she let me shut the door behind us… She really wanted that ring, you know?… and it seems to me that she had just argued wit' her husband, or future husband at the time…"
"Do you think she engaged in sexual intercourse with you out of revenge after this argument?"
There was a thud on the defendant's side and a few heads followed the noise, including Bonnet's. Brianna had turned away from them, leaning over the floor. Bonnet's sales pitch actually made her want to throw up. And it was not a figure of speech.
"Objection!", Bellingham barked, rising up. "This is all speculation, not facts!"
The Judge nodded. "Objection sustained. The Court shall not take this last question into account. Carry on, Mr. Forbes."
"I don't have any other question for the moment, Your Honor."
"Mr. Bellingham, do you have any questions for Mr. Bonnet?", asked the Judge, turning to his colleague.
"I'd rather question my client, if you don't mind", the lawyer said, putting a hand on Brianna's shoulder. "It is time for the Court to hear her side of the story." Indeed, it was about time: a trial in the eighteenth century lasted, on average, ten minutes; very few defendants had the privilege of being heard to the end. They were already lucky the Judge had not given Bonnet full custody of the child in less than five minutes, as was often the case.
Bonnet got up and returned to his seat next to Forbes, while Brianna struggled to get up and sit down in the one he had just left. It was still warm, and a smell of burnt hay – his damned cigars – and whiskey lingered in the air. She was instantly reminded of his hot breath when he had taken her on the table, the blonde lock that tickled her neck as he came and went above her. Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt even more nauseous. She had to calm down, control her fear and deliver her testimony. She had repeated it thirty times in the last few days, she knew it by rote. Nothing could go wrong.
"Mrs. MacKenzie…", Bellingham began with a kind smile. "Considering the testimony we just heard, can you confirm that this is how things happened between you and Mr. Bonnet?"
Brianna took a deep breath. "No, that's not how it happened."
"At what point does your testimony differ from Mr. Bonnet's?"
"He didn't win that ring in a card game… He pulled it out of my mother's mouth when he and his men attacked her ship…"
"Objection!", Forbes interrupted. "There is no evidence that my client attacked the ship of the defendant's parents. Moreover, we are here to try a case of deprivation of parental rights, not theft or possession of stolen jewelry."
"Objection sustained. Please focus on the night you met Mr. Bonnet at the tavern, Mrs. MacKenzie."
Brianna saw Bellingham quietly motioning for her to move on and she blinked in approval. "I didn't think Mr. Bonnet was serious when he told his joke, I thought he was just showing off in front of the other men. So I followed him into the nearest room, thinking he would actually sell me the ring for fifteen pounds. That was all the money I had with me."
"Once you were alone with him, how did Mr. Bonnet behave?"
"He became more insistent. He walked over to me and started to… touch me. I told him he was wrong about my intentions and tried to leave, but he grabbed me... and punched me in the face."
"Where exactly?"
"In the nose. I felt blood run down my lips and its taste on my tongue. I fell to the ground, and he knelt down to take off my boots. I tried to crawl out of his reach, but he hit me again and took advantage of the fact that I was stunned to lock the door."
Sitting upright on his chair, Bonnet was staring at her with an indefinable expression. He couldn't believe she had the guts to tell such a story in front of an audience, as women usually denied all kind of intercourse to avoid the humiliation. He also couldn't help but admire her. And maybe he was a bit turned on as well… She wasn't the only one reliving memories of that night, but certainly not in the same way.
"And after that? After he closed the door, trapping you alone with him, what did he do?"
Brianna's lower lip quivered and she gulped loudly. "He picked me up and laid me down on a table. Then he rolled up my dress and petticoats…"
"I think we can all imagine what happened next. Thank you, Mrs. MacKenzie", the Judge interrupted, uncomfortable. The magistrates were also nervous, not knowing who to believe between the man seduced at first sight and the abused woman.
"No more questions, Your Honor", Bellingham concluded with a satisfied smile. He turned to Brianna and gave her a discreet wink before sitting down at their table.
"Mr. Forbes, do you have questions for the defendant?", asked the Judge to the opposing lawyer.
"Yes, your Honor." Forbes stood up and Brianna tried to stay calm. Bellingham had simulated dozens of questions over the past few days, each more embarrassing than the next, and she felt ready to face whatever that nasty weasel dared to ask her.
"Mrs. MacKenzie, could you please confirm you had an argument with your husband, Mr. Roger Wakefield MacKenzie, just before you met my client?"
"That's right."
"This argument… could it have left any marks on your body? Marks that you wrongly attributed to the carnal act perpetrated by my client? Like, your 'swollen nose', to use his words."
"No. Roger never laid a hand on me. We yelled at each other, but it didn't go any further."
"Then why were you disheveled?"
Brianna paused, as she understood where Forbes was going. He wanted her to be taken for a slut, a girl who went from a man to another in less than an hour. But she wouldn't let him. "I had let my hair loose and I just fastened it again before I slammed the door on my way out."
Forbes smirked. He admitted defeat on that one, but if he had lost a battle, he was far from losing the war. "I would like to go back over your accusations of assault and battery against my client. Did anyone see you bear the alleged marks of your encounter with Mr. Bonnet?"
"My maid, Lizzie."
"This… Lizzie, did she see Mr. Bonnet hit you?"
"No, she was in our bedroom... She only saw me later, when I went to bed."
"So nobody can confirm that Mr. Bonnet actually beat you?"
Brianna pursed her lips. No… By the time she finally got out of that damn room, the tavern had emptied of its occupants because of the late hour, and no one had seen her face as she picked up her boots and went upstairs. "No...", she whispered.
"Please speak louder, Mrs. MacKenzie, the Court has not heard your answer."
"No!", she repeated.
"You know what I think, Mrs. MacKenzie? I think your husband was a bit heavy-handed on that night and when you met my client, who was obviously bewitched by your beauty, you thought you would find comfort in his arms. And then you made up this whole story to keep up appearances with your husband…"
"Objection!", Bellingham exclaimed from his table. "Mr. Forbes is speculating and insulting my client!"
"Objection sustained...", the Judge sighed. "Mr. Forbes, please stick to the facts."
Forbes scratched his right eyebrow, took a few steps as he considered his next question, then turned to Brianna again. "I would like to talk about the day you visited my client, a few months later..."
There were whispers in the room and the magistrates exchanged dumbfounded glances. Again, the announcement effect was perfectly calculated and Brianna muttered a curse.
"You mean, when he was incarcerated in Wilmington Prison awaiting his death sentence for piracy and murder? That particular day?", she asked, slightly losing patience. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Bonnet laugh and stare at her with a seduced smile. He's fucking twisted...
"That's right. But that is another matter, which cannot be taken into account today. Moreover, my client was pardoned by Governor Tryon over three years ago."
Brianna sneered. "Pardoned? That's weird, I thought he escaped?"
"After a group of rebels blew up the prison, he was indeed able to escape in order to save his own life. This is why the governor decided to pardon him, since Death herself did not seem to think that his time had come."
"Oh, I see the difference… Forgive me if I don't grasp the intricate workings of your profession, Mr. Forbes. I'm just a woman, after all…", she quipped, referring directly to the contemptuous comment he had made in his office a few weeks earlier. "But thank you for enlightening me as to why a notorious murderer and smuggler was released serving no penalty..."
There was some laughter in the room and a few men gave Bonnet mocking looks. But the pirate did not seem bothered in the least. "I know, she has a temper… That's what I love about her…", he scoffed, as the audience – as well as the magistrates – burst into laughter.
"Order in the court! Mrs. MacKenzie, if you insist on talking about other cases that have already been tried, I will have to cut your testimony short…", threatened the Judge, and Brianna pursed her lips.
"Can you tell me, Mrs. MacKenzie, why after you were allegedly raped by my client… why would you feel the need to pay him a last visit in prison?"
"I needed… to tell him that I was no longer angry and that he had my forgiveness before he died."
"It's all to your credit…", Forbes mocked with an approving nod. "Nothing else? After that, I promise you that I will stop torturing you..."
Brianna gulped and glanced briefly at her lawyer, who shook his head.
"Nothing else."
"Good. No more questions."
Brianna rushed back to her seat, trying to ignore Bonnet's lustful gaze that had never left her since she had used sarcasm against Forbes.
"You did well…", Bellingham whispered as she sat down next to him again and thanked him with a smile. Behind her, Jamie had also smiled, proudly nodding his head, and the young woman felt a little more confident. Unfortunately for her, her relief was short-lived. The time had come to call the witnesses, and due to the mysterious disappearance of the trial records, except the shady guy Bonnet was playing cards with, they had no idea who the other witness and the so-called expert were. The drunkard didn't make much of an impression and Forbes' questions all revolved around Brianna's attitude towards Bonnet, her insistence on getting the ring back at all costs, and whether anyone had heard any cry for help from the locked room.
"Oh, we heard her scream, for sure... But not in a way that suggests she wasn't happy to be there...", the drunkard concluded with a lousy laugh. A few men imitated him in the room, but not a majority, much to Brianna's relief. Things became more complicated, however, when the second witness was called to the stand, and introduced himself as the prison guard who had escorted the defendant to Bonnet's cell.
"Where was this man during your private conversation with Mr. Bonnet?", Bellingham whispered, leaning towards her.
"Not with us, that's for sure... He opened the door for me and left..."
"Far enough?"
The uncertainty in Brianna's eyes told him all he needed to know. If this guard had heard anything embarrassing, everything could go wrong very quickly. They could counter Bonnet's own arguments – after all, it was his word against hers – but if someone outside had heard her talk to Bonnet about the baby, the verdict would be hastily reached. Panic was slowly seizing Brianna and she turned back to her only escape from this nightmare. Jeremiah. The boy looked delighted to see his mother's face and babbled a happy "Mama!", drawing a lot of affectionate looks to them.
"Mr. Johnson, despite the trauma of the Regulator's attack – which occurred only a few minutes after the matter we're discussing here and during which you were almost killed – are you able to show me in this room the person you escorted to my client's cell?", Forbes asked, his bony hands crossed over his lower back. The guard didn't hesitate for a second and pointed his finger at Brianna. "When Mrs. MacKenzie arrived at the cell door, what did she do?"
"She asked me to open it and leave her alone with Mr. Bonnet."
"Did you?"
"I opened the door, yes, but I did not go too far in case he tried to hurt her or escape."
"Did he?"
The guardian shook his head. "He only tried to touch her once. When she opened the tails of her cloak to reveal her pregnant belly. But Mr. Bonnet was chained to the wall and it prevented him from doing so."
Whispers and gasps of surprise ran through the room and Brianna let her forehead fall into her palms.
"You mean… that Mrs. MacKenzie had come specifically to tell my client about her pregnancy? Why?"
The guard shrugged. "As she said earlier, she wanted him to know that she forgave him. But she also wanted him to know, 'if that was of any comfort to him', that she was expecting his child and that he would not die without leaving anything behind."
New murmurs in the room. Brianna didn't even dare to look up at the magistrates' expressions. She would rather know nothing, stay in the dark and pray that the courthouse – and all the people in it – would disappear into nothingness. Forbes nodded slowly, with a pained expression.
"What was my client's reaction to this announcement?"
The guardian frowned for a moment, choosing his words carefully. "He seemed sad… the kind of sadness I often see in the eyes of convicts who leave women and children behind. I don't think, unlike Mrs. MacKenzie imagined, that this news was of any comfort to him."
"Did you think that was cruel of Mrs. MacKenzie?"
"Objection! This is a subjective opinion."
Forbes glanced briefly at Bellingham in annoyance. "Let me rephrase that. Did my client express any sign of distress after this announcement?"
"His eyes did... Especially when the defendant yelled that she would never tell her child about him and his existence would be forgotten..." There were contemptuous 'oohs' in the room and Brianna finally looked up. The Judge was staring at her severely and leaning forward, she saw that Bonnet was bearing a sad face, as if the mere memory of their exchange was painful to him.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me...", Brianna growled, shaking with rage. Unfortunately for her, the hubbub had died down just as she spoke and the Judge looked at her in disbelief.
"You are forgetting yourself, Mrs. MacKenzie! Do I need to remind you that you are here in a Court of Law and not a fish market?"
"Excuse her, Your Honor...", Bellingham hastily said before whispering to her: "Please calm down! You are not helping!"
Near the stand, Forbes was already asking another question with a satisfied smile. "Is that all you have to say about this encounter?"
"No", Johnson answered, and Brianna wondered what could possibly be worse than everything he had said before. "When she was about to leave, Mr. Bonnet searched his mouth to retrieve a gemstone he had hidden behind one of his teeth. He handed it to her, saying it was 'for the baby's maintenance'."
"It was actually a red diamond!", Bonnet interrupted, as if the value of his gift would tip the scales in his favor.
Forbes pointed at his client, as if to support his argument. "Did Mrs. MacKenzie take the diamond?"
Johnson nodded. "Of course, she didn't need to be asked twice."
"No more questions, Your Honor", Forbes finished, taking seat next to Bonnet. The pirate still bore his heartbroken lover mask, and Brianna had to hold back another curse when she saw a few women pout in the audience, touched by Bonnet's fake tears. You backstabbing… treacherous… bitches...
"I would like to ask a few questions to Mr. Johnson, Your Honor", Bellingham said, standing up, but the Judge motioned for him to sit.
"I think we've heard enough of you and your client, Mr. Bellingham. I would like to hear the expert you called, Mr. Forbes. Doctor Barnett, from Wilmington, is that right?"
"That's correct, your Honor."
In the room, a man in his sixties, with a receding chin and a high, old-fashioned white wig, made his way to the stand and sat down with all the stiffness of an old, haughty bourgeois. "Introduce yourself, Doctor", the Judge said with a wave of his hand.
"My name is Dr. Joshua Barnett, specialized in women's and infants' health for over thirty years."
Claire couldn't help but sneer, wondering what an old coot like him knew about women's health, but luckily no one but Brianna, Jamie and their lawyer noticed her.
"In thirty years of practice, you must have seen a lot of children and parents...", Forbes began as the doctor nodded. "Tell me, Doctor. Based on your experience, what are the odds for a brown-eyed-and-haired man and a red-haired woman with blue eyes to give birth to a blond child with blue eyes?"
"Almost non-existent. Some children are born blonde to two brown-haired parents, but their hair usually darken in the first few months of their life. As for the eyes, on the other hand, my colleagues and I have noticed that the color brown almost always prevail over all other colors..."
"Same question with a blond man with green eyes and a redheaded woman with blue eyes…?", Forbes went on.
"In that case the odds would be much higher."
"Where are you going with this, Mr. Forbes?", the Judge asked, who was clearly starting to get bored.
"A demonstration, no less." He turned to Bonnet with a confident smile. "Will my client please rise… and show the court his blond hair and green eyes…"
The Irishman did so, smiling flirtatiously as some of the women in the audience chuckled.
"Now, I'd like Mr. MacKenzie to do the same…", Forbes said in an excruciatingly soft voice. On his seat, Roger seemed to wish he had some place to crawl and hide.
"Objection, your Honor!", Bellingham barked. "This is downright humiliating for my client and her husband."
"Rejected. The scientific theory advanced by the expert must be verified. Please stand up, Mr. MacKenzie."
With his jaw clenched, Roger obeyed and presented his brown hair and dark eyes to the audience.
"If anyone was kind enough to introduce Jeremiah to the Court… Maybe you, Mrs. MacKenzie? Don't be shy…", Forbes joked, as all faces turned to the dock. The young woman looked at her lawyer, and he nodded wearily. She'd better obey, if she didn't want the Judge to take offense. Rising from her chair, she took Jemmy from Claire's arms and lifted him high enough so that the child's face was level with hers. Several heads made eloquent back and forth movements between Jeremiah and Bonnet, and for the first time since the start of the trial, Brianna gave up all hope. She was going to lose. Jemmy would be taken from her and given to her rapist. Tears welled up in her eyes and she couldn't help but turn them to the man responsible for all this chaos. Standing in front of his own table, Bonnet stared at her insistently. They had to make a pretty picture, all of them standing, with their physical characteristics too different to leave any room for doubt. Only Jemmy seemed to be taking this rather well, playing with some of his mother's red curls and babbling at the same time.
"You may sit down…", said the Judge, turning to Forbes. "Any other questions?"
"One, your Honor. And I think that this will make a decisive point in the legal battle between my client and the defendant…" Clearing his throat, he went on: "Can you explain to the Court, Doctor, the recent discoveries that have been made in the field of procreation? And especially the consequences of the lack of consent on it..."
Barnett sat up in his seat. "Of course. It has been proven in a large-scale study that rape cannot lead to procreation, because the woman's body protects itself and repels her attacker's semen. In order for a child to be created, the woman must not only consent, but also experience pleasure so that the man's seed reaches its goal more quickly."
"Are you saying that it is impossible that my client actually raped Mrs. MacKenzie, if she was able to give birth nine months later to a child who looks just like him and whose fatherhood she confessed to him in jail?"
"Absolutely. Not only your client did not rape Mrs. MacKenzie, but she consented to and enjoyed this carnal relationship..."
It was too much for Brianna. This final insult to her trauma had just blown the last functional fuses in her brain. Shoving Jemmy in Bellingham's arms, she jumped up and pointed an accusing finger at the doctor.
"You fucking asshole! How dare you call yourself a doctor? You are nothing but a fraud in the pay of these two sons of bit-"
The hammering of the mallet and the outraged exclamations of magistrates and spectators covered the end of her sentence, and Brianna's lawyer hurriedly passed Jeremiah back to his grandmother before grabbing his client and force her to sit down again. But she struggled like hell, while railing against Bonnet and Forbes with a lot of "filthy bastards" and "fucking piece of shit". To make matters worse, the pirate chuckled, covering the lower part of his face with his hand, but she could see in his laughing eyes that he was delighted to see her sink into insanity. Just as you watch a fruit grow, thinking with delight of the day when it will be ripe enough to be picked and devoured.
"That's enough! Mrs. MacKenzie, I am ordering you to be quiet. No, I'll even do better than that…" The Judge turned to his colleagues. "We will now retire for deliberations. We will take this up tomorrow morning, and hopefully with a verdict. The meeting is adjourned."
And with one last hammer blow, Brianna understood that her fate now rested in the hands of six old white men for whom she was nothing more than a hysterical slut, taking pleasure in mentally torturing a man sentenced to death in his cell. In other words: she was screwed.
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Poor Brianna… You think she went through enough in this chapter? Please, Bonnet hasn't even played half of his cards yet. I hope you enjoyed his little show (I did ahahah) and let me know your thoughts and theories about what's next!
Chapter 3 is almost ready and will be updated in about 3 weeks, I think. Until then, I can't wait to read your comments and I wish you a happy Halloween !
Xérès