The courthouse was busy today. There was several hearings lined up today, including James Olsen's plea hearing. Kelly brought his father's suit early so he could get changed, meeting with him before the hearing along with his lawyer. "Now remember, only speak when spoken too and let me do the talking" he advised, going over what to expect from this hearing. "This isn't your trial. The only thing they'll ask you is for your plea. Now just so we're one hundred percent clear, are you staying with your original statement?"
"Yes" Olsen reiterated for the last time.
"Okay. Once that's done then the bail hearing will be settled. But given your standing in the community, you're agreement to surrender your passport and to regular check-ins with the bondsman, I have no doubt we can reach a reasonable settlement."
"Thank you" Kelly said as the lawyer gave them a few moments to prepare. The siblings looked at each other and breathed deeply. "How are you feeling?" she asked him.
"I'll be better when I can go home" James replied. He looked out of the room they were in into the corridor leading to the courthouse. "Did you notice if anyone else was here yet?" he asked her.
Kelly subtly bristled before she nodded. "Your friends from work, Kara, Nia…Alex, they were coming up when I walked in" she told him.
James noticed the bitterness when she mentioned Alex's name. "It's not her fault this is happening. You know that" he reminded her.
She sighed. "I know" she said. It was still difficult because she was there when he was arrested and let it happen. But she knew Alex couldn't have stopped it from happening. She didn't have the authority. Kelly knew it wasn't fair, or healthy, to hold this anger towards the wrong person. She shook her head, focusing on the man who needed her right now. "You just focus on the hearing. We're all praying for you."
"I know, and I will" James nodded, kissing her forehead. "I love you" he added.
"I love you too" she replied, hugging her brother.
Upstairs, the Danvers sisters waited with Nia, J'onn and Brainy in the lobby of the courthouse. The hearing wasn't scheduled till ten but they arrived fashionably early anyway. The anticipation was palpable in the air making them all uneasy. Fortunately they had things to talk about to pass the time. Kara and Nia relayed their idea for the article to try and spark some traction into the investigation. Their friends were supportive but cautious. "Such a provocative ploy could make things complicated" Brainy said.
"Plus the police won't be happy if the media starts spinning wild accusations" Alex nodded.
"These won't be wild accusations" Kara told her. "It'll be a factual account to why Jake is considered a suspect in the investigation into the Reckoning. And if Jimmy can give his blessing, we can include their interactions at his house, which would cast more doubt onto the case against him."
"Maybe, but it would also backfire if the judge deems your article and manipulative" J'onn cautioned. "It could sway the Jury in Olsen's case which may make things worse."
"Or in his favour" Lena interjected, arriving in the midst of their conversation with Eliza close behind. "Sorry we're late" she apologised.
"We're still early" Nia said.
"Good, then we're right on time" Eliza smiled, taking her two daughters aside for a private talk. "I wanted to check in with the two of you about what happened" she whispered.
"You mean when I lost the only evidence we had to prove Jake framed James?" Kara pouted.
"I figured you'd still be blaming yourself" Eliza sighed. She also looked at Alex assuming "and I'm guessing your sister's been struggling to say the same because she's frustrated about her mistakes." Alex shifted uncomfortably rubbing her neck. "At the end of the day, what's done is done" she told them. "That's why we need each other. As long as you two stick together, you can handle anything. Okay?"
The adopted sisters nodded, looking at each other smiling. "Hey, Eliza, can I ask you something?" Kara enquired while they were huddled here. "If I had given the tape to the DA, would you have really let yourself be arrested for hiring the hitman?"
"Yes, I would've" she nodded. "As long as it meant he wouldn't ever be able to hurt any of you, I would've done what it takes." She embraced her daughters and returned to the group to converse with them.
Alex and Kara stood together in awkward silence for a moment. "I don't think I could've knowingly turned my mom in like that" Alex confessed.
Kara sighed in relief. "Neither could I" she admitted. "I don't think I would've used it. I talked to Nia, she was okay with it being destroyed. So was James. I couldn't let their secret identities be exposed like that."
Alex nodded, understanding completely. "So in the end, having that confession meant absolutely nothing" she remarked. They both broke into a chuckle shaking their heads. "At least you were trying to make things right" she sighed.
Kara looked at Alex. "Any word from the DEO about your suspension?" she asked.
She shook her head. "Not yet. That's honestly been the last thing on my mind lately" she said. "I've been too busy worrying after my little sister."
Kara smiled, adjusting her glasses as she turned to her. "I'm sorry all of this is my fault. Everything Jake has done has been to get at me and I'm not the one who's getting hurt."
"Kara, you were shot with a kryptonite bullet. You could've died! And that scared me" Alex whispered. She quickly composed herself before she could lose it, straightening her leather jacket telling the blonde "if there's one thing we all have in common, it's we're worried for you. You're the one we've been trying to keep safe. So don't feel bad about us, we knew what we were getting into. Mom knew, I knew, Olsen knows, so do Brainy and Nia. I mean, Christ, Nia accepted a costumed from Jake to save your life."
"I've already forgiven her for that" Kara muttered.
Alex groaned. "Of course you did. The point it, our priority has always been to look out for you and keep you safe. We won't let Jake get to you, no matter what happens. If that means I'm suspended indefinitely, Mom goes in trouble or Olsen has to deal with a courtroom for a while, we'll get through it. We have your back."
Kara beamed, overwhelmed by the sentiment. "Thanks Alex, I appreciate that" she said. The redhead nodded, putting her arm around her comfortingly.
The clock ticked towards ten so a man in a suit came out to alert everyone they could go in. everyone filed into the courtroom in silence. As they entered through the doors Alex looked up and saw Kelly already inside in the front row. She paused momentarily when their eyes met, an awkward moment of silence passing between them until she took a seat with Kara and Lena a few rows behind her. Maggie also arrived to oversee the hearing, sitting at the back respectfully. She nodded to Alex and Kara when they looked back. Nia and Brainy sat down together in another row, behind J'onn and Eliza so she could quietly talk to him. "James will be okay right? I mean, they can't deny him bail?" she whispered.
"Unlikely" he said optimistically. "I haven't calculated any variables that would lead to the judge ruling against awarding him bail. This should be a routine series of events." She exhaled in relief, even as the doors opened and James was lead into the courtroom.
He was flanked by two officers and led to his desk where his lawyer was waiting. His gaze was cast around the room, looking at his friends and family giving them a comforting nod. They nodded back, showing their support in silence as he was shown to his seat. At the spokesman's command, everyone rose to welcome the judge presiding over the hearing before once more taking their seats.
After a brief introduction the spokesman asked for Olsen to stand up. "Mr James Olsen" he recited officially. "You are charged with the following incitements: the murder of Henry Irons, the premeditated murder of Colonel Lauren Haley, multiple counts of homicide on assaults of law enforcement, destruction of government property, destruction of public property, procession of a dangerous weapon and several counts of domestic terrorism. How do you plead to these charges" he asked the defendant.
Olsen stood tall as he clearly recounted "Not Guilty."
There was a satisfied murmur as the plea was logged into the record. "Very well" the Judge acknowledged. "Then let us proceed with the bail hearing. Counsel?"
The district attorney stood up, a middle aged woman Alex, Brainy and J'onn knew well over the years. "Your honour, usually I would be inclined to accept a man of such standing in the community such as James Olsen at his word, but given the ferocity of the charges faced at him and the nature of the case, I'm recommending his bail be denied."
"Your honour" Olsen's defence lawyer interrupted, standing up for his client. "I have a written agreement signed by my client to abide to all of the standard conditions for bail for a high profile case such as this. He's agreed to surrender his passport and participate in regular check-ins with the NCPD. If there are other conditions the DA wishes to invoke given the ferocity of this case, we are open to discuss them" he told the court.
"It's not about how many conditions we lay at the defendant, your honour" she argued. "It's a question of risk. James Olsen is well known to be connected to many international networks from his career. And if he is found to be guilty of these charges, his network of support stretches wider than we can anticipate, which poses the question of him being a flight risk."
"You honour, need I remind the court that my client has yet to be found guilty of any charges put towards him and thus such concerns are unfounded."
While the lawyers argued their case back and forth, the small audience of spectators watched and listened nervously. Brainy looked thoughtful as he analysed the language they were using. "The District Attorney's logic is sound" he agreed. "But there is insufficient data to warrant withholding his bail." Around him everyone else seemed to agree.
There was movement from the entrance behind them which caught the attention of a handful of spectators. Almost everyone ignored the late arrival of another visitor until Kelly glanced behind her. Her postured stiffened as her eyes fell upon the new person, prompting the super friends to each look over their shoulder and discover who had caught her attention.
The silence became much more hostile when they found Jake White standing at the back of the courtroom watching the hearing, dressed in his leather biker jacket and jeans. He stood silently and listened to the lawyers who continued to debate Olsen's case even as the man glanced back and saw him watching. He didn't say or doing anything but watch, ignoring the stares and glares from the rest of the room.
"What the hell is he doing here" Alex hissed, fixing her eyes on him coldly while everyone else tried to focus on the hearing.
J'onn sensed Alex's agitation and leaned forward to put a strong hand on her shoulder. "Control yourself" he advised quietly, wordlessly insisting she turn around. "This is a public hearing. He has as much right to be here as we do."
"Still, you have to admire his audacity" Lena snarled under her breath next to Kara.
Kara glanced over her shoulder at him. He looked disturbingly calm as he watched the consequences of his actions unfold. His eyes drifted over and found her looking at him, a brief hint of a smirk as he nodded his head a tiny bit. She turned away inhaling sharply, trying not to worry about why he was here. But seeing him brought it all up, all the emotions she'd been unknowingly suppressing over the last few weeks. The voices of the lawyers started drowning out as her heartbeat filled her ears, the memories of her time dating the man overlapping with the trauma and carnage he wrought flashing through her mind. She stared straight ahead as she took slow breaths, her hearing picking out his calm and steady heartbeat behind her, the thumping spurring the thoughts in her head, the emotions swirling to the surface. she saw their first meeting overlapped with her first fight with the Reckoning, the day she introduced him to Olsen cut with the bombing of his apartment when he tried to kill Alex, their break up intercut with the interrogation at the DEO, the night they spent together mixed in with the look of hate and disgust as they confronted each other.
Everything she felt started to boil together, the betrayal and misplaced love colliding with the frustration and hate and sorrow and anger and rage, until the heat behind her eyes started to glow behind her pupils. Her thoughts were suddenly interrupted when Lena, noticing the tension in her friend as her fists clenched at her sides, reached over and grabbed her hand. Kara blinked and inhaled, turning to look at Lena's worried expression. Without speaking she assured her she was alright. Lena nodded, glancing at Jake out of the corner of her eye before turning her attention back to the stands.
"I've listened to the arguments of both the prosecution and the defendant" the Judge announced, gesturing to both sides. "and given the high profile nature of this particular case and the nature of the crimes laid at the defendant, I'm afraid I have to agree with the DA's recommendation and refuse bail." The announcement was hyphenated with the bang of their gavel, followed by the wave of shocked and disappointed responses from the spectators. "There will be an hour allocated for final visitation and consultation, after which the defendant will be remanded into custody in Iron Heights until his trial date in a week's time" the Judge added.
The court was adjourned moments later. Everyone rose to their feet in a mix of emotions Kelly stared at James who put on a brave face, insisting everything will be okay. Alex and Kara stayed in their pews but managed to convey their sympathies through their expressions. He mirrored them back, obediently following the officers back to his holding cell. Nia sank into her chair as Brainy mulled over the unpredictability of the outcome. J'onn, Eliza and Lena stood in silence, just seeking to be prepared to comfort their friends.
The court slowly started to file out of the room, the group all trying to understand how this happened. "They must've figured given how much of a public mess it is it was safer to keep him inside until the court" J'onn posited.
"But that's a week of Olsen in prison for something he didn't do" Nia cried.
"I know, but what's done is done" he said regrettably.
While everyone was trying to come to terms with what happened, Alex attempted to approach Kelly to offer her sympathies. The young black woman stood by the entrance, her body language showing her struggle to remain calm. Alex approached cautiously, unsure what to say. She waited until Kelly realised she was there before telling her "I'm sorry for how things happened. I want you to know we're doing everything we can to clear Olsen's name. We know who's behind it, we just…need time to prove it."
Kelly looked at her and swallowed a breath. She nodded. "I'm sorry I yelled at you" she said, somewhat reluctantly. "I know you were going your job. I know it's not your fault." She looked at Alex and shrugged. But then her eyes looked over her shoulder and narrowed. "And I know who did this" she scowled.
Alex looked back and saw Jake stepping out of the courtroom, standing in the lobby casting a silent look towards them. He stood there for only a moment, long enough to see the glowering glares from the group before turning around to walk towards the exit. Alex felt the heat rise in her chest as she followed him with her gaze, her hands clenching into fists. She looked back at Kelly, who had already excused herself to speak with their lawyer. Alex took that opportunity to storm off towards the exit, following Jake.
As she walked, Maggie and J'onn both noticed her path and began moving to intercept her. She stormed ahead, following Jake out of the courthouse and into the street outside. "You have some nerve" she growled as she marched up to the young man.
Jake slowed to a stop a turned back to address her, his hands in his pockets pointing out "it's a public hearing. No reason for me not to step in and take a look."
"You think you're untouchable, don't you" she snarled, advancing on him until J'onn and Maggie rushed forward to grab her before she didn't something she'd regret. "You think you've won, but you won't get away with this. I will make sure of that" she spat angrily.
Jake smirked in amusement before looking to J'onn. "You want to get your god daughter in line Martian? Last time she went off the handle she got suspended. Wouldn't want anything worse to happen" he said.
J'onn scowled at him while he dragged a furious Alex away. Maggie stepped between them heavily suggesting to Jake "just walk away. Go!" he held up his hands defensively, backing up and removing himself from this confrontation. Maggie spun around and glared at Alex. "What were you thinking?"
"I'm thinking he must've had a reason to be here!" she said accusingly.
"Yeah, to get in your head" she agreed. "He knows we don't have anything on him. Worse, he knows he can get a rise out of you. You can't let him get under your skin. You have to control that temper of yours."
"I don't have a temper" she shouted. She then caught the volume she used and sighed, backing down pacing the street.
J'onn took her by the shoulders and told her "I know it's frustrating. I hate him too. But you can't let him bait you into another outburst like you did at the DEO" he warned her. "You're still suspended. If you attacked him now, he could press charges and you'd be in much the same trouble as Olsen. Or worse…" he trailed off, averting his gaze.
Alex looked up at him. "Or worse what?"
He fixed a concerned gaze on her. "Or worse, considering he is capable of murder, he could retaliate and hurt you instead."
Alex looked down from his face. The thought had crossed her mind, but she didn't care. She pushed past the tall man telling him she needed to get some air. The two of them watched her walk off, hoping the walk would calm her down. But J'onn sensed a stray thought drift from the young woman's mind as she left, one that left him even more worried.
"Not if I kill him first."