A/N – Thanks for the comments! Glad you liked the hotness and rest!

Chapter 51

The next day, Liz got ready for the first day of the trial. She was a little nervous about the proceeding and testifying, knowing that Ric's lawyer was probably a piranha. Her phone rang and when she saw it was Jason, so she quickly answered. "Hello?"

"Hey. I'm just checking on you."

"I'm good. Do you want me to pick you up?"

"No, Edward, Tracy, and Monica are going to come with me."

"Alright."

There was knock on the door. "Hold on."

She opened it and was surprised to see Andrea and Audrey standing there.

"We're here to give you a ride," her mother explained.

Liz smiled and backed up. "My mom and Grams are here to give me a ride."

"Good. Go talk to them. I'll see you soon."

"Alright." She ended the call and then embraced them. "Thanks for coming."

"We couldn't let you do this alone," Audrey explained.

"Well, I greatly appreciate it and I know Jason needs the support too."

"Your father has surgery, but he'll be there later."

Liz nodded. "Let me grab my purse." She fetched it and then they were on their way.

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Ric watched everyone enter the room. His lawyer sat next to him, placing a folder down before taking a sip of water.

"They look so smug," Hugh Hughes said as he adjusted his glasses and then smoothed the back of his short brown hair.

"Let's hope their arrogance will work against them," Ric said. He loved money more than anything and would do whatever it took in order to keep it.

"That's what I'm counting on."

Elizabeth took a seat behind Jason to his left so he could easily look over his shoulder and see her. Diane sat at the end and prepared her paperwork. Liz's eyes connected with Ric's and he gave her a lazy smiled. She immediately turned away.

"Don't let him bother you," Jason said.

She stood and took a few steps forward. "I can't help it. Every time I look at him, I want to punch him in the face."

Jason smirked. "That is tempting."

"I just want him to pay."

"Me too."

Edward walked behind them and squeezed Jason's shoulder before taking a seat next to Tracy and Monica. If Ric walked, he would find another way to make sure that he suffers. There is no way he will let that scoundrel get away with hurting his grandson.

Sonny quietly sat at the back of the room with Carly. Unfortunately, Ric's lawyer called him as a witness. He just hoped that he wouldn't end up helping his brother who he hadn't spoke to since he fired him.

Everyone stood as the judge entered the room. He was introduced and he went over the rules and then they all relaxed.

"Ms. Miller, please proceed with your opening statement."

Diane stood and approached the jury. She looked at each one of them before beginning to speak. "As you all know, a tornado hit our beloved town a few months ago which unfortunately, struck two wings at General Hospital. The existing wing had some windows blown out, but remained structurally sound. The new wing, however, did not fare as well." She turned and motioned for the lights to be lowered and a projector was clicked on. "As you can see, this is how it stood before the storm. To the naked eye, it looks beautiful and while it was not finished, it held the promise of being the foremost children's heart wing on the East Coast.

This week, you will hear expert testimony as to why that wing ultimately became a death trap. There is a preponderance of evidence suggesting that poor workmanship contributed to the collapse. Clearly, the older wing had no problem withstanding the storm as did all other habitable structures in the area. We are here to right a wrong. Faulty materials were used and harm was done because of it. I want you to listen to all the testimony and carefully weigh everyone's words and actions. Remember who the victims were and do right by them, because it's what they deserve. This collapse didn't have to happen. Their pain, nightmares, and life upheaval could have been avoided. The defense will try to say that it was all due to the tornado. He will try to blame the victims or anyone else he can rather than have Mr. Lansing take personal responsibility for his actions and decision making and only you have the ability to make him accountable." She quickly clicked through the pictures of the rubble and then the emotional scenes of Elizabeth and Jason being rescued including one where Liz was crying flickered across the screen. "I want you to remember Ms. Webber's face." She clicked to the next slide. "I want you to remember Mr. Morgan's unconscious and limp form being hoisted into the air. Luckily, they survived, no thanks to the defendant who walked out on the construction leaving Ms. Webber unable to meet her deadline. He was unresponsive, not returning her phone calls and left her no other choice but to call on another construction company. Unfortunately, the storm hit and the building couldn't withstand it, leaving Mr. Morgan and Ms. Webber broken and battered beneath it. Now it's time to compensate them for having to endure this harrowing experience. The defendant didn't want to admit wrong and settle even though his employer was willing to do the right thing. It is up to you to decide if Mr. Lansing should be liable and what my client's pain and suffering is worth. Thank you."

Hugh waited for Diane to sit down and then stood to face the jury. "My client has been painted into some unfeeling monster, and that simply is not true. There was no malice in his heart regarding the tragedy that occurred and there is no way to prove that the tornado wasn't entirely responsible. Mr. Lansing left the site because of Ms. Webber's unreasonable timeline. He didn't abandon her. Sometimes, a cooling off period is necessary. If it weren't for the storm, the collapse wouldn't have occurred because the beam could have been secured. The storm is directly at fault. Through expert testimony, you will see that to be the case and will hopefully find that my client is innocent and that the victims have already been fairly compensated. Mr. Lansing approached Ms. Webber to try and make a deal prior to the trial, but their grandiose expectations would leave him a broken man. He didn't send the tornado to get them. A natural event took place and unfortunately, people got hurt which my client is truly sorry about."

The juror's eyes traveled to Ric who looked completely pathetic and Edward wanted to reach out and strangle him.

"Mr. Lansing lost his livelihood and reputation due to this tragic accident. No one came out of it unscathed. He and his workers took pride in their work. You'll hear from them and will come to see that it was just an accident. I just ask you to give him a chance and hear his words so you know where he is coming from. Everyone wants to blame someone when something bad happens. Well, in this case, it's the tornado. By siding with the prosecution, you will just be creating another victim. It's in your hands and we are praying that you will do right by Mr. Lansing so he can try to start his life over again. Thank you."

Diane decided that she hated Hugh. The jury was moved by Ric's show of emotion. Now it was her job to see to it that they were bombarded with the hard, cold facts.

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Patrick straightened his tie and then kissed Epiphany softly on the lips. "Wish me luck."

"You'll be fine. Just tell the truth."

"I just don't want them to twist anything."

"They'll try, but in the end, the truth isn't disputable."

He held her for a moment. "Are you ready to go back to work tomorrow?"

She pulled back with a grin lighting up her face. "Hell yeah."

"Why don't we have a special dinner tonight."

"I would like that."

"Then it's a date. I love you."

"I love you too."

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Diane had already called several witnesses, mostly workers. She had saved one of them for the next day, noting the jurors looked tired. Patrick was the next to the last witness and she smiled when she saw him. He cleaned up nice. A few the younger female jurors definitely perked up.

He was asked to swear in and then sat.

"Dr. Drake, can you please tell me the condition of Mr. Morgan and Ms. Webber after they were rescued?"

"Ms. Webber was dehydrated, had a cut on her head that needed suturing, a mild concussion, deep bruising on various parts of her body and a sprained ankle and wrist along with bruised ribs."

"Was any of it critical?"

"No."

"Go on."

"Mr. Morgan was unconscious. He had lost his memory due to a severe blow on the head which resulted in brain swelling and needed surgery to relieve the pressure. He had a broken leg with required nailing in order to set it. A piece of the bone had broken through his skin so he lost a lot of blood. His back was badly bruised and he had several broken ribs. After surgery, he was experiencing seizures."

"In other words, he was a mess?"

"Yes."

"Were you surprised that he survived?"

"Given the loss of blood and the head injury, yes I was."

"Thank you. No further questions, your honor."

"Would you like to redirect?"

Hugh stood. "Yes."

"Proceed."

"Dr. Drake, are you friends with Ms. Webber?"

Patrick looked confused. "Yes, why?"

"Just an observation. Now, even though in your opinion you were surprised, Mr. Morgan has healed rather quickly. Is that correct?"

"Pretty much."

"What would you add?"

"He was in good shape before the incident, so he is healing faster than I expected. After the first three weeks, he started to show a lot of improvement."

"Are you expecting any permanent damage?"

"Well, he will have some scarring in his frontal lobe which could cause problems down the road. He has an increased change of arthritis, due to the break as well mobility issues, and he also may have lingering affects due to his ribs breaking. Only time will tell."

"What about brain damage?"

"There was no additional damage."

"Will he be able to keep his job?"

"Yes. He is just getting out of the boot, but it will be a few more months until he can lift anything heavy, so he's on modified duty."

"Thank you. No further questions."

"Thank you Dr. Drake, you may step down," the judge said.

"Your next witness?"

"I have one more for today. I call Roy Dilucca to the stand."

Roy got up and smiled at Elizabeth and Jason as he past by. He was sworn in and then took a seat.

"Mr. Dilucca, please explain to the jury who you are."

"I'm a rescue special responder. I'm trained in dangerous rescues."

"Can you explain to us what you saw and heard on that day?"

Roy took a deep breath. "When I came on the scene, they had already tried to move some of the debris away to get to them. Rescue dogs had been sent in before that and they used a mic on his color to communicate with Elizabeth. It gave us the opportunity to know their condition and make sure they were still with us."

"At what point did you risk your life to go in?"

"Mr. Morgan had lost consciousness and we knew that we didn't have time to waste. After substantial debris was removed, I was dropped into the clearing via a basket on the end of a fire truck. Once their position was detected, I could see that a beam was on top of them so I radioed for special equipment to lift it off. I crawled over to them and explained the precarious situation to Elizabeth. We used some chainsaws to clear more of the area and then I could see them better."

"How would you describe their condition?"

"Elizabeth was coherent and relieved."

"And Jason?"

"I couldn't assess him at that time. He was face down on top of Ms. Webber having taken the brunt of the collapse."

Diane perused the jury who seemed to have perked up. "Go on."

"After a while, I was able to get into the space they were in."

"And what was her response."

"She started to cry. I don't think that she expected to get out of there."

"Heresay," Hugh called out.

"Substained."

"Then what happened?" Diane asked.

"Well, I covered her with a blanket the best I could and then they lifted the beam off. I assessed their conditions and saw Jason's broken bone. I called it in and let her speak to her dad who is a doctor. Then we got Jason stabilized and into a basket which was attached to a rope and he was lifted into a helicopter. I stayed with Elizabeth until it was time for her to do the same."

"Was she scared?"

"Yes, but I think having someone there with her, talking to her helped."

"Thank you Mr. Dilucca. No further questions."

"Your witness Mr. Hughes."

Hugh stood. "Mr. Dilucca, can you describe the damage further?"

"Sure. The tornado had twisted a lot of the metal which made it difficult to get through."

"What about the beam?"

"It fell directly on them, but it also helped create a pocket because of how it fell."

"So, even though it did damage, it also saved them."

Diane flopped back in her seat. This was unbelievable. He just implied that they should be happy the beam fell because it saved their lives.

"I guess you could look at it that way. However—"

"No further questions your honor."

"Permission to re-direct," Diane said standing.

"Granted."

"Mr. Dilucca, from your expert opinion, if the beam hadn't of fallen, the building probably wouldn't have collapsed, right?"

"Well, probably not. A tornado was involved, so if you used the other wing that didn't collapsed as a basis, then maybe a few windows would have shattered instead of the collapse that occurred."

Hugh stood. "Your honor, I would like to point out that the other wing was not hit as directly as the one the victims were in. It's highly speculative to compare the two on an equal basis when the brunt of the storm wasn't the same."

"Duly noted."

"No further questions," Diane said before sitting down. She could see the jurors milling that last statement around in their heads and she felt like screaming. After all the good, it had taken one sentence from that mealy mouth shark to undo all the good she had done.

"Alright, we will resume in the morning. Court is dismissed." The harshness of the gavel bang echoed in the room, making Diane cringe. She had a lot of work to do.

A/N – Hugh Hughes was a slimy attorney from OLTL