The FAYZ Trials Chapter 6
It was Quinn's turn now. He stood waiting nervously for the questioning to begin. He knew he should be confident, he knew that he needn't worry – Karim was a great lawyer and everything would be fine. Why then did he feel like he was about to face the firing squad? His hands were sweaty and his tie was still way too tight and felt like it was strangling him.
In walked Freddy Wishman, tall, blonde and handsome, dressed head to toe in designer threads. This guy scared the crap out of Quinn, not since Drake in the FAYZ had he been so scared of one person. Freddy had the power to decide Quinn's fate and yet had no clue what it was like to be stuck for months in a nightmare.
Moments later Karim walked in looking somewhat relaxed. Quinn had seen his good work with Sam and it looked as if that case was a sure 'not guilty.'
Finally the judge called for silence and the trial began. Freddy was to ask questions first and Quinn braced himself.
"So," Freddy began checking his notes and not even looking up at Quinn in his booth. "Mr Gaither, I'm just looking through these notes I have on you – call it your FAYZ CV if you will – and I've got to say: you didn't really do much to help out during your time in the FAYZ did you?"
"What?" Quinn blurted out feeling deeply offended "I was a fisherman! I kept people from starving!" Freddy looked unimpressed and continued to scan his notes.
"Rrrright, so caught some cod. But you didn't have any powers, you didn't join the gung-ho army movement that Mr Escobar ran, you weren't on the council, you didn't go to the lakes with your so-called best friend Sam choosing to instead stay put at the beach with Caine Soren and his cronies." He paused and looked up at Quinn with a grin "now that's not really much help is it? Now let's be honest Quinn, say you were sick one day and couldn't fish, wasn't there anybody else who could have gone out and hauled in a load that day? Were you really the only one? Did the whole survival rate of the FYAZ depend solely on you?"
"I guess not." Quinn mumbled
"I'm sorry Mr Gaither but you're going to have to speak up this is a courtroom not a library" Freddy cupped his hand to his ear mockingly.
"No it didn't." Quinn said loudly.
"Right, so we've established that you contributed next to nothing to the FAYZ," Freddy continued "why exactly? Is it simply idleness or is there a deeper, more profound reason for your lack of responsibility?"
Quinn felt hot under the collar, this guy was talking rubbish! He knew he was important to the FAYZ why was he letting this guy tell him otherwise?
"I've told you I was a fisherman, I had a lot of responsibility and people depended on me, I didn't shirk off or keep my head down I helped out!" he said desperately.
"Mr Gaither would you kindly just answer my questions?" Freddy said ignoring everything Quinn had just said. "Were you lazy or was it perhaps that you didn't like being ordered around by your best friend Sam Temple? Is that why you didn't shoot down the mutant Drake and coyotes that night and allow several kids to be injured and die? Is that why you stayed with Sam Temple's rival and brother; Caine Soren when the rest of Perdido Beach packed up and went to the lakes with Sam? Tell us Quinn we're all dying to know!"
Edilio and Lana sat on the couch in Lana's hotel room watching the TV screen. They were watching the trials of course. Unlike Sam, Caine, Diana and others neither of them were up for trial, which they both admitted was a little harsh since they'd both done a lot of bad things during the FAYZ. Lana had, in the eyes of the public and the court, done more good than bad by healing so many kids and Edilio as a sort of army general had been let off too because he'd protected people and only fought to defend. They were both in town to give evidence at several different cases and were staying in the same hotel.
"Poor Quinn," Edilio muttered whilst cracking open a coke. "That lawyer is harsh."
"Plus he has no idea how much Quinn actually did to help us out," Lana added eyes glued to the screen "If anything we've done worse than he ever has."
"Right" Edilio agreed.
"I mean I shot you." Lana said with a wry grin and Edilio fidgeted awkwardly.
"Yeah, but that was, you know...different."
Lana snorted and rolled her eyes "Oh sure: I'm innocent your Honour there was this thing called the Gaiaphage controlling me, it made me do it!" They laughed it was weird to be making jokes about the Gaiaphage but they now knew that they were at last free from it.
"I bet that's what Caine will say." Edilio said once the laughter had subsided. Lana's face went dark just like in the old days.
"Yeah well, nobody will believe him."
I hope. Edilio mentally added.
"You don't understand!" Quinn protested "I didn't shoot because I couldn't it was too hard for me! I barely knew how to hold a gun! What if I missed?"
"We're not here to speculate Mr Gaither," Freddy said wearily, this trial was boring. Why couldn't they just charge the spineless kid already? "you allowed the coyote pack led by Drake Merwin to attack the day care centre when you were armed and in a superior position! Do you think that we're all just supposed to accept and forgive that?"
Quinn didn't answer and Freddy knew he'd cracked him. A quick glance at the jury and he could see that they too were convinced.
"Look Quinn, because of you the day care centre was attacked. Because of you, kids died. Because of you and your lack of responsibility Drake Merwin was free to roam the FAYZ and continue with his spree of merciless torturing. Quinn people died because of you."
The boy looked ill, like he'd just seen a dead body or something, he tugged at his collar.
"Quinn your lack of responsibility cost lives, don't you have anything to say for yourself?" Freddy asked the pale boy.
"I-"
Quinn Gaither collapsed.
"Did you see that?!" Edilio leapt off of the sofa and hit the rewind button. Poor Quinn had passed out live on TV.
"Geez, sure he looked pale but I didn't expect that!" Lana said dryly without even moving from her place on the couch. She watched as Edilio rewound then played then rewound and then played Quinn's epic fall over and over. "Why don't you put it back to live TV so we can see what's happened to him?"
Edilio clicked play and the live footage was of several police officers crowding around the box where Quinn had been standing, Karim Smith, Quinn's lawyer was there too and in the corner of the screen the judge was having what looked like some pretty harsh words with Freddy Wishman.
"What a jerk!" Edilio said as the camera panned over to Freddy and the judge "I mean telling Quinn he was responsible for killing people! It's out of line!"
Lana sighed and helped herself to one of the nearby sodas
"C'est la vie, Edilio," she said "That Wishman guy is only doing his job, I mean Quinn should have been prepared for something like this."
"The guy practically accused him of murder!" Edilio looked really angry now and Lana decided it was best not to push the debate any further. One thing was certain though, she was glad she wasn't on trial.
Caine was waiting in the courtroom foyer with an armed guard when the ambulance pulled up outside. At first he'd thought nothing of it and carried on reading through the case notes that Karim had written up for him, but then a group of paramedics rushed inside and were led into the courtroom. The next minute they were exiting the room carrying a stretcher that held a conscious but very pale and shaky Quinn. They were followed by the judge, Karim, Freddy Wishman and a few policemen – and about a dozen TV cameramen.
"Hey what's happening?" Caine asked Karim as Quinn was loaded into the ambulance.
"He collapsed midway through his trial," Karim replied wearily "It was all Freddy's fault – he seemed to think it was a murder trial. He was ruthless, you're going to need to have your wits about you if you want to stand a chance at getting off lightly."
Caine narrowed his eyes at Karim and leaned closer to his ear.
"I'm paying you to keep your wits about you so don't lecture me!" he hissed and Karim raised his hands in surrender.
"Sure, sure, you're right." He said but Caine wasn't convinced – he needed someone he could depend on in court and without Diana the only person who could help him out was this guy. Brilliant.
One of the secretaries came over to the two of them with a schedule in hand.
"Due to the unforeseen circumstances we've pushed your trial forward, we'll see you in the next hour if that's alright with you?" she was talking to Karim and was completely ignoring Caine. That annoyed him, why wasn't she checking to see if it was okay with him? He was the one on trial! Caine shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his trousers and mimicked tossing her across the hall.
"I'm sure that'll be fine," Karim replied looking at Caine suspiciously "but what about Sam Temple? I thought the jury had reached their verdict?"
"They have," the secretary replied "and they'll be giving it in a few minutes time."
For some reason there was a mask on his face. Quinn blinked and shook his head, he'd slipped in and out of consciousness several times but this time he'd come round for good. Squirming, he yanked the oxygen mask off of his face and tried to sit up.
"Hey watch it son, you don't want to get up too fast!" a bald guy in a green suit was sitting opposite him and Quinn realised he was in an ambulance.
"Wait now – what's going on?" he asked "Why am I here? I'm supposed to be on trial!" panic sunk in and he sat up way too fast making his head spin out of control. "Wow!"
"Okay, like I said take it easy!" the paramedic stood up and gently pushed Quinn back into a lying position "don't worry, you had a blackout in court and passed out, that's all but we need to get you checked up of course."
Suddenly Quinn kind of remembered standing in the box and feeling very, very woozy . It was that Freddy guy and all of his murderer talk that set him off.
"Thanks I guess," Quinn muttered to the paramedic
"Hey no worries kid!" he laughed "that's what we're here for!"
Freddy was getting himself a coffee in the court foyer. He was naturally a bit peeved after his telling off from the judge but it wasn't his fault the kid collapsed. Anyway, that didn't matter – what mattered was that he'd swayed the jury big time and that the whole thing was the headline news that evening. Besides the kid would be fine – he wasn't the first person to collapse in court and he wouldn't be the last.
Freddy poured one of the mini cartons of milk into his coffee and checked his phone for any missed calls. He was nervous and he knew it – this is what he did when he was nervous, stupid things like drink cheap, bitter coffee and check for calls he knew he didn't have, all because he was nervous. Nervous because Sam Temple's verdict was in and in a few minutes he'd be back in the courtroom in front of the world waiting to see if he or Karim had won the battle.
Well it had to be him! Sure that Astrid girl had been a pain but secretly, Freddy had enjoyed taking her on, it was a challenge plus it made for some great TV. And as for Sam himself – what a walkover! Yeah, he'd be fine – no need to be at all nervous.
"Hey Wishman!" Freddy turned around to see Karim marching over to him looking very angry.
"What's up bro?" Freddy joked pouring more milk into the coffee
"Don't goof around with me Freddy," Karim snapped "I've had enough of you and your mind games, what the hell did you think you were playing at in there? Quinn has been taken to hospital because of you! Did you think this was a murder case or something?!"
"Calm down Karim," Freddy said "Look, I'm just doing my job and if you can't handle the heat then I suggest you get out of my kitchen, friend."
"No I'm serious Freddy, you crossed the line back there – accusing him of murder!"
"Ah, ah, ah!" Freddy interjected waving the wooden stirring spoon at Karim "Now I never actually accused him did I? I was simply pointing out that because of his actions – or in this case: lack of them – several kids died, now in my world that does not translate as: I accuse you of murder."
"It's bullshit and you know it!" Karim shouted "I mean I could say the same thing about you! What if something dreadful happens to Quinn on his way to the hospital, what if the ambulance crashes huh?"
"Well then I'll be sending my condolences to his family." Freddy replied getting bored of Karim's overdramatic behaviour.
"Well I could say: hey it's Freddy's fault he was in the ambulance in the first place – he's a murderer!" Karim argued. Freddy laughed
"Oh please are we really resorting to these kind of amateur, school-boy tactics? Face it Karim, I owned your client in there. You're just pissed because you know you can't defeat me."
This time it was Karim who laughed
"Defeat you? Is that what you think this is? Some sort of game or, or battle? Welcome to reality Freddy, these are real people's lives we're dealing with here, not some cartoon character on your Nintendo."
"Court will begin in two minutes!" called the usher
"Alright Karim, you've had your rant," Freddy sighed tossing the remains of his coffee into the nearby potted plant "now, if you'll excuse me I have more pressing issues to deal with." And he turned away and headed to the courtroom.
"I mean it Freddy!" Karim called after him "you're pathetic and your ways won't do you good for long! You're nothing but a sham and a fraud!"
"Hey!" Freddy turned and called back whilst walking backward towards the courtroom door "take it to court!" and with an amused chuckle he strutted into the room, nerve-free.