It was the night before the trial and Sammy was nervous. He was scared about having to face Kenny in court. Dean was trying his best to keep Sammy calm.
"Sammy, don't worry about tomorrow. Dad and I will be there," said Dean. John was letting Dean miss school to be at the trial to support Sammy.
"I know Dean," said Sammy with a yawn.
Just then John came in the room to say goodnight to the boys.
Okay, Sammy, Dean it's time to go to sleep," said John
"Goodnight Daddy," said Sammy reaching up for a hug.
John hugged him and kissed the top of his head before turning to Dean and hugging him.
"Goodnight Dad," said Dean.
John turned off the light and exited the room.
oooooOOOOooooo
The next day the Winchesters left for the courthouse early. Mitch wanted to meet with Sammy one last time to go over his testimony. When they arrived they were escorted to a private meeting room.
When they reached the meeting room they found Molly Wadsworth sitting on a bench next to the door. Her parents let her return so she could also testify against Kenny. Molly knew it was the right thing to do. When she saw Sammy she stood up.
"Sammy," cried Molly as she tried to hug him.
Sammy backed away from her. He was still angry with her and did not want her to touch him. John put his hand on Sammy's shoulder.
"Oh Sammy I'm so sorry," cried Molly.
"You said you wouldn't let him hurt me. You lied," yelled Sammy angrily.
Dean put his arms around Sammy protectively. It was his way of saying I'm here for you Sammy and I won't let her hurt you.
"Haven't you done enough already? Leave Sammy alone!" Dean glared at Molly.
Mitch could feel the tension when he arrived. He had only found out the day before that Molly wanted to testify. He had spent the day drawing up a motion to allow her to testify with such short notice because he knew that the defense attorney might try to prevent her from testifying. With all this going on he didn't get a chance to the let Sammy know that she would be at the trial. He was now wishing he had.
Mitch ushered the Winchesters into the meeting room. He explained why Molly was there and apologized for not informing them ahead of time. They went over Sammy's testimony one more time. Mitch warned Sammy that Kenny's attorney would try to trip him up on the stand.
"Sammy he's going to say things that aren't true or nice. Just stay calm and try not to let what he says upset you, okay?" said Mitch with a nod.
"Okay," replied Sammy.
The bailiff appeared and told them it was time for the trial to start. They all walked out of the room together and headed into the courtroom.
"Sammy, I want you to know how proud I am of you," said John as he hugged his youngest.
After the Judge entered the room and took his seat on the bench, Mitch stood up to make his opening statement. He told the jury about how a young boy was brutally attacked in his own home by an adult.
"That young boy Samuel Winchester is here today to face his attacker and tell us what happened to him. The person who hurt him is here in the courtroom sitting at the defense table," said Mitch pointing directly at Kenny.
The defense attorney, a short, overweight, balding man named George Littleton, stood up and made his opening statement. He said a bunch of crap about how the police were trying to frame an innocent man. Dean glared at him the whole time he spoke. If looks could kill he would have burst into flames from the heat of Dean's stare alone.
Sammy was the first witness called to testify. After he was sworn in, Mitch asked him to tell the jury what happened. Sammy told them everything that had happened to him. This time when he finished his story he was near tears, but didn't cry.
"Sammy, do you see the person who hurt you in this courtroom today?" asked Mitch.
"Yes, he did it," replied Sammy pointing at Kenny.
"Let the record reflect that the witness has identified the defendant Kenneth Miller," said Mitch.
"So noted," said the judge.
"Thank you Sammy. No further questions you honor," said Mitch before he sat down.
The Defense attorney walked over and stood in front of Sammy.
"Hi Sammy. I just have a few questions to ask you. Do you get along well with your dad?" asked George.
"Yes," replied Sammy.
"Does your dad ever get mad at you or yell at you?" asked George.
"Sometimes, he gets mad when I forget to put my toys away," answered Sammy.
"Has your dad ever hit you?" asked George.
"My Daddy has never hit me! He loves me!" responded Sammy angrily.
Dean nearly jumped out of his seat when he heard the question. John put his hand on Dean's arm. He didn't like it anymore than Dean, but he knew that they could get thrown out of the courtroom if they started yelling.
"Has your brother ever hit you?" asked George.
It took all of John's inner strength not to deck the guy right then and there. He figured that the defense attorney might try and blame him for Sammy's injuries, but he never thought that the bastard would accuse Dean. John's hands were clenched into tight fists.
"No. Dean takes care of me. He would never hurt me!" said Sammy with a glare. How dare this man say something like that about Dean.
George tried several more times to trip up Sammy. The young Winchester was adamant that the only one who had hurt him was Kenny. You could see the look of disgust on the jurors' face ask they watched George question Sammy. They did not like watching the attorney harass a young child.
After Sammy finished testifying he went and sat down next to his dad and Dean. John put his arm around Sammy.
"You did real well up there Sammy," whispered John.
Molly was up next. Her testimony collaborated with Sammy's. George tried to trip her up as well, but was unsuccessful. The prosecution called Dr. Bombay to testify as to the extent of Sammy's injuries. After that the prosecution rested their case.
It was now the defense's turn. Kenny was the only witness called. He lied through his teeth. He said that when he left the condo Sammy was perfectly fine.
"I don't know who hurt the kid, but it wasn't me," said Kenny in sickeningly sweet voice.
When Mitch questioned Kenny he stuck to his story. He kept saying he was innocent, but he didn't sound that convincing. You could just tell by the look on some of the jurors' faces that they weren't buying his innocent act. The defense rested their case after Kenny's testimony.
After the two attorneys gave their closing arguments the jurors retired to the jury room to begin deliberations. Mitch walked over to Sammy.
"Sammy I just wanted to tell you how brave I thought you were up there on the stand. You did really well today. I think we have an excellent chance of winning," Mitch smiled at Sammy.
"Really?" said Sammy. He was relived that the trial was almost over.
"So when will we know if we won?" asked Dean.
"When the Jury is done deliberating, they call us to come back and hear the verdict," answered Mitch.
Just then the bailiff came over and informed the prosecutor that the jury was done with their deliberations. It had only been 28 minutes. That was probably the short amount of time for a deliberation in the state's history.
The jurors shuffled back into the courtroom and resumed their seats in the jury box. Mitch stared at their faces, as they came in trying to get read on which way they voted. Everyone stood up when the judge walked in and sat when he told them to be seated.
The bailiff handed the verdict to the judge who looked at it briefly before handing back to the bailiff. He returned it to the jury foreman. The Judge told the defendant to standup. He then asked the foreman to read the verdict.
"We the jury find the defendant, Kenneth Miller, guilty of all charges," said the jury foreman.
Sammy felt an invisible wait lift from his shoulders. Kenny's going to jail he thought. John and Dean both hugged him at the same time.
"Bailiff, please take the defendant into custody. Sentencing will be tomorrow at 9 o'clock," said the judge.
Mitch walked over to Sammy and gave him a big hug.
"You did it Sammy. It was your testimony that convicted Kenny," said Mitch.
"You were pretty good too," said Sammy. He was really starting to like the whole legal process, especially since it work in his favor. It might be kind of cool to a lawyer when I grow up he thought.
John thanked Mitch for everything he did for Sammy. John was glad that he didn't follow his initial instinct and take care of Kenny himself. He was beginning to realize that this trial had been very beneficial to helping Sammy move forward after what had happened to him.
John took the boys out for pizza to celebrate. They were sitting in a booth eating a deep dish with the works.
"Daddy, how long will Kenny go to jail for?" asked Sammy.
"I don't know son. I hope for a long time. We'll find out tomorrow at the sentencing," sighed John.
"Dad, when we get home, can I call Steve and give him the good news?" asked Dean.
"Certainly, Steve and his family deserve to know that Kenny's going to jail," said John.
That night Sammy slept peacefully with the knowledge that his attacker was going to jail. He hoped that Kenny was sent to jail for a very, very, very long time.
oooooOOOOooooo
The next morning everyone was back at the courthouse for the sentencing. The bailiff asked everyone to stand as the judge entered to the courtroom. The judge began speaking after everyone was seated.
"Kenneth Miller you are hereby sentenced to a term of not less than seven years in jail and not more than fifteen years. You will not be eligible for parole until you have served at least seven years," said the Judge.
Mitch was pleased with the sentence. He knew that the judge would not have sentenced Kenny to a jail term longer than fifteen years. At least he'll be away for seven years he thought.
Kenny was not pleased with the sentence. As he was being led away by the bailiff he turned and glared at Sammy.
"I'll get you for this, you little brat. When I get out, you'll pay," shouted Kenny angrily.
Sammy wrapped his arms around his dad tightly. Molly walked over to Sammy. She crouched down until she was eye level with him.
"Sammy, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that Kenny hurt you. I know you're angry with me and you have every right to be. I told you I wouldn't let him hurt you, but he did. I'm sorry," said Molly sincerely. She meant every word that she said.
This time when Molly put her arms out Sammy didn't back away. He let her hug him. Dean, still angry at Molly, had moved towards them. John put his hand on Dean's shoulder and held him back.
"We have to follow Sammy's lead," whispered John.
10 Years Later
Sam had only been away at college a couple of months when John got a call from an old friend in Fort Riley. Fred was a mechanic who had worked with John. It seems Kenny had been paroled.
"John, I just wanted to let you know that Kenny Miller's out of jail," said Fred.
"What, they paroled that bastard!" growled John.
"Unfortunately, they did. John the reason I called is that Kenny's trying to track down Sammy. He's been asking all over town if anyone knows where Sammy is," said Fred. "He's also been trying to locate Molly too. Lucky for her she's in Germany."
"Germany?" asked John.
"Yeah, she really got her act together. She's married now. Her husband's in the army and they're stationed in Germany. They have a little girl who's two. Word in the street is that Kenny said the next time he runs into her she's as good as dead. He said the same thing about Sammy. Thought you should know," said Fred.
"Thanks Fred," said John before he hung up the phone.
John sat at the table for a few minutes not sure what he was going to do. For the first time, since Sam left for school John was actually glad that he was in California because it was a long way from Kansas.
Just then door to their small apartment opened and Dean walked in. He had been at the pharmacy picking up medicine. He was nursing a nasty head cold that didn't seem to want to go away. He could tell something was off with his Dad.
"Hey, Dad what's up?" asked Dean.
"Nothing son. Did you get your medicine?" asked John.
"Yeah," answered Dean.
John said he was tired and went to bed early that night. He woke up in the middle of the night shaking. He had that nightmare again. The one he started having after Sam was attacked. He had dreamed that he was standing outside the old condo in Fort Riley. This time when he stepped into the condo and found Sam lying on the floor he couldn't get him to wake up. John knew right then and there what he had to do.
The next morning John told Dean he had to make a trip to pick up some ammo. Dean wanted to go with him, but John told him that he needed to stay home and rest. Dean tried to argue with but John was insistent. He didn't want Dean involved with what he had to do.
John had no problem finding the rundown apartment building Kenny was living. He knocked on the door loudly. Kenny opened up the door to face an angry John. He thought he was a salesman.
"Whatever you're selling, I'm not buying, said Kenny with a sneer.
"What, Kenny you don't remember me?" said John with an icy tone.
"Who the hell are you?" asked Kenny.
"I'm Sam Winchester's father," growled John.
"Yeah, well tell your son when I see him he's dead meat," said Kenny with a sneer.
John lost all of his self-control at that moment and he hit Kenny across his jaw. Kenny staggered backwards, but kept himself from falling. He swung back at John who ducked. Kenny's hand hit the wall with a loud crack. He began swearing. John hit him again. He let all of the anger he had kept bottled up flow out of him as he hit Kenny.
"He was just a little boy, you bastard. A little boy and you broke him," yelled John.
John stopped after several minutes. He wouldn't kill Kenny. He had sworn to himself after fighting in Vietnam that he would never take another human life again. He left him lying on the floor moaning and groaning.
"If you ever go near my son you won't live to regret it," growled John. "Also, stay away from Molly!"
John turned and walked out the door leaving Kenny lying on the floor in a lot of pain satisfied that he got the message. Then showing Kenny more consideration then he had shown Sam, John made an anonymous phone call to 911, telling them to send an ambulance to Kenny's apartment.
As John climbed into his truck he felt an overwhelming desire to see his youngest son. He and Sam had still not spoken since they had their big fight about Sam leaving to go to Stanford. John drove away headed for Palo Alto, California on the first of many visits to check up on Sam at college.
The End
A/N: I would like to send thanks out to everyone who read my story! A huge thanks goes out to everyone who took the time to write a review! You guys are awesome!