I'm back with a brand new chapter and yes, I'm really winding down with this story because I have a new story out called 'Tug of War' and I'm gonna be more focused on that once this story is finally finished. This has been some journey and I'm so happy of how my story turned out. Jalen has become one of my favorite original character and was so elated to see her grow throughout the story. Now, she has one more obstacle to overcome and that seeing Wade out of her life once and for all. Well, in this chapter, she'll finally get her chance to tell her story.
One more thing, with Wrestlemania being a week away, anything could happen between now and April 3rd. I can't wait to see who's gonna win and who's gonna retire.
And another thing, can you help me get to 200 reviews? Thank you!
Enjoy and happy reading!
Lots of love, hugs and kisses from your resident writer and friend, Nina!
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Texas Supreme Court
Houston, Texas
January 12, 2011
"The People call Jalen Jubilee Harrington to the stand," Prosecutor Nicole Marie Johnson announced.
Wade had to hold in his breath when Jalen finally appeared to take the stand. He couldn't help but look over his shoulder and look at her. For a woman who's almost five months pregnant, she looks absolutely beautiful in a pair of loose fitting jeans and a bright blue maternity cashmere sweater. Her long jet black hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail and she was absolutely glowing. Maybe because the sun beamed through the courthouse and radiated on her olive toned skin.
As she made her way over to the witness stand, he couldn't stop staring at her. He couldn't believe she was carrying his child, but he's not gonna be a part of it since he'll most likely go to jail. He mentally kicked himself for even letting her go in the first place. Jalen knows she belongs to him and the baby needs both a mother and father in its life, no matter what. He needs her in his life more than ever; after all, it was him who was able to control her for so long. But as soon as she finally had the courage to stand up to him and said no more, all hell broke loose.
Meanwhile, Jalen got comfortable sitting on the witness stand as soon as she was sworn in. She glanced over at Wade, who was staring intently at her, for a quick second before she turned away from him and focused at the task at hand.
"Ms. Harrington, how long were you dating the defendant?" Nicole asked, folding her hands together in front of her.
Jalen took a deep breath. "Almost a year."
"How would you describe the relationship in the beginning, Ms. Harrington?" Nicole pressed.
"In the beginning, everything was great. I thought I finally found someone I could see being with for a long time. Stu was funny, sweet, caring and I really loved him. I really loved him," Jalen explained.
"How long before the physical, verbal and emotional abuse started?" Nicole asked.
"A few months into our relationship, he started to change. He was competing on this show called NXT, where rookies get paired up with pros and compete to get a contract with the WWE, where we both work at. Well, he won and that's when all hell broke loose," Jalen said.
"How so?" Nicole asked, pacing around the courtroom in a calm manner.
"Well, his attitude changed for the worse; he got angry, cocky, acting like he's the biggest star in the world. One time, he got so out of control that I called him out on it. And that's when he hit me for the very first time. I remember it so well, too; he had an empty look on his face and his eyes were so cold. I knew bad things were gonna happen then.
"You wonder why I didn't leave him, why I didn't say the hell with this and walk away? It's simple: he threatened to kill me if I ever left him and I knew he was serious because he held a knife against my throat when he threatened me. I was so scared and frightened for me life. I dreaded being seeing with him because of the fear he instilled in me and even some of my friends. Furthermore, as the abuse went on, he even allowed his friends and co-workers to abuse and control me. And, when Nexus invaded the WWE, they instilled fear into everyone at the company," Jalen explained, dabbing her eyes with a tissue because she was on the verge of crying.
"Didn't they attack some of the female employees there, too?" Nicole asked, watching Jalen with intensity in her blue eyes.
"Yes, they did. They attacked Jillian Hall, Maryse, Melina and Alicia Fox. I, too, had felt their wrath on more than one occasion and that alone scared me. But, I never thought in a million years that they would go try and kill someone," Jalen replied.
"You're currently pregnant, right? How far along are you?" Nicole asked, looking at Jalen's bump.
"Almost five months. And, yes, Wade's the father," Jalen answered.
"In your grand jury testimony, you stated that initially that the defendant did not want to have anything to do with the baby, am I correct?" Nicole asked.
"I told him I was pregnant after I walked in on him with another woman and was about to have sex with her. That's another thing why our relationship suffered; he cheated on me constantly. He attacked my by hitting me with a lamp and knocking me out. He was about to attack me again the next morning, but I managed to move away from him and told him I was pregnant. He said that too bad I won't be having it," Jalen explained, breaking down.
"Are you okay, Ms. Harrington?" Nicole asked, concern evident in her voice.
Jalen took a deep breath and sighed. "I'm fine. I'm fine. Damn hormones."
"Are you able to continue or would you like a few minutes?" Nicole asked softly.
"I'm fine. I just want to get this over with. Anyway, Wade told me that having a baby would dampen both of our careers, especially his, since he was sitting on top of the world at the time. I told him that I'll raise the baby by myself and that he won't have to worry about being involved. The next thing he said was if I don't take care of the problem, then he will. He was about to attack me again, but I managed to get out of dodge by running out of his hotel room. I didn't see him again until a little over two weeks later," Jalen stated.
"When you finally saw him again, what happened?" Nicole asked.
"I broke up with him. Told him that I wanted nothing to do with him anymore after everything he put me through," Jalen replied.
"And this was when Wade's two cohorts were arrested for attempted murder?" Nicole asked.
"Objection! Irrelevance. Another woman almost died at their hands, not Jalen. She had nothing to do with what happened to that woman," criminal defense attorney Simon Jensen shouted.
"Actually, it does. Because the witness was the intended target," Nicole countered.
"Overruled. But, counselor, tread lightly," Judge Shane Lee warned.
"Precisely, your honor. Now, that woman does has a name, Ms. Harrington. So, would you please tell the court what her name is and what is your relationship with her?" Nicole asked.
"Yes. Her name is Barbie Blank. She's known to the wrestling world as Kelly Kelly. She's a coworker and a very good friend of mine," Jalen revealed.
"Thank you. Now, earlier, you mentioned that the defendant did not want you to have this baby. Did you know of what his intentions were at the time?" Nicole asked.
"No. I didn't find out about what he planned to do until after. I accidently overheard a conversation going on between David Otunga and Justin Gabriel. I had my tape recorder with me so I able to record everything they had to say. I called the police shortly after and about a week later, they were arrested," Jalen said, still dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
"Did you know what they did?" Nicole asked, standing in front of Jalen.
"They put some kind of chemical substance in the water bottle. That was intended for me to drink; but, Kelly ended up drinking it," Jalen said.
Nicole went over to the table and picked up a bag that had the contaminated water bottle inside.
"Exhibit A, ladies and gentlemen. The water bottle that was contaminated with arsenic rat poison, which was intended for Ms. Harrington to drink. Now, Jalen, when you found out that Wade had intended on making sure you don't have the baby, what did you do?" Nicole asked as she sat the bag back down on the table.
"I planned on leaving the country to get away from him because he knows where I live. He's been at my house on several different occasions. My current boyfriend, who's been so wonderful and caring through everything, told me I could go home with him until everything blows over. Unfortunately, Wade found out where John lived because he called me and said that he changed his mind," Jalen explained, her voice getting angry.
"Changed his mind about what?" Nicole asked, looking curious.
"About me not having the baby. He wanted me to have the baby because he wants us to be a family. He talked about us getting married and raising our baby together. He also threatened to kill John," Jalen stated.
"Okay, one more thing, Ms. Harrington. How did you find out about your father's murder?" Nicole asked.
Jalen got teary-eyed at the mention of her father. "I was visiting him at the hospital because he was diagnosed with a terminal illness. You see, my father abused me and my mother when I was younger. This would've been the first time in ten years that I'd seen him because I ran away from home when I was 15. My father tried to rape me once," Jalen broke down.
Everyone in the courtroom gasped in shock. Kylie and John just held each other's hand and kept their composure because they knew Jalen was having a hard time keeping it together on the witness stand.
"I managed to fight him off and ran away; never looking back. I'd lived on the streets for a short while, but I found a shelter for teens who've been abused by family members. They helped me get a part-time job at a local restaurant, which enabled me to find a small apartment on the other side of town. I never went back home. I didn't wanna have anything to do with my father until my mother, who recently came back into my life after she was kicked out by my father and moved to Arizona, told me he was sick and he wanted to see me because he wanted to apologize. I never got the chance to say goodbye. I forgive him for what he had done to me and my mother," Jalen said, finally crying when it was all said and done.
"Thank you. No further questions, your honor," Nicole said before she went and took her seat at the prosecutor's table.
"Your honor, at this time, I have no questions for the witness," Simon said as he stood up briefly, but he quickly sat back down when he got finished. Wade leaned over and whispered harshly in his attorney's ear, for which Simon raised his finger up to silence him.
Jalen got up and stepped down from the stand. Sobbing quietly, she went over to where John and Kylie were sitting and fell right into his strong arms. He kissed her forehead gently and rubbed her back; whispering words of encouragement and letting her know that everything's gonna be okay. He looked over her shoulder and glared at Wade, who was glaring right back at them.
You'll never hurt her again, you son of a bitch, John thought with anger boiling in his veins.
Meanwhile, Wade turned away and decided to focus at the task at hand; his life was at stake and he could only hope and pray things will turn out in his favor. He needed Jalen in his life and he needed his baby. There was no way in hell John Cena will take everything away from the brooding brit. He'll kill him first before the son of a bitch will come in and take over.
Wade still has time. Jalen will be back with him before it's all said and done.
Coming up in the next chapter: John's testimony causes the courtroom to go into chaos. Will Wade's final attempt in getting Jalen back work or will it backfire on him again? Stay tuned!
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