A/N: So I'm thinking that this chapter is going to have to be super long. I'm jumping ahead a little bit, but I don't think you want two chapters exactly the same for the two separate trials. Therefore, we pick up at the end of one defendant and you get the whole trial of the second. Hopefully, you all enjoy it.
DISCLAIMER: Still not Stephenie Meyer, so I don't own any of the TWILIGHT characters.
BPOV
"On the first charge of conspiracy in the second degree, we the jury find the defendant, Tyler Crowley guilty. On the second charge of first degree kidnapping, we find the defendant guilty."
The juror sat down and I looked over to where Mr. and Mrs. Crowley were seated behind their son. I felt sick. I had tried explaining in my testimony that Tyler had been used as a pawn in Coach James's sick plot, but they were taking no mercy on him. He was tried as an adult, and now he would be punished as one for two crimes that he had been manipulated into participating in.
"Thank you, jury members. Sentencing will be held on Monday. Court adjourned." The smack of the gavel caused everyone to jump.
Mrs. Crowley had one hand on Tyler's shoulder as she sobbed uncontrollably on her husband's chest. Tyler looked back at them as they stood him up and placed the handcuffs back onto his wrists. He looked over to me and mouthed an "I'm sorry, Bella" but it was no use. The jury had decided that he deserved to be punished.
I could feel my own tears coming as they led him away from his parents and into the back room. Edward wrapped his arm tightly around my shoulder. "He's getting what he deserves, Bella. You know that." Edward's voice was strained, and I could tell that he was trying to convince himself as much as he was convincing me.
We waited silently while the judge talked with both attorneys.
I knew that this was the easier of the two trials. Coach James's trial was set to start on Tuesday, and my family, Edward, and I would all be called in to testify once more. I just wanted this whole ordeal to be over with. I had spent three weeks of listening to testimony for and against Tyler. His trial was supposed to be the shorter of the two.
I was excused from most of my classes, and my teachers were giving me only minimal amounts of work to keep me caught up. Edward of course was at the trial every moment he could afford to escape school. He held me close or held my hand. He gave me the strength that I desperately needed in my life right now. Some days, the only reason I was able to stay upright on the way out of court was because Edward was holding me up.
The weekend passed in another blur. I was getting used to staying in and spending every moment with my family. My parents barely let me out of their sight in order to go to the bathroom, let alone anywhere else. I would sit alone in my bedroom and look out the window. I was starting to feel like a prisoner and this time, my loved ones were my captors.
Edward was allowed in to see me most nights, and Alice usually tried to come along with him. But the rest of my friends were sent away quickly when they stopped by. I only saw some of my friends when the came to the trial. And thank goodness this would be over soon.
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Tuesday morning arrived, and surprisingly, it was a sunny day. I dressed in a simple outfit and headed down to join my family at the breakfast table. Emmett was busy cleaning his plate, as usual. I grabbed an apple and sat beside my brother. We were all silent. Ever since I got out of the hospital, there was limited conversations. It was like we were all too busy watching for someone to come back and hurt us to talk.
The doorbell rang, and everyone of us jumped, even PJ. I started laughing at that point. We were so on edge that each morning when someone would come by to wish us luck, we did the same thing by jumping when the silence was broken.
"Good morning, everyone!" Alice said as she came into the kitchen.
"Good morning, Alice." I said after I stood to give her a hug. I really missed my best friend the most.
"Good morning, my beautiful best friend. How are you doing this fine morning?" People who knew her would know that she was practically subdued. However, for a "normal" person, she was only slightly over-excited.
"I'm fine, Alice. How are you? It's been forever since I've been able to see you."
"Ahhh, Bella… we really should be getting going. Thanks for stopping by, Alice." My father was suddenly standing beside me and holding my jacket out to me.
I sighed and let him help me into a jacket. I shrugged and rolled my eyes towards Alice who giggled.
"Let's go. Renee, you have the boys?" Charlie said over his shoulder.
"Yes, Charlie… Let's get to court. The lawyers wanted to talk to Bella before the trial officially starts.
"Did you want to ride with me, Bella? I'm going to the trial today." Alice looked hopeful. I knew she missed me as much as I missed her.
"Actually, Alice… I'd prefer Bella to ride with us, her family if you don't mind." My father was really getting on my nerves.
"Dad… Come on… I never get to see anyone anymore. You even toss Edward out after about ten minutes. I'm surprised that you let him sit beside me at the trials." I crossed my arms across my chest and glared at him.
"I said, you're riding with your family and that's final. Now let's get into the car." He placed his hand on my elbow and guided me pass Alice.
I mouthed a sorry to Alice as we walked by, but I really wanted to cry. I really was a prisoner in my own family now. Something would have to change.
The drive to the courthouse was short. Unfortunately, when we got there, Coach James was getting out of his car. He shot me a creepy grin and winked at me as my family and I were led into the building. I got shivers down my spine as the door closed behind us.
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"Order in the court! Court is now in session. The honorable Judge Volterra is now presiding."
The gavel smacked down twice and we were allowed to sit.
"I'd like to start this trial by stating that we are not going to be allowing the press inside. Likewise, we strongly suggest to the students here today and any others you may invite that they are not here to get their fifteen minutes of fame. Therefore, if I see any of you on the nightly news giving interviews, I will not allow you in my courtroom. Do I make myself clear?"
Silence was his answer and I prayed that any of the students who were ditching class to see this would obey that command. My life was embarrassing enough without this whole ordeal. I didn't need anyone trying to get camera time by giving my history at Forks High on TV.
"Now that we have that taken care of. I'd like to thank the jury members for coming in today and remind you that it is your duty to listen to ONLY the facts given during this trial and not let any personal bias get in the way of passing judgment on the defendant. Thank you again. Counselor, your opening statement please." Judge Volterra sat and the district attorney stood up to present my case.
"Thank you, Judge. Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury. This case is pretty simple. There's a man in this courtroom who abused his power as a teacher to ensure that a female student trusted him completely. He even went out of his way to comfort her when she would have a bad day. We are going to prove that this man not only plotted with one of his students to kidnap her, but we will prove that this sick, twisted man stalked her. He spend his time tormenting her in secret and eventually took it to the next level by planning her kidnapping, holding her hostage, attempting to rape her, and finally, threatened to end her life when she escaped. You will see that this man, Coach James is guilty of every single one of these counts and should be punished accordingly. Thank you." He sat down and turned to see the defense attorney standing.
"Now there's a story. A story we hear in today's society quite often. An evil teacher, an innocent little student, the teacher's quest to prove that he's untouchable. Too bad that it's not the case in this story. The truth is that this "innocent" student practically threw herself at her teacher. Her teacher did what any human being would do. He listened to her and tried to make her feel better. Then, she concocts this dangerous story of how a teacher becomes inappropriate with her and cries "rape". Now my client, a highly-respected teacher and basketball coach is on trial for a series of crimes that were committed by a fellow student of Ms. Swan. She should be put on trial for falsely accusing my client of these bogus crimes.
I was shocked. In Tyler's trial, he and his lawyers had played the blame game but Coach James was who they blamed. Now I was the one being blamed. I really wasn't expecting them to do that. My father stiffened beside me and I could tell that he was mad.
"The State calls Miss Bella Swan to the stand," I jumped slightly at the sound of my name from the district attorney. I walked slowly to the witness box, but still managed to slip on the floor. I bumped my knee and about four guys jumped forward to help me up.
I knew my face was beet red by the time I was taking my oath to tell the truth. I wished I could duck my head down and hide for the remainder of the day.
"Miss Swan," the district attorney started, "when did you first meet Coach James?"
I had been expecting this question. Actually, I expected all the questions the district attorney was going to ask. We had done multiple run-throughs of his questions in his office over the weekend.
"I met him the first day of school my freshman year."
"How did you meet him?"
"Well, I was assigned to his P.E. class."
"Did you speak to him any other time?"
"I don't think so. I wasn't really happy about being the new girl in town anyway, and as you can see, I don't do well with physical activity. So, I really wasn't looking forward to taking P.E. I responded to roll call, but that was all."
"Tell me about lunches during your freshman year." Again, this was a question that I knew was coming, but it was a little hard for me to think of the time Edward and I had broken up.
"When I first moved to Forks, my older brother and I met a great group of friends. I started dating one of our friends in November, but within a few weeks, we had broken up. I really wasn't ready to face him right after the break up, so I hid out in the gym. Coach James had me work on some statistics for the year-end banquet handout and team. I spend a few weeks in there every day at lunch time." I sighed. It wasn't my finest moment, when I ran and hid, but it was the truth.
"Did you ever talk to Coach James during that time?" The D.A. was looking down at me now, as he stood just in front of me.
"Not at first, but eventually, I did. He was so nice to me and he let me escape the drama in my life everyday for a little bit. But it wasn't long conversations. I would answer his questions, but that was it."
"I see. Miss Swan, did you ever give Coach James any reason to believe that you were interested in him in any way more than as your teacher?"
"Absolutely not. Like I said, I would barely say more than an answer to his questions. I was thankful to him for letting me eat lunch in the gym, but that was as far as it went.
"Tell me about Mike Newton."
"Mike and I dated during my freshman year. Mike ended up being a nightmare. He went so far as to further alienate me from my friends. One day in study hall, he picked a fight with me and I ended up unconscious and in the hospital."
"Was Coach James there?"
"Yes, he was in charge of the study hall that day. He and Edward were there to help get me to the hospital."
"Tell me about Edward."
"Edward and I met the first day of school. We dated for a few weeks at the beginning of freshman year, but for various reasons, we broke up. I was heartbroken but managed to get through it by hiding. When spring break came around, Edward and I both realized that we wanted to be together, and we became a couple again. We've been together ever since. He was going to move away from Forks with his family last summer, but his parents were killed by a drunk driver and he and Alice returned to Forks. We've been inseparable ever since, even though our schedules give us only a couple classes together."
"Are you happy with him?"
"He's about the only one who really knows how to make me happy. I can't see my life without him in it. And I wouldn't want anyone else to be with me as my boyfriend."
I saw my parents exchange a strange look at my statement, but I didn't pay too much attention to it.
"Do you remember the first time you received a note from your stalker?"
"Yes, I had just spend a wonderful day with my boyfriend. We were celebrating and having a day all to ourselves. We were getting ready to go out with his aunt and uncle, and someone knocked on the door of our hotel room. I went to answer it and there was a beautiful bouquet of roses. I thought it was odd that Edward would get me roses, but then again, he had been surprising me all day long. I saw the card and fainted after reading it. I knew in that moment that the roses weren't from Edward. I was scared to death."
"Did you have any idea at that time who was harassing you?
"Not at all. Edward and my family and I all thought about who it could be and no one could think of anyone who would do this to me."
"When did you know that Coach James was your stalker?"
"Unfortunately, I didn't know until he walked into the door of where I woke up. I had thought it was Tyler until Coach James walked in."
"Why do you think Coach James was behind this now. I mean, last week, you testified that Tyler had kidnapped you. Now you are saying it's Coach James. Which is it?"
I hated this question. It really made me look like I was just pointing fingers at whoever was in the room with me, but I took a deep breath before continuing. "I know Tyler kidnapped me, but before I was able to run up the stairs and escape, he told me that Coach James had tricked him. He said that he had wanted me to be his girlfriend, and that Coach James was going to help him achieve that goal. Coach James had promised him that he would convince me to date Tyler, instead he came into the room and tried to rape me.
"Rape is a strong word. Are you sure that's what he was going to do?"
"He pushed me onto the bed that was there and pulled my panties from my body. I kept saying 'no' and he never stopped to listen. He told me I would enjoy it and just before he could enter me, Tyler hit him with a lamp. Tyler was able to knock him out and pull him off me. He pulled me from the bed and helped me escape. Coach James wasn't going to let me escape. As I ran up the stairs I heard Tyler and Coach fight and Tyler screamed just before I got out the door. When I got outside, I fell into Edward's arms and passed out. The next thing I remember is waking up at the hospital."
"Thank you, Bella. Your witness."
The district attorney sat down as the defense stood. He seemed to be glaring at me.
"Miss Swan, have you ever been into Coach James's office?"
"Yes, I have." I wanted so badly to glare back at him, but I knew I couldn't. I was told that I had to do my best to keep any anger I felt hidden.
"Really? I thought that his office was in the boys' locker room."
"It is. I was invited in there during the after-school practices this year to work on updating the stats database. I inputted each of the game's stats into his computer while he was running practice in the gym. No one was in the locker room when I was in there."
"But isn't that against school rules? I mean, you are a girl and that was the boys' locker room."
"Yes, but -"
"So you are admitting that you broke the school's rules."
"That's not-"
"Miss Swan… you just admitted that it was against the rules. And now you're changing your story. Do you know what the truth is?"
"Yes I do. The truth is that Coach James told me I could come in there while practice was going on. That way I was safe and doing something to help the basketball team while they were practicing."
"Did you ever make a comment to one of your friends that you thought Coach James was attractive? And that you didn't know what he saw in his wife?"
"What?! No, not at all."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure, I never said something like that.
"Is that so? Hmm… I have two witnesses that heard you say those exact same comments at a Halloween party last year. Would you like to change your testimony?"
"I never said that. I never said that out loud or in my head. I love my boyfriend and I would never say that about anyone but him. Whoever says otherwise is lying to you!" I was getting angry, but they were accusing me of something that never happened and I wasn't going to let the jury think that I was just some common slut.
"If you say so…" The defense attorney sneered at me before continuing. "What kind of grades do you get in gym?"
"Um, well… it depends… usually it's a B or B+."
"You get pretty decent grades then for someone who has trouble walking across a flat surface."
"OBJECTION!"
"I apologize," the defense attorney responded. "Miss Swan, do you play sports?"
"No. I'm not very coordinated."
"Do you do extra credit projects?"
"There isn't a lot of extra credit projects you can do for gym that don't involve physical activity, so no, not really."
"Then can you explain how someone who admits to everyone that she is uncoordinated and clumsy can get as good of grades as you do in physical education?"
"I don't know. I hardly miss any school or classes, and I try to participate somewhat. I do my best to not cause physical injury or harm to myself or others."
"So you never offered to help Coach James in any way possible if he ever needed you?"
I bit my lip, because I could remember saying something similar to that to Coach. He had taken one statement I had made and twisted it to make it look like I was offering more than help with stats.
"I never meant… When I said that I was referring-"
"No further questions." The defense attorney smiled a creepy smile at me before sitting down.
I looked horrified at the district attorney as he stood back up.
"You may be seated now, Miss Swan. Step down, please." The judge didn't look too happy as he spoke to me.
"The state calls Edward Cullen to the stand." I saw Edward come through the doors to the courtroom. I was confused as he came in because he usually sat with me and my family.
"Mr. Cullen, how do you know the defendant?"
Edward wasn't even looking at me. He just looked back to the district attorney and answered the question. "He's my basketball coach at school."
"Do you trust him?"
"I used to. Now, I wouldn't trust him with a penny, let alone my life or my friends' lives."
"Did you ever suspect that Coach James had been the one stalking your girlfriend?"
"No, not really. I believed him when he told me to keep Bella safe. I thought some of his comments were odd, but I didn't really question him. He was my teacher after all."
"What statements were these?"
"Well he once told me that I was a lucky young man because I had someone as beautiful and kind as Bella to care for. There was another time he made the comment that if she were his girlfriend, he would lock her up and not let anyone else around her. Things like that."
"Why didn't you report him for those comments?"
"Well, I just figured he was being a guy. I mean, guys do say things like that all the time. I never thought he would be dumb enough to do something like what ended up happening."
"Did you know he was Bella's stalker the night of the basketball banquet?"
"No, I was in the gym playing basketball with him. I didn't notice that he was missing until Bella had already been taken. I noticed Tyler had slipped out at that time as well." His head went down and he shook his head.
"Why are you shaking your head, Edward?" The district attorney looked as shocked by Edward's action as Edward looked about the question.
"It's my job to protect Bella. I'm her boyfriend. I should have made sure she was safe. Instead I decided to play basketball and she was taken. She was attacked and almost… I'll never forgive myself for the terrors she had to face."
I wanted to cross the room and wrap him in my arms, but I knew I could not.
"No further questions, your honor."
The defense attorney stood up and walked towards Edward. "Mr. Cullen, you say that you blame yourself, is that correct?"
Edward looked at him and glared. "I blame myself for not protecting Bella better. I don't blame myself for the sick and twisted plot that put her in danger in the first place."
"You were playing basketball with Coach James the night that Mr. Crowley kidnapped your girlfriend, is that correct?"
"Yes." The district attorney leaned forward. It was obvious that he had no idea where these questions were leading.
"So, you trusted him enough that night to play basketball with him, is that correct?"
"Yeah, I guess. But-"
"So, prior to this story that Miss Swan created, you had complete faith in your coach. You had no doubts that he was a good guy at the point in time, correct?"
"Ye-ah… but…"
"No further questions." He sat down with a flourish.
The district attorney stood immediately. "Permission to redirect, your honor?"
"Proceed," said Judge Volterra.
"Mr. Cullen… can you please tell the court what happened after you realized that Mr. Crowley and Mr. James were missing from the gymnasium?"
"I was frantic, but I stayed inside while we waited for word to come in. Mr. Swan and the other police officers were splitting up to search both homes at once. I waited with Bella's mom while we hoped for good news to come in. When both forces reported that Bella was not at either location, I needed some air. I went for a walk around the property. A few feet from the gym entrance, there was a door that led to the basement. Bella burst through the door while I was walking past. I caught her and she collapsed against me. I was going to carry her away when someone knocked me down from behind. I got to my feet and saw Coach James with a metal pole. There was blood on the pole. Coach hit me and kicked my ribs. I had to go to the hospital with Bella after the police showed up, but thankfully, I only had a bruised ribs. I had minor scrapes and cuts from when he and I fought. He said things about what he was going to do with Bella. Things I know she would never do with anyone she didn't fully love."
"Thank you, Mr. Cullen." Edward stood up and walked passed me without even looking at me. It was weird, and I couldn't understand what I had done to make him ignore me.
The district attorney called two of the doctors from the emergency room from the night I had been admitted. Then they called Tyler who gave the details of the plot that Coach James had created. He admitted that the D.A. had offered a deal to him as a trade for his testimony.
Finally, the D.A. rested its case. It seemed like a pretty simple case. All the evidence collaborated what had happened that night and the months leading up to it when I began getting the notes from my stalker.
We went home that night knowing that the defense would get their chance to call witnesses, and I was warned that the next day they would be trying to make me look bad. They were going to go after my character. I would have to either stay silent and be strong or stay home. I decided that I would go, because I wasn't about to let Coach James beat me now.
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The first person the defense called up to the stand was Lauren Malloy. Lauren smirked at me and told me how I was a boy-crazy girl and chased after whoever I wanted. She testified that I went after Edward first, then wasn't satisfied with just one boyfriend so I went after Mike Newton. Then she testified that everyone said the only way I had captured these boys' attention was because I promised to sleep with them. In exchange, they would do homework for me.
The district attorney tried to damage control and show that Lauren was mad because Edward had broken up with her to go out with me again. He also made her admit that I had only dated two guys since coming to Forks. And Lauren had to admit that she had no proof that I had slept with either one of them or that they had done any homework for me.
Next, Jessica Stanley came up and tried to corroborate Lauren's stories about me, but the D.A. was able to find all the holes in her story.
Mike Newton came to the stand next. Mike explained how I caught his eye originally because I was new and good-looking. Then, admitted that he succumbed to my pressure to date him when I offered to sleep with him. He said that I strung him along and was as "easy as they come". He admitted that he dated other girls on the side, but kept me around because I was good in bed.
At that point in his testimony, I thought my father was going to jump across the room and beat him up.
The D.A. had him eating his words before long, and it took all my self-control to not laugh at Mike's face.
"Mr. Newton, did you actually have sex with Miss Swan?"
"Of course. I've already said that the girl was easy."
"Do you have proof that you were sleeping with her?"
"What kind of proof?" Mike's face was almost purple from his blush. "Do mean like a saved condom?"
"No, Mr. Newton. Perhaps you could tell me where you and Miss Swan had sex? After all, you are both students in high school."
"Oh, that's easy. We had sex all over the place. We've had sex in my car, at school, her house, my house, my parents' store, a hotel in Port Angeles… there are lots of places."
"A hotel? How did you pay for the hotel?"
Mike looked around and looked for help from the defense table. Finally, he muttered that he used his father's credit card.
"Really? Your honor, I'd like to take a short recess so that we are able to get that credit card receipt to prove Mr. Newton's story. After all, if Mr. Newton is able to prove that Miss Swan was really as promiscuous as he claims, then a little evidence to support his story is not too much to ask for. And of course, if there is not receipt then we know that he has committed perjury, which is a punishable offense."
Mike's face blanched and he was white. I saw his eyes search for someone. I saw him look over towards Coach James and his lawyer.
"Um, sir," Mike was practically whispering towards the district attorney, "I don't have a receipt."
Everyone was leaning forward, straining to hear what he was saying.
"What was that Mr. Newton? I didn't quite hear you. Perhaps you could speak up a little louder." The district attorney knew that Mike was on the run.
"I don't have a receipt. We never had sex at a hotel. Bella and I broke up before I could take her to one." Mike was looking down at his feet.
"I see. Well, how about any of the other locations, did you and Miss Swan actually have sex with you in those places?"
Mike shook his head. I swore I saw a tear drip down his cheek as he hung his head.
Finally, Mike stepped down from the stand and walked over to where his parents were practically seething. They led him from the courtroom and as soon as the door shut, we were able to hear Mr. Newton start yelling at him for being a liar on the stand.
"The defense calls the defendant, Cameron James to the stand."
Coach James sauntered up to the stand. He seemed unaffected that all the previous witnesses had basically cracked and all but admitted that they were spreading lies about me.
He raised his right hand and swore to tell the truth and then he turned to me and winked. He sat and I could feel my father tensing beside me.
"Mr. James, how long have you been a teacher at Forks High?"
"Just about ten school years."
"And how long have you been a basketball coach?"
"Nine winning seasons, sir."
"Have you ever had a complaint about you before now?"
"Of course. I think that ever teacher has at least one child that will go home, tell mom and dad that the teacher is unfair enough that the parents call the school to voice a complaint. The parents can't believe that it's possible for their innocent child to be lying about a teacher."
"How many complaints have you received over the ten years you have been a teacher?"
"No more than five. There have been complaints that I grade too harshly in my journalism classes, or that I'm not fair in P.E., but none of those complaints were ever true and the school backed me up. This is the first complaint where a student has created a story that is more than an unfair grading complaint."
"So in ten years of teaching and nine years of coaching, you have a pretty good track record with your students, correct?"
"I do. I pride myself on being a good role model and example for all my students. I do my best to get to know all my students and be someone they can come talk to if they're having a bad day, week, month, or whatever. I've mentored many students over they year and have had at least a hundred times as many grateful students than upset students."
"What is your relationship with Miss Swan?"
"Miss Swan, Bella if you will, is a student of mine. I've had her as a P.E. student for two years now. She also joined the school paper this year and is enrolled in my journalism class."
"Have you ever said anything inappropriate to her?"
"Not that I can recall off the top of my head. If I had, I wish she would have said something to me. I would have been more than happy to apologize for something I had said. I stay professional, especially in the classroom. I just wish she had been able to done the same."
"What do you mean, 'you wish she would have done the same'?"
"Well, Miss Swan was very inappropriate. She would ask about my personal life. She's ask if my wife satisfied me, if I would ever consider sleeping with a younger woman. She would pull her top down so it barely covered her chest and would show the top of her bra. I've sent her to the nurse to get different shirts, but she would continue doing it. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore. I told her that if she continued to wear inappropriate things that I was going to have to send her to the principal's office."
"Did you ever send her to the principal?"
"No, she stopped flaunting herself in my classroom."
"I see. Did her inappropriate comments cease as well?"
"No, they got worse, but I did my best to remain there for the students, including Miss Swan. I always try to keep my door open for the students, if they ever need to talk."
"The night Miss Swan was kidnapped, why did you disappear?"
"I realized that Mr. Crowley had disappeared about the same time that Miss Swan had gone missing. I saw that his car was still in the parking lot and I saw the door to the basement nearby. I took a chance and went downstairs. I saw that Miss Swan was cowering away from Tyler and I was going to intervene. I was trying to get Miss Swan to come with me when Tyler hit me over the head with a lamp. I was knocked out and he pulled Miss Swan away from me. When I came to, I was able to distract Tyler and fight him while Bella ran away. I hit Tyler and knocked him out and went in search of Bella. I wanted to make sure she was okay."
"What did you find when you went outside?"
"Well, Mr. Cullen was carrying Bella's limp body away from the door. I wanted to make sure she was okay, so I came up behind him and he lost his balance. He fell on top of her and I heard a crack when he landed on her. I went to push him from on her body and he turned against me. He took a swing at me and tried to punch me. I tried to explain to him what had really happened in the basement, but he refused to believe that I was just there for Bella's well-being."
"Were you able to convince Mr. Cullen that you were just helping Miss Swan out?"
"No, he continued to fight me. Then Mr. Crowley came back out of the basement and attacked me from behind. I was fighting off the both of them when the Forks PD showed up and aimed their weapons at me. I froze like they told me and then I ended up being one of the two taken away in handcuffs. And ever since, I've been trying to get everyone to see that I only had Miss Swan's well-being as my main concern." Coach James looked solemn when he looked towards me. He was proving to be quite the actor.
"No further questions." The defense attorney smirked as he sat down. He seemed to spin the event just enough to make it seem like it was actually the truth. I just hoped that the D.A. would be able to prove that he was a liar.
A/N: Okay, please don't hate me for stopping it there, but this chapter is ten pages long and over 6,000 words. I will post how the trial ends, and a new twist will be revealed. I have decided that there will be two more chapters and then I will begin working on a sequel as many of you wish for this story to continue. I can promise that the twist I'm throwing at you is truly unexpected. I just developed it today as I was writing some parts of the chapter. It will also explain why Edward was so distant during the trial.
Also, I know that a trial like this would take weeks, not just two days, but for the sake of my sanity and this story, I wanted to keep it short(er). Thanks for your continued support. Hope that you enjoyed it.