It was like a repeat of the last time they went to court. Anarchy 99 once again filled the courthouse, having muscled their way passed the TV crews outside, blocking the reporters from entering. The Johnsons were there with their lawyer, who was positively beaming with confidence. After all formalities were spoken, the judge asked Mr. Flynn to call his first witness.

"The defense calls Tobias Shavers to the stand."

Lindsey whipped around, looking for Toby. Not understanding why he would be called forward, she expected him to look just as confused as she felt. A stab of betrayal pierced her as he strolled forward, looking cockier than she'd ever seen him before. He was sworn in and took his seat.

"Mr. Shavers, what is the nature of your relationship to Miss Blackwell?"

"We used to work together," Toby answered.

"For whom did you work?"

"Yorgi Ovcharova. I managed his computer systems, assisted with bank transactions, that sort of thing."

Yorgi was looking murderous. He leaned his head over, whispering something to Kirill. The sniper's eyes narrowed.

"And did Miss Blackwell assist with the same type of work?"

"HA," Toby laughed mirthlessly. "She does good to open an email."

"What was the nature of her work?"

"Not really sure," Toby said. "Mostly being a piece of eye-candy. She loves to party and draw attention to herself. Yorgi uses women like her to distract clients into making bad business decisions."

"Define drawing attention to herself."

"Dressing like a slut."

There was a roar of outrage from the crowd and the judge called for silence.

"Do something!" Lindsey hissed at the prosecutor.

"It's admissible. They're questioning your character. My hands are tied," he whispered back.

"You mean she dresses provocatively?" Mr. Flynn gestured to the young woman at the prosecutor's table in her knee-length black skirt and matching black suit jacket. "She looks rather conservative to me."

"It's a ruse," Toby replied. "I've never seen her dress like that before. It wouldn't draw the level of attention she's used to. She loves the spotlight."

"Has she ever been known to put on a show or exaggerate a story to gain the attention of others?"

"Sure. She loves to brag about stealing that horse and showing off that scar on her side. She glorifies it, wears it like a damn badge of honor or something."

Mr. Flynn smirked. "And she behaves like this often?"

Toby shrugged. "She used to. She's been playing the victim a lot lately, acting withdrawn from everyone, jumping and screaming every time someone even tries to shake her hand. It's all an act. She's got everyone in that house wrapped around her finger. They're all worried and concerned and whatnot. She isn't no more scared of any of them than the man in the moon."

"Well, she's been through a lot lately, hasn't she?"

Toby snorted. "So she says. Yet she has no problem being normal when she thinks the right people aren't looking. I've seen her playing around, wrestling with her friends – men and women – coming and going from their bedrooms at night. She's a fraud."

"Why is he doing this?" Mr. Fusselman whispered. He had tried on many occasions to get members of Anarchy 99 to testify against their leader. Not once had he ever been successful.

"Yorgi fired him," Lindsey whispered back. "This is his revenge."

"You stated that she likes to party. Can you clarify that statement?"

"She's an alcoholic," Toby stated bluntly. "X had to drive her home a few months ago after she passed out in the hallway, blasted on vodka."

"She's not old enough to drink, though," Mr. Flynn led on.

"Doesn't matter. You can get anything in that house if you ask. Awfully easy to get ANYTHING you want."

"Anything?"

"Anything."

"What exactly do you mean?"

"Alcohol, marijuana, harder drugs if you know who to ask."

"But surely the sweet, innocent Miss Blackwell would never partake in such activities?"

"Sure she would. She loves it. She's been getting high for months."

Lindsey's insides turned to ice. So Toby had seen through her lie yesterday. She could feel the sweat rolling down the back of her neck and the eyes of everyone behind her on her back. Someone behind her choked back a cough and she thought it sounded an awful lot like Kip.

"Objection," Mr. Fusselman said. "This is all speculation. Besides, the victim isn't on trial here for substance abuse."

"Miss Blackwell's behavior speaks to her character and unpredictable nature as observed directly by the witness, your honor," Mr. Flynn countered.

"Overruled."

"How do you know she's been abusing drugs, Mr. Shavers?"

Toby grinned. "Her room reeks of marijuana. And I've seen the track marks on her arms."

"Track marks? You're referring, of course, to the typical bruises left by injecting oneself?"

"Exactly," Toby replied.

"And how recently did you witness such evidence?"

"Yesterday. She was blitzed out of her mind. Babbling on and on about nonsense, chain smoking, her teeth chattering and hands shaking so bad she could hardly get the cigarette in her mouth. She tried to tell me she'd hit her arm on the door when I asked about the bruises."

"No further questions at this time, your honor."

"Mr. Fusselman, your witness," Judge Hayes said.

The prosecutor stood and approached the stand. "Mr. Shavers, you were recently released from the position you held with Mr. Ovcharova, correct?"

"Yes," Toby said, a mean look in his eye.

"For what reason?"

"I made a mistake in transferring some money to an account."

"But you handled all the business accounts?"

"Not all of them. This was the first big transaction I was allowed to handle on my own."

"And you blew it."

Toby didn't respond.

"You don't seem like a very reliable sort of person, Mr. Shavers, if you cannot handle a simple bank transfer. Are you really certain you witnessed all the things you claim you have?"

"Yes, I'm certain."

"Given your recent unemployment, how can we be sure you aren't fabricating your testimony as some type of… revenge?"

"You calling me a liar?"

"If the shoe fits, Mr. Shavers."

"Objection, your honor," Mr. Flynn stated. "Harassing the witness."

"Sustained."

"No further questions."

Toby strolled proudly across the front of the courtroom and down the aisle between the benches. The room was deathly silent as he headed for the exit until someone hissed in a loud whisper, "You're a dead man."

Toby froze and looked wildly around the courtroom. Not one person was looking at him. His shoulders rose and fell in fear as he breathed heavily. He swallowed and left the courtroom, eager to put a good distance between himself and the people he'd betrayed.

"Next witness, Mr. Flynn."

"The defense recalls Miss Lindsey Blackwell to the stand."

'Let me die. Let me die. If there is a god in heaven, let me die now,' she prayed silently. She slowly pushed herself to her feet, walking to the front of the courtroom. Her knees felt weak. She'd give anything to not be forced into a corner and confront her drug addiction. Not here, not in front of Gohan. This would be the final straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. If she slipped, if it was somehow revealed that she was using, he'd never forgive her.

"Miss Blackwell, I'll get straight to the point. Do you have a problem with substance abuse?"

"No."

"Miss Blackwell, you are under oath."

She fixed him with the bored stare that Xander gave people he didn't respect.

"Do you deny the fact that you have been seen entering and leaving the rooms of other Anarchy 99 members in the middle of the night?"

"No."

"Why would you be visiting friends at such a late hour?"

"A lot of us are night-owls. It isn't uncommon. Someone there is always awake at any given point in a twenty-four hour period."

"Yes, but they all aren't up smoking dope, are they?"

"No one I know does that."

"Not even Mr. Ovcharova?"

"Especially not him."

"Your lies just don't stop, do they?"

"Objection!"

"Grounds?"

"Harassing the witness."

"Sustained. Mr. Flynn, get on with it."

"Mr. Ovcharova has a history of substance abuse. May I remind the court that not two years ago he was charged with possession of an illegal substance? Despite the fact that this is public record, she denies it in open court." He fixed her with a mean stare. "That's perjury."

"I thought you meant Yorgi," Lindsey said. "We all know Kolya was accused of possession. Accused. Not convicted."

"And still, you frequently visit with him?"

"He's my friend. I see nothing wrong with visiting with a friend."

"In the middle of the night?"

"Night-owls," she repeated in a bored tone.

"Does he provide you with your drugs, Miss Blackwell?"

"I don't use drugs," she lied, keeping her gaze steady, trying not to blink too much. She remembered reading somewhere that blinking too much was a sign of lying.

"Then I suppose you would have no objection to showing the court your arms? If there are no identifying marks, then you have nothing to hide."

Lindsey wasn't sure what to do. Yelena caught her eye and discreetly held up her hand, splaying all five fingers.

"Miss Blackwell?"

"I plead the fifth."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I invoke my fifth amendment right to not incriminate myself in a court of law."

Mr. Flynn gave her a look that clearly said, "Give me a break." He stared at her like that for a solid minute before he stated, "Yet you have nothing to hide."

"I have nothing to hide," she spat back at him. "But my life hasn't exactly been an easy one. My arms are scarred from hard work and injuries that result from that work – ranch work. I will not have a mark on my arm from honest labor be misconstrued as drug abuse."

Mr. Flynn frowned and nodded. "Fair enough. Just one final question, Miss Blackwell. Do you inject yourself or does Nikolai Ovcharova do it for you?"

"Why you little…"

"OBJECTION!"

"Withdrawn," Mr. Flynn grinned and actually winked at the jury.

"Mr. Fusselman, your witness."

The prosecutor stood once again. "Miss Blackwell, how close are you to Nikolai Ovcharova?"

Lindsey was still fuming at the defense attorney. "Very close. He's like a brother to me."

"What was the reason for so many late-night visits with him?"

"Kolya's a very easy person to get along with. I don't think there's anyone who doesn't like him. He's funny. In a time in my life where I feel so sad, he makes me smile. No matter how bad I feel, he can make me laugh. There was nothing illegal or inappropriate about our visits."

"No further questions, your honor."

"You may step down."

Lindsey slunk back into her seat at the prosecutor's table, tears in her eyes. She just wanted this whole thing over with. She was starting to feel sick. As Mr. Flynn called Jonah to the stand, the waves of nausea washed over her. He began to give his testimony, claiming she'd personally invited him and his brother to her party, that they'd met in secret away from the rest of the people there, and had agreed to meet the next morning at the creek. Once there, she'd been the one to initiate sex, already naked and swimming in the creek by the time they'd arrived.

Lindsey couldn't stop herself. She clapped a hand to her mouth and ran from the courtroom, looking sickly green, and didn't stop until she had burst into a bathroom stall and vomited violently.

"Mr. Fusselman, where did your client go?" Judge Hayes asked, stopping the testimony of Jonah.

"She isn't feeling well, your honor."

"Do you want to continue or wait until she returns?"

"Continue," Mr. Fusselman stated.

Gohan was sitting still as a statue, his eyes fixed on the man who had hurt his fiancée so badly. It was taking everything in his power not to fire a blast of concentrated energy at him right there on the spot. The testimony of Jonah and Cody went on for well over an hour, with Mr. Fusselman viciously debating every word they said.

"Are there any more witnesses?" Judge Hayes asked when Cody finally resumed his seat.

"No, your honor," Mr. Flynn answered.

"Mr. Fusselman?"

"No, your honor."

"Then we shall hear closing statements at this time."

Mr. Fusselman stood and addressed the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, it is painfully obvious what occurred on that spring morning on the Blackwell farm. A young woman, who thought herself safe, was attacked by two men she once counted as friends on her own property. DNA evidence presented and doctor testimony has confirmed that the two men in question sit before you, today, in this very room. Abducted and held against her will, beaten, raped, she begged for her life as they prepared to take it from her. You've seen the photographic evidence and heard her testimony. No one asks for that kind of abuse. Do not let the defense trick you into thinking that this young victim was deserving of this kind of torture. Do not let the horrendous actions of these criminals go unpunished! Too many victims do not report these attacks because of the intensely personal nature of such crimes. Do not reward her bravery with disappointment. Too many sexual predators walk free in our society. Send a message to the victims of these crimes that this will no longer be tolerated! Make an example, take a stand, and put these criminals away where they belong!"

Mr. Flynn stood then, as the prosecutor resumed his seat. He paced in front of the jury for a moment, seeming to collect his thoughts. "Drug abuse. Theft. Alcoholism. Blatant displays of overt sexuality and a penchant for exaggeration and falsehoods. These are not the actions of a sweet, innocent young woman. Miss Blackwell has a long and well-documented vendetta against my clients. There was no crime here. At least, not one committed by Jonah Johnson or Cody Johnson. If anything, these young men fell victim to the coldly calculated plan of this seductress. She has proven herself dishonest, not only in court, but to those close to her as well. This is nothing more than an intricate, carefully woven web of lies and deceit, meant to ensnare my unsuspecting clients, in an attempt to ruin their names and their future. Do not punish these young men and ruin the rest of their lives based on the false testimony of one jaded young woman. A woman who clearly has something to hide. She is not hiding from the world because of the alleged actions of my clients, but is hiding the truth from every single person in this courtroom. Do not be fooled. She is no more an innocent victim than any common prostitute on the street. And to send my clients to prison for HER actions would be the real crime! Search your hearts, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, and you will see that this is true."

Mr. Flynn returned to his table, gathering up his papers and briefcase.

"Court shall be in recess until the jury reaches a verdict," Judge Hayes said.