Chapter 5: Justice
William walked to Arthur's room and knock lightly on the door. "Arthur, no one is going to hurt you. They didn't mean to scare you either." No answer came from the room. The red head wasn't sure what to do, so instead he sighed and continued, "We'll be down stairs when you're ready to come out."
Arthur was left, cowering and trembling uncontrollably. His urine soaked pants began to get uncomfortable and he started to notice the unpleasent smell. Scrunching up his nose, he ignored it and continued to sit on the floor. He didn't want to move. He was too afraid to move. A light humming sound poured from his lips, an attempt to calm himself. He rocked back and forth, thinking about what had happened. Deep down he knew his brother's meant no harm, he even kind of recognized them and in a way, sort of remembered how much fun they used to have. However, the memories were very distant and foggy, causing him to wonder if they were even real to began with.
Time ticked by slowly, dragging on for the 17 year old, making him more nervous. A few times, he heard foot steps stop at his door for a few moments before walking away without saying a thing. After a little while, he stood and walked over to the new clothes that William picked up for him and changed. he stared at himself in a mirror sitting in the corner of the room, before taking a deep breath and leaving his room. He crept down the stairs and peeked into the kitchen. He slowly entered the room, seeing his three brothers talking in hushed tones. He was sure that it was about him. William's head turned towards the kitchen's entrance to see that Arthur had left his room. The man stood slowly, so as to not scare the teen, and approached him.
"Hey, Arthur. Are you feeling alright?"
The blonde nodded, but didn't look at him. He kept looking at the other two, afraid that they would make a move. Connor spoke next, causing the boy to start.
"Well, we better get to the hotel. We'll hopefully see you guys tomorrow."
"Yes, we could have lunch together," William answered with a smile.
Arthur looked to each of his brothers before landing on William, eyes wide. Was he really going to spend a whole day with his two other brothers that he could barely remember. He tried to back up, but William's hand stopped him from continuing. He looked up into his face, fear evident in his eyes. Once Sean and Connor were out the door, William turned to Arthur and lifted his chin so that they were staring straight into each other's eyes.
"Arthur, they're not going to hurt you. They're just like me, though, grant it, they tend to be a little hyper sometimes." William placed his hand on the blonde's head. "Now come on. It's about time you got to bed. Where are your dirty clothes?"
The blonde walked past his brother and into his room, grabbing the soiled pants from the floor. William walked in behind him and took them from him, giving him an encouraging smile before motioning to the bed. Arthur pulled back the covers and crawled onto the mattress, before pulling them up to his face.
"Goodnight, Arthur." William began to walk out of the room before he stopped and turned around. "Actually, before I leave, I need to tell you something. Our father is going to trial in a week. I'm going to find someone to watch you..."
"No!"
William stopped talking, some what taken aback. "What?"
"I-I mean... I want to go too..."
"Arthur, our father is going to be there. I'm not so sure you should."
"But I want to..." Arthur said quietly, but then quickly added. "I-If it's okay with you..."
William smiled, glad that his brother was brave enough to attend the trial and face his father again. He pulled Arthur into a hug and said, "It's fine with me."
Arthur nodded and pulled away. "I'm tired."
The red head nodded and walked out of the room.
After laying down, Arthur quickly fell asleep. It wasn't a restful sleep. In fact, it was far from it. Nightmares plagued his mind. His father would be hovering over him, ready to beat him one moment, then raping him the next. The teen's eyes flew open and he sat up quickly, still feeling the phantom pain in his anus. Tears had been pouring from his eyes while he slept and he took notice of them. He tried to wipe them away, but they just wouldn't stop. He swung his legs off the bed and peeked outside his room. It was almost pitch black, sending a spark of fear shooting through his spine. He always hated the dark. Taking a deep breath, he ran to William's room and opened the door as quietly as he could. He entered slowly and called out with a small voice.
"William?"
The lump on the bed shifted and William turned to look at him. "Arthur, what are you doing out of bed?"
"C... Can I... sleep with you?"
William sat up on his elbows and sighed. A small smile graced his lips and he moved to the other side of the bed so Arthur could sleep on that side. "Come on, but you can't make a habit out of this. You're 17 and should sleep in you own bed."
"I'm sorry," Arthur said quietly. He turned around and headed back to the door.
"Arthur wait, I said you sleep in here tonight."
The blonde turned back around, fresh tears shining in his eyes. He sniffed lightly and quickly rubbed at his nose.
"Arthur, come here." The blonde did as was told. Once he was within arms reach, William pulled him onto the bed. "Now look at me. I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just trying to help you get back on your feet. I probably should be more comforting right now, considering what you've been through." After pausing for a few seconds he spoke again. "Now let's get to bed. It's really late."
The teenager nodded and crawled under the covers on his side of the bed while William did the same on the other side. "Goodnight, Arthur."
"Goodnight..." Arthur answered.
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The rest of the week Arthur spent building up the nerves so he would be ready to face his father at the trial. No matter how hard he tried, however, he still found himself crying in his room sometimes. He didn't feel that he would be able to answer any questions regarding his father. The day of the trial finally came and the four brothers entered. Arthur, Sean, and Connor sat in the back while William walked up towards the front, having been asked to testify. Arthur felt better about being around his other two brothers because he had spent nearly the entire week with them. They still had a long way to go, however, to gain his full trust.
The Kirkland brother's father was led to his seat by a couple of police officers. After he was situated and his lawyer was sitting next to him, he looked over and gave William the dirtiest look he could muster before scanning the filled seats. He met Arthur's eyes and smiled maliciously. The boy froze and his eyes widened. His palms began to sweat as he attempt to swallow the lump forming in his throat. A hand was dropped on his shoulder, giving him a start. He looked up to see Sean smiling at him. He gave a nervous smile back and turned to stare at the floor.
Arthur snuck a quick look at his father to find him talking with his lawyer, a grim look set on his face. Breathing a sigh of relief, he looked around the rest of the seats and found Dr. Davison, the doctor that examined him. He also saw his therapist. The rest of the people were ones he didn't know. A few more minutes passed and the judge entered the large room. He took his seat and announced that the court was now in session. Arthur barely paid any attention. He just wanted to block the entire thing out and be done with it.
He perked up a little when he heard his assigned doctor being called to the stand.
"So, Dr. Davison," began Arthur's lawyer. "What did you find during Arthur's examination."
Arthur visibly stiffened, and Sean drew him close in an attempt to hug him.
"There were multiple tearings and scars of previous tearings in his rectum along with seminal fluids..."
"Did the DNA of these fluids match up with this man's DNA?" Asked the lawyer, motioning to the accused.
"Yes."
"Very good, continue with your findings."
Arthur tuned the rest of her speech out, already knowing what she was going to say. Soon, she left the stand to be replaced by his therapist. She quickly stated what she observed in his behavior and that she diagnosed him with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She also stated that he has shown little to no improvement since he started seeing her. After her came Arthur's brother.
He walked up to the stand and was immediately asked questions.
"Did you have any contact with you brother during the known time of abuse."
"No."
"And when you decided to make a surprise visit, how did you find him?"
"He was... tied up and naked on his bed."
The lawyer turned from William and looked at the judge. "No more questions, Your Honor."
The judge nodded and announced and 30 minute break in which they would decide the man's fate. William approached Arthur, and the boy jumped from his seat, latching on to the red head. "He won't get out of this one, Arthur."
They left the room to sit on a bench, waiting for the break to be over. When it finally came time to hear the judge's decision, everyone filed back in and took their seat, this time, with William sitting next to Arthur. The judge took his seat and waited for everyone to settle down. Once all was quiet he spoke.
"I am sentencing James Kirkland to life imprisonment with no chance for parol." The judge hit his gavel to show his decision was made and laid it down to watch the seen before him.
Arthur erupted into tears of joy and buried his face into William's jacket. Connor laid his hand on his little brother's back while Sean nodded in aprovement. Their father was led out of the room, cursing and screaming at Arthur, but the teen didn't not hear. He was too overjoyed to even notice.
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Okay, for all of you people wondering when Alfred is going to enter the picture, please be patient. I'm trying to build up Arthur's story first. You should start to see Alfred within the next couple of chapter so don't worry! Anyway, don't forget to review~!