A/N So here we are, part 1 (of 2) of the trial! I have split it in two because this is already the longest chapter yet, so expect part 2 either Saturday or Sunday thank you to my new followers and favouriters, readers, and particularly to Lxtta, Becca, and Holbyfan101 for your reviews, they honestly made me tear up they were that sweet, thank you all!
As Zosia stepped up to the stand, she was asked to swear an affirmation. Her butterflies were threatening to make a quick exit as she saw Seb looking at her from the dock. He looked tired, but immaculately tidy, fitting the part of a pleading innocent man, looking like he was feeling confident. She didn't know what she ever saw in him. She was brought out of her thoughts by seeing the prosecution barrister stand and smile at her.
'Can you state for the court your full name and occupation for the court please?'
Zosia took a deep breath. 'My name is Zosia March, I'm a cardiothoracic surgeon in training at Holby City Hospital'. She grabbed hold of her hands to try and stop herself from shaking.
'Thank you Ms March' her lawyer smiled. 'To begin with, can you confirm to the jury how do you know the defendant?'
'I met him at work, and we began dating.'
'And when did the relationship end?'
'I ended the relationship in August last year' she admitted, and after a few more scene-setting questions, the prosecution asked her to describe what happened on the day she was abducted. 'I suffer from bipolar disorder and have been known to go through periods of hypomania when my condition isn't effectively managed by medication. I am told by colleagues and friends that I was showing signs of hypomania when Dr Coulter took me from the hospital. I woke up without much recollection of what had happened but I was in his car. I didn't know where he as taking me, but he was telling me that my boyfriend didn't care that I was 'ill'. The next thing I remember is arriving at a flat.'
'Had you been there before? Did you know where it was?'
'No' she shook her head. 'I had never been there before.'
'Then what happened?'
'He continued to try and tell me what had happened and I believed him. Over the next, I don't know how long, he was telling me lies about my boyfriend, my friends...and then told me we were going to New York. The next thing I knew, the police had turned up and Dr Coulter was arrested. Shortly after he feigned chest pains to find me on the ward I work on but my colleague realised what was happening and took charge.'
'And how did this affect you?'
Zosia proceeded to tell the court about her panic attack, how the events and the evidence regarding the medication had affected her and her confidence, trust issues and life in general since the incident, and the prosecution explained to the jury that they would be hearing evidence from Ollie, Elliot and an independent psychiatrist with regards to the effects of the other medication on someone suffering from bipolar.
Zosia was starting to relax when she suddenly remembered that the defence lawyer needed to ask her questions again, and she tense. A wigged and gowned man confidently rose from his seat, and looked at Zosia, removing his glasses and wiping them on the sleeve of his gown.
'Ms March, thank you for giving us your recollection of these events. To go back to setting the scene here, how amicable was your break up from the defendant?'
Zosia gulped. 'He was upset, he didn't see it coming' she said quietly.
'But why did you split?'
'...because I slept with another colleague, who is now my fiancé' she admitted, closing her eyes with embarrassment. She had nothing to be ashamed of, but she knew what the defence lawyer was trying to do. She placed a protective hand over her stomach in an attempt to calm the butterflies she was experiencing.
'When he came to Professor Hope's office to assess you, did he express any intention to take you away?'
'I don't think so, only to the psychiatric ward' she honestly responded.
'Yet he felt you were in a state so severe that you needed sedation, and that rehabilitation was the best option. Is it possible, given this diagnosis, that your memory of the events may be impaired?'
'I...I don't think so...' She stuttered, her nerves obviously getting to her now.
'Dr Coulter is a respected expert in his field and member of staff at the hospital, he acted in your best interests to try and take you to the Tall Trees Rehabilitation Centre, but you became violent-'
'I was agitated and scared-' she tried to interject, but the defence lawyer interrupted again.
'When you say you woke up in his car, you still voluntarily entered this building with him, despite not knowing where you were, or why you were there, and despite telling him you didn't trust him, you agreed to go to New York with him, why was this so? It doesn't make sense Ms March' he finished, raising an eyebrow.
Zosia felt herself trembling, and shook her head to keep herself together. 'Dr Coulter gave me medication which it turns out, was not medication I was prescribed. As other witnesses will attest, I was mentally vulnerable, impressionable even. If I had been of sound mind I would not have gone with him' she asserted as confidently as she could, but deep down she wanted to throw up.
'Thank you Ms March' the lawyer finished, before turning to the judge. 'No more questions, your honour' he continued, before sitting and scribbling something on a notepad. The prosecution asked Zosia to elaborate on a few points to strengthen their position, and when she was finally relieved from the stand, she couldn't get out of the room quick enough. Tears in her eyes, she made her way straight over to Ollie who stood with his arms out.
She threw herself into his arms and he wrapped them around her tightly while she did the same. He gently shhhh'ed her while she wept with relief that her evidence giving was over, mortified by the cross examination, and terrified that the defence would win. 'Was it dire?' Ollie said sympathetically and Zosia nodded.
'I can't give too much away...but that defence lawyer...watch them' Zosia warned, as the usher came over to them to fetch Ollie so he could give his evidence. Guy, meanwhile, put his arm around Zosia's shoulder and gestured for her to sit down next to him.
'Mr Valentine, in your statement, you mention that Ms March was in a state of sedation when you arrived at the hospital after being called by a Professor Hope. Did Dr Coulter give you the opportunity to see Ms March, or give any indication that he was intending to take her anywhere other than the psychiatric ward?'
'Absolutely no indication whatsoever. He told me that she shouldn't be crowded at that time, that he would call me when she was settled into the psychiatric unit upstairs. There was no indication that he would be taking her off the premises'
'How is her behaviour characterised during a bipolar episode, typically?'
Ollie thought. 'Well, on this occasion she wasn't sleeping but she seemed permanently wired, and paranoid. I thought there were other explanations for her behaviour, however, otherwise I would have stopped her from going to work.'
'When the police were informed and you visited Dr Coulter's property, what did you find?'
'A photo and object shrine, including Zosia's late mother's necklace which went missing from her locker at work previously, and prescriptions for lithium and other medications known for their sedative and hallucinogenic effects' he replied, seeing the jury write something down.'
'How has Ms March been since the incident?'
'Truthfully, she's been scared. When he arrived on the ward faking chest pain to get close to her, she had a panic attack. She's had nightmares and has struggled sleeping. She's getting better now, but immediately after the incident she didn't trust me, or almost anybody, except her father, because of the lies she'd been medicated to believe'
'Thank you Mr Valentine' he smiled, sitting, just as the defence lawyer rose. Ollie suddenly felt his throat tighten with nerves. The prosecution questions were the easy bit...
'I just have a few questions for you Mr Valentine' he began, and Ollie felt his throat begin to tense. 'Why did you let Ms March go into work if you thought she was having a bipolar episode, after all the manifestations you described are what you said are typical of Ms March's behaviours?'
'I didn't know that was what it was at the time' Ollie tried to defend himself.
'But surely if you were that worried you would have done something about it? You're a doctor, after all...'
'I wrongfully thought there may have been other explanations for her behaviour'
'I would put to you, Mr Valentine, that Ms March was not in as vulnerable a state as you elaborate to in your statement. As someone who is medically trained to presumably identify whether there may be capacity issues at play, and someone who allegedly loves Ms March, the defence find it difficult to be wholly convinced by your version of events.' He frowned, and Ollie felt himself sweating from nerves.
'Objection', the prosecution lawyer interjected, 'Mr Valentine freely admits that he should have had different instincts of the situation preceding the alleged abduction'
'I agree,' the judge nodded. 'Do the defence have any further questions?'
'No, your honour' he bowed, sitting.
Meanwhile, Zosia couldn't take the waiting around, not knowing what Ollie was being asked, and Guy was trying to keep her distracted.
'So have you had any more thoughts about an engagement party? I can help with money if that's a problem' Guy offered kindly, but Zosia was distracted when she felt something- a sharp pain in her lower abdomen. She doubled over slightly and squeezed Guy's hand, diverting his attention. 'Zosia, are you ok?!'
'I don't feel very well' she blurted, eyes closed and waiting for the pain to pass. With all the thoughts running through her head, concern for her baby was at the forefront now...she had no idea what was happening and was terrified.
Guy was confused and concerned as he watched his daughter grimace in pain. 'Where is the pain darling?' He asked, and she pointed to her abdomen. She had hoped to break the news after they had the scan, when they knew everything was safe, and when all of this was over...she opened her eyes to see him looking at her intently- she could tell he was concerned.
'Please don't kick off dad...' she begged, '...but I'm pregnant'
Guy didn't say anything for a moment. He just leaned back, looking away. Pregnant? How could she be pregnant? He had told her time and time again to be careful, to focus on completing her training before letting anything like that happen. Don't get him wrong, he liked Ollie, but she was still his little girl in his mind.
'Dad? Please say something?' She begged, placing a hand on her abdomen, and Guy shook himself out of his thoughts to face the fact that his pregnant daughter was scared and in pain.
'Um, ok, how far along are you?'
'Around 12 weeks I think-' she grimaced as another pain took hold.
'Ok, just try and stay calm, take some deep breaths'
'Dad I'm scared' she wept, finally feeling free to let out all the pent up emotion she was trying to bottle up.
'It's ok' he frowned, worriedly. 'I'm going to get Valentine out' he decided, looking around, just as Ollie stepped out of the room. He looked relieved it was over but when he saw Guy looking urgently towards him and Zosia doubled over, he hurried across the corridor and kneeled down in front of Zosia. 'It's alright Ollie, I know' Guy sighed, 'my cars outside, I think we should get you away from here' he said to Zosia, looking at the couple who both nodded.
'What's happening?' She panicked, and Ollie took her hands which she grasped hold of.
'I'm sure it will be fine' he tried to reassure her, but deep down he was worried. It had been a stressful few months, what if it was too much for a baby to handle? What if something was wrong anyway? He knew that Zosia would blame herself if something happened, and it broke his heart. She deserved for things not to go wrong for once.
When they arrived back at the hospital, they managed to catch Mr T to do a quick ultrasound. As he took them into a private scanning room, he instructed Zosia to lie down on the bed, which she did slowly and reluctantly, like she was too scared to see the scan in case it revealed that there was no longer a baby there...Everyone was silent, near enough, and Zosia kept hold of Ollie's hand. She looked terrified but did mention that the pain was subsiding, which, as was confirmed by the scan, was a good thing.
'Your baby is a resilient little thing' Mr T smiled. When they heard a heartbeat whomping in the room, Zosia spontaneously burst into tears, and Ollie hugged her.
'I thought we'd lost it' she wept, smiling with relief. Mr T smiled, pressing the probe down onto her stomach.
'I'd say you're 12 weeks and 3 days, does that sound about right?', to which the couple nodded. 'I'm fairly confident that the pain was stress related-'
'You see, I told you' Ollie smiled, squeezing Zosia's shoulder reassuringly as she smiled with relief.
'I would suggest not returning to court today' he advised, 'I think you need some TLC, let the experts worry about Dr Coulter...Mo filled me in on why Darwin was half empty of the usual doctors today, I hope you don't think I'm being nosy' he smiled, and Zosia and Ollie shook their heads. They were just relieved that their baby was ok, and that they had given their testimony. When they left Elliot had just been called in, and all that was left was for Seb to give his own evidence. As relieved as they were at the fact that their own testimony was over at least for the moment, they had a nagging realisation that it was ultimately up to the jury...they had no way of knowing how a group of random 12 people would decide...was their testimony strong enough?