As the operation continued, Richie arrived at the small chapel that sat just down the hall from the waiting room, the numerous symbols of many religions and denominations embossed on a silk tapestry, a clear sign that all people of all faiths were welcome. And at the entrance of the spacious room was an ornate stoup, filled with holy water, which Richie dipped his right fingers tips in before he signed the Cross over himself, the shepherd too distracted to take notice of Death hiding in the shadows just inside the doorway, not daring to go past the stoup. All the immortal wolf could do was stand and watch Richie as he knelt at the altar, making the Sign of the Cross again before he began his prayer.
"Lord God Almighty, I'm afraid. Why have you forsaken us? Why have you forsaken Sam? If you truly are a God of mercy, deliver him from this."
Death merely rolled his eyes at this, a light scoff escaping his lips at the irony that HE was the one who delivered Sam from an untimely end. In fact, he always found it rather insulting that he was more or less a carrier pigeon for All of Creation, ferrying souls to their final rest. Whether that was up or down, he didn't really bother himself with that. All that would be determined by the big man upstairs.
"Lord what must I do? I try to fight the evil of this world, but every turn I take I am greeted by more. And the more that come, the more that good people will suffer…like Sam."
Death felt a small pang at this for he knew what Richie was feeling, a forlorn look gracing his features as he registered what Richie had said. He had existed from the first moment life graced the Earth. And in that time, he had seen evil take many forms; Rameses, Alexander, Napoleon, Hitler, Stalin…
Now it was Shendu, Jimmy Crystal, the Lords of Prey, and Lord KNOWS who else.
"Mierda," Death swore under his breath, the immortal being now feeling for the first time empathy for the victims in this senseless blood bath, be it past, present…or future. True, he enjoyed his work, maybe a bit too much, but at the end of the day he always found himself haunted by it. And now, as he watched the young German Shepherd sit there, hands folded as he prayed like he had never prayed before, Death could add it to the list.
Death watched and listened as Richie prayed for a good thirty minutes, he himself contemplating his own relationship with Richie's savior. Needless to say, it was a bitter one. Everyone knew that Jesus was the only one to ever truly conquer death. But in the end, Death couldn't deny the importance of that ultimate sacrifice, but at the same time he still felt robbed of his fun. After all, until Jesus, the only penance for sin was death.
It was at that moment that Death was pulled from his musings as a new face entered the chapel. Well, multiple new faces, each he recognized with their own brief encounters with him, being Dax, Tony, and Kayla who had run to the hospital upon hearing what happened. And it went without saying, the moment they saw Richie in his current state, their hearts went out to him.
"Richie?" Kayla asked as she, Tony and Dax entered the chapel, although slowly as they didn't want to crowd Richie in is his already delicate shape.
"Whatever it is, Whatever you need…Forget it, Kayla. I'm in no mood," Richie sighed. This unnerved the others, as they had thought Richie would be more than willing to accept his girlfriend's company at such a stressful moment. It was then that they could tell that Richie was in a great deal of pain. Not physical, but emotional.
"We just want to talk to you," Kayla pleaded, going to sit by her boyfriend's side, the fox wrapping her arms around him in as a comforting a hug as he would let her. Off to the side, Tony and Dax sent each other a knowing look, their own sad faces conveying the grief that they shared with their friend.
"Dax told us about what happened to Sam. I just want to assure you that it wasn't your fault," Tony said, leaning against the end of one of the empty pews in the chapel, one hand over the other at his waist as he spoke. Dax just stood, unsure if anything he could say could bring Richie any additional comfort. And for a solid minute, nobody moved, nobody spoke. They just…where there. That is until Richie, in a dangerously low voice, finally broke the silence.
And what he said, chilled the others to the bone.
"When Christ entered the temple and found it polluted by moneychangers and beasts, did he ask them to leave? Did he cry? Did he simply walk away?" Richie asked, the others remaining silent as he vented all his frustrations.
"NO!"
Everyone jumped at this, Kayla moving back to join the two other males as Richie abruptly stood up, slamming his hands on the back of the pew in front of him so hard that it actually cracked a little.
"HE DROVE THEM OUT!"
Richie whirled around to face the others as he spoke, the three other chapel occupants all scared for Richie, not OF him…FOR him. But even as Richie seemed to come down from his blazing furry, his voice, posture and eyes still held murderous intent.
"It is one thing to forgive a slap across my cheek, but hurting my friends, who have become more... no, it DEMANDS correction!"
Richie paused for a moment, a bitter chuckle escaping his throat before he voiced his morbid thought.
"I actually just remembered my Shylock…'He hath laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends and heated mine enemies. If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? If you wrong us, shall we not revenge?!'"
Richie paused, his impromptu Shakespearean soliloquy chilling his friends and girlfriend to the bone, each fearing for his mental state as he vented even more.
"'Yes…REVENGE! The villainy you teach me, I will execute, and it shall go hard but I will better the instruction.' I shall repay them for what they did to my family!" he shouted, before making his way to leave the chapel, only to find himself halted as Kayle threw her arms around his middle, the vixen burying her face into her boyfriends back as she began to weep.
"Rich, listen to yourself! This isn't you!" Kayla said as she hugged her boyfriend, who merely stood there, stiff, trembling with anger and even worse, anguish. And as he spoke, Kayla, Dax and Tony could here the sob that Richie was trying to fight back.
"Kayla, I need... I could use some help," Richie said as he choked up again, trying, and failing to hold his tears at bay.
"I have such... such guilt over Sam. I'm usually so careful in my planning and strategy but I didn't do enough to stop what happened. I should've done everything I could to stop it. And I would give anything to have a second chance. But I never can."
As Richie spoke, his voice failed him, his tone going up more and more as the tears fell freely from his eyes, his face twisting in sorrow as he slowly crumbled to his knees, his coming out in nearly indiscernible sobs.
"It's all my fault…it's all my fault…"
Kayla, moving quickly, went to kneel in front of Richie, pulling his head to her chest as his body just went limp, too exhausted to even wrap his arms around her as he sobbed into her chest, muttering over and over how much he blamed himself for what happened. But she knew that he would never be able to move past it until he let it all out. And so, caressing his head as a mother would her child, Kayla gently held Richie, whispering it his ear the whole time.
"It's okay Richie…don't fight it. Just for tonight, let yourself fall apart. And know that we are here to help pick up the pieces."
Not far from the couple, Tony stood by a now seated Dax, his hand firmly squeezing the Texan's violently shaking shoulder as the silver wolf, finding himself following Kayla's advice, held one hand over his eyes as he sobbed, his own grief finally becoming too much to bear. Looking from Dax to Richie, Tony, after taking a deep breath, finally added his two scents.
"Sam won't blame you for what happened, Richie. It was his choice, he knew the risks," Tony said, walking over to Richie to place a comforting hand on the dog's shoulder as he spoke. And when he did, he felt a small bit of relief as Richie finally lifted his gaze to Tony's.
"He'd say it was worth the wounds."
Dax, hearing this from the pew he sat in, was finally able to real in his sobs, taking one last sniff as his forlorn expression turned into one of sheer determination. And so, standing on his feet, Dax went to join the rest of the group, kneeling down to Richie as he spoke.
"Rich, in times like these, the only thing you can depend on is each other. You need us…we need each other now more than ever as much as we need you," Dax said as he brought him into a hug, the shepherd crying once more. Not full-on sobbing, but more gentle weeping. It was at that moment the sound of footsteps sounded in the room. Looking up, the group were met with the sight of Wolf as he walked in with who they could only assume was one of the surgeons tending to Sam, a lovely dalmatian female, who's name tag Richie could barely make out to read "Delilah Dalmar."
"How is he?" Richie asked, standing on his feet, the others eager to hear if their friend was going to be okay. Their hopes began to falter when they heard Delilah take a deep breath, her face neutral as she began to speak in a noticeable English accent.
"It was touch and go for a while; he lost a lot of blood. We actually almost lost him. But he's stable now. But he has suffered a concussion from the explosion with a collapsed lung. However, we were able to inflate his lung back up and gave him some blood to replace the near two liters he had lost. He has rebounded far faster than we anticipated. Normally injuries of that scale require a couple weeks in the ICU then a month or two of physical therapy. But he should be out of here in a week or two."
Everyone released a sigh of relief when they heard this, Delilah leaving with a small smile as Wolf thanked her for the news. And as Delilah left, Dax and the others continued to offer comfort to a still shaking Richie.
"Hey," Dax whispered, bringing Richie's attention to the smiling Texan as the latter cupped the former's cheek.
"He's gonna be okay."
"Thank God for that," Richard said with a shuddering sigh, only for his blood to run cold when he heard a sickening chuckle fill the room, each of his friends also feeling a sudden sense of dread as they turned to the chapel door.
"No, thank me, my friend," Death said as he stepped out of the shadows, once again careful not to pass the stoup in front of him. Though, this didn't stop the others freezing in place as they gazed upon the ghostly wolf, who merely offered a teasing smirk as he spoke. But, even if he couldn't be sure, Richie could have sworn he saw relief in Death's eyes as well. And as he continued to speak, Death disappeared in a cloud of dark mist, until the only thing left of him was his voice.
"I saved him so that when the times comes, I'll be able to enjoy taking him to the afterlife where he will stand before God."
"Yeah," Richie sighed under his breath as the last whisps of the immortal being dissipated from the room, he and his friends feeling a great chill over them upon realizing just how close they came to losing their friend.
"That sound like something you would do, Death."
Redshore City Courthouse
The People vs. James Crystal
Day 3
8 A.M.
The room was buzzing with activity. So much so that the conversations and murmurings were actually almost deafening. But, at that moment, Jimmy Crystal didn't care. At this moment, he and Jade Tusk sat at their designated table, with the opposing table and pews totally empty. Fellers and Canis had never reported to him the previous night and had failed to show up at his house that morning. But, then again, he had to reminded himself that he had ordered his two bodyguards to go after Buster, not that he cared. Buster, and too a greater extent his friends, were making him look bad…
And no one made him look bad.
As he sat waiting, Jade Tusk's phone buzzed. Looking at it, she smiled upon seeing that it was from Professor Marmalade, who offered an update about recent events that would prove to be quite cumbersome to Jimmy…if Jade Tusk let him in on all of it.
Professor M: Lebon Rescued, Jerry captured. Files sent to me. Jerry captured before he could fully delete files. Unaware of which ones remained. Exercise caution.
Jade Tusk grinned. Even though it was a bit unnerving that the files Jerry couldn't delete were now in enemy hands, as well as the juicy dirt Linda was tasked to keep and ultimately surrendered, she could at least use the information on Martin Wilde to her advantage that day, while at the same time saving the rest for later.
"Jimmy, I think we can cause some chaos in this court to gain some advantages against Moon." she said to the white wolf, the sultry dear discreetly reaching between his legs to grope his crotch as she spoke. However, the white wolf, for once, didn't seem to notice as he just stared ahead at the judge's pulpit.
"How so," Jimmy asked, not taking his eyes off of Prides who was looking over some files his assistant had given him.
"By exposing Nick Wilde and Porsha's relationship," Jade Tusk said, a sinister spread across the water deer's face. Jimmy raised an eyebrow, curious as to what Nick had to do with this.
"You see, Nick's mother will be here. Ever since her husband died, she always believed that Nick was Martin's only offspring. Of course, when she finds out that Suki withheld that information, it will drive Kayla Wilde mad with grief, believing that her husband had indeed cheated on her with Amelia."
Jimmy let a smirk spread on his muzzle, the plan Jade Tusk laid out like music to his ears. However, Jimmy's happy moment vanished quickly as the doors at the back of the room opened, his attention, along with everyone else's, turned in that direction. And the moment he laid eyes on the new arrivals, the anger and confidence quickly turned to fear and uncertainty as the Moon Troupe, now accompanied by Ellie and Cherry, barreled in, their faces void of any discernible expression as they made their way to the front of the room. And needless to say, the aura of steely determination radiating from them made a dark silence fall over the room, the only sound being their feet on the tile floor. But even as she tried to maintain a serious expression, Meena couldn't help but crack a shy smile and exhibit a small blush as she noticed Alfonso in the crowed, the female offering the male a timid wave as she was glad that her boyfriend was there as promised. And it wasn't just Meena.
Johnny and Nooshy were especially surprised to see that their fellow dancers, Klaus Kickenklober included, seemed to be there that day to cheer him. And right behind the Troupe, walking side by side, were Charlie Lane and Linda Le Bon, both holding the same expression of determination as the others. And right behind Linda, was a group of animals that made Jimmy's blood run cold; Two notable members of Linda's staff and crew…notable FEMALE members.
The first was a lovely beagle girl, her peach fur giving a soft and approachable aura as did her mesmerizing hazel-grey eyes. Dressed simply in a green blouse and khaki capris, she definitely displayed a sense of modesty and humbleness. And right behind her was another beagle girl, her face framed perfectly by cascading brown hair that stopped at the middle of her red-shirt clad back. And hidden behind a pair of round glasses, the girl had a very stunning pair of violet eyes, eyes which definitely conveyed her desire to be anywhere but there, especially when she inadvertently met Jimmy's gaze.
"Shit," Jimmy murmured, the wolf now quite nervous as serval hard, accusing glares were sent his way by the first beagle, who he noticed was accompanied by a black-furred male bloodhound, clad in a red shirt and jeans, his brown eyes joining the ginger female's in glaring at Jimmy, each with revenge in their minds as they took their seats in an empty pew that had been specifically reserved for them.
"What is it?" Jade Tusk whispered, careful to keep her voice low.
"I fucked all those girls…and the one with short, ginger and curvy is her husband."
At this point Jimmy was starting to internally panic, fear gripping his mind as it appeared everything was about to go down the toilet. Not even Jade Tusk's dexterous fingers in his lap seemed to calm him. But the moment the doors swung open again, Jimmy knew he was so screwed as Chief Able Aldan, followed by a disguised Dax who had been given a spare uniform by Able, were carrying by his elbows, to everyone's shock…
A handcuffed Jerry Stilwell, the frightened cat alive and well.
And the moment Jerry was practically flung into the witness booth, Prides stared, the lion just as shocked as everyone else to see a cat that had recently been M.I.A. sitting in the witness booth. But, upon noticing the grim expressions on both prosecution and defense's side, and the look of fear in Crystal's eyes, he knew things were about to get interesting. He was even willing to excuse the equally shocked bailiff from failing to address the court to rise.
"Before we get started," he finally said, drawing everyone's attention to him, the two sides of the case taking the incentive to sit as Prides started the day's proceedings, "Dr. Lane, you have something to say regarding recent events?"
"Yes, your honor," Charlie responded with pure conviction, began to give what he felt was to be the greatest performance of his life, being sure to deliver the events with some embellishment and half-truths to keep the real events secret.
"Last night an attempt was made on the lives of Mr. Moon, his friends, and my Family. Nobody was hurt, but the perpetrators escaped. They returned later that night to kidnap Mr. Moon and my sister, Suki Lane. Law enforcement officers were able to track down the kidnappers to an abandoned warehouse at the Redshore Port. A firefight ensued, leaving both the kidnappers dead and one of the officers severely injured. However, they were able to rescue Mr. Moon and Ms. Lane and were then able to identify the criminals involved, as well as motive thanks to eyewitness evidence from Mr. Moon and Ms. Lane."
Jimmy froze at this, almost certain that he knew where this was going.
"Peter Canis and Mario Fellers, bodyguards under the employment of Mr. Jimmy Crystal, had been sent to strong arm Mr. Moon into dropping the remaining charges against Mr. Crystal. If not, then they would be tortured, raped and killed, though both victims theorized they would happen anyway."
A soft murmur echoed through the room, all eyes now on Jimmy, the wolf, who was still trying to register the fact that his plan had ultimately failed, leaving his two best men dead. However, the look Jade Tusk gave him calmed him down a bit.
"Order!" Prides called, lightly banging his gavel to bring the situation under control.
"Thank you for bringing these recent events to attention, and we will address this later on. For now, it is time to address the elephant in the room…or rather the cat."
Jerry shrunk in the chair, the cat's eyes timidly scanning the room, only for him to shrink in fear upon noticing his former employer staring daggers at him. But, even with Dax and Able backing him, he still could not control his fear.
"Your Honor," Charlie called as he stood to his feet, cane in one hand and stack of records in the other, "in my hand is information that proves that James Crystal is an even bigger crook than he lets on. Recovered from the records of Jerry Stilwell is a list of all the financial transactions that occurred within each fiscal year of the past fifteen years, and each tax form in that time as well. Which is why today, I am calling Jerry Stilwell as my first witness."
Upon hearing this, Prides turned his attention to Jade Tusk, the doe actually at a loss for words, her mouth opening and closing like fish. Finally, Jade realized she had no choice. Pinching the bridge of her nose in annoyance, Prides took this as permission to proceed. And with that, Charlie made his way toward the witness stand, where Jerry had just taken his oath.
"Jerry" Charlie called as he approached the skittish cat, "you where Mr. Crystal's assistant, correct?"
"Y-yes, I was," Jerry answered with a nervous laugh.
"But it wasn't your only job."
"N-no," Jerry answered again, this time with a timid frown.
"Would you please explain to the court what your other roles within Crystal Entertainment…and I don't need to remind you, you're under oath."
As Jerry swallowed a nervous lump in his throat, Prides cast his gaze over to the defense, half-expecting Jade to jump up and object. But, to his surprise, none came as the lovely water deer just sat in silence, her client staring holes into the side of her head when he wasn't glaring at his former assistant.
"Accountant and Treasurer."
"Very good," Charlie said as he began to pace in front of the jury stand, "and as accountant and treasurer, it is fair to assume that you from your statement and these documents, that you handled all financial transactions within Crystal Entertainment."
"Y-you assume correct, Mr. Lane," Jerry once again timidly responded.
"Alright," Charlie continued as he stepped toward Jerry, the cat continuing to shrink back, "now tell me this; why were you hidden? From what Mr. Crystal has said to others, namely the press, you should have been at the forefront of all of this because you were a very devoted employee and friend."
"FRIEND?!"
The sudden shift in Jerry's tone certainly caught everyone by surprise. Even Charlie was surprised that just in the span of a second Jerry went from this fearful, timid thing to a brash, indignant cat.
"Crystal was not my friend. He had no friends. I was just his shameful suck-up of a secretary."
And the moment he heard those words leave Jerry's mouth, Crystal knew he was in deep shit. Jade Tusk, however, gave Jimmy a soft smile as she rubbed his knee, the water doe already thinking of a way to turn everything around.
"He was in show business, sure. But he had no qualification for it, not the eye or the skill. Truth is, he had no head for business, accounting...none of it. Moon saw the auditions when he came to Redshore. All fabulous, fantastic…and Crystal dismissed them all. He wouldn't know talent if it ran up and slapped him in the face. That's why he had me and Suki. We did all the work while he just sat in his office or traveled. In truth, it was a thankless job."
"Well, others say that you seemed quite fond of him, Jerry."
"I was fond of his money. Crystal was crude...demanding, insulting, and most likely a felon, as you yourself have found out."
"And I've also found something else out, as you may have figured…something pertaining to him and two well-known crime bosses in Jasper, Canada," Charlie added with a mischievous grin, turning his gaze towards Jimmy, who now went wide eyed, wondering if his dealings with the mob were really going to come back to bite him in the ass. The whole room suddenly jumped at the sound of Charlie slamming the entire stack of records on the witness stand in front of Jerry, the cat actually jumping a little as well, a slight hint of fear in his eyes, but more so from Crystal's threatening gaze as the cat glared at Charlie.
"These records were procured from the IRS by a third-party source that will remain nameless," Charlie began rather forcefully, his questioning of Jerry becoming louder and more intense the more he spoke, slightly unnerving everyone in the room.
"They all show a list of some form of back payments to a second party that had sent a large sum to Mr. Crystal some years ago, as well as a single, smaller sum paid FROM Mr. Crystal to a third, separate party. I know because these parties, although never properly identified used the initials 'D.W.' and 'K.B.' Now, who these 'D.W.' and 'K.B.' are can be put to pure speculation if it wasn't so obvious."
A murmur went up from the jury and the crowd, everyone quite confused as to what Charlie was getting at, as it wasn't obvious to them.
"As we all know, Jasper at the present time is rampant with crime and chaos. Prior to that, the major crime families of Jasper maintained a, for lack of a better word, 'respectable' practice in their areas. Now, only two heads of the major crime syndicates come to mind. The first I will focus on for now is this 'D.W.', who some years ago exhibited a very large transaction, in the guise of a generous donation to Mr. Crystal, who if I recall correctly, was experiencing great financial difficulties at that time."
"Objection, irrelevance," Jade Tusk called, calmly standing to her feet, only for a grumble to escape her throat as Prides answered.
"Overruled. Proceed, Dr. Lane.""
"Now, there are many individuals some might assume to be D.W. But only one comes to mind. The one who would have been making a very lucrative profit at the time. One who was rapidly building himself up to be one of the top bosses in Jasper. Jasper's very own Cain Aldan. More commonly known as…'The Dark Wolf.'"
It was at this moment that many in the room, the jury included, began to connect the dots. And unfortunately for Jerry, Charlie wasn't done, the saluki using his special-lawyer powers of deception to deliver the truth in a way that it wasn't exactly a lie. Even a disguised Cain couldn't hep but chuckle as Charlie continued, the black-furred canine just sitting back and enjoying the show.
"Now, I had managed to get in touch with Mr. Aldan through a neutral party. Now of course, I couldn't count on Mr. Aldan being honest with me when I asked him if he had ever dealt with Mr. Crystal in the past. He said he had, and that it was the transaction I had spoken of. He even said he expected Crystal to pay him back, with interest when he got himself financially stable. But then he informed me that Mr. Crystal's payments had been turning up light. And it was not only that, but I noticed in these IRS reports that Crystal Entertainment also seemed to be showing some other gaps in its finances. Gaps that would connect Crystal Entertainment's profits…to Mr. Crystal's private account."
With that, Charlie turned back to Jerry, who was fidgeting in his seat.
"Am I wrong, Jerry?" Charlie asked, facing the cat once again. And as he gazed at the feline, Charlie was surprised to find the cat staring right back at him, a cold void in his eyes as he stared down at the saluki attorney.
"No."
At that moment, Jerry felt he had made a critical mistake, for the moment the one word left his mouth, he noticed Jimmy make a discreet slashing motion with his thumb across his throat as he discretely mouthed two words…
"You're Dead."
"Now Jerry," Charlie continued, "it says in your file that you graduated from Redshore University, top of your class in accounting. Naturally Mr. Crystal would hire someone as prolific as you to handle his expenses. My theory is that he had you divert funds from his company to his own private account in such a way that it might not be noticed. But it was. But that is not the only thing. Even with those funds diverted, there was still a noticeable discrepancy in Mr. Crystal's accounts, as well as the repayments to Mr. Aldan. To Mr. Crystal's credit, he had remained faithful in making his payments to Mr. Aldan in full. But upon further investigation, it was discovered that additional funds from both feeds were funneled to another account…yours. When your capture was evident, you tried to delete the evidence of those transactions, as well as where they came from and where they went to...but you were caught before you could. The math does not tally...YOU STOLE FROM HIM!"
At this point, Charlie was practically screaming in Jerry's face, his sudden outburst even causing Crystal to feel unnerved by the ferocity of Charlie's interrogation. And as this went on, Prides continued looking in Jade Tusk's direction, still expecting, and at this point hoping, that the doe might object…
But she didn't.
She knew it was all over. But she still could stir up the hornets' nest. All Jade had to do was wait for Nick and his family to arrive, then she would cause chaos, just like her master wanted.
"Yeah," Jerry responded in a low, cold tone, a tone that even made Suki shiver.
"You're damn right I stole from him. Thousands. I knew that money wasn't honest. What did it matter if I skimmed some off the top?"
Charlie ferocious appearance went slack almost immediately, a smug smirk forming on his lips as he had Jerry where he wanted him. But in truth, it was all staged.
"So, you admit that these documents hold the truth?" he asked in a question that he already knew the answer to.
"That he funneled money from his own company and lied about it to the IRS? And that he was also indebted to Mr. Aldan?"
"Yes, and Yes."
The room was enveloped in shocked murmuring, only to be silenced by Pride's gavel.
"ORDER! Bailiff, take the witness into custody where he will be charged with Embezzlement and Tax Fraud. The same charges will also be applied to Mr. Crystal."
"Your honor," Charlie said as he looked to Prides, the stunned lion slowly coming out of his shock as he turned his attention from Jerry as he was escorted out of the room by Dax and the bailiff fully to Charlie.
"With this new information brought to light, I would like to also add two additional charges of sexual assault, brought forward by two staff members of Miss Linda Lebon's show 'Hot News.' With that, I would like to call Linda Lebon to the stand."
Linda made her way to the witness booth, sending Jimmy a defiant sneer as she did, which only resulted in a malicious glare from jimmy as he watched the horse take her seat in the booth before taking the oath. And once that was all said and done, she gave her testimony.
"At first, I was the one to protect Jimmy Crystal after the whole incident at his theater, but after hearing Porsha's and Suki's testimony, I was so disgusted that I couldn't, in good conscience continue. In truth, he wanted me to expose Suki and Porsha's private lives to discredit them. Not long after that, two of my staff members, Roxanne Goof and Stacey Carmel, the ones who accompanied me today, came forward and told me that Mr. Crystal had defiled them while in my employment. After that, I had a change of heart and surrendered the files. Then, he had me kidnapped and had his thugs try to kill me, but luckily, I was saved by some, shall we say, good friends," Linda said.
"Miss La Bon, were you in fear of your life after turning the evidence over?" Judge Prides asked.
"Yes, I knew I was in immediate danger, and I was seeking protection. I knew he had the means and motives to put a hit on me, I just didn't think he would after everything I've done for him."
As Linda finished her testimony, there was a soft murmur in the room, everyone stunned by what the usually boisterous talk-show host had just said. Even the Moon Troupe and Suki were shocked to see this humble side of her.
"Thank you, Miss La Bon, you are dismissed," Judge Prides said as Linda was escorted by the bailiff back to her pew, the horse sending Jimmy a defiant sneer as she passed.
Roxanne took her seat in the witness stand, the bailiff approaching her with the black bible in hand.
"Ms. Goof, do you swear to the tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god."
"I will, try my best."
And after that was all said and done, Roxanne began her testimony.
"Once, I was charmed by Jimmy Crystal's handsome good looks, but that was only a facade. I didn't see his true nature until he started pressuring me to…flash my breasts. I refused to do it, but he kept on insisting. When I refused again, he slapped me. I finally caved in a showed him my breasts, where at that point he began to grope them. I begged him to stop, but he wouldn't. He kept fondling my breasts and grabbed my throat and started tearing my clothes off before he took me into his office and…defiled me. I cried and I wanted him to stop. I got choke marks on neck during that time. He came at me in an argument and chocked me out and I laid on the ground crying because there was no one around to help me. My husband, Max, was aware of this, but I told him not to call the police because there were dirty cops that were on Jimmy's payroll and they would kill us if we told on him," Roxanne said as she cried, hiding her tear-filled eyes in her right palm as she was escorted from the witness stand by the bailiff, who returned her to her husband, the hound dog instantly consoling his wife as he glared daggers at Jimmy.
Next Witness: Stacey Carmel.
"Friday, at work, I wanted to make a call, but my cellphone was missing from my purse, Jimmy stole it because he was checking up on me. He found explicit photos of me that I had sent to the Chief of Police in Zootopia. When he saw this, he thought I was cheating on him and spoke to a law enforcement agency. He sent the photos to everyone in my workplace and faked my number so no one knew he did it. Then, he said if I ever saw Chief Bogo or any law enforcement officer, he'd kill me and my family. I told him I sent Chief Bogo the pictures by accident, but he called me a liar and hit me. So, I took the train to Zootopia to talk to Chief Bogo to explain what happened. I didn't know Jimmy Crystal and his thugs were following me. They jumped me. I begged them and especially Jimmy to stop, but they wouldn't. Then, he hit me in the head and I passed out," Stacey said as she was crying.
"Stacey, were you dating Chief Bogo?" Charlie Lane asked.
"No, but when he got the photos, he thought I wanted to. I told him I just want to be friends; nothing more and nothing less," Stacey said.
"Did Jimmy Crystal also assault you and Roxanne before you came forward to Redshore Police Department Internal Affairs and reported the incident to Basil Baker?" Charlie asked.
"Yes. This was before Porsha gave her testimony and gave me and Roxanne the courage we needed to report to Basil what a monster Jimmy Crystal is."
Satisfied with the testimony, Charlie looked to Prides, who then gave Stacey permission to return to her seat. But once she was seated beside Linda, Charlie stalled for a moment, wondering if he should really take the next step in his approach that would be a huge gamble. But, in the end, he knew he had to steel his nerves and roll these dice. And so, after taking a deep breath, Charlie continued.
"Your honor, with these charges of assault, it is worth noting that this wouldn't be the first time in recent years that Mr. Crystal as displayed a violent, or shall we say homicidal personality. Which is why I would like to add Insurance Fraud, and to a greater extent…conspiring to commit Murder."
This resulted in a huge uproar that almost deafened Charlie, the saluki only managing to hear again as Prides banged his gavel.
"ORDER! ORDER! Mr. Lane, you better start explaining these new accusations."
And off course, Charlie was more than happy too, the saluki sending the now very nervous Crystal a defiant sneer before he began to explain.
"Your honor, as I said, an attempt was made, not only on my client, but his friends and my family. Given that the one's responsible were employed by Mr. Crystal, I can only surmise they were acting under his orders. However, there is something that caught my attention. I noticed something interesting as I examined the financial documents from earlier. Out of curiosity, I looked back to the week of April 22 twelve years ago. In those transactions, I noticed a very large payout to Mr. Crystal following the…"
Charlie stalled for a moment as he composed himself before he turned to the jury.
"The murder of his wife Amelia Crystal, paid out from McClintock Insurance here in Redshore. Looking into it a little bit more, I noticed that, through McClintock's records, Mr. Crystal had taken out a large policy on his wife just three days prior to her death. That struck me as very suspicious. Then I remembered something. My father, the DA for Redshore around that time, had told me that previous month before I was to ship out for another tour in Afghanistan that Amelia Crystal had come to him, saying that she had planned to divorce Mr. Crystal."
Another murmur sounded in the room, every eye looking incredulously to Crystal, who at this point was low-key snarling as he dragged his claws across the table. It was at that moment that Prides realized what Charlie was getting at. And while he knew it would be a massive risk to go forward with it, the lion himself found himself quite intrigued at what Charlie may have found.
"Mr. Lane," he began in an almost warning tone, "are you suggesting…?"
"Yes, Your Honor…"
A long, very dramatic pause followed as Charlie slowly turned his unblinking gaze towards a now very livid Crystal.
"James Crystal conspired to murder his wife."