Chapter 142

Now it was the defense's turn.

"Your honour, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the prosecution would have you believe that Ryan Tate is guilty of these crimes against children, but today, we shall prove otherwise and testify to his character and drive. First, we will call Dr John Chaplin, a qualified psychologist and the defendants counselor, to discuss Mr Tate's character and motivations. Then, we will call Mr Tate to the stand to give his own testimony about the alleged events. Finally, we will call Dr Jan Malcolm, a qualified biologist and expert in moral philosophy and ethics, specifically to scientific practice, to speak on the nature of the alleged events. Today, the defense will prove that the defendant is not guilty of what the prosecution alleges."

A ripple went through the courthouse as everyone processed who the defense was bringing as witnesses. Why would a kidnapping case require an expert in scientific ethics? Of course, the mers knew why. They felt uneasy. Would the jury understand?

The judge continued the proceedings. The lawyers presented their cases, the evidence and had their witnesses come to the stand. The mers watched and listened intently, anxiety making their hearts race, blood thumping in their ears as each witness came to the stand.

First, Vera presented the police evidence on Ryan's motive for the kidnapping.

"We have submitted a video recording of Mr Tate's interrogation and confession to Detective Isla Griffin. This recording displays Mr Tate's motives in his own words."

The judge signaled for this to be played.

The mers turned to the screen with nervous interest. They saw the detective remind Ryan of his rights and begin the interview.

"Mr Tate, tell me what happened tonight."
"You arrested the wrong person!" Ryan asserted irately. "I was doing this world a service – exposing mermaids! Dangerous mermaids!"
"Okay, what was your plan to expose mermaids?" The detective followed Ryan's lead.
"I obtained three juvenile mers to finally prove that I was right! Mermaids exist. My plan was to broadcast my findings, my evidence! So that no one would doubt me again!" he huffed. "I started my livestream, but was interrupted."
"How did you obtain these juvenile mers?"
Ryan sat forward in excitement that someone finally seemed to believing him.
"I tracked their movements – I knew the patterns of the adult mers and knew I would have an opportunity to take a younger mer. I learned from previous attempts." He said darkly.

"Why a younger mer?"
"Easier to obtain and would fit in the smaller tanks I bought. Having a juvenile would also allow us to study the growth of mers! Think of all the research opportunities!"
"So what happened?"
"We took an opportunity and captured three mers while they were swimming. Three! No one would be able to doubt me this time."
"We?"
"I employed some helpers, but they didn't end up being that helpful – they all ditched me in the end!"
"So they helped you bring them back to the warehouse?"
"Yes – we had tanks set up so they would be comfortable."
The dialogue continued as Ryan explained how he set up the livestream and how the adult mers burst in to retrieve their 'offspring'.
"So you fired your tranquillizer gun at them to try to stop them?"
"Of course! They were threatening my life! It was self defense! And the defense of my research!"
Isla leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms. Her posture changed as she changed the direction of the interrogation.
"Mr Tate, Alex Bennett, Jay Bennett, and Andrea McCartney are children. Children you took while they were swimming."
"No!" Ryan shouted. "But not human children. They might look human, but they are not! You have to believe me!"
"These three children have birth certificates, have a school they are registered as attending, have parents who were born Australian citizens. They are children – whether they are human or not, they are still children. You have admitted to taking them while they were swimming. Ryan Tate, you kidnapped them."

"As you can see in this recording, the defendant does not deny that he kidnapped three children. In fact, he was proud of it, so that he could prove that mermaids exist." Vera said. "This kidnapping was a premeditated crime and the defendant admits to it."

Detective Griffin was the first witness called to the stand. She spoke confidently, presenting the information in a clear and concise manner, and she did not waver when she answered the questions from the prosecution and the defense. Cleo felt slightly more settled in seeing this. The detective described the police response and investigation, the scene with the water tanks and equipment. She described the money trail purchasing these and hiring the guards who were fleeing the scene as police arrived, the stalking photos displayed in the room and the digital copies from Ryan's camera, the tranquillizer guns and darts. She described what the witnesses had shared in their statements, and what responding police had seen at the scene. The detective was able to paint a strong picture of the scene and of Ryan's guilt. Following her testimony, Vera submitted relevant crime scene photos – starting with displaying the stalker board, the tranquillizer guns (including melted ones), and the tanks. She also submitted evidence from the hospital – the blood tests from the children which showed high levels of tranquiliser drugs in their system, and police photographs of the tranquillizer entry wound of the children and Cleo McCartney. It helped that she testified that she had seen Ryan shoot the tranquillizer gun that hit Cleo. The detective explained that at the time of the crime, evidence about the existence of mermaids had not yet been published, so the police did not pursue validating Mr Tate's claims of mermaids. The detective explained that as soon as the mermaid research was published, she re-interviewed the witnesses and victims, and discovered that it was in fact true. The children were mers. There was a significant murmur through the jury at this, wide mouths displaying their shock. The defense lawyer highlighted this part of Isla's statement, trying to trap the detective in saying that the children were not human, and therefore the crime could not be considered kidnapping.
Isla responded brilliantly; "The victims were six and seven years old. They go to a local primary school. They participate in a local soccer team with other kids. Their parents work right here in the Gold Coast. Their dads are human. Their mothers are mers. They have registered Australian birth certificates and passports. Yes, they are mers. But I ask the jury to consider the terror that these three children endured when they were taken while they were swimming at the beach near their home. Look at them, look their parents in the eyes, and tell me that you think taking them for research is okay. Think about it."

Soon, it was Cleo's turn to take the stand. She tried to steady her shaking hands and clenched her jaw.
"Cleo, how did you meet Mr Tate?" Vera asked.
"I met Ryan Tate when I was in my final year of high school in 2009. He was a geologist who worked with my step-mum, Samantha. I asked him about a rock I was interested in – since he was a geologist. We did not stay in touch after I finished high school."
"Are you a mermaid?" Vera asked gently.
"I am." Cleo got it out on a wavering breath. She tuned out the jury as they shared awed looks.
"When did Mr Tate discover this?"
"Last year."

"How?"

"Objection, not relevant to this case." Ryan's lawyer called out.
"Objection sustained." The judge ruled.

"How did Mr Tate react?"
"He was upset that I hadn't told him. He declared that I wasn't human and he attempted to capture me and other mermaids. I got away."
"Did you go to the police?"

"No. We did not think they would believe the mermaid element of the case."
"Did you know that Mr Tate had been observing you and your children?"
"Not at first." Cleo replied. "I knew that he might get back in touch, but I did not expect him to stalk us."
"Did anything happen in the time between his discovery that you were a mermaid and the time when Andrea, Alex and Jay were taken?"
"Yes. Ryan captured my eldest daughter, Jenny."
"What happened?"
"He and his colleague tranquilized Jenny while she was swimming, and took her captive. His colleague, Katya, realised that Jenny was a child – not just an animal, and let her go with us. We did not know that Ryan would continue to stalk us and go after our children again."
"What happened on the day that the three children were taken?"

"After Jenny was taken, we didn't swim at all. But mer kids need to swim. So we enforced a lot of rules about when and where the kids were allowed to swim. We were close-by but we weren't in the water. Ryan hid his boat away from the beach and ambushed the children underwater, taking them to his boat. Eric was the fourth child in the water – but he didn't get taken. We contacted Katya and she gave us a lead about the warehouse. We went there, and one of our group called the police once we knew it was the right place."

"What did you see there?"
"I saw Ryan and his employees holding my daughter and my friend's sons in tanks in the warehouse."
"Thank you for your testimony, Mrs McCartney."

Extremely nervous didn't even start to cover how Katya was feeling as she walked to the stand. Her involvement was already out there from Cleo's testimony, but now she was going to be telling all. She knew that the mers weren't pressing charges against her, but this was entirely intimidating to broadcast her shortcomings in court.
"Dr Katya Alekhin," Vera began. "You recently published research with Dr Linda Denman about the existence of mermaids."
"That is correct."
"Which mermaids did you work with for your research study?"
"Some of the mer participants I cannot name due to a non-disclosure agreement, but Cleo Sertori was a volunteer participant in my research."
"You worked with Mr Tate. Tell us about that arrangement."
"I am a researcher in the fields of deep ocean science and marine mythology, who responded to Mr Tate's letter. He wrote to me with a research proposal regarding evidence of mermaids. He presented that evidence – a mermaid scale and video of them swimming. Excited, I agreed to work with him to prove the existence of mermaids. I didn't know that Mr Tate knew more than he shared."
"Can you provide further details about this?"
"Yes. We captured a juvenile mermaid who was swimming towards shore – Jenny McCartney. I thought it was odd that mythical creatures would be regularly heading towards the shore of a populated area, but I trusted Ryan's tracking of the mermaid movements. Ryan did not share that he knew who the mermaids were, that he knew Jenny's mother, or that he knew that mermaids had legs when they were dry. I realised my mistake when I talked to Jenny. I was surprised that she could understand and talk to me, and I was surprised by how human she was. She asked me for a Happy Meal from McDonalds because she loved chicken nuggets, and when she dried out, she was a girl who was wearing a Kim Possible T-Shirt and jeans. I was horrified when I realised that Ryan knew Jenny's mother, Cleo, and still targeted her child. I made sure Jenny was released as soon as I found out."
"How did Mr Tate react to this?"
"He was very angry that I had "let our evidence walk out the door!". I ended our arrangement, and apologised to the mermaids. I felt betrayed. I did not talk to Ryan again."
"When did you next hear from the mermaids?"
"They contacted me in desperation as three of their children had been kidnapped by Ryan. I was appalled that he would do this again! That he would take children – intelligent beings with thoughts, feelings, and a human life. No less valuable than human children. The mers asked me if I knew where he would be. I pointed them in the direction of the warehouse we had considered using when we had Jenny. I am glad that they found the children and got the police involved."

"Tell us about how you wrote the article proving the existence of mermaids after all this."

"The mermaids and I talked about the pros and cons of revealing the existence of mermaids to the world. They asked me and Dr Denman to do the research and publish it with their consent, so that there wouldn't be another case like this, where someone abandons their morals to prove the existence of mermaids."

"Thank you, Dr Alekhin." Vera concluded Katya's time on the stand.

A/N: Hello everyone! I am alive! Sorry it has been so long - this chapter was very difficult to write as it pulls so many storylines together and I'm trying to get the details right. The next chapter continues the court scene, getting more into the defense's argument - I've started that section, but have run out of time tonight to finish off (hence splitting the chapter slightly sooner than intended so that you have something to read after like 5 months!).

I hope you are enjoying reading this! Let me know your thoughts! I still love reading your reviews- it lets me know people are still reading.

Thanks especially to the following people for reviewing: YaleAceBella12, OceansDreams, Kaito Echizen, IP, Crazy Hayniac. I love you all, thanks for your kind words!

See ya next time!