Chapter Twenty-Five

Before Daphne and Fred got up in the morning, pictures of them having sex made tabloid websites all over the country and on international tabloid websites. As soon as Daphne and Fred met with the Lawyer in a private room, she was furious.

"How could you two have let this happen?" the Lawyer asked. "I had so many angles today, and now this happens!"

"Do you think we planned this?" Daphne asked, upset.

"Daphne was upset last night, and I was trying to comfort her," Fred added.

"And now the country thinks of you as porn stars!" the Lawyer said.

Daphne burst into tears as she thought of William, and Fred hugged her. The Lawyer felt guilty immediately.

"Daphne, I'm sorry for what you're going through, but you've got to stop crying," the Lawyer said. "The jury can't see you with red eyes,"

Daphne let go of Fred and walked right up to the Lawyer.

"How am I supposed to look after this has happened?" Daphne asked, frustrated. "They already think I'm a killer! What difference is going to make if they think I'm a slut as well?"

"It's going to make a huge difference to William if he finds out who you really are," the Lawyer said honestly.

Just hearing his name made Daphne gasp. Fred was shocked as he couldn't believe that he hadn't thought of William as well. The Lawyer was happy with how Daphne and Fred were feeling now.

"I'm going to do everything I can to get a not guilty verdict," the Lawyer said. "But I need you two to be thinking as clearly as you can. You two have to act like that you fit the facts as I present them to the jury. You can't be thinking about what the jury thinks of you,"

Daphne and Fred nodded silently, and the Lawyer was satisfied with that, but she wasn't sure if that would be enough.

XXXXX

The Captain of the Coolsville Police Force, Captain Blender was next on the stand. She was in her early late forties and had grey hair and blue eyes. The Prosecuting Attorney had all his questions answered, and now it was the Lawyer's turn. Daphne hoped she could get something useful out of the Captain. Captain Blender had seen Daphne as she walked to the stand, but she hadn't looked at her since.

"Captain Blender," the Lawyer said. "When Robert died, he didn't have his glasses on. Is that correct?"

"Yes, that's correct," Captain Blender replied.

"And where were his glasses?" the Lawyer asked.

The Prosecuting Attorney stood up.

"Objection," the Prosecuting Attorney said. "Relevance?"

"It has to do with the circumstances of his death," the Lawyer said.

"Overruled," Judge Reynolds said.

"Thank you, your honor," the Lawyer said to Judge Reynolds before she returned her attention to Captain Blender. "In recent years, Robert Ballard had become nearsighted, and on the day of his death, he was waiting for the lenses in his glasses to be replaced. And his glasses were with the optometrist, and he didn't have a spare pair of glasses. They were due to arrive three days later, and that means on the day of his attack, he couldn't see his attacker clearly. So, when he identified Daphne as his attacker, could it not be possible that he gave a false identification?"

The Prosecuting Attorney stood up immediately.

"Objection," the Prosecuting Attorney said. "Speculation,"

"Sustained," Judge Reynolds said. "Stick to the facts, counsellor,"

Daphne froze at that. Robert's eyesight was her only defence; she hadn't been at the original attack. The Lawyer was well aware of this, but she showed no sign of weakness. Daphne was showing every sign of weakness as she was terrified that she was going to prison soon.

"Do you have any other arguments, counsellor?" Judge Reynolds asked.

"Yes, I do," the Lawyer said before she returned her attention to Captain Blender. "Captain Blender, on the day of Robert Ballard's death, there was a citywide internet outage, including cell phones and CCTV cameras. And yet your station received an anonymous tip two hours after the attack that Robert's attacker had arrived back at his house,"

"That's correct," Captain Blender said.

"So why wasn't the tip made at the time of the attack?" the Lawyer asked.

"Probably because the caller couldn't make the call by their cell phone," Captain Blender said.

"Then why didn't they go your station and report to someone there in person?" the Lawyer asked.

Captain Blender was finding her line of questioning very confusing.

"I don't know," Captain Blender admitted. "Maybe this person was afraid of the attacker,"

"If that's the case, then why did this person go back to the scene of the attack two hours later and report the attack, and if so, how, since there was an internet blackout that day?"

"There's a phone booth nearby," Captain Blender said. "That's the only place a call could have been made,"

"Do you have a recording of this call?" the Lawyer asked.

"No, our equipment was down,"

"Then how do you know it wasn't the real killer calling you and setting up my client?"

The Prosecuting Attorney had heard enough, and he stood up.

"Objection, your honor!" the Prosecuting Attorney said. "Speculation!"

"Sustained," Judge Reynolds said.

Then Daphne had heard enough, and she stood up.

"No, you can't overrule that!" Daphne shouted. "My lawyer is telling the truth,"

"Order!" Judge Reynolds said as he banged his gavel.

Daphne sat down slowly, and the Lawyer looked at Daphne as if she was already wearing a prison uniform. The jury saw her that way, too.

XXXXX

For every day the trial went on, Daphne thought she was losing more of her mind. When it came to her life, from living with her church-obsessed mother to being in the courtroom, Daphne felt like most of her life was a trial. But now was the final day of the trial, and there was no way Daphne could escape the very real possibility that her life was over. The Lawyer was the first person to give their closing statement.

"Daphne Blake was born into a very religious family," the Lawyer said. "A family so religious that she always felt like she was being judged no matter what she did. Whether she was a little girl or a teenager, Daphne felt like nothing she did was good enough for her mother. But that didn't matter, as she did Coolsville proud when she formed Mystery Inc. with her friends and did a lot of good for this town. But now, Coolsville has let Daphne down by believing that she's a killer. That she murdered Robert Ballard when nothing could be further from the truth. All of the evidence can be disproven. All the evidence shows that someone is out to get Daphne for no good reason. Daphne Blake is the very definition of good, but there are people in this town who refuse to believe that and will do anything to ruin her life. Today, you are in the position to ensure that the rest of her life is not wasted on a life she doesn't deserve. A life in prison,"

As the Lawyer walked back to Daphne and sat beside her, Daphne wished she could have said more, but there was no more to say. Then, the Prosecuting Attorney walked in front of the jury, and he knew that he was going to relish every second.

"That's a very insightful way to look at Daphne Blake," the Prosecuting Attorney said. "But I wouldn't use that word myself. I would say fraudulent because even the best of us snap. Daphne may have formed Mystery Inc. with her friends. She may have solved mysteries that served the town for the greater good, but she didn't do it alone. She did it with her friends, who could easily remove her from Mystery Inc. and work as a trio. They don't need Daphne to be there to help them look good, as that's all she's really good for. Her looks. But that's not the reason I'm talking about Daphne Blake today. I'm talking about the punishment she deserves to be sentenced to by law. Now, she broke the law when she murdered Robert Ballard. There has been evidence shown throughout the trial that showed that Robert himself identified Daphne as his killer. There has been evidence of her losing her temper with him at a convention that led Daphne to kill this harmless man. My colleague has tried to refute this evidence with speculations that it can be disproven, but I stick to the facts when I prosecute anyone, not speculations, hoping it will get them off. Now, as jury members, you must ensure that you have taken every piece of evidence presented against Daphne Blake and arrive at a unanimous guilty vote. Because that's what Daphne Blake is. Guilty,"

As Daphne watched the jury, she saw that most of them mouthed the word 'guilty' after the Prosecuting Attorney said it. Only two or three of them didn't do it. That gave her a smile and a piece of hope, but there was no way of knowing if the hope would ever pan out in her favor.

XXXXX

When the trial was finally over, Daphne thought it would take days, or even a week, for the jury to reach their verdict. But it didn't take that long at all. All it took was three hours. Three hours to decide her fate, and Daphne couldn't handle it. Daphne, Fred, and the Lawyer were sitting together in a private room at a table. Based on the tension, Daphne was shaking uncontrollably. Fred sat next to her, and his arm wrapped around her tightly. Daphne couldn't even speak. She was so terrified.

"It's going to be okay," Fred said.

Daphne wanted to believe that, but she couldn't even form words based on her fear. Then, a court official opened the door. He was a man in his mid-twenties with blonde hair and blue eyes.

"The jury is ready for you now," the court official said.

The court official closed the door, and she looked at Fred. When he stood up, she panicked.

"No!" Daphne said. "I can't go back in there!"

The Lawyer stood up.

"Daphne, you have to," the Lawyer said.

"I can't!" Daphne cried.

Fred reached under her shoulders and lifted her. Daphne began to cry.

"There's no getting out of this," he said. "We have to go back in there, and I'll be with you all the way,"

As the tears continued, Daphne couldn't say a word, but she managed to walk out with Fred by her side, holding her right hand tightly. As Daphne walked back into the courtroom, all the jurors, eyes were on her. Daphne looked at them pleadingly, but they all looked away at Judge Reynolds.

"Mr. Foreman," Judge Reynolds said. "Have you reached a verdict?"

"We have, your honor," the Foreman said.

Judge Reynolds looked at Daphne.

"Will the defendant please rise?" Judge Reynolds asked.

Daphne rose slowly and visibly shook, and Judge Reynolds looked back at the Foreman.

"And what is your verdict?" Judge Reynolds asked.

"Of the crime of murder in the first degree, we find the defendant, Daphne Ann Blake, guilty,"

Daphne couldn't even breathe at the announcement of her guilty verdict.

"Daphne Ann Blake," Judge Reynolds said. "You'll be sentenced to life imprisonment and will be executed for the murder of Robert Ballard. Time and date of execution will be announced at the convenience of the Warden of Coolsville Women's Prison at his discretion,"

Daphne thought she was going to pass out. She was so scared, but she couldn't even move.

"Court is adjourned, the jury is excused, and bailiff, take Miss Blake into custody," Judge Reynolds said.

The Lawyer looked at Daphne immediately.

"Daphne, we'll appeal this decision and examine the evidence in every way possible," the Lawyer said.

"Daphne, we'll find a way to prove you innocent," Fred said. "I promise,"

Daphne had heard every word they had said, but she couldn't bring herself to talk. All she knew was that her life was over, and she could do nothing about it.