Chapter 97

Sarah POV

“They purposely design this space to be intimidating,” I grumbled.

“Of course they do,” Whitfield said. “Try to imagine it without the wood paneling.”

I looked around the courtroom, but it was like the paneling had soaked into everything, from the large Seal of Justice to the brown checkered carpet. The judge’s bench was made of two raised platforms, and the jury box was sectioned off in a way that reminded me most unpleasantly of the stage on which the humans had held up those items to be auctioned.

After I’ve split you open, but before I put your cold corpse in Chloe and Grace’s bed, Captain Martiveck gets to eat your heart.

I shuddered. That memory would just pop out at me sometimes, and all that fear and anger would come rushing back. I’d woken up in the middle of the night more than once, and I hadn’t mentioned to the CPS worker that sometimes I had the girls sleep in my bed because I couldn’t face the thought of sleeping alone.

Sitting beside me at the defendant’s table, Zane looked over at me questioningly, but I just shook my head. Travis was sitting at his other side, looking over a copy of the paperwork Whitfield was about to present.

Over at the prosecution’s table sat Charlotte Cho and three alphas who were obviously lawyers. I made sure not to intercept her glances our way.

“All rise, the Honorable Judge Randolph Gates presiding,” said the bailiff, and we got to our feet. The judge, a gray-haired alpha who looked like he wasn’t in the mood for any nonsense, flowed into the courtroom in his black robes, climbed a few steps to the top of his lofty bench, and sat. We sat as well.

“We’re here today for the initial appearance of the parties for the case of Family Justice United v. Cavendish. Is the prosecution counsel present?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” said one of the lawyers.

“Is the defense counsel present?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” Whitfield said.

“It is the court’s job at this time to advise the defendant of the charges.”

Whitfield stood. “Your Honor, if I may approach?”

The judge looked a little irritated but motioned him forward. One of the prosecution’s lawyers came up as well. They conferred while the judge covered the mike.

“What?” the judge asked loudly. Then he looked over at Cho, then at Zane, then pressed his lips together. “My chambers, all of you.”

I followed the man into the judge’s chambers, which looked like a personal library of books with a massive oak desk. The judge took off his robes to reveal a black button-down, gray tie, and gray slacks. Then he sat behind his desk.

Whitfield and Cho’s head lawyer sat down in the chair before the desk, and the rest of us formed flanks behind them.

“I take it you have proof of your claim, Whitfield?” he snapped.

“Yes, Your Honor.” He passed over the papers that showed a DNA test had been done from a sample left on a can of soda to indicate the presence of alpha markers and the papers that proved said soda had been drunk by Charlotte Cho.

“Miss Cho?” he said, looking up. “Do you care to explain to me why you have been masquerading as a beta?”

Oh, that word. I mentally waved away another horrid memory from that night. I heard one of the lawyers gasp, and all three were now looking at Cho in shock.

“I’m not—”

“Do not lie to me, Miss Cho.” He waved the papers. “I can order you to undergo another DNA test if you like, but I would appreciate if you wouldn’t waste the court’s time.”

“Your Honor,” she said, looking like she was grasping at the last of her composure. “It is still relevant that Alpha Zane’s household is dangerous for his—”

“The defense has moved for me to dismiss this case because it was filed under false pretenses, and they’re 100 percent correct. This case is dismissed with prejudice. Now, everyone get out of here while I get this filed.”

Whitfield stood up. “Thank you, Your Honor.”

The judge waved him off, and we left the room, some confidently and some shuffling.

We didn’t go back into the courtroom, instead ending up in a hallway of green marble and more of that wooden paneling.

Cho was looking at her head lawyer. “Are you just going to accept this?”

“You can ask your next lawyer that” the lawyer shot back, his eyes burning blue. “You’ll need one because we’ll be suing you for fraud. Goddess, woman! He could have accused us of being in on it!”

Her lawyers walked down the hall, and she turned hate-filled eyes to Zane.

He held up a hand. “I believe you think the Alpha Voice is abusive?”

“Yes!”

“Would you like me to demonstrate that now?”

She stepped back and glared at him with narrowed eyes. Then she turned and followed the path of her ex-lawyers.

“Nasty little she-wolf,” Whitfield muttered. He smiled at me. “Excellent catch, if you’ll allow me, Miss Sarah. Excellent catch indeed.”

“So, it’s really over?” I asked.

“Dismissed with prejudice, which means they can’t refile,” Whitfield said. “They’d be stupid to try no more stupid than not to have checked out their client beforehand.”

“Another group might try,” I said.

“They’ll have an uphill battle and then some considering how well Grace and Chloe did on their PPEs,” Zane said with satisfaction.

“Your daughters passed their PPEs?” Whitfield asked. He smiled. “Or did they do more than pass?”

“Top marks,” I said. “We’re reviewing their class schedule now. Naturally, they want all the same classes, except Grace wants to paint and Chloe wants woodworking.”

“I’m sure they’ll manage to go an hour without each other’s company,” Travis said. “Tough as it may be.”

We all sort of just stood there for a moment, reveling in relief, then Whitfield looked at his watch.

“Got a motion to file about the Brentwoods project,” he told Zane. “I’ll be seeing you.”

“Keep me posted,” Zane said as Whitfield turned and walked further into the court building. The rest of us headed for the exit, and I got ready to feel the sun on my face.

“Alpha Zane!” a man with a microphone shouted as soon as we were out the door. What seemed like a hundred journalists swarmed us. “Alpha Zane! How do you feel about the case being dismissed?”

“Have your children heard the news yet?” a woman standing next to a guy with a camera shouted next.

Oh, goddess. The hearing was supposed to be a secret. I wondered if Family Justice United had leaked the information hoping for a little publicity.

Zane held up his hand, and the screaming crowd quieted. At least five cameras were pointed at him, and dozens of mikes.

“As it seems you have all heard, the judge dismissed the case with prejudice in the face of the fraud performed by Family Justice United in attempting to separate me and their goddess-mother from my children. Ironically enough, we have actually enjoyed seeing family justice enacted today, and now we would very much like to go home and give my daughters a hug.”

“Alpha Zane!” several of them shouted as Zane, Travis, and I made our way down the steps to Ollie and the sanctuary of the car.

“Miss Sarah!” some man shouted. “There are rumors the girls are preparing for their PPEs! Can you give us a statement?”

I managed to keep my eyes facing forward, and after a few minutes of more shouting and a little shoving, we were all behind the tinted windows, and Ollie was pulling away from the curb.

As we sat there beside each other, Zane took my hand in his.