AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Somebody help her!” the judge cried.
Nobody could do anything, because we didn’t know what had happened.
My eyes landed on Professor Leto. He was smirking, like the sight of someone in pain gave him pleasure. I knew demons could influence spirits if they were strong enough. This was his doing.
Before I could act, the screams came to an abrupt halt, and Stella vanished in the blink of an eye.
The courtroom shared a collective gasp. Judge Calloway’s features paled as she stared at the place Stella had been floating. It was at that moment that I saw the decision solidify in Judge Calloway’s eyes. She may have walked into the courtroom impartial to the case, but the moment Stella vanished, rage marred her features.
Judge Calloway pointed a finger at my friends. “You have tortured a priestess’s soul! You manipulated the dead and forced her to testify. You have defiled my courtroom with your lies. Officers, arrest them!”
“We didn’t! You have to believe us!” Talia screamed, but several officers were already crossing the room.
“These students are telling the truth!” Professor Warren protested as an officer slapped cuffs on his wrists.
“The only truth you should be concerned with is the jury’s guilty verdict,” Priestess Margaret sneered. “If Lucas and Nadine are found guilty, then you’re guilty as well for fabricating evidence, and you will burn with them.”
All the air sucked out of my lungs, and horror crossed Nadine’s face.
“You can’t do that!” I yelled. “This isn’t their trial!”
“Order! Order in the court!” The judge smacked her gavel over and over again, but one side of the courtroom continued to scream at the other. If the coven wasn’t divided before, they sure as hell were now.
A group of officers dragged our friends out of the courtroom, while we screamed protests. I didn’t know where they were taking them—probably to holding cells somewhere. I shuddered to think what they might do to them.
“I said ORDER IN THE COURT!” Judge Calloway screamed.
All at once, the room went silent. People clutched at their throats, like they couldn’t figure out where their voices went. My gaze darted to the judge, and she was holding up a wand, controlling the crowd with magic. I spotted the gnarly tree tattoo on her wrist. She was a Mentalist, messing with people’s heads to get them to quiet down.
“Attorney Verla, please proceed,” Judge Calloway said calmly.
Verla glanced around the room. How the hell was she supposed to follow up to that? “No further questions, your honor.”
Olivia shook as she stood and announced, “No further questions.”
“The court will enter jury deliberation,” the judge announced with a smack of her gavel.
Nadine and I were once again ushered into a private room. We weren’t even given a chance to give our closing statement. At this point, I didn’t think it’d be enough to convince the jury anyway. Thanks to whatever spell Professor Leto had cast on Stella, it looked like we’d fabricated everything.
“Goddess!” Nadine cried the second we were alone. “We can’t be found guilty! Our friends will be executed with us!”
“Nad, we did all we could.” I drew her into a tight hug, but my words tasted stale in my mouth. Even my hug didn’t quite feel like it belonged. We were fucked.
I didn’t know how long we waited, but it had to be past dark before we were ushered back into the courtroom. There were more people here than ever before. They filled every seat and stood against the wall, crammed together to hear the verdict.
“Will the defendants please rise for the verdict reading?” the judge said.
Nadine and I stood nervously beside each other. I took her hand in mine. If we were sent to the gallows, then at least I had one dream of mine fulfilled—I’d get to help her cross over.
“In the case of the Miriamic Coven versus Priestess Nadine Evers and Lucas Taylor, on two misdemeanor counts of unauthorized intercast spellwork, how does the jury find the defendant?
A jury member rose with a piece of paper in their hand. “We the jury find the defendants not guilty.”
It was a small victory, but I wasn’t celebrating just yet.
“On twelve felony counts of black magic use with the intent to do harm, how does the jury find the defendants?”
“Not guilty.”
