Chapter 16 - THE TESTIMONY OF THE INSIDER
The prosecutor played the viral video on a large screen in the center of the room,
ensuring every juror had a clear view.
The sound of my father's voice,
calling me a prop,
echoed through the speakers,
making several jurors flinch with disgust.
My mother's smirk appeared on the screen,
magnified ten times,
her cruelty exposed to the world in high definition.
As the video ended,
the prosecutor turned to the jury,
resting her case for the domestic abuse portion of the trial.
Then came the cross-examination,
and Richard Sterling stood up,
adjusting his expensive glasses as he approached the stand.
He tried to adopt a gentle,
fatherly tone,
asking if I loved my parents,
if I appreciated the luxury they provided for me.
He suggested that perhaps my father's actions were a heavy-handed,
clumsy attempt at discipline rather than malicious abuse.
He asked about my school grades,
highlighting a single failed class from two years ago,
trying to paint me as a troubled,
spiteful teenager.
I didn't lose my temper,
remembering Dr.
Aris's advice to stay calm and factual under pressure.
I answered his questions directly,
stating that no amount of luxury could justify violence,
and that a failed class did not earn a week in a dark basement.
Sterling shifted his strategy,
bringing up Ashley's testimony,
trying to suggest that she had manipulated me into making these accusations.
He claimed that Ashley had a grudge against the family and was using me to secure her own financial freedom.
But before he could finish his point,
the prosecutor objected,
and the judge sustained it,
warning Sterling to stick to the facts.
I looked at the jury,
and I could see that his tactics were failing,
their expressions filled with sympathy for me and distaste for his methods.
Sterling realized it too,
his questions becoming shorter,
more aggressive,
until he finally sat down with a frustrated sigh.
As I stepped down from the stand,
I felt a massive weight lift from my shoulders,
knowing I had survived their best shot.
I walked back to the witness room,
knowing that the next phase of the trial would focus on the internal rot of the family business.
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The pillars were falling,
and the truth was crushing them all.
