Cure

33

"The biggest trial of the century takes place in twenty-four hours! Spectators are welcome, however, you better come quick! Seats are expected to be at full capacity."

Absolutely ridiculous.

Dallas, Ellie, Ace, and I were sat on the floor, in a cell, waiting. 

It was cold. And gloomy.

I stared down at my wrists which were red from the tight handcuffs that had only been removed moments before. 

Get ready, Cher. This is what your future will be like.

What happened to positive thinking?

After being handcuffed, well as best as I could be with my casted hand, the four of us were dragged out of the mansion and into the back of two cop cars.

We were split off. Ellie and me in one car while Ace and Dallas were in another. None of us bothered to fight the cops. There wasn't any point. They worked for Ashley and wouldn't see any reason to listen to our side of the story.

The news was playing on a small mounted television just outside our holding cell.

The same thing was repeated over and over. The Venom Trial. At least that was what it was being called. The news reporters sounded all too excited spitting out lies for the whole country to fall for.

It was beginning to piss me off. How smug they looked, how happy they sounded.

Stating how our trial was going to be the most viewed and debated trial in American history. People were shocked to hear that Ace was alive, as the news spanned over crowds of girls raging at his faked death. The world was also taken aback by how it was a group of twenty-year-olds who had started the infamous mafia known as Venom.

Maybe because we had not.

Only we knew the truth. But without money for an attorney, no one would bother listening. 

We were screwed.

I had no doubt that the court-appointed lawyer would be working for Ashley as well. Which meant that there was no escaping our fate. We were going to be framed for everything and I was sure Ashley had tampered with evidence to spin the story in her favour. 

At least we knew the Vice President was on our side. He would speak out against Ashley. 

He wouldn't let us go to prison for life just to hide the fact that he'd cheated on his wife.

Would he?

"What're you thinking about?" Dallas whispered, pulling me into his lap and against his chest.

"Oh, you know, how our lives are over," I sighed, leaning up to look at him.

He smiled softly as he looked down at me. "As long as I can hold you like this," He tightened his arms around my torso. "I'll survive."

I scoffed, "Cute." I knew he knew just as well as I did that guys and girls were separated in prison. We would have to say goodbye.

Not acknowledging the saddening truth of our circumstances, Dallas lowered his face to peck my lips, making me blush.

"Get a room," Ellie snorted.

Dallas flipped her off and that made the four of us laugh.

It was strange to think about how this all began. How my apartment flooded those several months ago. How I couldn't stand to be in the same room as Dallas. How Ellie got cancer. How we moved. How we learned more about my family.