Beautifully Obsessed

Chapter Twenty-One: Silence in the Courtroom

08/10/2021

I hope you are all doing amazingly, to whoever may be reading this, I appreciate your existence and I am very proud of you. I made a small change with the ending in the last chapter if you have previously read it and I have changed the title as I felt that one suited more. Have a great weekend!

I hope you enjoy,

-Aphrodite

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"Embry dear, what I'm really trying to tell you is that despite giving life to three beautiful children, I wouldn't wish this type of life on my worst enemy, and you darling are far from my enemy" she sighed sadly, stretching her hand across the armchair to hold mine in comfort.

"So, what do I do?" My voice cracked, I couldn't tell anymore what emotion that was due to, there were too many to pick from. Too many emotions like a whirlwind in my mind, knocking my thoughts together.

"I wish I could tell you, but if I had the answer to that question neither one of us would be here right now" I could feel another lump rising within my throat. I had needed the reassurance she provided within the first couple words, I was like a child, I needed my hand held throughout every decision, I needed somebody to tell me how to leave.

Those last couple words, well, they lit a panic inside of me that I didn't think could be put out. Evelyn had been here for over twenty years, she had much more knowledge than me and yet could never find a way out of this lifestyle. What chance did I have?

My inner turmoil was ready to consume me, it's gnawing jaws open ready to leech onto my skin, however, letting him once again come to save the day Noah had interrupted me from my inner dilemma. His steps sounded out against the hardwood floor, each step matching a beat of my thumping heart.

"Are you ready for lunch, little bug?" He held his elbow out for me to take, his face showing cluelessness to the words that had been previously exchanged in this room. Throwing a small thank you Evelyn's way I took Noah's offering elbow, still seemingly struggling to escape my own mind.

"I didn't know you had another sibling?" I whispered out, needing to distract myself with any other topic. "I never really talk about them much, I'm the youngest of three, Indigo, Sebastian and then me, she should be joining us tomorrow night for dinner actually, I wanted the whole family here to celebrate the anniversary with us" he beamed proudly at the mention of that occasion. I gulped at the memory of such a date.

The 18th of November, the last day I had seen him.

*Flashback*

The courtroom was buzzing with chatter as everybody waited for the hearing to commence. A young girl sat upon a wooden chair at the front of the room, nervously biting the inside of her cheek. It was her first time ever stepping into a court and she had somehow managed to land herself as the victim.

An unsettling silence covered the large space as the defendant walked in. 18 year old Noah Hill, on trial for first degree kidnapping, a serious sentence that could get him up to 20 years in prison.

The attorney stood and walked up to face the judge, the curious crowd intently hanging onto every word that echoed throughout the building. "My client has been accused of kidnapping the plaintiff, and proposing the possibility of a threat to her," he sucked in a breath now turning to face the jury. "My client admits to being in Ms Thompson's presence but claims he made no threat to her safety during this time."