Proven Guilty (Treadmill III)

XIV

You know what I've never understood?

Juries.

They don't make any sense to me. You're telling me that twelve people who have never touched a law class in their life are going to determine my fate? They're going to be the ones deciding whether I go to jail?

Uh-uh. Wrong bitch.

But Brianne Hotchky is, hands-down, one of the most brilliant attorneys out there, and I believe that she had this particular jury eating out of her hand. Seven of them were women. Five were men. Six of the women had cried during Brianne's closing argument. One of the men had as well.

If my history of watching courtroom dramas was any indicator, that was a good sign for me.

But television is just that—television—and sometimes, people don't behave in the way you think they will. Brianne told Rebecca and me that it was a good sign if they took a long time in their deliberation, even if they took days—a quick decision in our case was most likely a sign that they had found us guilty, and there hadn't been anyone there who wanted to argue against that point with the rest of the group. I repeated that in my head that day: long talk good, short talk bad.

The jury deliberated for twenty-seven minutes.

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"I'm not feeling amazing," Kennedy grumbled to Rebecca as they sat down at the defense table after a recess of fewer than thirty minutes. "This feels a bit quick to come to any sort of nuanced decision."

"Lower your voice," Brianne ordered, coming up behind the girls before taking her seat between them. "You're not in the clear with them yet."

"They probably haven't cleared us regardless," Kennedy muttered out of the corner of her mouth, earning her a stern glare from her lawyer.

"All rise."

They stood as Judge Kelley entered, his stark white hair reflecting the ceiling light. He took his time sitting down, his eyes resting on Kennedy for a few moments before he finally spoke.

"You may be seated."

Kennedy sat down and fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. She hated wearing skirts. She hated wearing things for the sake of other people, and them having her life in their hands didn't change that. Brianne had instructed both girls to dress as femininely as possible, hoping that the jury would be less capable of picturing them assisting in any sort of crime, and lower their sentences. Kennedy had picked out a knee-length tan pencil skirt and a white button-down shirt with pink polka dots on it. Her hair was curled, and her shoes were crammed into uncomfortable heels that were the same pink as her polka dots.

She had never felt less like herself in her life.

"Has the jury reached a decision for the charges levied against Rebecca Eaves?" Judge Kelley directed his question to the foreperson of the jury: a short, mousy-looking woman who hadn't seemed incredibly empathetic towards the girls during the course of the trial.

"Yes, Your Honor." The woman stood and nodded.

"Please proceed."

The woman cleared her throat loudly and looked down at the letter-sized piece of paper in her hand.

"For the charge of harboring a fugitive, we the jury find Rebecca Eaves guilty."

The courtroom was silent. Rebecca's breath caught in her throat and she looked straight ahead, not making eye contact with anyone.

"For the charge of accomplice to murder, we the jury find Rebecca Eaves guilty."

A few whispers swept through the courtroom. Rebecca gulped just loud enough for Kennedy and Brianne to hear. All three women stayed tight-lipped as the foreperson looked to Judge Kelley for her next step.

"Miss Eaves' sentencing will take place later this afternoon. Has the jury reached a decision for the charges levied against Kennedy Abrams?"

"Yes, Your Honor."

"Please proceed."

Kennedy had expected to feel some sort of anxiety in knowing she was moments away from hearing what the foreseeable future of her life would look like. But there was nothing inside her chest but complete and utter peace: she was done running. Everything that came next was going to happen regardless of anything she said or did now. There wasn't any need to be nervous now.

"For the charge of subverting the law, we the jury find Kennedy Abrams guilty."

I did escape from jail. That one was a given.

"For the charge of assaulting a police officer, we the jury find Kennedy Abrams not guilty."

Interesting. Thought for sure they'd nail me on that one.

"For the charge of destruction of government property, we the jury find Kennedy Abrams not guilty."

Fair. I wasn't the one driving when those two cop cars crashed into each other.

"And for the charge of accomplice to murder, we the jury find Kennedy Abrams not guilty."

Not? Did she say not?

Brianne's head snapped around to look at Kennedy as everyone around them started clamoring angrily. Rebecca had been found guilty, but Kennedy hadn't? No one had suspected that outcome for even a second.

"Miss Abrams' sentencing will take place later this afternoon, immediately following Miss Eaves' sentencing. This court will reconvene at 3:30 PM." Kelley hit his gavel and then stepped down from the stand, disappearing into his chambers before anyone could really start yelling.

A/N: Happy almost-2023!