Since I Saw Him Last: A Gary Barlow Fanfic

Chapter Seventy

"And now, I understand we have the last witness to examine. Mr King, would you please." Said the second magistrate. "Miss James, could you please take the stand." Scarlett walked slowly but surely up to the stand and swore on oath. She was wearing a dark red blazer and a skirt that matched with black Louboutins heels. She sat down and glared towards Gary. I could see a slight smirk appear on her face. The cow! "Miss James, could you explain to me the events on May 24th 2015." Graham's voice changed, he sounded harsh. "That morning I'd bumped into Mr Barlow in the sauna room at The 84 Hotel. He was dismissive. I could tell he wanted to run as far away from me as he could but I didn't let him." She paused. "What do you mean by you didn't let him?" Graham questioned. "Mr Barlow is a rather straight laced character, polite, he never acts on what he thinks, he couldn't move because he's too polite to." "So then, how could he be dismissive of you?" "He was. He was almost out of the door when I'd walked in. I'd never seen him move so fast." "Isn't that a fair way for Mr Barlow to behave? I mean, you'd been blackmailing him with a sex tape that he had no idea was recorded at the time you'd both had relations, you were making it increasingly hard for him to ignore you, causing friction between Mr Barlow and his girlfriend, I'd say it perfectly reasonable for him to want to avoid you at all costs." Graham was going hard on Scarlett. "Objection!" Diana clamoured. "Denied, carry on Mr King." Said the second magistrate. "And you've failed to mention that you'd sent Mr Barlow a barrage of texts the night before. You can't deny that, we saw a transcript of messages on day one of this trial." Graham grilled Scarlett. "Yes, I did." Scarlett started to turn on the waterworks. "He just kept shutting me down when I wanted to talk. I was so upset about it all. I was scared. I was losing him. And the only way I could get his attention was to threaten him with that tape. I didn't mean it. I didn't mean any of it. I just wanted his attention." She sniffled. "I understand this might be upsetting for you but we've also seen the bank statements of monies being moved from Mr Barlow's bank account to your bank account. The messages also back it up as well as DC Jacobs' account of what happened on the evening of May 24th, you might be upset but you definitely meant the threats, the blackmail and the harassment." Graham paused as Scarlett sobbed harder, "No, no." She whined. "No further questions your honour."

Diana shot up. "Miss James, could you please describe your relationship with Mr Barlow." Scarlett nodded, "From which point, we've known each other a long time." Scarlett composed herself. "From the beginning Miss James." Diana answered. "At the start, it was great. We were great. Our relationship was casual, Mr Barlow wanted it kept that way and I was okay with that because it meant he was mine. It was like a friends with benefits kind of relationship. We enjoyed each other's company and when we were both up for getting close we had each other to turn to. Mr Barlow wasn't with anyone else but me. He was far too busy to hold down a serious relationship, or so he told me." Scarlett shot me a look before returning her gaze to Diana. "When did that all change?" Diana probed. "When his new girlfriend came onto the scene. I couldn't understand why he wanted to be with her, like properly be with her, and not me. We'd known each other for years, got on like a house on fire in and out of the bedroom." I rolled my eyes at this comment. Scarlett doesn't know jack shit! "But he didn't want me for his girlfriend. I didn't understand what was so special about this other girl and thought I could win Mr Barlow over. I was wrong. And I got upset as I thought more about it, he'd used me for years and now he didn't want anything to do with me. It hurt an awful lot." Scarlett started crying again. This is all an act. They're trying to make her out to be this aggrieved woman. She's not aggrieved. She's the devil who cannot accept that she can't have everything she wants. I was fuming. "No further questions your honour." Diana spoke. Thank God for that! "The court will adjourn in thirty minutes. Upon returning, we will listen to closing statements and a verdict will be given."

I stood up and walked quickly out of the room. "Natasha..." I could hear Gary's voice get louder as he followed behind me. He hugged me tight. "I'm sorry." I replied. "It must be so difficult for you to sit there and listen to her bullshit and not be able to reply." Gary consoled me. "She's trying to get herself a lesser sentence with her innocent act!" "I know, I know. She's playing the game. But we will go into that room once more and we will walk out with a verdict. And that verdict is, she'll never have to mess with me, with us, again." Gary said as he kissed me lightly on the forehead. "I need to calm down." I said. "Look, let's sit down here for a bit." We sat on one of the benches outside the court room until we had to go back in.

Both Graham and Diana gave their closing statements before the magistrates announced their verdict. "Thank you Mr King and Mrs Lyons for your closing statements. Miss James, I have heard all the evidence. I understand the reasons why you did what you did but there is no denying that your actions are wrong under a court of law. You may be aggrieved by the way Mr Barlow has treated you over the years but that is no excuse for exploiting Mr Barlow. It has been proven that you acted in a calculated manner, you have threatened to release a sex tape that was recorded without Mr Barlow's knowledge, you have blackmailed Mr Barlow with this sex tape after the fact, the messages between yourself and Mr Barlow show the ways in which you have harassed Mr Barlow and that harassment culminated on May 24th 2015 by you causing actual bodily harm to Mr Barlow. I cannot ignore the psychological effects this has caused to Mr Barlow also. I hereby sentence you to 12 months, 6 months imprisonment and 6 months community service for your offences. I will also be actioning a restraining order that will ensure that you leave Mr Barlow to the peace he deserves. Miss James, do you have anything to say?" Scarlett shook her head as her face crumpled. She started to cry again. "Court is dismissed." Wow. So that's it then. A cold chill coursed through my body. No more Scarlett.