“Your Honor,” Sterling boomed. “This man is a monster. He drove to my client’s home in the middle of the night armed with a weapon. He brutally beat a defenseless man. He claims self-defense? Look at him! He’s a trained killer hiding behind a senior citizen discount!”
Mark smirked at me from across the aisle. His eyes said, I win. You rot.
My public defender, a young, nervous kid named Greg, stood up. “Objection. My client is a retired landscaper.”
“Overruled,” the Judge said.
I looked up at the bench.
The Honorable William “Bill” Halloway sat high above us. He had a face carved from granite and eyes that missed nothing. He had been the judge in this county for twenty years. He was known for being harsh, fair, and utterly unbribable.
Sterling continued his theatrics. “We have character witnesses who say John is unstable. We have medical reports of the devastating injuries my client suffered. We demand the maximum sentence. Twenty years.”
Twenty years. A life sentence for me.
Judge Halloway cleared his throat. The sound echoed like a gunshot in the silent room.
“Mr. Sterling,” the Judge said. His voice was low, gravelly. “You claim your client was attacked unprovoked?”
“Yes, Your Honor. He opened his door to be a good neighbor, and this maniac attacked him.”
“I see,” Halloway said. He picked up a file on his desk. “And the security footage?”
“The… uh… camera was malfunctioning, Your Honor,” Sterling lied smoothly. “Conveniently damaged by the storm.”
I smiled. I knew Mark had deleted it.
“However,” Halloway continued, “We have the police report. And the medical report of one Lily Sterling, admitted to General Hospital three hours before this incident.”
Mark stiffened.
“Mr. Sterling,” Halloway took off his reading glasses. He leaned forward. “Look at me.”
