Chapter 4

Every eye locked onto that file. The air in the room froze.

Morgan held the paper up like a true winner. "Your Honor, members of the jury! On my client's underwear and inside her body, we found DNA matching the defendant, Vic Sterling!"

She was practically glowing with victory. "A 99.8% match! This is undeniable scientific proof!"

Morgan turned to me, her eyes burning with triumph. "Vic Sterling, against this kind of evidence, what do you have to say for yourself?"

I looked at the lab report. I kept a straight face.

I never thought Brenda would stoop this low and actually forge evidence.

I slowly stood up. I glanced over the Jenkins women and their lawyer, who all thought they had this in the bag.

I spoke in a steady, firm, absolutely certain voice.

"That report is a fake."

Morgan let out a sharp, grating laugh like it was the funniest joke in the world. "A fake? Hahaha! Vic, are you questioning the pack medical center's expertise?"

She respectfully handed copies to Judge Harrison and the jury. "Your Honor, this is an official legal document from our medical center! It has their official stamp on it!"

Morgan pointed at the clear stamp on the page, her voice getting louder. "This report is legally binding! No one can question it!"

Chloe suddenly looked up. She glared at me with pure venom. "You shameless bastard! The proof is right here and you still call it a fake?!"

Her voice went full hysterical. "You already ruined me! Are you trying to drive me to suicide?!"

Right after she said it, she threw her head forward and slammed it against the edge of the table.

Bang!

"Chloe!" Brenda screamed, grabbing her niece. "Baby! Don't do this!"

Blood dripped down Chloe's forehead. She sobbed in agony. "I don't want to live anymore! Being assaulted by him was bad enough, and now he's calling me a liar!"

Judge Harrison struck his gavel hard. "Control yourselves! Order in the court!"

Pack guards rushed over to stop her, but Chloe already had a nasty, bleeding gash on her head.

Brenda glared at me, her voice dripping with venom. "Vic! If you don't plead guilty today, I will kill myself right here in this court!"

She lunged like she was going to smash her head into the wall, but the guards grabbed her.

The gallery went absolutely feral.

"Look what this monster drove them to!"

"Execute him under pack law! Put him down!"

"Throw him in the pack dungeons and let him rot!"

"The DNA proof is out and he's still making excuses! He's worse than a Rogue!"

The curses crashed over me like a tidal wave. Every single word was packed with bone-deep hatred.

Seeing this, Morgan seized the chance to push harder. "Look, everyone! This is the defendant's true face!"

She pointed at me, sounding perfectly righteous. "Faced with hard scientific proof, he doesn't just refuse to repent—he's trying to drive an innocent victim to suicide!"

She threw her hands in the air. Her voice boomed. "Pack law will never let a psychopath like this go free!"

The killing intent in the room almost drowned me. Everyone was glaring daggers at me.

But drowning in all that hostility actually made me calmer. Because I knew, the crazier they acted now, the sweeter the payback would be when the truth dropped.

Judge Harrison hammered his gavel, fighting for order. "Silence!"

He turned to me. His gaze was heavy and stern. "Defendant Vic Sterling, this is your last chance. Facing such solid proof, do you have any other defense?"

The entire courtroom fell dead silent. Everyone waited for my answer.

Brenda and Chloe stared a hole through me. Their eyes held a mix of fear and sick, twisted excitement, waiting for me to totally break down.

Morgan crossed her arms, looking like a total winner.

The Council members in the gallery held their breath. They were ready to hear my confession, or watch my final death throes.

I met the judge's heavy gaze. I answered clearly, word by word.

"Your Honor. My proof is right here, on my own body."

The room instantly blew up.

"Still putting on a show!"

"Still trying to pull tricks at a time like this!"

I kept talking. "I request to publicly show absolute proof that it was physically impossible for me to commit this crime."

Judge Harrison stayed quiet for a second. Finally, he gave a heavy nod. "Granted. But if you fail to provide valid proof, this court will issue a verdict immediately."

"I understand."

The gavel slammed down. The sound echoed through the courtroom.

Every single person locked their eyes on me. They were all ready to watch this "rapist" fight a losing battle.