I Took My Father To Court Ten Times

This was my tenth time filing a lawsuit against my father, Scott Locke.I didn't even blink when the judge brought the gavel down on the block.As expected, I lost the case again.The audience in the gallery began to whisper among themselves. Their disdainful and confused gazes felt like needles stabbing into me.My face was devoid of emotion when I rose to my feet and tidied up the few sheets of "evidence" on the table. I then turned around and walked away from the prosecutor's table.A few kind-hearted bailiffs helped Dad, who was crying profusely, to his feet."I don't blame you, Cam," he blubbered. "Come home with me. There are a lot of bad people in the outside world."Dad was instantly surrounded by countless flashing lights. He stared at me with a vulnerable and innocent expression as he wiped his tears.The reporters immediately whipped around and blocked me from leaving the courtroom, aiming their cameras at me."This is already your tenth time filing a lawsuit agains

"Have you seen the video, Cameron?" Kieran exclaimed. "It went viral! All the netizens are talking about you!"His voice was colored with a mixture of excitement and curiosity when he continued, "But… Everyone has a terrible opinion of you now. Your father's image is too perfect… You have to give me an explanation, or I won't be able to continue.""An explanation?" I asked calmly as if I was just talking about the weather. "That's right! An explanation! Or just give me a reason that will help me understand why you're doing this."Kieran paused for a moment before continuing in a hushed voice, "Everyone thinks that you're a lunatic—a demon who tortures his own father. They're going to utterly destroy your reputation if you don't say something."I remained silent and listened to Kieran's anxious breathing. I knew that he needed a reason to convince himself to continue doing what I asked of him."Mr. Wilcox," I said. "Do you believe what you see? Or do you believe me?"It was an u

Kieran and I agreed to meet at an old cafe that barely had any patrons.Kieran's face was covered in a layer of dust from his travels when he arrived. He didn't even bother ordering a drink for himself before pushing a recording device and a few printed photos toward me."I didn't listen to my editor-in-chief and kept following him," he said without beating around the bush, his eyes shining with fear. "As expected, your father, Scott Locke, is no simple trash collector."I didn't say a single word as I looked at him, waiting for him to continue.Kieran took a deep breath as if he was searching for the right words. "Your father is… the leader of a fraud empire beneath the piles of trash."He told me that after paying close attention to the video of the recycling center, he noticed that Quinn's act of a poor university student had been extremely deliberate. It was why he decided to approach the case from a different angle.Instead of just filming Dad, he decided to observe the recy

"Mom wrote about a certain detail on the last page of her diary," I said as I pointed at that particular sentence. "The truck has been parked at the intersection for a long time. It didn't look like it wanted to drive across. Instead, it looked like it was waiting for someone."Did you mention this detail in your case file all those years ago?"Yelena's fingers froze over her cup. She looked up, making eye contact with me for the first time from below her droopy eyelids. Her eyes shone with a scrutiny that was unique to police officers.A long time passed before she slowly said, "The driver… didn't mention this detail.""Would an exhausted driver have the energy to wait at an intersection for a long time?" Kieran asked immediately.Yelena didn't say a single word. She rose to her feet, told us to wait for her, and left the cafe.Kieran and I waited in the cafe for an hour. Our teas had gone cold.Just when I assumed that Yelena wasn't going to come back, she hurried into the caf

"Scott said that as long as it looked like an accident, he would be able to get the insurance money. I'll also be able to live comfortably for the rest of my life…"The voice belonged to none other than Holly.A deathly silence descended upon the studio when the recording ended. Every camera was pointed at Dad.At that moment, I finally saw cracks appear on the mask of a benevolent father that he had been wearing for decades. Eventually, it completely slipped off his face and revealed his true colors.The host was rendered utterly speechless. The livestream was still going on. The director was so shocked by the sudden turn of events that he forgot to move. Only the red light on the cameras continued to blink.Dad didn't look at Kieran or me. Instead, his eyes were pinned on the audience below the stage. However, everyone averted their gaze.He suddenly started laughing, his laughter coming out in short and shrill bursts."You! It's your fault, you damned bastard!" Dad screamed