Chapter 562 Second Trial (5) Lyra in Court
In the courtroom, the video kept rolling.
Cassius brought Alaric home, and Cecilia came downstairs to greet him. They hugged, and then Cecilia took Alaric upstairs to their room.
What happened that night? Everyone could imagine.
The video was meant to show that Alaric never left the house after coming back.
After the video ended, Preston said to Joe, "As you can see, Mr. Whitaker did meet Juliana that night and was tempted by her. But the truth is, he never slept with her. He stayed home with his wife all night, using her as an antidote, and didn't go out again."
Cecilia pursed her lips, thinking, 'What does he mean by "using me as an antidote"? Can we be serious in the courtroom?'
"In other words, Juliana's brutal rape and suicide have nothing to do with Mr. Whitaker," Preston said bluntly.
The video was crystal clear; no more evidence was needed to clear Alaric of all charges—embezzlement, rape, all of it was bogus.
Cecilia felt a rush of emotions and tried hard to keep it together.
She glanced at Dominic and saw his once confident and smug look had completely vanished.
He probably didn't expect his plan to flop again. What seemed like a done deal had flipped on its head. Cecilia could almost feel how crushed Dominic must be now.
But the real blow was still coming.
She turned her focus back to the courtroom.
Joe, facing all the solid evidence, had no choice but to declare Alaric not guilty.
He stood up and announced a half-hour recess, leaving the courtroom with the jury.
The spectators were buzzing.
The case had taken such a wild turn that everyone was still in shock.
Octavia's face turned grim. She whispered to Dominic, "What do we do now?"
Dominic's face was dark as night.
He glanced at Cassius, clearly trying to avoid his gaze while checking on Penelope's situation. With this side failing, he couldn't afford for Penelope to mess up.
But the moment he looked at Cassius, it was like Cassius had a sixth sense and instantly looked back at him.
In that split second of eye contact, Cassius gave him a ridiculously exaggerated smile.
Dominic gritted his teeth, visibly uneasy.
Half an hour later, Joe and the jury came back to the courtroom.
Preston spoke up, "Your Honor, before announcing Mr. Whitaker's verdict, I have a few words for the prosecution."
Joe's face darkened.
He had just received word that, since Alaric's guilt could not be proven, the trial should be concluded promptly to avoid any further complications.
Just as Joe was about to refuse, Gideon spoke up, "Mr. Collins, what do you want to say?"
Preston respectfully said, "Felix has been asking us to provide evidence of who framed Mr. Whitaker..."
"That's the prosecution's job, Mr. Collins. No need to dwell on it," Gideon said shortly, clearly warning Preston not to push his luck.
It was obvious to everyone that Gideon was still siding with the prosecution, and by extension, the Monroe family.
Preston nodded and said, "I just have some theories that the prosecution might find useful."
Gideon replied, "Go ahead."
"Just now, in proving Mr. Whitaker's innocence, numerous officials from the Harborvale State Office came forward to falsely accuse Alaric. Why would so many people from different positions in the State Office uniformly claim he was guilty? Doesn't the prosecution find this suspicious? Why would so many people provide false testimony? How powerful must the person framing Mr. Whitaker be to achieve this?"
Preston's words caused a stir in the courtroom.
This angle hadn't been considered before, and now it had everyone on edge.
Who was pulling the strings behind the scenes, and how powerful were they to control events to this extent?
Clearly, Preston's words were also meant to draw more public attention to the case.
Gideon didn't respond, taking no stance.
Preston continued, "Back when Mr. Whitaker was at the nightclub gathering, it was evident that he was drugged. The person who drugged him must be from the Serenovia City State Office. Who is this person? We don't know, but one thing is clear: this person's power can influence both Harborvale and Serenovia City. Such power is rare even in the Yakurosean Empire. I believe it won't be difficult for the prosecution to investigate and narrow down the suspects."
"We've noted Mr. Collins' suggestion and will consider it," Gideon gave a non-committal response.
Preston smiled and said, "We still believe Dominic is the prime suspect."
At first, he was just providing supporting information.
But now, by directly naming Dominic, he was clearly pulling him into the situation.
Gideon said, "Without evidence, please don't make malicious accusations, Mr. Collins."
"Got it," Preston respectfully replied. "I just wanted to point out that without evidence, anyone could be a suspect. The prosecution shouldn't overlook anyone."
"No need to remind us," Gideon said, exuding authority without anger.
Preston nodded and said to Joe, "Your Honor, I've said all I wanted to say."
Joe's face relaxed as he stood up to announce the verdict.
"I have evidence!"
At that moment, a loud female voice suddenly rang out in the courtroom.
Joe's face turned extremely grim as he thought, 'Is this a place where anyone can just interrupt?'
He was about to have the bailiff remove the person when Lyra shouted, "I am Lyra, and I have evidence proving Dominic's crimes. Please allow me to present the evidence!"
As those words fell, the courtroom erupted. What was happening now?
Lyra, the Monroe family's daughter and Dominic's newlywed wife, had entered the court.
Rumor had it that Lyra and Dominic were very much in love, yet here she was, suddenly accusing Dominic of crimes.
All eyes were on Lyra.
Dominic couldn't stay calm.
How could Lyra be alive and here?
His face twisted with rage.
At that moment, it was obvious without a second thought that it must have been Cecilia!
Dominic thought, 'No. I can't accept this. I can't just lose here!'
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