Chapter 81 Acquitted
According to the regulations, when the suspect met with the lawyer, only the police were allowed to be present.
Anna, Sophia, and Henry had to chill at home for a bit, waiting for the court date in a few days.
When lawyer Wayne Cooper showed up, Anna felt like the ground was slipping from under her feet. She knew Wayne's rep; the dude was the top dog in Lakeside Haven, never lost a case. But he was definitely out of reach for most people. Who the heck could afford Wayne for Emma?
Anna quickly ruled out George. No way he'd do it; he hated Emma's guts. He was the one who threw her in jail three years ago, and he'd do it again in a heartbeat.
So, who was it? Maybe Michael? He had a weird soft spot for Emma. With his clout, hiring a lawyer was no biggie. Thinking about it made Anna green with envy.
Why Emma? As a kid, she had George wrapped around her finger. Then she grew up and snagged him as her husband. If Anna hadn't played the childhood friend card, George and Emma would've been living their happily-ever-after ages ago.
Even now, after Emma got knocked up, locked up, and scarred, guys were still lining up to help her.
She was lucky! But now, all of Emma's luck was Anna's!
To check her hunch, Anna pretended to be a business partner and called Michael's assistant. Turned out, Michael was on a business trip abroad.
So, Michael didn't know about Emma's mess yet.
The only one left was Mia. Could she afford Wayne's fees on her office worker salary? She would probably have to go bankrupt to pay for his services. Anna decided to pay Mia a visit.
As night fell and the streetlights flickered, Anna stood outside Mia's building, hands clenched. She scanned the area, hoping to spot Mia.
"Where the heck is she?" Anna muttered. She paced around, anxiety bubbling up inside her.
As time dragged on, Anna's mood soured. Her eyes darted around, determined to confront Mia and get some answers.
But Mia never showed. The cold was biting, and even in the car, Anna felt miserable. She left her bodyguards to keep watch, telling them to call her if Mia showed up.
A whole night passed, and still no Mia. The next day, Anna went straight to Mia's workplace, but Mia was MIA, and her calls went straight to voicemail. Anna's suspicions grew.
"Where the heck did she go?" Anna wondered, unease creeping in. She kept swiping her phone, trying to track Mia down, but no luck.
Three days went by, and still no sign of Mia. Meanwhile, Wayne was busy gathering evidence.
Finally, the court day arrived.
The courtroom was buzzing. Anna, dressed to the nines, sat in the gallery with a smug grin, eagerly waiting for Emma's sentencing. She was sure Emma was headed back to prison.
Emma was already living on borrowed time; this stint in the slammer could be her final curtain call. Only dead folks kept their mouths shut for good.
"Court is in session!"
Wayne strutted into the courtroom, looking all serious, clutching a document. He cleared his throat and boomed, "Your Honor, I have crucial evidence to submit!"
The room went dead silent, all eyes glued to Wayne.
Wayne slowly unfolded the document, pointing to a photo, his voice steady, "At the crime scene, we found the fingerprints of a third person, who could be the real culprit!"
'What?' Anna's heart skipped a beat, her face going pale as she stared at Wayne in disbelief. She gripped the chair tight, feeling a wave of unease.
She had made sure to wipe everything clean of her prints before bailing and had even bribed some thugs to be witnesses. How could there be a slip-up?
The photo Wayne showed was blown up on the projector; it was a piece of tissue paper Anna had used to wipe her hands before leaving.
Anna had found the blood splattered on her face gross, so she wiped it off with the tissue and tossed it on the ground. Unexpectedly, this became the key evidence to clear Emma's name.
"This means Emma isn't the only suspect!" Wayne continued, his gaze unwavering, fighting for Emma's last shot.
The judge nodded slightly, signaling Wayne to go on. A spark of hope lit up in Emma's heart, her eyes shining with determination.
"Therefore, I request the court to acquit Emma!" Wayne's voice echoed through the courtroom.
Everyone held their breath, waiting for the judge's call. Emma was a bundle of nerves, her palms sweaty, eyes locked on the judge.
"After deliberation, Emma is acquitted!" The judge's voice boomed, shattering the silence.
"I'm acquitted?" Emma's voice was shaky but filled with shock and joy, tears streaming down her face.
"Yes, you're finally free!" Wayne walked over to her, taking in the sight of the scarred Emma. When he was first hired to defend her, he was puzzled why someone with such a bad rap needed his help.
But over the past three days, as he dug deeper and got to know Emma's story, he realized she might have been wronged. And even scarier, her previous stint in jail might have some dark secrets too.
With time running out, he didn't have the authority to dig into past records, so he had to let it slide.
For the past three days, he had been working non-stop, pouring all his time and energy into this case. He stayed up late reading case files and spent his days dragging the cops back to the crime scene for rechecks.
There was no such thing as a perfect crime, only well-hidden ones. He finally found that blood-stained tissue.
They didn't find a match for the fingerprints in the database, meaning the owner had no prior record. So who was this person?
Wayne had asked Emma if she had any suspects. Emma hesitated for a moment and then said no. With his background in psychology, Wayne could tell she was lying. She definitely had someone in mind.
But why didn't she spill? Did she not trust him, or the person who hired him?
When Emma recalled, her body trembled slightly, showing a sign of fear.
What was she so scared of?
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