-Evangeline-
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I stare at the man who's going to be the death of me.
"You said you were sexually harassed by, Mr. Whicherton?"
"Yes," I say quietly.
"Can you elaborate in full detail on what happened when Mr. Whicherton sexually harassed you?"
Tell the truth, Evangeline. You're under oath. Even if you don't want to get Dave in trouble, you have to do it for Violet. You may be her last hope of getting her kids back. I bite my lip and sigh.
"Mrs. Stone? Do you remember what happened?" I look up at Stephanie, feeling my eyes start to gloss.
"Yes. I remember it. It was Monday, February 18th. It was my birthday. I was on vacation visiting my sister for a week and had finally persuaded my strict boss to give me another week of vacation. That morning, I had just finished doing yoga with my nieces, and then Violet took them to school. I had some time alone, so I was going to take a shower," I swallow the lump forming in my throat.
"As I got out of the shower, I had only a towel wrapped around me, trying to go to my room. I opened the bathroom door, and there Dave was. Standing there. He always stands there and waits for me, just staring at me, licking his lips and giving me lustful eyes. I think it was going to be another creepy encounter like always, but this time it was different," I stare at the brass wooden podium with the microwave, trying to hold back tears.
"He tried to push me against the wall and dug his nails into my ass while squeezing it. He said to me that he couldn't take my "teasing" anymore and couldn't resist me. I pushed him away as fast as I could and slapped him in the face. He looked at me stunned as I backed away and ran into my room, locking the door. After I changed, I unlocked the door and peeked out to see if the coast was clear. I didn't see him, so I left my door unlocked and went back to bed. I didn't want to get out of bed all day. I heard the door handle rattle, and my heart started beating fast, thinking it was him, but it turned out to be my best friend. I didn't want to tell anyone because I was embarrassed that it happened. I didn't want to tell Violet because I didn't want to put any more stress on her that she didn't already have," I didn't notice a tear was out of my eye until Stephanie handed me a tissue from her pocket.
"No more questions, your honor," I wipe the tissue under my eyelid of tears as Stephanie walks back to her seat. Mr. Smith walks up to me.
"Mrs. Stone. You said you were on vacation at the time you were visiting your sister, right? What job were you working at the time?" My eyes widen as I realized I was a stripper at the time. I had forgotten I was a stripper while on vacation. Could I have ruined this whole case with my idiocy?
"Mrs. Stone, please answer the question. May I remind you that you are under oath," I take a deep breath.
"I was a stripper at the time."
"So, you lied when you said you had no contact with Mr. Whicherton at the time you were stripping?" I switch my thumbs together.
"No! I mean, I didn't mean to say I wasn't a stripper at the time. I've simply got confused with the time I moved in with my sister, and I had quit stripping."
"Mrs. Stone, may I remind you, you are under oath and cannot lie. No one can simply forget they are a stripper," Mr. Smith looks at me with narrow eyes.
"Objection!" Stephanie yells while standing up.
"Sustain. Mr. Smith, I'm not going to ask you again! Ask a question," I see Mr. Smith sigh.
"Mrs. Stone, are you attracted to Dave? Is that why you teased him?" I look at Mr. Smith, disgusted.
"Hell no! I wasn't even trying to tease him. I was just trying to take a shower?" Mr. Smith rubs his brown beard.
"Did you tell him you were going to take a shower?"
"No?"
"So, you admit he could have accidentally bumped into you while you were getting out of the shower in his own house," My brows furrows.
"I have to ask permission to take a shower in my sister's own house? Or is that what you're accusing me of? In fact, Mr. Smith, the way you're questioning me about it, it sounds to me like you're saying just because Mr. Whicherton is the man of the house, I, a woman, has to ask him for permission from a man for anything, right? Is that what you're accusing me, Mr. Smith?!" I see Mr. Smith straighten his beard, looking shocked and speechless.
"Mrs. Stone, you are not a lawyer. Please answer the questions instead of questioning the lawyer," I hear the Judge say, and I gulp.
"Sorry, Your Honor," I say while eyeing Mr. Smith.
"No more questions, Your Honor," Mr. Smith says, and he sits down. Stephanie stands up smiling, trying not to laugh. She clears her throat as she walks to me.
"Mrs. Stone, as you said, you've stripped for five years, right?"
"Yes," I reply.
"Mr. Whicherton has had an addiction for six years, which couldn't possibly be started by your job because you applied a year after his addiction, right?"
"Yes," Stephanie smiles at me.
"That's all, Your Honor. Thank you for your time, Mrs. Stone," Stephanie walks back to her seat.
"Are the attorneys satisfied with the witness testimony?" I hear the lawyer ask Mrs. Waltons and Dave's lawyer.
"Yes, Your Honor," Stephanie and Mr. Smith said after the other.
"You are free to have a seat, Mrs. Stone," I stand up and walk back to my seat. Mr. Winters looks at me with sorrowful eyes as I sit next to him. He places his hand between mine, and I lay my head on his shoulder, smelling his refreshing cologne, which makes everything ease.
After thirty minutes of waiting for the juries, the many women and men enter the room and sit in their original spot.
"Has the jury reached a verdict?" I hear the Judge say, and a bald man at the end of the row stands up.
"Yes, Your Honor," He grabs a piece of paper in front of him and hands to it the guard. The guard hands it to the judge.
"In the case of child custody for Kayla, Tia, and unborn Johnny Stone-Whicherton, I hear by declare that Violet Stone has full custody of the children and a five-year protective order against Dave Whicheton. Dave Whicherton will receive no rights to the children, or any future children which may be presented by Violet Stone, and will receive two weeks of jail time and a five-year community service order for the abuse of Violet Stone. This court is sentenced and finalized. Thank you, Jury, for your service today. The court is adjourned," Judge Candance hits her gavel. We won!
"Yes!" I say while standing up. I hug Mr. Winters who's sitting down. I let go, not realizing I just shoved his face into my boobs while hugging him. Mr. Winters chuckles, and I clear my throat.
"Why'd you stop? I was enjoying the view," I roll my eyes and walk towards Stephanie, shaking hands with Violet. I hug Stephanie.
"Thank you so much for your help! It means the world that you would go out of your way to help my sister," I hear Stephanie chuckle as she smells me.
"Damn, you smell good. I should be thanking you because, without all those things you've searched, I wouldn't have a testimony. Plus, I must say it was a pleasure sightseeing you up there in your sexy ass business suit, I could hardly keep my composure. Especially when you called the lawyer out," I chuckle.
"Well, I had to. He was being sexist," I feel Mr. Winters's arm on my side. Stephanie grins at Mr. Winters and me.
"Well, if it isn't THE Mr. Winters here with Evangeline," I kiss Mr. Winters on the cheek.
"You two can talk, I'm going to see how Violet's doing," I walk over to Violet while Stephanie stares me down, biting her lips. I hug Violet.
"Why didn't you tell me this court date was issued three months ago?" Violet sighs as she pulls from the hug.
"I didn't want to worry you with it. You had a lot of things going on with Mr. Winters and your job. I didn't want to put my stress on you," I pull her into a hug.
"I don't care what the hell is going on in my life. You tell me if there's something wrong. I'm here for you," I say as I pull away slowly.
"Now you're going to make me cry," I chuckle.
Dave walks by in handcuffs with a guard. He stops and stares straight at me.
"I will get you what you took from me someday, Evangeline," The guard nudges him to keep walking, and he walks out the courtroom door.
"What was that about?" I turn to Violet.
"Oh, when I was on the stand, he was trying to tell me to be quiet and not tell my story," Violet looks at me with sad eyes.
"Eve, I'm sorry you went through that. If I knew about it, I would have dropped him sooner," I smile.
"Don't worry about it, Vi. I've been through worse situations. Remember when I almost got attacked by one of August's friends? Luckily Ni-, you know who, walked in and stopped him. He and August beat the hell out of him while I got dressed," Violet gestures behind me, and I turn to see Mr. Winters. I smile at him as he looks at me worried. God, I hope he didn't hear what I just said. Stephanie clears her throat.
"Now that this is all over, why don't I take you all out to lunch, my treat," Stephanie winks at me.
"You three go ahead. I have business to tend to at home," I look at Mr. Winters, confused. I pull him to the side.
"What business do you have to take care of?" Mr. Winters looks me in the eyes.
"Business between me and my brother. I don't want you to see it, so make sure you spend all day with Violet. I'll send Donny with you to make sure you're protected from you," My eyes widen as I think I know what it's about. I cup Mr. Winters's cheek.
"Promise me you won't hurt him?" Mr. Winters chuckles.
"I promise I won't touch him," I smile.
"Don't worry, Mr. Winters. Evangeline will be safe with me," Stephanie wraps her arms around my waist.
"Give me a kiss," Mr. Winters looks at Stephanie and Violet.
"Here?" I chuckle.
"Of course. There's no one around, so we should be fine. If you don't want to do it, I'm sure Mrs. Waltons would love a kiss," I tease Mr. Winters as I look at Stephanie, whose eyes light up.
"Mr. Winters, if you don't kiss Evangeline, I will gladly take the offer again," Violet looks at me confused.
"Again?!" I chuckle as I look at Violet.
Mr. Winters pulls me from Stephanie's arms and turns me around with his face facing the wall. He removes his mask over his lips and kisses me intensely. I see Stephanie grinning from the corner of my eye. He slowly moves back from the kiss.
"Thank you for being here for me. I know it was a hassle to go through, and you could have done a hundred other things, but it really means a lot to me that you were here with me," Mr. Winters chuckles, and I see his sensational smile.
"I'd skip time and day just to be with you," I smile and kiss him on his lips again.
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-End Of Chapter 49-
Thank you sooo much for reading Chapter 49 Of CRASHING DOWN INTO GLORY!
Have a sensational day/night! <3