Yes.He’d finally said it, which meant that there was a tiny little seed of doubt that had sprouted in his mind.
“She has an ironclad alibi, so we ruled her out,” the detective added. My enthusiasm vanished, as if doused with ice water. “But the issue remains, and it’s a serious one,” he added. “We could not establish Ms. Taylor’s motive for the crime.”
“Are you looking at other suspects?” Colton asked.
“Not at this time. There’s insufficient evidence to support the theory that there could be someone else involved.”
“Thank you, Detective,” Colton said. “No more questions.”
The judge checked his watch, then looked at Mitchell. “Next witness, Mr. Mitchell?”
“The prosecution rests, Your Honor.”
Justice Antunez turned his attention toward Colton. “Mr. Blake, please call your first witness.”
Colton rose to his feet and fastened one button on his jacket. “The defense calls Billy Ray Walker.”
My brother looked awkward in one of Colton’s suits, his tie crooked and his hair tousled. As he was sworn in, his calloused hands gripped the edges of the stand. His eyes darted nervously to me, and I gave him a reassuring nod.
Colton approached the stand with a calm, measured pace. “Billy, could you please tell the jury the nature of your relationship with the defendant?”
“She’s my sister,” he said, his voice sounding a bit emotional.
“What was she like, growing up?”
Billy Ray swallowed hard. “She was more than a sister. She was like a mother. Our dad wasn’t ... well, he wasn’t a nice guy. He drank a lot. Got mean. But she made sure I was okay. Even when she couldn’t protect herself, she protected me.”
Colton nodded, his expression encouraging. “Can you give us an example, Billy? Something that shows the kind of person your sister is?”
Billy Ray’s eyes darkened with the memory. “There was this one night when I was about eight. She was twelve. Dad had been drinking all day, and I knew what was coming. But she got me out of the house before anything bad could happen to me. Had me hiding in the barn. She stayed behind to face him alone ... just to keep me safe. She was always like that. Even if for her, it was more than just beatings.”
He’d spoken the last few words in a whisper, lowering his head.
A murmur rippled through the courtroom. Shock. Horror. Sympathy. Colton saw the flicker of understanding in the jurors’ eyes, the faint crack in their hardened expressions.
“Billy,” Colton continued, his voice steady, “can you tell us about your sister’s life after she left home? How did she manage to build a life for herself despite everything she went through?”
Billy Ray’s hands gripped the edge of the stand, his knuckles white. “She ran away as a kid, but made something of herself. She wasn’t handed anything. Everything she has, she earned. She wanted more for herself and me. She wasn’t always perfect, but she always tried to do right by me.”
Colton took a step closer, his eyes never leaving Billy Ray’s. “Did Olivia ever talk to you about her relationships? About Winston Donovan?”
Billy Ray nodded slowly. “Yeah, she did. She was ... she wanted to be loved, Mr. Blake. She didn’t trust people easily, not after what we went through as kids. But she wasn’t out to hurt anyone. She really loved Winston.”
A tightness built in my chest, so sharp it stole my breath. Billy Ray ... My eyes burned, my throat thick, but I couldn’t look away from him. He was up there—for me.
Colton’s voice softened. “Billy, if you could tell the jury one thing about your sister, what would it be?”
Billy Ray’s voice cracked, emotion overtaking him. “That she’s a good person. She made mistakes, sure, but she’s not a bad person. She’s not what they’re saying she is. She just wanted to be happy, to be safe. She’s always done what she thought was best for me, for us. I know she’s not capable of ... of this.”
The first tear slipped free before I could stop it. My hand closed around the edge of the table, my knuckles aching from how hard I gripped it.
“How do you feel about your sister’s name change?”
His answer came without hesitation. “I didn’t mind one bit. I wish I’d changed mine, too. In my head, I can still hear my name bellowed out by our boozin’ father, and I hate it. I bet she does, too.”
My heart ached, the courtroom blurring through the heat of my tears. He understood.
Silence fell over the courtroom, the weight of Billy Ray’s words sinking deep into the minds of the jurors.
