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Eyebrows glanced at Tensen. “You may present your case.”
Tensen rose from their table. “Your Honors, before we do, we would like to better understand why our requests for certain charges to be dismissed were denied.”
“He bought illegal drugs,” Eyebrows answered.
“Judge Emory, there was no proof of this.”
“You expect us to believe that Mr. Stephens spent four years outside the Omega Quadrant without the use of illegal drugs to mask his scent and heats? Who do you take us for? Fools?”
Avery winced at the judge’s tone.
Tensen seemed unphased. “These drugs have since been legalized.”
“They werenotwhen these crimes were committed.”
Tensen scoffed. “Is it not egregious to force sentence on a man for a crime that is no longer a crime?”
“Can not the same be said for the other charges he is facing?” Judge Emory asked, those eyebrows rising.
“My point, exactly,” Tensen replied. “All the charges should be dismissed, given the news of last night.”
“Mr. Stephens took it upon himself to make choices which broke our laws. The fact that the laws have since changed means nothing when regarding what he did and when he did it, especially if those laws have no retroactive effect. We cannot simply wash away his sins and not hold him accountable for making them.”
“Is it not civil disobedience to fight against an unjust law?” Tensen asked. “Members of our province rose in multitudes to have their voices heard these past weeks. They claimed his incarceration was wrong and fought to change things. Our Congress acted quickly, those voices heard.” Tensen pointed at Avery. “This young man was a catalyst for change. Change that was long,longoverdue. Having him spend another day in jail would be an injustice.”
“Overruled. The charges stand,” Judge Emory barked. “Hewillface the consequences of his actions, whether they sparked changeor not.”
Avery’s chest tightened. Breathing was harder, his heart thundering.
Tensen glanced Avery’s way, frustration in his face, before turning back to the judges. “Then our plea is for clemency in his case. That you will listen to the circumstances which brought him to make the hard choices he did.”
“You mean, which brought him to a point where he broke the law,” another judge corrected.
Avery’s stomach clenched all the harder. It didn’t appear that it would be a good day in court. He listened to the rest of the plea and cringed each time one of the judges interrupted to make a scathing remark.I’m going to go back to prison. There’s no way I’m getting out of this.
He considered the man behind him. Wilder deserved so much better than to raise their babe alone. Bile rose in his throat. Tears burned the backs of his eyes, but he fought them, refusing to be caught crying on camera for the world to see. He wanted to turn and cling to Wilder, yet feared seeing the look on his alpha’s face through it all.
“Avery?”
Avery turned toward Rohan’s voice.
“The judges want to hear your story.”
Avery glanced around, dazed. He’d already been prepared and knew he would have to step out from the protection of the table and face the Tribunal on his own. Rohan placed a gentle hand on his back and urged him to round the table.
With one last glance at Wilder and the rest of his family, he walked out into the middle of the courtroom and faced the judges, trying to remember the key points Tensen and Rohan had fed him before the hearing.
“So… let’s hear this tale of woe,” Judge Emory said, one wild brow rising.
Fuzzy caterpillars.A sudden bark of laughter escaped him, earning him five narrowed glares.
Avery lowered his head, avoiding another bit of nervous laughter.
“Do you find something funny regarding this Tribunal?” Judge Emory asked.
“No, Your Honor. I’m simply nervous, and it’s escaping most unacceptably. My apologies.”
“Hmpfft… tell us your story.”
