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“Mr. Stephens, you will now,finally, be sentenced. I don’t know why the previous judge didn’t hand down a sentence, but we will rectify that now.” The judge searched through a couple of pages before him. “Luckily for you, the law changed in time to save you from a forced birth.”
Wilder gnashed his teeth. Judge Emory was at the top of the beat-down list he was amassing in his mind.
“Now… on the charge of illegally purchasingHeatexandScentex, we find you guilty and sentence you to six months' house arrest.”
House arrest?
Avery’s head swiveled. Their gazes met in shock. Wilder’s heart slammed against his ribs as anticipation took charge.
“On the charge of impersonating a beta, we find you guilty and sentence you to six months' house arrest, to be served concurrently with the previous sentence.”
Gray tugged Wilder’s shoulder. “Concurrent? Done at the same time?”
“Yes, six months for both.” Wilder’s head was spinning.
“On the charge of trespassing outside the Omega Quadrant, we find you guilty… and sentence you to six months' house arrest, to be served concurrently with the previous sentence.” Judge Emory turned his attention to Avery.
Silence hung in the courtroom. Wilder’s pulse throbbed in his ears.
“I realize you’re under the impression that we turned a blind eye to the struggles of the omega class. I wish to remind you that we members of the court do notwritethe law, we simply interpret what is written. Our ability to create change is limited because of that. What wecando is offer leniency when we see an injustice.”
A smile came to Wilder’s lips.
“Do you have anything you wish to say to this Tribunal?” Judge Emory asked Avery.
Avery trembled. “Thank you.”
Judge Emory smiled—actually smiled. “Court is adjourned.”
The gallery erupted into screams of joy. Avery spun, tears shining in his eyes. Wilder opened his arms, begging his omega to come him. Avery raced closer and collided into his chest. Wilder squeezed tight. Gray, Lake, and Auggie joined in the hug, all but bouncing around them. Cameras clicked in the distance, bright lights popping in the surrounds.
The noise calmed after a few minutes. Avery’s family let go, but Wilder couldn’t. The gallery remained animated, loud voices filling the space.
Wilder leaned down and whispered in Avery’s ear. “So whose house are you serving time in, I wonder? Will they send you back to the OQ or…?”
“Well, it can’t be the new house. It won’t be ready yet.”
“And we’re not mated,” Wilder murmured.“Yet.”
“I suppose that’ll have to be a question for Tensen and Rohan.”
Wilder reached out and touched Rohan’s shoulder.“Wherewill he serve his time?”
Rohan frowned. “I’m not sure. This isn’t my expertise, remember?” He tapped Tensen’s shoulder. “Where will Avery have to serve house arrest?”
“It’s a new part of the Omega Bill of Rights, so I’m not exactly sure. We’ll have to dig through the legislative mumbo-jumbo and figure that out.” Tensen searched the crowd. “I see someone who might know. Hold on.” He sped off toward the back of the court.
“I hope I can be with you,” Avery said. He lifted his gaze and focused on Wilder. “You’d be okay with that, wouldn’t you? A criminal underfoot?”
“Are you kidding me? Iwantyou with me. Why in the world would that even be a question?”
Avery rose on his tiptoes and pressed a kiss to Wilder’s lips.
Tensen returned, a broad grin on his face. “As it stands now, whatever address Avery gives them as his home address is the one where he’ll serve.”
“Meaning the home address he has on his ID?” Wilder asked.
“No, they’ll ask him where he plans to reside during his sentence. He could give any address he wants, as long as the owner of that home agrees and signs an affidavit saying that he’ll provide shelter for however long the sentence is.”
