LUCY
"Isn't it funny," I added, in a firm voice, "that after weeks and months of peace between them, it's only on the day of their disagreement that this damage magically happened?"
Silence followed, and the whole courtroom seemed to hold its breath. I heard Mr. Stark shift in his seat, clearly uncomfortable.
Good.
I turned slightly to the judge again. "This accusation demands questioning, my Lord."
The judge nodded slowly, writing something on his sheet.
I sat down.
Beside me, Mr. Carcaterra didn't say a word. He just sat there, staring straight ahead, as if none of this was new to him. But I caught something, a tiny twitch at the corner of his lips.
A smirk. He was enjoying this.
Meanwhile, across the room, Crawford's fake confidence was already melting like butter under the sun. This case wasn't over yet, but I could already smell the win.
Before the judge could even say a word, Crawford – that annoying hot-headed lawyer – stood again.
"My Lord," he fired back, "if we follow my learned colleague's reasoning, we might as well believe criminals don't commit crimes just because they could have done it better. What if Mr. Carcaterra caused this damage himself to make it look like Mr. Stark is guilty? Isn't that the perfect setup? Destroy the property… frame the innocent man… and watch him suffer. That's revenge!"
He looked too proud of himself, like he just solved the world's greatest mystery.
I stared at him for a second, then I laughed.
Yes, I actually laughed. It echoed across the courtroom, enough for everyone to hear.
"Seriously?" I said. "That's your argument?"
Crawford frowned, clearly offended, but I kept going. "With all due respect, if Carcaterra really wanted revenge, don't you think he would've done it in a cleaner way? A man with his influence wouldn't bother with cheap setups like this. And besides, what revenge exactly? From what I know, Mr. Stark's little outburst wasn't even a big deal to Mr. Carcaterra. He let bygones be bygones. Why would a businessman, with several deals on his plate, waste his time plotting revenge over something that petty?"
Silence again. Even Crawford didn't have a comeback for that one. But just when I thought things were calming down, the judge lifted his head and spoke.
"I'd like to know the cause of this misunderstanding between both the accuser and the accused."
Finally, this was the part I'd been waiting for.
Of course, Crawford jumped on it like a hungry dog. "Yes, my Lord. It's simple. They had a business agreement. Mr. Carcaterra did not meet up with the deal. He knew that once Mr. Stark reported him, it would destroy his reputation, so instead of facing the consequences, he decided to flip the story, to break government property and pin it on Mr. Stark."
It was such a weak explanation, but Crawford said it like it was the gospel truth.
I stood up before he could sit down. "Objection, my Lord."
The judge raised a brow. "Go ahead."
"Before we start buying fairy tales," I said calmly, "I'd like to point out a few facts. According to my records," I picked up a slim file, "the business agreement between Mr. Stark and Mr. Carcaterra happened two months ago."
I walked over and handed the file to the judge myself.
While he flipped through it, I spoke again. "Meaning they have not had any form of communication ever since. No texts, no emails, nothing. Just silence."
I waited for that to sink in, then continued. "From this agreement," I pointed at the file, "Mr. Carcaterra was to receive sixty percent, while Mr. Stark would receive forty."
The judge looked up. "Is this true?"
I turned to Crawford first, then to Mr. Stark. "Is that correct?"
Stark swallowed, clearly uncomfortable. "Yes," he finally said.
"Good," I replied softly. "But here's where it gets interesting."
I stepped away from the bench and faced the court. "Two months later – after the deal was practically dead – Mr. Stark, out of greed, acted behind my client's back. He tried to restart the agreement secretly, cutting Mr. Carcaterra out of the picture."
Gasps. Whispers.
Crawford tried to say something, but I raised a hand. "I'm not done."
I reached into my file and pulled out a USB drive. "In addition to that, my Lord, I have a video recording."
I handed it over to the court clerk, who quickly set it up on the small screen used for evidence display. As soon as the footage started playing, the courtroom leaned forward.
It was clear: a grainy video from a hidden camera, showing Mr. Stark in a meeting with a group of men, talking about the exact same business deal.
"…Carcaterra doesn't need to know," Stark's voice echoed from the speakers. "We'll handle this ourselves. I deserve more than forty percent, anyway. He's too arrogant."
The judge leaned back slightly in his chair, his fingers tapping slowly on the desk.
I folded my arms. "Now, my Lord, with this video, it's clear who tried to cheat who. And with that kind of evidence, I'd say Mr. Stark had more motive for revenge here than anyone else."
Crawford sat down, speechless. His whole posture screamed defeat, but I didn't feel like smiling yet.
No one expected it. Not even me.
As the video ended, I could feel the shock on everyone's face. Meanwhile, Mr. Stark just sat there, stiff, like someone had pulled the ground from under his feet. Crawford looked even worse. His mouth opened slightly, but no words came out. For a man who always talked too much, that was a strange sight.
Even Mr. Carcaterra sat still on his seat. His assistant gave a small cough, clearly caught off guard, but Lorenzo… he didn't move much. His face stayed calm, and... unreadable. But I knew him enough by now to sense it. He hadn't expected that video either.
Me? I was prepared for anything.
The judge finally spoke, cutting through the heavy silence. "Bring me that video," he said simply.
I got up, walked over, and handed him my phone with the file on it. He watched the video again, this time closer, making sure there was no mistake.
After a few seconds, he handed the phone back to me.
"This is enough," the judge said clearly. "We have enough proof here to confirm that the accuser, Mr. Stark, is guilty of damaging government property. Unless…" he turned his gaze to Crawford and Stark. "unless you have evidence to prove this is false?"
Crawford shifted in his seat, his hands moved restlessly. He glanced at Mr. Stark, but Stark didn't even look at him. The man looked like he was frozen in place.
"No, my Lord," Crawford finally muttered.
"Good," the judge said, adjusting his robe. "Final judgment."
The whole courtroom leaned forward.
"Mr. Stark, you will bear the full cost of repairing the damaged property. In addition, you will pay compensation for falsely accusing an innocent citizen and dragging him into unnecessary trouble."
It was music to my ears.
I allowed myself a soft smile and turned to look at Crawford. His face was pale. And then I looked at Mr. Stark. He tried to keep his face s
traight, but the cracks were showing. His pride was breaking apart, and I could see it clearly.
Mission complete.