Scarecrow of 1889
Chapter 35: Final Verdict

Chapter 35: Final Verdict

Charles took a deep breath and began,

"In the beginning, questions arose about Mr. Crowley’s fingerprints at the crime scenes. Mr. Hamilton portrayed him as manipulative and cunning, but would such a person leave incriminating evidence behind? When Margot Brooks’s body was discovered, Mr. Crowley was present. He could have fled but didn’t. Why? Because he suffers from split personality disorder. The disbelief comes from not encountering these personalities firsthand or understanding the complexities of split personality disorder."

"It’s like when people once believed the earth was flat until exploration proved otherwise. These personalities have their own thoughts, lives, and behaviours, exerting control over Mr. Crowley. I urge you not to condemn Mr. Crowley for actions beyond his control, for things he doesn’t recall or may not even know about. Please don’t punish him for something he is helpless against. Thank you."

Charles returned to his seat and he noticed Judge Reynolds writing something in his book. He knew the chances were slim and everything was in favour of the prosecutor, but he had to try!

He quickly took the opportunity and then spoke to Sylvester, "Jane looks beautiful today doesn’t she?"

Sylvester blinked at his lawyer. What was he even talking about when the judge was going to say out his verdict?

Charles continued to speak, "I have always admired her, and hoped she would be ready to accept my proposal. With you and your alter ego gone, everything will fall into place. She will finally be mine. She has such a beautiful body, and I want to take her to bed—"

"Maldito!"

Ricardo had appeared in the court, his eyes full of rage. The people around them softly gasped and Judge Reynolds, who had been writing something paused to look up at what happened.

But Charles hadn’t stopped there. He continued, "—peel out her clothes one by one. Take her in my arms and lay her on the bed. And you know what else? Drop little kis—"

The lawyer couldn’t utter more as Ricardo jumped on him, attacking him with a punch right across his jaw. The alter ego, continued to release cursed words before saying,

"I knew you had ill intentions towards her, you fucking bastard! I will rip your tongue and gouge your eyes! Then tell me how you will do that!!"

"You are a killer, Jane will never accept you," Charles knew it was a low blow, but if it was going to keep someone alive, then so be it. Sorry, Jane, he whispered in his mind, while his jaw ached now. "Sylvester would be a better choice. You are nothing."

"Cabron! Voy a matarte! You think you are better for her? You think that coward Sylvester is better for her?!" He shouted, turning every whisper into a quiet place. "I am the only one who will exist! Ricardo Wood! No one else!"

"But I made sure to frame you. Once you get back to prison, you will be dead and she will forget you," Charles said with a confident smirk.

"Te destrozare!" Ricardo put his hands around Charles’s neck. "Before I die, I will take you with me! She doesn’t belong to you!"

At first, Judge Reynolds had believed it to be a theatrical show for him, but then he saw Mr. Leary’s face turned as if he was suffocating and ordered, "Guards! Pull Mr. Crowley away from Mr. Leary!" He couldn’t believe how a calm man had suddenly burst out in anger, and he had heard the words spoken.

And the guards hurried towards Sylvester, struggling to get him away from his very own lawyer. Ricardo growled, almost feral like which had everyone jump in their seats and now they stood up to take a better look.

Though Ricardo looked furious, Charles coughed to get the air back into his lungs and his face finally broke into a smile. He said, "You finally came out, Mr. Wood. Now everyone sees you."

Ricardo stopped struggling, and he looked up to find the audience looking at him. There was Jane staring at him with wide eyes. The prosecutor looked stunned too along with the judge, not knowing what to make out of this.

With the realisation that sank, Sylvester’s demeanour changed back, and he noticed everyone looking at him with horror in their eyes. Some looked terrified and he asked,

"W—what, what happened?" This question was directed to Charles. He noticed his lawyer’s face had turned red.

Charles shook his head, "Nothing at all. Why don’t you take a seat back?" and he ushered the guards to leave them as everything was under control. He knew he couldn’t hypnotise Sylvester and he had resorted to provoking him instead, hoping Jane was the key here and it had worked wonderfully. Now everything rested in the judge’s hands.

There was another round of whispers that broke in the courtroom which were mostly hushed. Some were wondering what possessed Sylvester, while some glared at him for this theatrical flair.

In the meantime, Judge Reynolds sat there staring at the accused. He had noticed the shift in the demeanour. He remembered one of the last few conversations he had with the late stage actress, Delilah Swan when he had met her in the Frontier Hall.

"My husband and I will always be your fan, Lady Swan," his wife had praised the beautiful woman. "You have achieved so much in so little time."

"Oh, you are kind, Mrs. Reynolds," Delilah had smiled. "I always feel I didn’t have enough time to do everything. Especially with my children when they were young. But being with children is so important."

"Of course! You are so right! Your children must treasure you!" his wife had continued to gush towards the actress. "Did they debut on the stage?"

"Sadly, not. My daughter, Elizabeth isn’t too fond of it and Sylvester, well he isn’t good at acting. He’s terrible at even little lies," the actress chuckled as if she found it to be endearing.

Judge Reynolds was sure that Sylvester Crowley was guilty of the murders that he was charged with. Even the court proceedings clearly showed it. But in this final moment, his decision flattered.

His eyes then met Jane Reinhart in the audience, who looked anxious. Her words echoed in his mind. "I do ask that if the time comes, you will be as fair as you have been until now. To have an open mind. That is all."

The other people quietly anticipated the obvious verdict. Taking a deep breath, Judge Reynolds loudly sighed, which gained everyone’s attention back at him. He then spoke,

"I have considered every side of this case today. The victims’ family, who have lost their people because of the cold blooded killer. The lawyers who passionately defended their side, trying to fight for justice. But there are times when you need to see things beyond what they are," and silence once again fell in the room.

The judge continued to speak, "The court finds Mr. Crowley is not guilty and that he needs to take assistance from the asylum to get better in this case. He will then be evaluated, if he needs to be punished or be a free man. The court is adjourned!"

Jane let out a relieved breath, a smile coming on her face as she saw Charles turn to look at her, mirroring their reactions.

"Thank God!" Elizabeth sunk in her chair, praying to God for his mercy. Sylvester sat in his seat, trying to believe what just occurred. He wasn’t guilty.

But while on one side there were people who were relieved by the judgement, the others didn’t share the same sentiment. Anger grew in the crowd, which was soon spread outside the court.

"This is not a fair judgement!" shouted one of them. "The rich get away with murder!"

"We demand retrial!"

Sylvester was taken away from there before anyone would do any damage, and also to prepare him for the place he was going to be heading to.

Jane made her way through the stairs of the court, walking away from there as she was done helping the man. She then heard Charles call her.

"Jane! Where are you going? We are supposed to celebrate my first big victory," Charles said, catching up with her and she paused her footsteps.

"Congratulations, Charles and thank you. I knew you could do it," Jane remarked with a proud smile.

"Almost dead?" Charles joked, knowing how risky it had been. "But we did good."

"That we sure did," Jane agreed, and she then asked him, "Is your neck alright."

"It is. Just a little squeeze, you know. Though I might have to move towns," that was if Ricardo returned to square things with him in the future, thought Charles to himself. "You aren’t going to see him off?" he asked, knowing Jane had feelings for the alter ego. He had heard it from Addison.

Jane pursed her lips before she smiled and replied, "His family is there for him. I don’t think there’s a need for me to be there at the station." There was a heaviness in her heart. Besides, the person she wanted to be there for, was deemed to be violent. She then said, "I should get going now."

"Back to home?" Charles asked her.

"To the prison," Jane replied, and her response got Charles curious. She said, "There’s someone who helped us there. I need to deliver today’s verdict and thought of helping him out of there. You can be the defence advocate for the case," she smiled, before they walked away from there.

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