Page 97 of Pain
Xander gripped her shoulder in support. They'd debated on allowing her to go to court for the trial, but it was Faith who had insisted she go. She wanted to see what happened to them, and she wanted to make sure the truth was told.
Luckily, she never had to testify. There was plenty of evidence to prove their guilt without the girls having to appear. They had each given statements, but other than that, the court was happy to not have to have them speak. Faith had spent hours talking about the case in therapy, and when it finally came down to deciding if she should go or not, it was Xander who finally said they should allow her to.
In his own experiences, there had been closure in seeing his father get sentenced. Seeing him handcuffed and walked out of the courtroom had given him back some of the control his father had stolen from him when he'd been little. He hoped that even though she was much younger, Faith would have the same experience and it might help her heal a little faster by knowing for sure that the couple was locked up.
"They didn't look so scary now, did they?" Matt grinned up at Xander.
"No, they looked sick." Faith smiled. "I know it's bad, but I'm glad they're sick."
Xander bit his lip, glad that Faith had seen how weak and frail the couple had become. The case had been postponed due to medical issues that were never released to the public. Xander and the team knew exactly what those issues were. The couple was suffering the effects of what STK had done to them. While the woman would recover somewhat, though never fully be okay due to internal scar tissue, the man's health would keep declining, and depression would slowly get worse. It was common after becoming a eunuch. The body's chemistry changed, the hormones changed, and few people ever regained a normal life after.
There was no guilt. The bastards deserved everything they got for what they had done to children, and knowing that they suffered at his own hand gave Xander more satisfaction than it probably should have.
"It's not bad. It's called karma. When you hurt other people, it comes back to hurt you in some way. That's why I always tell you to treat others like you want to be treated." Matt kissed Faith's cheek. "Are you okay? Do you want to go home and talk more about it?"
"You promised pizza and ice cream." She turned to Xander.
"So I did." He laughed. "Do you want to go to the pizza place with all the video games, or get the pizza and go home?"
Faith didn't hesitate. "Video games."
"She's convinced she can beat you at that one racing game they have there." Matt met Xander's gaze.
"She can try, but I've been practicing." Xander bent and picked Faith up in his arms. "If I win, you have to get only one scoop of ice cream on your cone, but if you win I have to get you two scoops, deal?"
"Does that mean you only get one scoop if I win?" She narrowed her eyes at him.
Matt laughed. "She's smart."
"That she is." Xander kissed her forehead. "That's the deal." He offered his hand to her. "Shake on it?"
She took his big hand in hers. "Deal."
He set her down before she could protest about being too old to be carried. As they all grabbed each other's hands again and continued to the car, Xander thought about all she had been through. Faith amazed him. She was stronger than he'd ever been at that age, dealing with everything so differently than he had. He was so proud of her.
Matt glanced over at him. "You okay?"
Xander nodded. "Better than I think I've ever been."
Matt had been worried the case would stir old emotions, but it had done the opposite. Seeing justice served helped him to come to terms with what the team did for a living. It still might be against the law, but seeing the couple in court, seeing how weak they were, and knowing that because of that, they couldn't hurt another child, Xander found a new passion for what he did. He also found satisfaction that the justice system could work alongside the team, even if they didn't know it. Just like his father, others were spending their lives behind bars, punished for their sins.
As he smiled at Matt, he finally put his own past behind him. Faith and Matt were his future, and they were all that mattered. He might not have had a good start in life, but he had no doubt with Faith and Matt by his side, the last half was going to be a wild ride.
EPILOGUE
Faith stared at the zebras as they wandered around the enclosure, wondering if they were the same ones that had been there when her mom was with her so many years ago. She smiled at the memory. She missed her mom, some days more than others, but she was glad she had so many memories of her to get her through the harder times.
"Faith, smile," Xander called.
She turned and waved as he lifted his phone up to take a picture.
"Wait, I want one with her." Dad ran over to her side and wrapped his arm around her.
"Move to the left and I can get the zebras in the picture with you." Xander motioned.
Faith leaned into her dad's embrace. The zoo was one of her favorite places, and to spend it with both her dads now was exciting. She loved going places with them.
It had been a hard year, even though a lot of good had happened. Her dads getting married was her favorite part, but there was also starting a new school that she had to work through. She was terrified of school, even still, she wouldn't walk out the front doors in the afternoon until one of her dads was there to pick her up and she could see them. In the mornings, they both walked her to her class before saying goodbye.
