Page 138 of Strays
Jay stands, pulls his shorts on, and slips out to the bathroom. He comes back with tissues and gently cleans her. Shane and I rub her arms, her thighs, watching for any sign she’s overwhelmed.
I wish I could freeze time. Keep her like this: safe, with us.
We curl up around her in the nest, and I fall asleep before the dread of tomorrow can settle back in.
I wake before dawn, before the alarm even buzzes on my phone, but Jo and my brothers are already awake. The three of us cook breakfast while Jo showers. When she comes downstairs, her uncles are with her, dressed and ready to go. We all sit at the table, eating together, a heavy silence over us.
Afterward, my brothers and I head upstairs and get dressed. We wear the suits we had made just for the trial, but none of us are used to ties. I fumble with mine for a minute before Jo steps in and fixes it for me. She adjusts each of us with quiet, practiced hands. Her dad wore one every Sunday for church, so she’s used to doing it.
We split into two cars again. Shane squeezes into the front seat of the F-150 with Jo and her uncle Jean. Jay drives the Bronco with me and Jean’s brothers, Henri and René.
Before Jay starts the engine, my phone buzzes with a message from Jayme.
Meet you out front. Renner’s already there.
When we pull up to the courthouse, it’s chaos. The crowd is thick. Dozens of reporters and camera crews are already in position. Officers from Milstone PD handle the perimeter, keeping reporters behind the line, guarding the steps, watching the crowd.
Some people are holding protest signs, most of them in Luc’s favor.
“Protect Human Rights.”
“Monsters in Uniform.”
“No One’s Above the Law.”
But there are also a few that say, “Equal Rights for Aegis.”
Jayme waits for us at the base of the courthouse steps, standing beside Renner. I freeze in confusion when I see that they’re both smiling wide. Jayme’s practically vibrating. He doesn’t even wait for us to reach him before blurting it out.
“Gesson’s out! Judge Conway’s on the bench. We’re walking into a real trial.”
Wait. What?
“It was a political tug-of-war, and we almost lost,” Renner says, eyes bright. “We flagged Judge Gesson’s history of anti-aegis rulings and submitted it to the ethics board. But the DoD was pressuring them hard to keep him. After days of stalled negotiations, MAB went around them. Yesterday, they offered the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts a dedicated detachment of aegis packs to serve as personal security for federal judges assigned to high-risk cases. In exchange, they asked for Gesson to be removed from this one.
“That deal sweetened the pot just enough. The AO leaned on the ethics board and pushed Gesson out. Conway was already vetted. She was ready to step in the moment the window opened. The decision came through officially thirty minutes ago.”
I can’t believe it. I glance at my brothers, and they’re both speechless, staring like they’re not sure if this is real.
Jo’s quiet sob breaks the silence. She reaches for us, grabbing Jay first, and Shane and I fold in around her. Her hands clutch whatever part of us she can reach as her shoulders shake. Our chests hum too loud as my mind spins, trying to catch up.
Do we have a shot now?
The realization slowly takes me. I can fix my mistakes. If we win this trial, we can go home with Jo.
I’ll learn to live with Aranya walking free. I’ll make peace with it. If we walk out of here today, I’ll request a transfer. Anywhere. As far as they’ll let us go. Maybe west, somewhere closer to her family. Somewhere Aranya will never hear of us again.
My thoughts turn frantic, my pulse wild.
We can win this.
We can win this.
We can win this.
I can’t even feel the floor beneath my boots as we move toward the courtroom. I’m floating.
When we step inside, it’s already packed.
