The next person that Mary's kawyer called up was Greg. Now that he was about to turn 18, and was a defendant in the case as well, he was obligated to testify in the case. Mary's lawyer started in after swearing him in. "Gregory, please tell the court… How were you treated by your step-sister, Penelope?"
"Like I was a bully." Greg answered, narrowing his angry eyes at her. "It didn't matter what was going on, Penelope always tried to blame me or my brother whenever she got into trouble."
"Can you give any examples?"
"My grandfather's urn. She tried to say that I shoved her. But she tripped me and then threw it on the ground. She was always jealous of me and the things that I had, and she did everything she could to try and get me into trouble. I am so grateful for my mom, because if she hadn't stepped in, Penelope would have gotten her way. At least, with most of it she would have." Greg said, looking down in shame.
"Tell me, what did Penelope get away with?"
"Well, when our parents were asleep, she would sneak into my room. If I was asleep, she would wake me up. She'd be over my covers sitting on me. Grinding in my lap. She had always had this wicked look on her face." Greg said, continuing to look at the ground.
"What would happen next?"
There was a pause, and the Judge ordered Greg to answer the question. "She would… She would make me… She would make me have an erection. And then she would keep grinding on me until I- Until I… came…" Greg said quietly.
"She would keep grinding on you until you did what?" The lawyer asked.
"Until I ejaculated!" Greg blurted, then looked back down at the ground in shame.
"So you never sexually assaulted Penelope Marks. It was the other way around?"
"Yeah." Greg said with false shame in his voice. "I would tell her to get off me. But she never listened. One time, she came in fully undressed and threw the covers off me. Then she pulled my- my- penis- out of my pants. She forced herself on me and she- she- She took my virginity!" Chris exclaimed. Everyone in the courtroom gasped and started murmering.
Penelope burst up. "No! I didn't! I'm still a virgin!" She cried.
The judge slammed down the gavel. "Enough! I will have order in my courtroom. Ms. Marks, sit back down." He curtly ordered. Greg shot a dirty look to Penelope before briefly plastering a smug smile on his face.
"Thank you for your testimony, Gregory. For the record, I have one final question for you. Did you, at any point, demand or force Ms. Marks into doing anything for you that would lead to your own sexual gratification?" Mary's lawyer asked.
"No. I would never!"
"Thank you. That is all." Mary's lawyer dismissed Greg, who got up and walked off the stand, a smug look on his face as he stared away from the jury and at Penelope as he moved back to his seat. In his mind, going first meant that he won. He was going to make sure that it wasn't the other way around.
Scott was too young to be called to the stand. Instead, an investigator- Ms. Thompson- who interviewed him in the case was called to the stand.
"Ms. Thompson, for the record, could you please state your position as well as your involvement in this case?"
"Of course. My name is Jeanette Thompson, I am an forensic psychologist for the county, and I as asked to investigate the allegations of sexual assault in which the minor defendants state took place upon them."
"Thank you. Please tell the court what you discovered during your interview."
"Upon interviewing Mrs. Marks' children, I was told about numerous incidents of sexual abuse and harassment which took place in the household. The younger minor child, Scott, alleged that Ms. Marks would corner him in their shared room whenever he would go in there to play. He stated that she would shove her hand down his pants and play with his penis. After he reached puberty, he stated that Penelope would push him down on the bed, grab him by his testicles and squeeze them until he cried. He stated that other times, she would unzip his pants and play with his penis until he ejaculated all over himself."
"Thank you, Ms. Thompson. That is all." The investigator left the stand, and finally, Penelope was called to it.
Penelope shook as she was sworn in. "Look at you, Ms. Marks. A grown adult woman, pretending to be a victim. Are you shaking because you've been lying this whole time?"
"Objection, Your Honor! He is intimidating my client!"
"Sustained." The judge ruled.
"Tell me, Ms. Marks. How many times did you sexually assault your younger step-brothers?"
"None." Penelope said, trying not to cry. "I never touched any of them."
"And yet, they say that you did! How often were you punished for the things you did to them?"
"All the time-" Penelope stopped herself. No. That wasn't true. "I was punished for the things that th-"
"So you admit that you did assault these boys!"
"No! I didn't! They were the ones that-"
"As a reminder, Ms. Marks, you are under oath! Which means that you are obligated to tell this court the truth. There is no going back now. So on the night that you claim to have been strangled by Mrs. Marks, the reality is that she was defending her son, isn't it?"
"No! That's not it at all. I didn't hurt anybody that night!" Penelope cried. At this point, tears were streaming down her face. She simply couldn't hold them in anymore.
"Ah, yes. Crying because you know that you're in the wrong. You've been caught, Ms. Marks! Your honor… Ladies and gentlemen of the Jury, I implore you to end this nonsense against Mrs. Marks and her two sons. They are the innocent victims in this case, whereas Ms. Marks is the offender. Not only was she a monster of a child, but she is a monster of a woman as well by refusing to admit to her crimes!"
It wasn't true, though! Penelope knew it, the boys knew it, and Mary knew it. What was she going to do now? There was no way that they were going to win now that the investigator had said what they had said. And she had accidentally confirmed it in trying to answer the lawyer's questions! Would the judge and the jury believe her if she went back on her word? She thought that there had been evidence submitted for the case, but Mary's lawyer had not requested that any of it be shown while examining the case in front of everyone. What was up with that? Were they going to win on their words alone?
He stood there, smugly, and stated "I rest my case." Penelope watched as Mary's lawyer went and sat back down. Mary shot a wicked smile in her direction, declaring victory for her and her boys. Penelope felt her walls crumbling in around her. This wasn't happening. The world went black as her body slumped to the side, landing up against the judge's stand.
"Call for a medic!" The judge ordered.
The courtroom orderlies rushed up to assist Penelope as Mary bellowed. "You see, your honor! This is what she does! She's just looking for attention!"
The judge slammed down his gavel as the courtroom got louder. "That's enough! The court will take a fifteen-minute recess while Ms. Marks is assessed. At which time, we will determine whether or not we will continue on today."
The courtroom emptied out, leaving Penelope with the remaining court staff and the Judge. It didn't take long for her to come to. The court officer told her to take it easy as she sat back up. "Are you alright, Ms. Marks?" The judge asked.
"I'm sorry." Penelope cried instead of answering the judge. "I didn't mean to-"
The judge stopped her. "It happens more than you think it might. Do you think you can continue? Or do I need to call it?"
"I'm fine. I'm sorry. Please don't send me to jail!"
The judge laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Young lady, I've been doing this for a long time. Court is an emotional experience for everyone involved. I'd say I've seen it all, but real criminals always come up with something new. Just relax, tell your truth, and we'll go from there."
"Thank you, Your honor. I'm ok to continue."
"Good. Then go clean yourself up so we can get this wrapped up."