Chapter 120 Attorney Langford Spoke About History
Micah’s POV
When Attorney Langford was asked if he had evidence to support his claims, my heart raced even further.
Attorney Langford was actually making a lot of sense, enough to prompt the judge into giving me a lesser punishment. But now that she had asked for evidence? I knew Attorney Langford was all mouth and no proof, yet he should have known that words alone wouldn’t work in court—especially not in the Supreme Court of Mandena.
I turned to look at Attorney Langford. At the mention of providing evidence, sweat broke out on his forehead. He was clearly trapped. Across from him, Attorney David smirked, and when I passed my gaze toward Rebecca, she smirked too. But she wasn’t even looking at me.
It was evident that Attorney Langford had walked straight into a dead end on this case.
“Huh… humm…” he stammered, attempting to form a response regarding the evidence.
Right there, I dropped my gaze to the floor inside the dock. My hands were trembling now. I could practically see myself being pushed into Mandena’s most dangerous prison.
I had heard plenty of horror stories about that prison—how men rped men and women rped women. It was once divided into two sections: one for men, the other for women. But I knew that even within those walls, there were no real rules.
The thought alone made me lift my gaze toward Judge Hilar. To my surprise, he looked as if he was feeling the same thing I was feeling—trapped.
He continued to stare at the cold floor, almost as if wishing it would open up and swallow him whole.
“I have evidence to support my accusation against the offender, Your Honor!” Attorney David’s voice rang suddenly, breaking the heavy silence.
“Go ahead, Attorney David,” Judge Lisa said, gesturing with her hand.
At that moment, my heartbeat pounded so fiercely it echoed in my ears.
It was over. Attorney David was about to ensure I rotted in jail.
I watched as he approached the bench and raised something in the air.
I recognized the flash drive immediately. It was the same one he had presented to Judge Hilar during the last hearing. My stomach twisted. I already knew what was in it—the same gory video.
Would Judge Lisa watch that horrifying footage and not pass a harsh sentence on me immediately? A judge who didn’t know me from Adam? Someone who was neutral in her judgments? Someone who was also a woman?!
Would a woman see her fellow woman being brutally taken advantage of and not be moved to deliver the harshest punishment possible?
The moment Attorney David handed the flash drive to the bailiff, and the bailiff went to play the video, the courtroom fell into a dreadful silence.
I saw the way every single person in that room contorted their faces in horror—including Judge Lisa.
Then, as if on cue, all eyes turned toward me.
They looked at me as though I were a monster.
“How could someone be this wicked?” I heard a whisper from among the audience in the courtroom.
“He actually rped that innocent woman who had come into the church. All for what?” another voice murmured.
I felt a sudden, sharp gaze on me and turned toward the crowd. Rebecca was still smirking. But this time, she wasn’t alone—Natasha was smirking alongside her.
Neither of them looked directly at me. They didn’t need to.
They did it as if they knew I was doomed and there was no way out.
I could practically see my heart pounding out of my chest.
“This is all I have to say, Your Honor,” Attorney David declared, his voice firm.
He didn’t need to say anything more. The video had spoken for him.
“Is there anything more you want to say, Attorney Langford?” Judge Lisa turned her sharp gaze toward him.
He sat in his seat, his expression utterly defeated. “No, Your Honor,” he said, his voice low and lifeless.
“Thank you, both of you, for your notable arguments,” Judge Lisa continued. “I have heard this case, and here is my judgment.”
She paused for a moment, as if deliberately allowing the tension to sink in.
My heart pounded violently as I watched her flip through the pages of the document before her.
Then, after a few seconds, she turned to Judge Hilar and spoke.
“Judge Hilar. Judge of the Supreme Court of Mandena. I have read about you ever since your case was brought to this court. You were once a judge filled with integrity. Over a thousand cases were brought before your court, and you judged all of them fairly… all except this one.”
She paused again, flipping through another page before continuing.
“Why would you allow your emotions to ruin the reputation you have built since the beginning of your career?”
She let the question hang in the air before delivering the fatal blow.
“Because you tarnished your own image to protect the accused—your long-lost son—here is my judgment.”
Judge Hilar’s POV
My hands shook terribly. My legs trembled beneath me. I had never been in this position before.
And yet, here I was.
Judge Lisa turned to me, her eyes unyielding. She reminded me of the integrity I had upheld before Micah’s case.
I remembered how I had always taken swift action to fight for those unjustly victimized by criminals. I remembered how I had severely punished criminals and made them pay.
I was once the voice of the people. My name had been sung in praises. But now…
Because my own son was the one standing trial, I had swayed from the truth.
A tear slipped down my face.
I should have sentenced Micah the way he deserved. Instead, my emotions had blinded me, leading me to give him a mere community service sentence—a punishment that would only enable him to harm another woman someday. And I knew this, deep down.
But I had been too weak to accept the truth.
“Judge Hilar, Judge of the Supreme Court of Mandena,” Judge Lisa’s voice rang out, firm and final. “You are hereby sentenced to three years of imprisonment for allowing a notorious rpist to escape rightful judgment. You will serve your time with hard labor. I hope you will reflect and become a better person before your sentence is complete.”
Micah’s POV
The moment I heard the harsh judgment passed on Judge Hilar, my stomach dropped.
If this was his punishment, then mine would be far worse.
From where I stood in the dock, I saw Judge Hilar collapse to the floor, sobbing like a child.
“Order!” the bailiff banged the gavel, but Judge Hilar’s cries only grew louder.
Judge Lisa’s expression hardened. “If you do not silence yourself, Judge Hilar, I will be forced to sentence you to ten years with hard labor. Now, shut your mouth!”
Instantly, Judge Hilar fell silent, though he continued to cry noiselessly.
And then, Judge Lisa turned to me.
“I read your file all through the night,” she said coldly. “I did not welcome sleep to my eyes nor slumber to my eyelids. And I wonder… how do people like you roam the streets of Mandena freely?”
She paused, and my heart froze even more. Then, she continued.
“You blame your condition on sadomasochism and cling to it as an excuse to rpe women. Not only that, you are a thief who lied to Ms. Rebecca Harrington and defrauded her of her hard-earned money. You are filth in society, and filth like you should be swept away—never to return.”
Her next words sealed my fate.
“This is my judgment.”
A heavy silence filled the courtroom. The only sound was my own terrified heartbeat.
“For the victims in the video, for the victims at Ms. Rebecca Harrington’s house, and for the five women presented in the last hearing—because you refuse to change and see this as a way of life—I sentence you to life imprisonment with hard labor. You are never to be released. You will remain in jail until you take your last breath.”
“Arise!” she commanded.
The bailiff echoed, “Arise!”
And at that moment, I knew—this was the end.