Chapter Four - Guilty

The doors of the Sinclair mansion burst open, revealing a distressed Diana.

"Welcome, Darling, you’re home early." Annette said it with a smile on her face.

“Morher, where’s Jason?” she asked, completely disregarding her mother’s greeting.

The smile completely faded from her mother's face when she heard his name: “How should I know? He’s probably off somewhere being useless.”

Diana gave Annette a look that genuinely scared her. "More, I'm not joking around, and I don’t have time for your nonsense. Have you seen him?” She gritted through her teeth.

“Well now that you mention it. I haven’t seen him today, but it’s not like I keep tabs on the damn boy,” her mother drew closer to her. "But I'm glad you’re here. Your brothers are coming home soon!”

"Mother, I need to know where Jason is!” Diana finally lost it and screamed at her mother.

“What’s going on in here?” Stephen asked as he walked into the living room.

“It seems like our good-for-nothing don-in-law has gone missing,” Annette said.

“What do you mean he’s gone missing?” Stephen feigned curiosity,

"Well, our daughter here has basically been barking at me and asking me where he is as though I'm his keeper!”

Diana rolled her eyes at her mother and looked to her father, tears welling up in her eyes. "Father, can we both discuss this in private?”

“Of course we can, dear,” he said.

They made their way to Stephen’s study and closed the door.

“So what makes you think your husband has gone missing?”

Diana shows her father the text message that was sent to her from Jason’s phone.

Her father signed and put on a face of concern: "Honey, to me, it seems he doesn’t want to be found, but I promise you I will do everything in my power to find him. I’ll even put the private investigator on the case if you want me to.”

“Thank you so much, father,” Diana hugged her father.

She couldn’t believe that Jason would actually leave. She thought his love for her could withstand any humiliation that came from her family.

There was also something off about his disappearance from her that didn’t sit right.

But there was another thing Diana felt—something she didn’t even want to admit. Yes, she loved her husband, but she couldn’t help but feel slightly relieved at the idea of him being gone.

It was a bittersweet feeling. On the one hand, her husband, whom she loved, had just up and left in a very suspicious way.

But on the other hand, his absence would mean that for the first time in years, her family would stop with the snide remarks, and she wouldn’t have to feel so ashamed every time they went out together.

She wouldn’t have to feel like a failure every time she didn’t defend her husband when her family was mocking him.

She released herself from the embrace and started to make her way out of her father’s study.

“Where are you going, my dear?”

“I need to find out the truth about why he did this.”

***

“Just plead guilty, and your sentence would be reduced,” John Anderson, Jason’s state-appointed attorney, said.

It was minutes before Jason’s trial. His hands were clammy, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

“But I'm telling you I didn’t do it." tears welled in Jason’s eyes, and his voice cracked, “I was framed. Set up by my father-in-law”

John combed his fingers through his hair and sighed, "Listen, kid, I'm going to be Frank with you. No one is going to believe your story.

John continued, “Stephen Sonclair is a very powerful man, and he basically controls this state. Plus, you confessed. Not to mention there’s actual evidence against you.”

“That’s because we had a deal! He said the charges would be dropped.

“I don’t know what kind of deal you had, but he obviously had other plans, and to be honest, you’re fucked. The best you can do for yourself now is to take a guilty plea for a reduced sentence.”

Jason considered everything John said, but his mind was already set. He wasn’t going to go down without a fight.

"I'm not guilty."

"Fine, it’s your funeral. Let’s go”

The proceedings of the trial began, and Jason pleaded not guilty.

The evidence was presented, and everything implicated him.

He felt like slapping himself as it was called out. John was right. He was totally fucked.

Even if Stephen didn’t have enough power to pay off the judge, the evidence implicates him, and he confessed to the crime on his own.

The trial finally ended after what felt like a lifetime, and it was time for Jason to rise for his sentencing. His legs shook so much as he stood that he thought they would collapse beneath him.

“Based on the evidence presented, the court finds the defendant guilty of fraud and embezzlement. The court hereby sentences the defendant to five years of imprisonment with bail set at ten million dollars.”

Jason stood there, frozen in place. He opened his mouth to object, to cry, to say anything, but he couldn’t utter a word.

He looked over to John, and he saw him mouth ‘sorry’' with a sombre expression on his face.

“Stephen had won. He has finally gotten rid of the shameful stain on his perfect daughter,” he thought.

“I’m an idiot; I’m actually a big fucking idiot,” he whispered to himself. “He’s probably already arranged for me to be killed in my damn cell.”

As the officers cuffed him and led him out of court, he wanted to scream and cry, but all he could do was laugh.

“I’m such an idiot,” he repeated to himself over and over again, till his laughter turned into tears.

***

Diana was sitting next to Christopher on his couch, her phone in hand, as she showed him the text that was sent to her from Jason’s phone.

Christopher did everything to stop himself from smiling when he read the text. Was his brother really out of his way for good? He thought to himself

All these years of flirting with Diana and trying to make Jason look bad in front of her. Now he had just made things so much easier for him.

Christopher put a comforting hand on Diana’s shoulder and began to speak. "Honestly, Di, to me, it seems like he’s done and he doesn’t want to come back.”

“But it’s so unlike him; I know my family has put him through a lot, but he wouldn’t just leave like that." Diana pauses and fixes her gaze on Christopher. "I know you two haven’t always gotten along, but did he ever talk to you about wanting to leave or show any signs?”

"Di, if I'm being honest, he’s spoken about leaving before." Christopher lied straight to her face. He took his hand from her shoulder and combed it through his fair before he continued.

“He’s always felt like he didn’t belong in your family, and the mistreatment only made it worse.”

"Is there another woman?" Diana questioned, and tears threatened to escape from her eyes.

“There might be."

Tears started to fall down her cheeks as soon as the words left Christopher’s lips.

“Can I get a drink? I can’t deal with this soberness," she said in between sobs.

Christopher got a bottle of wine from the fridge, and Diana took a glass. One glass turned into five, and soon Diana was drunk.

“So he just wanted to fuck me one last time last night before he ran off,” she slurred, tears still welling from her eyes.

"Diana, look at me." Christophe cupped her face and turned her chin, making her face him. “You’re the most beautiful and outstanding woman I've ever met. If my brother was stupid enough to leave you, then that has nothing to do with

Christopher was cut short by Diana’s lips crashing on his.

He was shocked at first but quickly kissed her back, pushing his body against hers to deepen the kiss.

“Please make me forget him,” Diana whispered against Christopher’s lips.

It didn’t take long before they were both on Christopher’s bed without any clothes on, and they ended the night with a passionate encounter.