The lawyer's eyebrows knitted together.

"You can't just say 'no' and expect us to believe you. This proof is the real deal!"

Harriet was wiping away tears.

"It was me... I recorded that while he was on top of me. I was fighting as hard as I could... Every word, every scream is true! How could you lie like that?!"

She was so upset that she could barely speak, her shoulders shaking.

I laughed, but there was no warmth in it.

"Lots of people sound the same. Why are you so sure it's my dad?"

The lawyer gave me a look and snorted. "If you think that's not enough, I've got something else."

He looked down and clicked on his computer.

A moment later, the big screen in the courtroom turned on.

A video started playing.

It was from the surveillance camera in my living room, showing footage from a night I was not home.

The lights were dim, and a man walked in.

He went straight for Harriet.

"You must be Harriet. Oh, he was right… You are pretty."

As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed her wrist.

The bottle Harriet was holding clattered to the floor as she struggled weakly, her voice filled with fear.

"What are you doing? Let go! Somebody, help!"

The man quickly overpowered her, and with a few rough pulls, he lifted her by the waist and marched toward the bedroom.

The door slammed shut with a loud bang.

Right after, soft cries and the sound of a struggle leaked through the door gap, eerily similar to the recording played earlier.

The video ended there.

The plaintiff's lawyer faced everyone, his voice filled with grief.

"This is a surveillance video taken from the defendant's home camera!

"Experts have investigated. The man in the video, his build and clothes, all match Jethro Roberts perfectly!"

Then, he looked at me. "Sir, can you still say this isn't Jethro Roberts?"

Whispers spread through the courtroom:

"The evidence is undeniable! The video shows it all!"

"He was defiant earlier, but let's see what he has to say now!"

Some even stood up, shouting with passion.

"There's nothing to talk about with such a heartless accomplice! Judge, please sentence them! Make them pay for their crimes in jail!"

Feeling the heat of countless scornful and angry stares, I stood up slowly, my eyes fixed on Harriet.

"You insist it was my father. So, tell me, had you met Jethro Roberts before this?"

Harriet, holding her belly, got to her feet.

"I've been working at your house for three months. How could I not have met your dad?

"Besides, he opened your house door like it was nothing, and the man looked just like him. If it wasn't your dad, who else could it be?"

The crowd started hurling insults at me too.

"All the evidence is right there, yet you still deny it!"

"You're heartless! Helping a criminal hurt an innocent girl? You're the lowest of the low!"

"Just look at him. You can tell he's bad news, just like his dad!"

The courtroom was filled with mean words that hurt my ears. I took a deep breath and looked around at everyone.

"I already told you. My dad never forced himself on her!"

I turned to the judge.

"Their lawyer is just guessing who it was by what they looked like and what they wore. That's not fair!

"It makes total sense to think that the man in the security video isn't my dad!"

Their lawyer laughed meanly. "You just won't quit, will you?"

Then, he pulled out a paper from his folder.

He projected the paper onto a big screen.

He said in a loud voice, "This is the DNA test report comparing the victim's baby and Jethro Roberts!

"The report says the baby and Jethro Roberts are related by blood."

That report hit us like a bolt of lightning.

It was harder to argue with than the video. The DNA report seemed like solid proof.

Harriet slowly got to her feet, her eyes all red.

"With all this proof, what can you say now?!"

I pointed to the report, not backing down.

"That report's a fake. There's no way Harriet could get my dad's DNA."

Harriet jumped up, her eyes wet with tears.

"How dare you! When will you stop making up stories?!

"They tested a strand of hair I yanked from Jethro Roberts' head when he attacked me!"

Her mom cried to the judge, "Your Honor, it's all true! That's the child of that awful man!

"My daughter is innocent! They've wrecked her life, and they should pay for it by staying in jail for good!"

The whole courtroom got super loud, and everyone watching got really mad.

"The DNA even matches. How can these terrible people still deny it? They need to be seriously punished!"

"Is this guy out of his mind? Even with rock-solid proof, he's still talking back. Just like his dad, he's a total lost cause and a bad guy!"

"I bet he's got issues too. He probably gets a kick out of defending a criminal!"

When the anger in the room hit its peak, I did not admit to anything or give in. Instead, I started laughing out loud.

That laugh, in the quiet courtroom, was extra harsh to listen to.

Everyone stared at me, shocked, like they were looking at someone who had lost their mind.

The lawyer for the other side was quick to speak up, saying loudly, "The defendant isn't sorry at all, and he's even laughing! I implore the judge to take this seriously!"

Harriet's mom was super mad, pointing right at me. "You monster! Just like your dad, you're not even human! You and your dad should both go straight to hell!"

People in the courtroom started yelling, throwing the meanest words they could at me.

I ignored all the yelling, and when the judge nodded, I stood up slowly.

"I deny everything they're accusing me of!

"My dad would never hurt Harriet, and he definitely didn't impregnate her."

When I said that, the whole place went wild.

Harriet pointed at me, her words full of tears as she held her baby bump. "The baby I'm carrying is the terrible result of what Jethro Roberts did!

"How long are you going to keep making excuses?!"

Harriet's mom was beside herself, crying and making a scene. "These two devils still won't admit what they did! They've ruined my daughter's life. They deserve the death penalty!"

Right after she said that, everyone watching started cursing out me and my dad.

"The old one's hiding somewhere, and the young one's making a scene. Like father, like son! Just give them both the death penalty!"

"This guy's in on it too! He was the one setting things up. He has a hole where his heart should be!"

"They're monsters, not humans! They should be shamed, and their whole family wiped out!"

With everyone throwing insults, I stood up slowly, my eyes fixed on Harriet.

"You're saying Jethro Roberts did something bad to you, but that just can't be true. It's impossible."

Harriet shot up to her feet, her hand on her growing belly, looking as mad as anyone could be.

"My belly's getting bigger, yet you're still trying to play make-believe?!"

I did not say a word. I just shot a quick glance at the lawyer who was rushing over.

He nodded, pulled out a paper from his folder, and handed it to me.

I turned to the judge.

"May I please present the first piece of evidence?"

The judge gave me the go-ahead, and I held up the paper for all to see.

Everyone in the room took a sharp breath when they saw what it was.