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Equus	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2855 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, it belongs to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I do own the equines though, please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.

Chapter List
- 66
- 67
- 68
“Equus”

Chapter 67

Heero's venomous cry caught everyone off guard. Fortunately for Stefan, Heero wasn't able to get to him.

Rage burned through every nerve in Heero's body, blinding him to where he was and who was surrounding him. Someone had tried to harm one of his beloved horses and for that there would be retribution. All he wanted to do was lay that bastard out cold. After screaming out his anger at the man, Heero began to lunge forward, desperate to get over the small railing that separated him from the main floor of the court room.

Seeing the drama about to unfold, Duo did his best to try and grab hold of Heero. “Heero. No!” he hissed, his fingers just brushing the bottom of Heero's jacket.

“Order! Order!” Harris yelled and banged his gavel down. The rest of the court room erupted into a cacophony of noise.

Sergeant Williams and Constable Henry acted on instinct. Hearing the outraged yell from Heero, the pair immediately jumped to their feet and spun around, blocking the irate rider's way. Knowing how volatile things could get after his experience with the pair on Yuy's property when Graves had removed his horse, Williams was not about to have a repeat. As much as he felt Yuy was more than entitled to flatten the bastard, it wouldn't do to have it happen in a packed court room in front of a judge and jury no less.

“ORDER!” Harris tried again.

“Mr. Yuy,” Williams snapped and grabbed Heero's arm, Henry latching onto the other one. “Mr. Yuy, calm down and sit down.”

Heero blinked as the words hit his ears; then he snarled, “That bastard tried to poison my horse.”

“Heero, now is not the time or the place. Let the authorities deal with him,” Duo soothed. “Don't lower yourself to his level, you're better than that.”

It was Duo's soft words that managed to penetrate the rage in Heero's mind. Suddenly realizing where he was, Heero shook his head and let his shoulders slump. “I'm sorry,” he said in apology to the police officers and his lover.

“It's quite alright, Mr. Yuy. Could you please sit down?” Williams requested.

Rubbing a hand over his face, Heero nodded and sat himself back in his seat. Seeing the man wasn't about to make any further trouble, Williams and Henry retook their own seats.

“ORDER!” Harris yelled again and slammed the gavel down so hard that Morris felt sure the judge's bench would have a major dent in it.

The court fell silent.

Harris' eyes swept the room before stopping on Morris. He glanced behind the DA to Heero and back to the DA before speaking. “Mr. Morris, I suggest you control your witness. Any further outbursts like that and I will have him forcibly removed and charged with contempt of court.”

“Yes, your honor. I apologize, your honor. It won't happen again.”

In the witness stand, Stefan, having recovered from his initial shock that Yuy was coming for him and about to flatten him, gave a soft snicker. Unfortunately for him, the judge heard the snicker and turned his cold gaze to him.

“I fail to see what is so funny, Mr. Graves. These are serious charges you're facing and not a laughing matter,” he sternly rebuked.

Stefan lowered his head. “I apologize,” he said quietly.

“Now, I suggest we resume,” Harris stated and with a bang of his gavel, indicated to Bremner he was ready to continue.

Bremner had quickly recovered from his shock and approached his client. “Mr. Graves, if you could continue with your relation of the events preceding and also on the evening of the twelfth?”

Clearing his throat, Stefan began once more. “I brought home some dried Pattersons Curse which would make the horse very sick, but not kill it. On the evening of the twelfth, I waited until it was getting dark, then got in my car and drove to the Yuy property. I parked my car out on the road verge a little way down the road so it wouldn't be seen. I took the bag with the Pattersons Curse in it and climbed through the fence on the property next door to Yuy's. There wasn't a lot of moonlight that evening so it was easy to slip through the paddock next door and into the yard area. No one was around so I went into the stables and headed for the feed room. I knew Yuy would have the feeds made up for the horses' breakfasts; that's one thing you can count on, he always sticks to a routine, he's an anal retentive bastard like that.”

“Objection! Mr. Yuy's habits regarding his stable routine are not on trial here,” Morris snapped.

“Sustained. The witness will kindly refrain from making assumptions and stick to the facts,” Harris replied.

Bremner gave his client a stern look. “Please continue with the relation of the events and keep the personal assumptions to yourself.”

Stefan didn't look at all happy but continued with his tale. “I went into the feed shed and spotted the buckets all lined up. Yuy has each horses' name written on their respective buckets so all I had to do was find the one with Shinigami's name on it and put the plant into it.”

“Shinigami?” Bremner questioned.

“Yeah, that's the ridiculous name Yuy gave his horse.”

“Objection!”

“Sustained. Bremner, this is your second warning. Your client is to keep his personal opinions to himself.”

“Yes, your honor.” Bremner turned back to his client who was not at all happy. “What happened next?”

“It was too dark inside the feed room to read the names on the buckets and I didn't want to turn the lights on as that would alert anyone around that there was someone inside the stables and completely defeat the purpose. I had a box of matches with me so I lit a couple to try and read the names on the buckets. I did find the right bucket and put the plant into it. I mixed it in so no one would be able to tell it was there. Then I left.”

“What happened to the matches?”

“I put the box back in my pocket and took them with me.”

“What about the ones you used to be able to see?”

“One burnt down to the end, and burnt my fingers too. They went out so I tossed them to the side.”

“Mr. Graves. Did you intend to start that fire at the Yuy stables?”

“No, I did not.”

“When did you first become aware of the fire that had destroyed Mr. Yuy's stables?”

“The first I knew about it was when I read a piece in the local paper on it.”

“When you read the article, did you think it related to you in any way and your activities?”

“No, I didn't. The thought that it could be related to my being on the property never entered my head.”

“So you are saying that this fire was nothing more than an unfortunate accident then?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you. No further questions at this point, your honor.”

Duo sat with the anger he felt building inside of him. He couldn't believe the calm demeanor of the guy that had tried to poison an innocent animal. Duo was well aware of the effects Pattersons Curse would have on a horse, he'd treated a couple during his time as a vet and it wasn't an easy poison to treat. The plant generally caused liver damage and depending on the amount of the plant ingested, death was a high possibility.

Sitting beside his partner, Heero was a quivering mass of rage. It was taking every ounce of willpower he had to stop himself from charging across the court room and ripping Stefan limb from limb. As much as he wanted to do it, he knew in his heart that he couldn't. It wouldn't be fair to Duo or his horses if he were to lose his temper now. With this extra information that had been brought to light, Heero's mind switched direction and began to wonder what Quatre and the R.S.P.C.A. would do now in relation to the charges they were yet to prosecute for. He made a mental note to speak to Quatre as soon as he could and find out if anything had changed at all in that respect.

Harris banged his gavel again, drawing everyone from their respective thoughts. “Mr. Morris?”

“Thank you, your honor. I do have questions for the accused.” Morris stood and approached the witness stand. Stefan swallowed at the look on Morris' face.

“Mr. Graves, you said that you acquired some plant material called Pattersons Curse, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Your intent was to place this poison into the feed of one of Mr. Yuy's top showjumpers, correct?”

“Ah, yes.” Stefan was clearly puzzled and also wary. He had no clue what the DA was up to.

“Mr. Graves, how long have you been involved with horses?”

“Objection! The length of time my client has been involved with horses is of no relevance,” Bremner snipped.

“I beg to differ,” Morris replied. “It has quite a lot to do with this case as will become clear in a moment if I am allowed to continue?” Morris stated in a calm tone.

“Overruled. Morris, you'd better get to the point,” Harris stated.

“Yes, your honor. Mr. Graves, how long have you been involved with horses?”

“Umm..” Stefan thought deeply for a moment. “I've been involved with horses for about fifteen years.”

“Would you say you had a descent knowledge of equines, their requirements, needs and such?”

“I'd like to think so. You don't spend that amount of time with horses and not learn something,” Stefan replied with a touch of sarcasm.

Ignoring the sarcasm, Morris pressed onwards. “So, after fifteen years you have a fairly good knowledge. Could you tell me then, why a person as experienced as yourself would have a naked flame in an area that contains such volatile and combustible material?”

“Uh.” Stefan clearly didn't understand the question.

“Surely if you had such knowledge you would know that to have a flame in an area that contains dried feed substances, things such as hay, chaff and the like that will burn very easily, is not a good idea.”

“Well, no...”

“And yet you admit that you lit not just one, but two matches in the feed room and then carelessly tossed them to the side.”

“I was trying to see-”

“Mr. Graves, you admit that you lit those matches. Also by your own admission you say that you know enough about horses to understand that you do not have flames around horses or their stables and such because of the risks involved. After admitting to all of that, now you're trying to tell us that you didn't intend to start that fire?” Morris snorted.

“I didn't...”

“Mr. Graves, you went to Mr. Yuy's stables on the night of the twelfth with the intent of poisoning Mr. Yuy's horse as a means of revenge against him and his partner Doctor Maxwell as they had filed charges against you for assault. When you got there you decided to make sure that Mr. Yuy would suffer and decided that poisoning wasn't enough...”

“No.”

“Objection!”

“So you decided to set fire to the stables as well-”

“NO!”

“OBJECTION! Badgering the witness!” Bremner yelled.

Morris bulled on. “You fully intended for all of those horses to die a painful death, you wanted to punish Mr. Yuy by killing innocent animals, by destroying a man's livelihood and to hell with the consequences...”

“NO!”

“Mr. Graves, you planned all this out and deliberately set fire to those stables. You knew what you were doing; the video and DNA evidence does not lie. You're guilty.”

“NO!” Stefan broke down, cradling his head in his hands and shaking it.

“OBJECTION!” Bremner tried again.

“Order!” Harris cried as the volume of chatter began to build in the court room. “Order!” The noise began to recede as Harris banged his gavel hard several times. “Objection sustained. Morris, you will refrain from badgering the witness.”

“Yes, your honor.” Morris didn't look at all repentant. With a smirk in Bremner's direction he straightened his face and turned his attention back to the judge. “No further questions, your honor,” he said in a smug voice and walked back to his desk where a smiling group of police officers awaited.

Behind the officers Duo and Heero were doing their best to contain their excitement. Both were very impressed with Morris' questioning. Stefan hadn't stood a chance. With all the evidence stacked against him and Morris' grilling at the end, pretty much sealed the man's fate. But neither man was going to break out the champagne just yet. There was still the jury to consider. They would need to retire to make their decision once all was said and done inside the court room.

“Bremner, do you wish to question the witness again?”

“Just two questions, your honor.”

“Proceed.”

“Mr. Graves. You said earlier that you lit the matches so you could see which feed bucket to put the poison in, correct?”

“Yes,” Stefan whispered.

“Your intention never was to set those stables on fire?”

“No, I didn't intend to set the stables on fire.”

“No further questions, your honor.”

Harris shuffled the papers on his desk before addressing the court. “The witness may stand down.”

Stefan got up and left the witness stand, returning to sit beside a grim looking Bremner.

“Does the defense have any further witnesses?”

“No, your honor.”

“Does the prosecution have any further witnesses?”

“No, your honor,” replied Morris.

“I will take closing statements then. Morris, you may address the court first.”

“Thank you, your honor.” Morris stood and smoothed down his jacket before approaching the jury.

“Your honor, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, today you have been provided with evidence that clearly supports the fact that this man - “ Morris indicated towards Stefan, “this man trespassed on another person's property, despite a restraining order which forbade him to come within five hundred meters of Mr. Yuy, Doctor Maxwell or their property. He broke that restraining order, which he has already pleaded guilty to doing, with the intent to poison one of Mr. Yuy's top showjumpers. If that wasn't enough, he also deliberately set fire to the stable block. If it had not been for the quick thinking and dedication of a small group of people, all eight horses, four of which belonged to clients of Mr. Yuy, would have perished in that fire. And for what? Revenge. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you all have copies of the evidence, you have witnessed the security recording of the night of the fire and I urge you all to think deeply when making your decision. If this man can try to poison an innocent animal, set fire to stables with the intent of destroying a person's livelihood and take the lives of horses just because he feels he was wrongly accused of a different crime, then what more could he be capable of? I trust you will all do the right thing and see this man for what he really is and pass the right judgment on him. Thank you.” Morris walked back to his seat, the court was that quiet you could have heard a pin drop.

Duo could hardly contain the grin and nudged Heero lightly with his elbow. He mouthed the words 'He's going down' to Heero.

Heero was in a similar state to Duo. Morris had really impressed him with his dedication to the case and the manner in which he'd conducted the prosecution. For the first time in a long time, Heero began to feel hope that justice would be served.

“Mr. Bremner?” Harris called.

“Thank you, your honor.” Bremner stood up and approached the jury. “Your honor, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my client has admitted he was in the wrong for breaking the restraining order and he accepts that there will be consequences for that. The decision to place Pattersons Curse into the feed of one of Mr. Yuy's horses was a decision made under extreme stress. My client has been trying to deal with an approaching re-trial for a crime he was found not guilty of. Can you imagine how hard that is? To know you have been found not guilty of a crime and then to suddenly be told 'sorry, we think you are guilty now so we're going to have a re-trial', is quite a lot to bear. Given the strain of the approaching trial, my client sought some solace in drinking and it was whilst under the influence of alcohol that he made the unfortunate decision to attain some form of revenge against those he saw as his persecutors. He chose to place a natural, toxic plant matter into the feed of one of Mr. Yuy's horses, something he deeply regrets now. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my client knows that what he did was wrong, but never did the thought of setting fire to the stables cross his mind. Mr. Graves did not, nor did he ever intend to set fire to those stables. The fact that the stables did catch on fire was nothing more than an unfortunate, tragic accident of which my client had no control over. Mr. Graves accepts he has committed a great misdemeanor against Mr. Yuy and knows there will be consequences for his actions, but as far as Arson goes, as I said before, my client did not start that fire; it was a tragic accident. I trust the jury will see their way clear to do the right thing. Thank you.” Bremner walked back to his table and sat down, a small murmur traveling through the court room at the conclusion of his speech.

Both Heero and Duo had to admire the lawyer's tenacity, he'd done his best by his client and although there was still a small tendril of fear lodged in each man's gut that Stefan would get away with it, they could only hope that the evidence against him combined with Morris' hard work would pay off.

“Thank you, gentlemen. The jury will now retire to deliberate and once they are all in agreement, return to the court with their verdict.” Harris banged his gavel down and stood.

“All rise.”

The judge left for his chambers, the jury exiting as soon as the judge had departed leaving the lawyers and court to themselves. Once the 'officials' had left, Heero found himself being approached by a couple of journalists.

“Mr. Yuy, could we have a word?”

“Mr. Yuy, what do you think of the trial so far? Do you think Mr. Graves will be found guilty? Will there be any retribution?”

Fortunately for Heero, Morris stood up and faced the journalists. “Excuse me,” he began in a quiet but firm tone. “Mr. Yuy is not free to discuss this case with the press at this point as the case is still under deliberation. If you persist in trying to get any information from Mr. Yuy you will find yourselves charged with contempt of court. Do I make myself clear?”

The journalists immediately backed off. They were quite prepared to wait and get their interview later.

“Thanks,” Heero said with a grateful smile.

“No problem. Vultures, all of them,” Morris muttered. “They know they aren't supposed to approach anyone involved in the case until it's finished and the verdict has been handed down.”

“They won't be deterred for long,” Duo muttered. “Once the jury returns with their verdict, regardless of what it is, they will be swarming once again.” Duo looked up as something caught his eye. “Ah, talk about swarming, here comes Quatre and his lawyer.”

Quatre gave both men a warm smile as he paused in front of them both. “Heero, Duo, this is Mr. Inverness, the R.S.P.C.A's lawyer. Mr. Inverness, this is Heero Yuy and Doctor Maxwell,” Quatre introduced.

Mr. Inverness shook both offered hands, keeping the handshake light as both men still sported light bandages. “Pleasure to meet you both.”

“Likewise,” Duo greeted.

“Thank you for taking on this case on behalf on myself and Doctor Maxwell,” Heero said.

“No thanks needed, I'm more than happy to see these kinds of people put where they belong,” the lawyer replied.

Heero turned to the Inspector. “Quatre, I know this case you have against Stefan is regarding the fire and his attempts to...” Heero swallowed the lump in his throat. “His attempts to harm the horses, but given this new confession that he was planning on poisoning Shini, does that change anything?”

“A very good question, Heero. Actually, it won't change a great deal. Depending on what verdict the jury returns will influence what final charges we go with against him.”

Heero noted the use of the word 'charges' – plural.

“If he is found guilty of Arson we will continue to proceed with the Aggravated Cruelty charge against him on that account. The fact that he openly admitted to attempting to poison Shinigami is also a case of Aggravated Cruelty and he will be charged with that for the poisoning attempt. If he's found not guilty of Arson, we will still prosecute on the poisoning charge under Aggravated Cruelty and the lesser charge of Animal Cruelty. Either way he will be charged and there is no way he can get out of it.”

Heero heaved a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness for that. Thank you, Quatre.”

“Don't thank me just yet,” Quatre smiled before turning his attention to Duo. “Duo? I know this is a bit short notice, but have you ever dealt with a case of Pattersons Curse poisoning in horses?”

“Yes, I have, Quatre, a couple to be exact; why?”

“Once the jury returns and gives their verdict and sentence is passed, it will be the R.S.P.C.A's turn to prosecute. If you don't mind, would we be able to call upon you as a expert witness to the effects Pattersons Curse has on horses? It would help the case a great deal to have that expert opinion.”

“Quatre, I'd be more than happy to assist in that capacity, but, will they accept my testimony as I am involved with the horses?”

“It's quite acceptable for you to give evidence, Doctor Maxwell. You do not have a monetary interest in the case so there is nothing legally stopping you from being our expert witness. If you prefer not to I can arrange for another vet, one of our own to come in, but that could take a little time and delay the case. Had we known about this attempt to poison, we would have already made arrangements for one of our own vets to attend. As I understand it, you are a consulting vet from time to time for the R.S.P.C.A. and as such you are on their register so there's nothing to stop you,” Inverness replied on Quatre's behalf.

“In that case, count me in. I'd love to see that bastard rot in hell for what he tried to do, regardless of what the jury comes back with,” Duo replied with a firmness in his voice.

“Thank you, Doctor Maxwell. I will call for you when necessary.” Mr. Inverness gave a small nod of his head and returned to his seat from earlier. Quatre added his thanks before joining the lawyer to revise their case against Stefan.

* * *

It was just over an hour later when the jury let the bailiff know they had reached a decision. Neither Heero or Duo had left the court room, not wanting to miss out on the result of the case. They spent their time chatting with Morris, Anderson and the other two officers. Both guys expressed their sincere thanks to Morris for all he'd done with the case; and repeated those sentiments to Anderson for his unwavering belief that there had to be proof somewhere. Without the man's thoroughness the match stub and resulting DNA may never have been found – and that could mean the difference between a guilty or not guilty verdict.

The jury filed back in, all faces completely neutral so no one could even hazard a guess at the pending outcome. Bremner appeared along with Stefan and the officer in charge of him. Most of the spectators had also returned, along with the journalists, much to Heero's dismay.

“All rise,” came the bailiff's monotone as Judge Harris returned to take his seat. Sitting down, he reached for his gavel and gave one, loud rap with it.

“This court is now in session.” Harris turned to the jury, a middle aged gentleman standing up and facing the judge. “Has the jury reached a decision?”

“We have, your honor.” The bailiff collected a piece of paper from the jury foreman and handed it over to Harris who read it and placed it on his bench.

“Would you announce to the court the jury's decision, please?”

“Your honor, in the case of Willful Damage, we the jury find the defendant, Stefan Graves, guilty as charged.”

There was a murmur ripple through those in the court room, but before Harris could call for order, the crowd fell silent. “Continue,” Harris requested.

“Your honor, in the case of Arson, we the jury find the defendant, Stefan Graves, guilty as charged.”

This time the crowd erupted into a chorus of noise. Morris, Anderson, Williams and Henry all looked overjoyed with the result, further down, Quatre did his best to hold the cheer. Beside him, Inverness looked calm but pleased – no doubt it would make their case so much easier to get a conviction. Heero sat in stunned silence, Duo unable to believe what he'd just heard either. Whilst they had both known there was a very good chance Stefan would be found guilty, to have those words actually spoken sent a wave of relief over both men.

Over in his seat, Stefan seemed to crumple in on himself, sagging in his chair with his eyes downcast, he looked a broken man. Beside him, Bremner wore a look of defeat. He'd done his best to defend the man, but the evidence against him was too strong.

“Guilty,” Heero whispered to himself. “Guilty. They found him guilty.” He turned to an equally shocked Duo and barely resisted enfolding his lover in his arms and kissing him senseless. “Guilty, Duo. He's been found guilty!” Beside him, Duo nodded as slowly but surely his mouth curved up into the biggest grin Heero had ever seen.

Hearing those words from the jury foreman's mouth, followed by Heero's confirmation and Duo could feel the tension roll off and away from him, his lips began to curl into a grin. Not caring one iota who was there to see, Duo reached out and gave his lover a solid hug, the embrace returned seconds later by Heero. They held each other as the result continued to sink in. The banging of the judge's gavel had them breaking apart.

“Order!” Harris glared out at the crowd who immediately fell silent. “Thank you,” he said to the foreman of the jury who nodded in reply and resumed his seat. Turning back to the front of the court, Harris spoke again. “Will the accused please stand.”

Stefan managed to get himself to his feet, shaking slightly with the shock of the outcome.

“Mr. Graves, you have pleaded guilty to Breaking a Restraining Order, Trespass and Breaking and Entering. The jury has found you guilty of Willful Damage and Arson. In the case of the first three charges, I sentence you to a jail term of five years. In the case of Arson and Willful Damage, I sentence you to twelve years. You are also to pay all court costs and reimburse Mr. Yuy for any and all expenses relating to the fire.” Harris slammed the gavel down hard. “This case is now closed.”

~ * ~

tbc...
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Equus