At least it's over

Lily's trial is finally over. Case dropped. No victim.

Go figure.

With General resigning, Desmond took over as the prosecution. Td handled the defense, and a lot of disgruntled folk swarmed into Fook's to see the trial. Can't say I blamed them and can't say I was very happy having to play Judge in this thing, but sometimes you have to do the right thing no matter how frustrating.

Folk were none too happy having to check their weapons at the door, but there was no way I was going to have folks armed when we didn't know how it was going to fall out. Only person I let keep their steel was Imrhien, because she was the only one there I trusted that far.

Lily'd have torpedoed her own defense if her story had actually made sense. The more she said, the more I was convinced she was confusing real memories with one of those gorram old movies Gallagher would watch with her. Not that the prosecution had much of a case. Lots of evidence that something had happened, but nothing to tie Lily to a murder.

Td left folk pondering the point of Lily only being two chrono, which was something I was well aware of already, when we took a recess. I knew how I was going to sentence if they found her guilty. Make her a ward of the court until such a time as we figured she was mature enough to act in her own best interest. A lot of folk loved that crazy not-cat and it was an outcome that would serve Justice and still be within the confines of the law. Was a solution that'd probably heal some hurt feelings out on the Rim between folks who shouldn't be peeing in other folks Sun Flakes.

Except I didn't get that far. After the recess, Gallagher has to show up and declare he's still alive.

The sonofabitch was alive the whole time.

I suppose it's lucky folks were too stunned, and unarmed, to turn weapons on him before he could depart one final time. By that point, I was just too drained to care. With Lily free and the trial over, most of the folk just went their way without so much as saying good bye.

For me? Outside, I was still centered. Still focused. Still calm. Inside? I was relieved and deeply, deeply, resentful of the crap Gallagher had put two colony's worth of people through. But putting us through this because he wanted to leave and wasn't man enough to just come out and tell folks he was leaving.

The trial was over at least. Folk might still be angry with me for doing my job, and it might be weeks before things finally settled out for the folks who call Hale's Moon and Blackburne home. But it'd come. I had to believe that. The other folks hurt by this whole thing? I'd support them however I could. These were good folk. Still had a lot of healing to do though, and there was a lot of fallout that wasn't even directly related to the trial.

Right now? Right now I was wishing more than anything else in the 'Verse that 'Brina was home.