“In my own words?” She repeated; her eyebrow rose slightly in question. The attorney nodded. “Yes. And please do not use the profanity that you shouted at my client in a court of law.” She slouched back into the chair, crossing her arms over her chest slowly. She scowled at him quietly, tapping her index fingers against her upper arms. Her leg bounced up and down as she thought about how to put the story ‘in her own words’, trying to differ it from Pat’s story. She knew how, she just wanted to select the right words. In times of great stress, she had a tendency to speak in both English and French. Gwenivere looked up at the courtroom, which was filled with the lawyers, the spectators, and of course, the wretched press. She began to recall the day, leaning forward to the microphone:
“I'm on the run kill to eat
You're starving now you're dead on your feet
Going all the way nature's beast
Do what I want and do as I please”
“Well, let me think. I was in Detroit on business. The company was there for one of our events. I had a whole bunch of hours to kill so I went to the theatres. There wasn’t much out at the time, so I bought a ticket for Gothika. It was the biggest piece of s--” She started to curse, but a quick look from her attorney made her stop. “Pardonnez-moi. The movie was garbage, Sir. So after an hour and a half of wasted time, I began to state my displeasure when I exited the theatre. I only got half-way through my note-to-self insult before the plaintiff grabbed my shoulder and turned me around--”
She was cut off again by the attorney. “Is it not true that you are, not only a sports entertainer, but in fact a profession wrestler, Miss Jordan?” Her own attorney got to his feet.
“Run fight to breathe it's tough
Now you see me now you don't
Break the walls I'm coming out”
“Objection! My clients profession has nothing to do with this case!”
“In order to divulge the character of the defense and prove why she would have lashed out in such a way against my client.” The plaintiff attorney explained. The judge pondered this before saying that the objection was over-ruled and told Gwenivere to continue. Gwen nodded, returning her gaze to the opposing attorney. “Yes. I am a professional wrestler.” The attorney nodded, nearly satisfied as he turned to face the jury and the audience. “So, for a living, you basically beat your co-workers to a pulp and allow them to do the same to you?”
“Not a prisoner I'm a free man
And my blood is my own now
Don't care where the past was
I know where I'm going ... out”
“Objection! Plaintiff’s questions have no premise to the character of my client.” The plaintiff held up his hands, withdrawing his question. He regarded Gwenivere again, thinking out his next question. “All right… continue with your day. You left off when my client stopped you.” Gwen looked at him skeptically, brow raised a bit. “Actually, he touched me. He grabbed my shoulder and spun me around to face him. He looked pretty angry. He asked me what I was going to say about the movie so I just spat it into his face, calling him a scum-sucker along with some other insults. He called me a…” She glanced at her attorney who nodded and waved his hand. “He called me a bitch before he pulled my hair. So, I retaliated.”
“If you kill me it's self defense
If I kill you then I call it vengeance
Spit in your eye I will defy
You'll be afraid when I call out your name”
“Retaliated? You call what you did to him retaliation? You broke three of his ribs, bruised his left kidney and sprained his neck, Miss Jordan.” He explained, leaning against the railing around the witness box. He looked down at her as she shrugged a bit. “Look at us. Look at how petite I am compared to him. He’s got nearly a foot on me, not to mention a hundred or so pounds. If I hadn’t have continued to beat him, he would have surely killed me easily.” She explained, furrowing her brow slightly.
“Run fight to breathe it's tough
Now you see me now you don't
Break the walls I'm coming out”
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Slowly, Gwenivere had returned to her seat after being examined by both attorneys. The judge had returned and was still sort of deliberating. The bailiff asked that the defendant was to rise. Slowly, Gwenivere and her attorney got to their feet. Gwen’s fingers curled into fists against the table, cracking her knuckles slightly. She chewed on her bottom lip, watching the judge apprehensively. The judge lifted her head, regarding Gwenivere directly though speaking to the entire courtroom. “We’ve been here for nearly six hours, now. And we’ve only buried ourselves deeper. Gwenivere Jordan: I find you… not guilty. You were in fact fighting in self-defence. Speaking as a woman smaller than you, I know how important it is to gain the upper-hand despite the size of your opponent. Case dismissed.”
“Not a prisoner I'm a free man
And my blood is my own now
Don't care where the past was
I know where I'm going ... out”
Gwenivere cheered, embracing her attorney tightly. A few angry and disheartened sighs passed through the crowd. One person at the back of the courtroom booed before being escorted out by the guards. Gwen knew it was best not to stick around and made a hasty exit, disappearing into her car before the press could follow. She was driving off, unbuttoning her suit jacket and tossing it into the passenger seat, exposing a dark red tank top. She laughed a bit, tapping her fingers along the steering wheel. It was so good to be free…
“ I'm not a number I'm a free man
I'll live my life how I want to
You'd better scratch me from your black book
Cos I'll run rings round you”
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