The Terrible Trial of Kennedy Abrams (Treadmill II)

XIX

"Yes, Your Honor."

"Go ahead and answer the question, Miss Abrams." The judge turned back to Kennedy and she swore she could see some semblance of pity in the woman's expression.

"Thank you, Your Honor." Kennedy nodded. She didn't know if she had to thank the judge, but it seemed like the lawyers were all doing it, so she figured it couldn't hurt.

Unless she thinks I'm a kissass now.

Kennedy collected herself quickly and turned to face the jury.

"After I ended my relationship with Hank, he began calling me constantly, and wouldn't stop until I either picked up or it got to be past a certain time when his wife would have noticed. I only picked up a few times, and only to tell him to stop bothering me. He began texting as well, and when I finally blocked his number, he got a new phone and started up again. The very last time that I picked up the phone, he revealed to me that he had been friends with my father for a long time, which he had kept hidden throughout our time together. He was also a major benefactor to my father's plastic surgery business, and said that if I didn't get back together with him, he would immediately pull all donations to my father's business.

"He did do that. Instead of telling my father the true reason behind it, he informed him that I had stolen from him, from Hank. After my father called me in a rage, I went to the police and tried to file a restraining order, but they informed me that due to jurisdictional issues, I couldn't get one...but I overheard a few of them talking about how there was 'no way' that a rich, famous philanthropist was stalking me.

"I moved in early August and changed my number so that he had no way of finding me, but he still did. In late August of this year, he found me when I was walking into the gym that I used to go to. He threatened me and tried to force me into his car to go back to Tampa with him, but I managed to escape, and ran into the gym and straight into the girl's locker room. I stayed there for two hours, until I was sure he had to have left. I stopped going to that gym after that."

Brianne was nodding. They had discussed Kennedy specifically using the word 'escape' during her testimony, to enforce the jury's image of Hank as a predator.

"But he found where I lived, and started coming to my apartment, almost nightly, until the night that Violet, my neighbor, came out and called the cops on him. After that, he didn't stop by again and I thought I was safe."

"Did you have contact with him after that?" Hotchky asked.

"Unfortunately, yes." Kennedy nodded, "He found me through a social media account he made, even though I had blocked him on everything. He started threatening me and saying that he would break into my apartment one night and bring me back to him."

"Your Honor," Brianne walked back to the defense table and picked up two packets of paper. She dropped one unceremoniously on the prosecution's table in front of ADA Karl, and turned to the judge.

"Permission to approach?"

"Permission granted."

Brianne spoke as she walked up to the judge.

"I move to enter Defense Exhibit D, a series of screenshots from Miss Abrams's conversations and interactions with Mr. Wilcox, into evidence."

"Are there any objections to the counsel's motion?" Adamson asked Jaxson, who shook his head dejectedly while flipping through the pages, "Motion approved."