Nicholas Grey Must Not Die | ✓

12 | Madness

He gave me a tight smile. "So what is it you claim to have that can exonerate Nick?"

I took in a deep breath, encouraging myself to go forward with the story. "I-I used to be friends with the girls who're accusing Nick. Well, technically, we were acquaintances but anyway, I helped them get Nick to that party. They didn't want to ask him themselves, because he'd broken up with every one of them by then and he wouldn't have come if they'd asked. So, they asked me to do it. I met Daisy in one of my classes and when she asked me for help, I agreed. I was only trying to be nice. He'd hurt them and I thought he deserved to have a taste of his own medicine. At least, that's what they told me was going to happen. I thought they were going to play an innocent prank on him, not go on to accuse him of rape. I left the party before everything took place. 

You have to know that at this point, I was beyond angry with Nick. We used to be the best of friends when we were younger. Then he just cut me off one day three years ago. My family and I moved but just came back this year. We'd only been here two months when the girls approached me. I'm sure they thought my "new" face would be an advantage to him agreeing to come to the party. 

After the accusations came out, I was alarmed. When I met up with the girls again, I asked them what had happened at the party. For some reason, they came out and told me they'd lied about the accusations. That was the day Nick got arrested. After that, I decided to actually use their trust in me to my advantage. So, I invited all of them over to a sleepover. I recorded them admitting to everything." I spoke way too fast and by the end, I was breathless. But I suddenly felt lighter; I'd kept all of this to myself in fear of it all falling apart. It felt good to finally tell someone else about this. 

I maintained eye contact with Seth the entire time I was babbling. The sternness of his features didn't change. The fear he may not believe me slashed through my heart and I gulped.

Then, he sighed. "The video wouldn't be permissible if they didn't know they were being recorded."

Hope refueled me and my shoulders rose from their fallen stature. "No, no. They knew they were being recorded. The camera was right there in front of them. I got their consent to record. I told them my dad needed me to record until the battery died to prove a point to my mom over a fight they had about the camera. They were fine with it. I got it all on camera."

As I spoke in excitement, his stone cold eyes brightened by the second. When a small smile cracked his tight lips, my heart burst with warmth. "You came prepared," he said in a softer tone, his shock evident in his voice. 

I beamed. "Yeah. I wanted this to work, so I did my research. I knew it was illegal to record someone without their knowledge in a private property. I want to clear his name, Seth. I want to end this madness."

His smile widened. "You know, I didn't know he was dating anyone."

"I wanted to keep it a secret. This wouldn't have worked if the girls knew I was with him," I shrugged.

He shook his head, seeming genuinely amazed. "I always thought miracles were a joke."

My eyebrows furrowed. "I'm sorry?"

He shook his head once more. "I was sure his case was a closed deal; he was going to be convicted, at least in the public eye if not in court," he said, then pointed to me, "until you came along. You're gonna turn the case around with this video." He stopped for a short while and inhaled a large breath. It appeared as if a large weight was lifted off his shoulders at the moment as well. Then he spoke again. "May I see the video?"

I nodded fast and took out my laptop. It didn't take me long to pull up the video file. I pressed play and handed him my laptop. 

I watched his face closely as the video played. My heartbeat was loud in my ear, drowning out the voices in the video. As time went on, the glee in his eyes grew and grew until a bright smile stretched on his face. 

I felt like I was about to pass out when he looked up to meet my fearful gaze. "You did amazing with this, Iris. This...this might just exonerate him."

My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. "Are you saying this might not work?" My voice cracked towards the end as I tried to fight off the tears in my eyes.

He shook his head fast, trying to calm me down. "Every case has at least one loophole but, he will most likely be exonerated, Iris. I'm just trying to be realistic."

A dry laugh escaped me. "Sign of a good lawyer?"

He shrugged, but his smile remained. The genuineness in his eyes bringing hope back into my heart. "I hope so."

I swallowed. "So this might just work? Most likely, you think?"

He nodded. "Yes."

I let out a shuddery breath. "Jesus Christ. Thank God." The tears I tried to keep at bay fell. I clapped my hand on my mouth to keep the emerging sob from coming out. The tears, however, I couldn't do anything to stop.

Seth stood from his seat behind his desk and came around to take the seat next to me. Handing me a tissue, he placed his hand on my shoulder in a comforting manner. "This will all be over soon," he said calmly, "and I promise I will do my very best to make sure this video clears his name. I'm going to need you to be his rock, Iris. He can't handle all of this on his own. Whatever he did to you in the past, he needs you now. Do you think you can forgive him to do that?"

I sniffed, giving him a short nod. "I've already forgiven him for everything; it was all a misunderstanding on my part anyway," I whispered, trying to keep my voice steady, "but, yeah, I will be there for him. He has my entire focus right now."

"Good." He cracked an encouraging smile. "He might just come out of this unscathed if you're there. Promise me something else?"

"I'll do anything for him," I eagerly nodded. 

A flash of worry appeared in his eyes. "I want you to promise to take care of yourself as well. Talk to your parents about his, if you can. You can't be strong for him if you're struggling yourself. Your mental health is just as important."

I wiped my tears away with both hands and forced my self to sit up straighter for the billionth time today. "I promise. I will take care of myself if you promise to do everything you can and more for Nick."

He nodded, his features changing in a way that told me he was taking me very much seriously. "I promise."

===

{please don't forget to comment and vote. thank you so much for the support}

QUESTIONS I HAVE:

- What do you think about the story so far?

- What do you think about the girls, Nick, and Iris?

- What would you do if you were in Iris's position?

- What do you like most about this story and/or what do you most dislike about this story?

THANK YOU!