The People VS Eric Dalton

Days later, Max couldn't stop remembering the painful minutes she'd spent discussing the filth known as Eric Dalton with Kathleen. Strangely, though, she felt better. No nightmares, no screaming, just sleep. Could it be that after all this time she just needed to let it out? She just needed someone to talk to? Finally feeling ready to leave her room, she brushed her tangled bed-hair and opened the door. As she walked into the living room she saw Anna, Chris, and her father talking quietly on the couch.

Max rolled her eyes. "VERY subtle, you guys."

They hopped up and started shouting their unconvincing "hey"s and "how are you"s but Max put her hand up, motioning for them to stop. They sat back down and silence washed over the room.

"Okay, look . . . I understand that I'm the trending topic of conversation right now." She raised her eyebrows. "But can you please work on hiding it better?"

Chris laughed as he shrugged. "Sure thing! Sorry, Max."

Anna chimed in, "Yeah, as it turns out, we suck at helping!"

Max shook her head. "You guys don't HAVE to help. I'm okay. I promise."

They were listening intently and it annoyed Max because she still hated attention. However, she let it go. More time passed and Delia came over and once again made an incredible meal. She left, and Anna and Chris retired to the guest room. That left Max and Jeremy in the living room, alone for the first time in awhile.

"You know, Max . . . I am really proud of you."

She stared at him, trying to figure out what to say. Accepting compliments was not her strong suit.

"You think you are a burden, I know you do, but I am proud to say I love you and proud to say that you are my daughter." He placed his hand on top of hers. "You are the strongest person I know."

"Dad . . . I don't know what to say . . ."

"You don't need to say anything, honey. You just need to know how proud I am of you and how much I love you."

Max smiled and shook her head up and down, assuring her dad that she understood. They stood up together and hugged goodnight. Max almost got to the hallway before turning around. "Thanks for not giving up on me. You are just . . . the best, Dad. I love you."

She turned back around and walked to her bedroom to enjoy her new ability to sleep without screaming.

Everyone slept through the night, trying to rest before the trial began. It was only a few weeks away, and every day the anxiety heightened. Any visitor must've been able to feel it immediately and Max could see it all over Delia's face. She still regularly visited to cook dinner, make lunch, and do the things Jeremy and Max couldn't possibly focus on. The day of the trial came quickly and as much time as they'd had to prepare, no one seemed ready.

Except for Max.

She had come to terms with the situation at hand and accepted that the man who'd nearly ruined her would be in that courtroom.

Kathleen had warned her about everything that could possibly happen and Max trusted her.

She felt strong.

The day of the trial, Max's eyes snapped open — there was no slow yawning or stretching. Everything in her felt rigid. Today was the day she would help imprison the man that had almost destroyed her and ruined countless lives.

She could smell breakfast cooking in the kitchen and she heard Anna talking to Chris in the living room. She couldn't hear exactly what Anna was saying, but there was a deep concern in her voice. Max had specifically asked them all to act normal, but they were all horrible at acting so it really didn't process.

Later that morning, Max and Anna swam through every article of clothing left behind in Anna's old bedroom. Max hardly knew what courtroom attire looked like, so she left it to the "professional."

Anna strongly refused to let Max wear anything too dark. "Max! You can't run up there looking like you sacrifice goats!"

"Oh for god's sake—"

"I'm serious! Kathleen said you can't look unstable. And you look like that all the time, no offense, so let me dress you, please?"

Max didn't have the stamina to argue and truthfully she didn't care anyway. Everyone was harping about how brave and strong she was for doing this, but Max just wanted it over. She didn't feel like a good or brave person. She just wanted Eric to rot in prison.

Max looked at the black pants, light purple long-sleeve tunic top, and dark purple flats set up on the end of her bed. She noticed her hands already shaking and tried unsuccessfully to steady them.

One thing she did know was that Eric would never get to see her fall apart again. Not today, not ever. She would not give him the satisfaction of knowing he'd crippled her.

Tears, shaking, fear: all of it would be bottled up until this day was over.

"Hey, Max?" Anna knocked on her door. "You okay in there? We have to leave soon and I want to do your makeup real quick."

Max made sure to sound confident and brave. "I'm good! Just getting dressed."

Max could see the shadow of Anna's feet disappear from under the door, so she briefly gathered her thoughts and headed to the hallway.

"Hey!" Max said too excitedly. "Are we ready?"

Chris, Anna, and Jeremy exchanged glances, obviously confused about her uncharacteristically good mood.

"Yeah . . . sure," Anna said slowly. "Come here real quick."

Max walked to her and for once she allowed Anna to apply eyeliner, mascara, blush, and a cherry lip balm that tasted like ass.

"Ew, man, that's gross." Max licked her lips, trying to get rid of the horrible taste.

"HEY! Stop! You look fabulous. Beauty is pain, my dear."

Max gave Anna an unenthusiastic head nod and told them she was ready to go. After piling in Jeremy's little car, they took off toward the courthouse.

Arriving early, Max looked around with no desire to be near strangers. Men and women were crawling in and around the courthouse and made her feel so small. She was letting her surroundings get to her until she saw Rachel getting out of a silver minivan.

Max jumped out of the car before Jeremy had a chance to park it.

"Rachel!" Max was fired up now as she ran to Rachel, who was not supposed to be here. "What are you doing here?!" Rachel's smile faded as Max grabbed her by her shoulders. "Kid, why are you here?!"

Rachel's mouth hung open and she struggled to speak. Max sighed and dropped her hands. "I'm sorry, Rach. I just . . . thought you weren't coming."

Rachel stared at Max with her bright eyes and took her hand. "Vi, I'm going to be okay. He's in there, I know that. But YOU shouldn't have to be alone."

"I want to protect you, Rachel. I'm fi—"

"Will you stop saying that?" Rachel put her hands on her hips. "It doesn't matter anyway. I'm here, I love you, and I'm not leaving."

Max chuckled at Rachel's newfound attitude. "All right, ya brat, whatever." Max brought her in for a hug. "It's good to see you."

Max's entourage met on the courthouse steps and walked inside together. She was in the middle of them all, holding hands with Rachel. Max felt like she was under secret service protection, with everyone turning around every few seconds to check on her, and she hated it.

"Well look at you, Miss Redding!" Kathleen's voice burst through the crowd of people. "You look ready to kick some ass!"

"I feel ready." Max bit her lip. "I think. . . . Can I be ready and scared at the same time?"

Kathleen put a hand on Max's cheek. "Of course."

She winked and motioned for everyone to follow her. They got through the door and Kathleen turned to face the group. "This is where I say goodbye! Go down the hall, those officers right there know how to get you where you need to go." She looked at Max. "You're coming with me, girly."

Max replied with a soft, "Okay." She turned to Rachel before moving. "I love you, kid. We both made it here. This is the start of our freedom."

"I love you too!" Rachel's eyes were sparkling, smile big, and it was all Max needed to go on with confidence.

"This is for us, Rach. For us."

They hugged and Max said her goodbyes. It was time to put an end to this nightmare.

Kathleen escorted Max to the courtroom ahead of everyone else. "You will hang out here! Not cozy, but we won't be here long. I promise."

It's like Kathleen read Max's mind. She didn't know anything about how long these trials lasted; it always looked pretty damn quick on TV. But she also knew that Eric had been here on trial for weeks already.

Kathleen pointed to the second row, right behind where she would be standing, fighting for Max, Rachel, and every single person Eric murdered.

"Thank you, Kathleen." Max grabbed and squeezed her hand. "For everything."

Kathleen squeezed back with a smirk. "Don't thank me. You're the hero today."

She let go of Max's hands and briefed her about how everything would go. Her family would be next to her, the doors to the courtroom would close, Eric would come out, and lastly the judge.

When she was finished, Kathleen blew Max a kiss, winked, and stepped around the barrier to her station.

People filed in slowly and Max was surprised by how many were coming. Maybe these were families of Eric's victims. Max hoped so because he deserved to have a room full of people oozing hatred toward him.

Jeremy, Anna, Chris, Rachel, Delia, and Gloria scooted in next to her on the hard uncomfortable bench. Max made sure to be on the end just in case she needed to throw up or run.

The doors closed with a loud thud that made her jump and look back. She slowly turned her head forward and took a deep breath, knowing what was next. A door to her left opened slowly and her stomach dropped.

There he was. Eric Dalton. Her abductor, her abuser. Eric looked the same: tan skin, jet black hair, and brown eyes with a darkness drowning in his stare.

Max gritted her teeth hard and started breathing faster and faster. She felt like she was losing control of her body and feeling the pain all over again. She knew she shouldn't look at him, but she couldn't help it: it was like watching a car crash. You didn't want to see the vile scene in front of you, but still, your eyes were glued. And he was one hell of a car crash. Max felt Anna place her hand on hers, which was flat on the bench, shaking.

"Hey, you okay?"

Max snapped her gaze from Eric to Anna. She knew she looked terrified, she knew she wasn't hiding it, but she'd sworn to herself that Eric wouldn't see her flinch so Max shut her eyes and regained control.

"I'm good. Sorry, just nervous."

Anna and Max smiled at each other and turned to tell Jeremy everyone was okay, but he wasn't paying attention.

His eyes were like daggers staring across the room at Eric. Max realized this was the first time he'd seen the man that had harmed his daughter and ruined his life for so many years. Max saw the look on his face and it made her a little scared. She had never seen such hatred on Jeremy's face.

Max watched Anna place her other hand on his, also lying flat on the bench. "Uh . . . Mr. R.?"

He didn't budge, so Anna shook his hand lightly. "Mr. R.?"

He finally blinked and turned his head to Anna.

"Are YOU okay?"

He smiled weakly and nodded his head yes.

I guess everyone is losing their shit, Max thought to herself anxiously.

Max knew Anna would want to punt Eric across a football field, but she hadn't expected her dad to abandon his sweet, kind demeanor and leave Anna to keep everyone calm. She hoped another murder wasn't about to take place.

Max was back to staring at Eric out of the corner of her eye, trying not to look, but failing.

A few seconds later his head turned and they locked eyes. She imagined he would be furious and want her dead, but his eyes softened and he smiled at her. He looked like he was GLAD to see her — like he was seeing an old friend. She felt disgusting, vulnerable, and small, just like when she was eleven years old.

She looked at him with no emotion on her face. She would be damned if he thought his little grin could shake her. Just as she was about to sit up straight and look forward he mouthed the words, "I missed you."

She didn't know what to do, what to think. It didn't make her mad or sad — she just felt a knot in her stomach that made her nauseous. Anna had seen the whole exchange and bumped Max's shoulder with some force. Max turned her head quickly to Anna knowing she must've looked strange with her eyes starting to widen. She felt Anna put her arm around her shoulder, and watched her lean over into Eric's line of sight and give him the finger.

His face flipped immediately. This was the face of a killer: the face Max knew all too well. He would've killed Anna, no doubt, had he not been in cuffs. He looked at Max like he was sad. He clearly wanted to strangle Anna, but it appeared he thought Max had hurt him. She realized Eric still lived in a world in his head where he and Max were a "family."

He turned back forward and Max's confusion was interrupted by an officer raising his voice. "All rise!"

Everyone stood up, waiting for the judge to take her seat and motion for them to sit back down.

As the minutes passed by, Kathleen slammed the defense. Max was happy, of course, but Eric kept looking back at her with soft eyes and a smile. Was he really so delusional to think Max had been in some "relationship" with him? Or was he trying to make her feel weak and pathetic?

"The people would like to call up their final witness, Violet Redding."

Any breath Max had left her lungs. She felt like she might get sick all over the floor, pass out, or both. Kathleen raised her head and gave Max a subtle, reassuring nod. If Kathleen hadn't believed in Max so much, she might've already run.

Slowly and shakily Max headed through the barrier to place her hand on the Bible.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?"

Max almost felt ridiculous, like she was a guest star in some Law and Order knock-off.

"I do."

Once she took her seat, Kathleen wasted no time. "Miss Redding, thank you for being here today."

Max barely smiled as she gulped and tried to push her nerves down.

"To begin, can you tell the court what happened to you on the night of April 16th, 2011?"

"Yes ma'am." Max squeaked out her first words on the stand, it made her feel a bit better to get that out of the way. "I was taken from my home by Eric Dalton."

"And do you see Mr. Dalton in the courtroom today?"

Max gulped again as she slowly turned her head toward Eric. "Yes," she said, pointing to him. "He is sitting right there."

Eric grimaced and Max noticed a slight twinge of rage flicker in his eyes.

"Thank you, Violet." Kathleen winked at her and continued. "Now, where did you go that evening after Mr. Dalton took you?"

"We drove for what seemed like forever and stopped at a motel in Ohio."

"And do you recall what happened next?"

Max struggled, hardly knowing where to begin. Every second after that drive had been pure hell.

"Uh . . . well . . ." She swallowed again and continued. "When we finally stopped at a motel, he told me to stop crying or he would murder the people I loved. He used that often for a few weeks until it sunk in and I stopped fighting him. That night at the motel was the first of many times I saw him murder innocent people. It was a woman and her young daughter. Blood was everywhere, their eyes were so . . . gone. He made me watch, always. Nearly every murder. I had to witness so I would never forget to not cross him. It worked . . ."

Her voice trailed off. She was trying so hard to stay strong, but that was proving to be more difficult than she'd thought it would be.

"He knew my name already and so much about me, it was the scariest thing. After that first murder he . . ." Max struggled to actually say the words out loud.

"It's okay, Violet, what happened during your first night with Eric at the motel?"

"He raped me." Her eyes shot straight to her dad and a strange embarrassment consumed her. "It was the first of many."

Thinking to herself, she remembered those first three years as a nightmare, an unrelenting nightmare that Max had been powerless to stop.

"How many times would you say he raped you?"

"He assaulted me nearly every night for three years. It was murder then rape, murder then rape, over and over . . ."

She took a breath as her voice trailed off. Suddenly Max's vision started to blur and she couldn't get any more words out. Eric had done so many other horrible things to Max, but her head started to go fuzzy and she couldn't seem to regain control.

Luckily, Kathleen had sensed the rising discomfort. She stepped up toward Max and nodded as she said, "He hit you as well, correct?"

"OBJECTION!" A short, fat man sitting next to Eric stood up. "Leading the witness!"

Max jumped, frightened by the man's outburst. Kathleen had warned her about these things, but hearing a grown man screaming, trying to defend her captor, was still infuriating.

She forced down any impulse to get up and scream right back at him.

"Sustained." The judge turned her face back to Kathleen. "Rephrase the question, Ms. Davis."

Kathleen shot a sweet smile in the judge's direction. "Of course, Your Honor."

She turned toward Max again and continued. "Did you ever experience any other types of physical abuse besides sexual assault?"

"Yes. Most days."

Kathleen slightly raised her voice to fill the room. "And was there ever a time that Mr. Dalton STOPPED assaulting you?"

"When I turned fourteen he lost interest in me. I was too 'old'," she said as she put the air quotes up and rolled her eyes.

"And what happened next, Violet?"

"He found Rachel."

Kathleen moved closer to Max. "And why did he want Rachel?"

"She was younger. He was excited, as if we were getting a new puppy."

Max started to shift in her seat, noticing her father and Anna exchange glances. She hated feeling so nervous and uncomfortable.

"How did Mr. Dalton find Rachel?"

"It wasn't on purpose. We were walking back to the car when he spotted her with her family."

Kathleen looked at the jury. "And what happened after he showed an interest in her?"

Max shut her eyes and looked down. "He told me that we were going to get her that night."

Kathleen remained staring at the jury. "And did you go?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Where did you both go, so you could grab Rachel?"

Max's eyes started to fill with tears. Her voice was trembling. "Earlier that day when we saw her, they were walking into their home. So that's where we went."

Kathleen looked straight into Max's eyes, signaling how important this part of the story was. "What did Eric do once you arrived at Rachel's home?"

Max's sniffles grew louder and more frequent. "He managed to get the door open, but he hadn't planned on anyone being awake."

Kathleen quickly jumped in. "What time did he break in?"

Max closed her eyes, letting herself remember Rachel's living room, her kitchen, and the clock on the wall. "It was very late, 3 a.m."

"Okay, now, who did you see first?"

Max shook her head. "It was Rachel's father."

Kathleen looked to the jury again. "What happened next?"

Max hung her head low, wiping her tears from her eyes. "Eric took out his knife and stabbed him before Rachel's dad even realized what was happening."

"Do you remember seeing anyone else in the room?"

"No." Max lifted her head slowly, still wiping her tears away. "Her mom came downstairs after hearing the scuffle between Eric and Rachel's dad."

"What happened then?"

Before Max even attempted to answer, she turned her head toward Rachel, eyes filled with shame. "I'm so sorry, Rachel. I should've done something! I'm sorry . . ." She repeated her apology until her head fell back into her hands.

Kathleen stepped closer. "I know this is difficult, Violet, but please continue."

Max did her best to gain back control of her emotions as Kathleen continued. "What happened after Rachel's mother came downstairs?"

"He stabbed her too, in the chest. Somehow Rachel slept through it all." She slightly widened her eyes in disbelief. "He grabbed her from her bed upstairs and made me wait by the door. She was still sleeping, even then."

Max sighed heavily as Kathleen continued. "Now, you said when you turned fourteen, Eric lost interest in you. What happened to you after he took Rachel?"

"His money was running dry, and I could tell he was getting agitated." Max's eyes were shooting stressfully between Kathleen and her family. "He realized I was still useful to him . . . and also . . . other people." Her leg started shaking. Through gritted teeth she said, "Other men."

Max watched her dad look at her with horror covering his face, but he quickly moved his eyes to Eric across the room.

"You bastard." Max heard him, he said it a little too loud.

Kathleen looked over her right shoulder, worried about his reaction, but continued. "So, he—"

Before she could finish the sentence, Jeremy jumped up, pushing the other people sitting down to try and cross the room. Max couldn't believe he was attempting to lunge and tackle the man who hurt his daughter.

"Dad!!" Max screamed. "Dad, it's okay!"

He didn't get too far before the bailiff grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Mr. Redding!" The judge shouted. "Sit DOWN, and do not get up again." She softened her voice. "I feel for you, I do. But please control yourself."

Jeremy nodded with a mean look on his face that Max had never seen, shook the bailiff off him, and slowly made his way back to his seat. Anna's eyes were wide open, staring at him. Max watched him sit down and look at Anna out of the corner of his eye. Anna whispered something to him that made him smirk, but still, Max's nerves shot straight up.

"So!" Kathleen continued with a sigh. "What did he mean when he said you were useful to him?"

Max knew she looked shaken by her father's behavior, but she continued. "He began to . . . sell me. It was a few nights here and there at first, but it became more often as he realized how much money I could make him."

Her feelings went from sad to stone cold. "After awhile I couldn't tell one from the other. They were all the same." She rolled her eyes, feeling tired just from the thought. "He would say that he loved me and it was all worth it because I was providing for our family."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw movement, but before she could even turn her head, Eric's voice boomed through the courtroom. "We are a family, Violet!"

The judge raised her voice. "ENOUGH, MR. DALTON."

"Sweetheart, I love you, you KNOW I love you!"

The judge shouted once again, "GAIN CONTROL OF YOUR CLIENT OR HE WILL BE HELD IN CONTEMPT OF COURT!"

Eric's attorney grabbed him by his left shoulder and whispered something to him. Eric sat back down angrily, still staring at Max.

She shrugged her shoulders in an attempt to shake off Eric's comments as Kathleen shook her head. "Moving on! Violet, please continue."

"I didn't feel anything anymore, emotionally, physically . . ." She shook her head and continued. "The only thing I even cared about was Rachel."

"After you began to feel that way, what did you do?"

"I would yell at him when he went to touch Rachel, and he would beat me until I couldn't get up." Max pursed her lips. "So, I began to pick fights with him just so he would punch me, kick me." Max shut her eyes and looked down. "Just so I could feel something."

"I see." Kathleen put her right hand to her chin. "Violet, I truly am sorry for what you've been through. There is only one last thing."

Max's face didn't flinch; she felt too exhausted to move.

"What happened the night Eric Dalton was arrested?"

Max shifted in her seat. "The night we were found he had done the usual and handcuffed Rachel and me to the bed in a room at Motel 6. He was in the bed closest to the door and in the middle of the night we were all startled by a pounding on the door." Her voice stayed cold and lifeless. "He looked at the door with a fear I had never seen. I took my chances and screamed for help."

"What do you mean, you took your chances?"

Max sighed and shook her head. "He always said he'd kill me if I did that, but at that point I didn't care. Killing me would've been doing me a favor."

"And what happened next?"

Max started smirking, slowly working her way into a smile. "Before he could make a move the door busted open. Men with guns ran in and slammed him to the ground." She looked at Rachel and smiled. "We were safe for the first time in years. I felt so happy for her."

Kathleen jumped in. "Why weren't you happy for yourself?"

Max shrugged her shoulders. "I was pretty much ruined. I figured Rachel still had a chance to recover."

"I see," replied Kathleen. "After they took you from Motel 6, where did you go?"

Max sighed heavily. She was getting tired of talking. "The police station. They wanted to find our families, but I knew what happened to Rachel's."

"Why didn't you tell Rachel any of this?"

Max's head dropped again as her voice began to tremble. "I never told her because I didn't want to hurt her more than she'd already been. The comfort of knowing the possibility of reuniting might've kept her going. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't break her heart . . . I just couldn't."

Max sighed loudly. "She found out after a day or so at the station, when they attempted to contact them."

Kathleen nodded her head. "Where did you two end up going?"

"We were separated and put into foster homes." Max stopped briefly and gave her father a sad stare. "But I ran away."

Max hesitated once again. "I didn't give them my real name. I didn't want them to find my family." Max suddenly felt guilty for admitting all of this out loud for the first time.

"Why didn't you want to find your family?"

She sat still as a statue for a moment before answering. "I was disgusted with myself, felt dirty and used up." She shook her head up and down, still believing she'd made the right decision.

"I figured I would only make their lives worse and thought they would be upset, but move on. Especially after all these years."

Kathleen smiled at Max. The courtroom was full of hatred for Erik Dalton just as they had wanted.

"Thank you for telling us about the horrors you experienced."

Max nodded, staring blankly at her.

"One more time, do you see the man who did all of this to you and who murdered all those people?"

Max turned with no hesitation and pointed straight at Eric Dalton.

"That man right there raped me, sold my body, beat me, and is a murderer."

She looked at Kathleen and smiled. "He took a lot away from my life. He took a lot of me, but he didn't take all of me."

She looked back to Eric with her head held high. "Not all of me."