The Verdict

Sabrina's pov

The judge entered the room to declare my fate to the whole world. Prison here I come. But wait. I can not afford to be pessimistic. Who wouldn't at such a time, when your entire existence was going to be determined by a fellow imperfect human whose heart could be corrupted? Deep down I hoped things would turn out right for me. In all honesty, this was the toughest moment of all my twenty-one years of existence. At twenty-one, I had done nothing better with my life but get myself to prison. Probably if I died at this moment, my tomb would be written, "The deceased, was born, murdered her boyfriend's father and died in prison". The opening of the judge chamber door woke me from my bad dreamy day stupor of negativity, hopelessness, and pessimism.

The judge began his ruling, "During the past two weeks we have been here listening to this case and the evidence presented to my court about this case. It has been a rollercoaster of emotions in here and today my court and my jury have come to a verdict. But before I give my ruling, I would like to put across a few statements. This case has tested the humanity and or moral compass in both the feminists and male chauvinists in this court about how they view life and humanity. But one thing that has emerged is that life is sacred. No one wants to die, and no life should be taken whatsoever and but importantly, sexual crimes should not be tolerated and must be punished. We must all take a strong stand against any forms of sexual crimes and bullying. That being said, I rule that the defendant Miss Sabrina is not guilty of murder. It was an act of self-defense against a man whom by all undisputed medical evidence in this court sexually assaulted her, and robed her of her dignity and virtue as a woman..."

The joy I felt in my heart surpassed anything in this world. It was like winning the lottery, winning the jackpot, conquering an adversary. It was exquisitely unexplainable. As the judge continued to clarify his ruling, my mind was on a whole new planet, with a whole new dimension. My only worry was what to do next. One thing I was sure of was that things would never be the same again in this small town. I had to move away. For a fresh start, for new adventures, new opportunities, for new beginnings. I had to rebuild my life again. But where? I was jolted from my unending thoughts when Marcus hugged me. He had proven to be a friend who sticks closer than a brother, my ride or die. He was a friend born for the times of distress. Not all knights in shining armor wear battle helmets and carry swords, some are lawyers, and that was Marcus. The jail guard removed the handcuffs from my hands and freedom had never felt so exquisite like a bottle of fine wine. Now it was time to go home to freedom. Yes, freedom at last.

Marcus held my hand as we walked out of the courtroom and I couldn't help but look in Jake's direction. His eyes were full of remorse and Joy. That was quite confusing. It's like he wanted me not to be guilty. But anyways. I was done with him. He had the chance to prove his love for me by sticking with me but he chose not to believe and instead, he accused me. All I now felt for him was unfathomable anger, insatiable rage, and unresolved hate. I had invested my emotions, my life, my plans, and goals with him and all it had to take to throw it all away was his father raping me and him taking me to court for murder. I was so done with him. As I passed close to him he even dared to touch my hand. I jerked my hand off him so fast he didn't see it coming.

When we got to Marcus's place, his Girlfriend Mimi had decorated the house for a celebration. But I was in no mood to celebrate. While in the car, I had talked to Marcus about moving away for a long time. He was reluctant at first but he eventually agreed that it was the best thing to do after all I had been through. He even offered to gift me his apartment in the city which I gladly accepted. So after taking a glass of champagne, of Course after Mimi's insistence, I packed the few things I had and boarded the bus to Nairobi City.

As the small town passed by, I couldn't help but hope it was going to be a new beginning for me. Nairobi here I come.