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Barok's legs were shaking. His hand gripping a wine glass seemed to be ready to break it at any time. His case was solid, in theory. Despite the blatant conflict of interest, Barok had managed to obtain the right to prosecute Mael Stronghart for all the assassinations he had ordered. The Professor's crimes, the deaths associated to the Reaper, Gregson's and Wilson's murders had all been orchestrated by him, and Barok intended to prove it today. After all, the evidence was damning, there was theoretically no way Stronghart would escape a guilty verdict. Whether he ended up sentenced to death or to several decades of imprisonment, Barok didn't really care. But his former boss wouldn't go down without a fight. As a proof, he had chosen to defend himself. He was currently staring at him from the defense's desk, his piercing light blue eyes reading straight into his soul.
Next to Barok, his apprentice Kazuma was silent, his arms crossed and his face impassive, he tried to appear calm. Maybe it worked with the rest of the audience but Barok wasn't fooled. He knew Kazuma well and he could definitely say that his apprentice was as tense as he was, his anger and resentment ready to burst out at any time.
It was a public trial, at the Queen's request, and many londoners had shown a great interest into the case. The Reaper was a myth, it had made the headlines many times during the last ten years. Learning that the lord chief justice himself was behind that had been quite a shock, and today the Old Bailey courtroom was crowded. It seemed all London wanted to know how this case would end, who would win the fight.
The judge slammed his gavel. "You may bring your first witness."
"The prosecution calls to the stand inspector Gregson's apprentice, Miss Gina Lestrade."
The young woman entered the courtroom and headed to the stand without a word. At least this time she wasn't standing there as the accused but she genuinely hated this place. The room was full of curious londoners, she had expected it, she had tried to prepare herself for it, but it was intimidating nonetheless. The terrible memories of the previous trial came back to her immediately as she grabbed the witness stand. Her heart sank in her shoes when she saw Stronghart at the defense's desk. She had expected it as well, but it still sent chills through her spine.
"Witness, state your name and occupation for this court." Barok's voice took her out of her thoughts.
She showed her Scotland Yard badge. "Inspector Gina Lestrade at ya service, my lord!"’
Barok nodded. "You may testify about the Reaper and the involvement of your former superior, Inspector Gregson, with it."
She glanced at the prosecutor's desk. Barok and Kazuma gave her an encouraging smile. That's right, she wasn't alone in this fight. The two prosecutors supported her, with the same motivation, the same resolve, the same determination to bring justice for their lost loved ones. She would fulfil her duty, she owed it to them, and she owed it to Gregson as well. The fish and chips lover had taken good care of her, he had given her the opportunity to escape her life of thievery and poverty, it was the least she could do in memory of him.
She took a deep breath and started her testimony. "The boss... Gregson, was workin’ for the Reaper. He got the targets' names, planned the assassinations, and let that Asa Shinn girl do the killin."
"How were the targets chosen and by whom?"
"They were all defendants ya didn’t convict." She pointed to Stronghart. "And the leader of the organization was that cove over here." The audience gasped, and Gina continued. "Yup. He said it here two weeks ago. He's the Reaper."
There was an uproar in the gallery. The judge had to repeatedly slam his gavel to shut everyone up. "Order in the court!! Lord Stronghart! Is that true? Do you admit being the infamous Reaper of the Bailey?"
His eyes fixed on Gina's, Stronghart nodded. "Yes." Not at all affected by admitting being the orchestrator of 16 killings, he was confident as ever and he even seemed to smile.
Gina felt her blood boiling at the sight, and she pursued her testimony. "The boss had no choice."
The judge widened his eyes. "Are you saying... lord Stronghart coerced inspector Gregson?"
"Yup. Then the boss wanted to leave for France with me... to protect me from the Reaper. And Stronghart had him killed." Barok had to insist to make her testify. It hurt and she truly hoped it would be worth it. Testifying was difficult, but worse was to come.
"You may cross examine the witness."
"Gladly..." grinning, Stronghart left the defense's desk and walked towards Gina. "Ms Lestrade, you said that the targets of the Reaper were defendants that lord van Zieks failed to convict, am I right?"
"Yup. Ya had all the blokes killed."
"During its ten years of existence, the Reaper only spared three people, and for a very good reason. The first person was a Japanese student named Soseki Natsume. He was accused of attempted murder twice, prosecuted twice by lord van Zieks and acquitted twice, because he was innocent. The second was a university friend of lord van Zieks, a scientist called Albert Harebrayne. Accused of murder, he was proven innocent and acquitted."
"Objection." Barok cut him. "I know what you're going to say. Mr Natsume and Mr Harebrayne are still alive, they weren't targeted by the Reaper because they were innocent."
"Which is the truth."
"That's what you want people to believe. Mr Natsume left Britain few days after his acquittal and so did Mr Harebrayne. They are still alive because they are out of the Reaper's reach."
"Interesting theory. Please explain why this witness is still alive. She was accused of murder six months ago, prosecuted by you and cleared of her charges. She didn't leave the country, and yet she's still alive."
"Inspector Gregson intended to take her to Paris to protect her from you. If your own minion feared for her safety, even after spending ten years doing your dirty job, it means she would have been targeted sooner or later."
"I never waited six whole months to get rid of a target. Why do you think this girl was any different?"
Barok had to admit he had a point. He preferred to say nothing, the trial was far from being over, so he would have a better opportunity later.
Gina slammed her hands on the witness stand. "Ya gonna say ya only punished real criminals, right? That ya worked to build a better society?" Without letting him time to answer, she continued. "Then explain yourself! The boss was working for ya and you chose to kill him! Why?"
It came as a surprise for everyone else but Barok expected that outburst. He couldn't blame Gina for this, he hated Stronghart as much as she did.
And of course Stronghart answered without batting an eye. "Ms Lestrade, I'm afraid you are mistaken here. Inspector Tobias Gregson was assassinated by Mr Seishiro Jigoku, the Japanese minister of foreign affairs." He turned to the judge. "No more questions, my lord."
Thank goodness, this cross examination was over. It wasn't long before Gina was escorted outside of the courtroom. Then the wait began.
Gina could leave the Old Bailey if she wanted to. Going back to Scotland Yard offices was a possibility but she was way too nervous to work properly, and she had no case to work on at the moment.
She had the possibility to attend the trial from the gallery but she didn't have the strength to do so. Spending hours seated, hearing Stronghart sweet talking his way out of the death penalty was beyond her abilities. His mere presence made her blood boil, if she forced herself to attend his trial, she'd end up killing him. Or at least she'd try to. She couldn't let herself be arrested for attempted murder and spend the next years in jail. She had a future as an inspector, as Gregson's apprentice. She liked her job, she wouldn't throw it away. Revenge wasn't justice, and she resolved herself to leave Stronghart's life in Barok's and Kazuma's capable hands.
The wait was agonizing. Gina lost count of the time after a while. She took Toby outside a couple of times, she fed him, cuddled him, played with him. If it wasn't for her little dog, she would have gone nuts.
The sun started to set when the door to the courtroom finally opened and Barok van Zieks exited from it, closely followed by his apprentice. The tall prosecutor looked even paler and more worn out than usual. Behind him, Kazuma wasn't in a great shape either. Both looked tired but somehow relieved.
"Thank you, Mr Asogi. Your help was greatly appreciated."
Kazuma nodded. "It wouldn't have been possible without you, lord van Zieks."
Barok stopped in front of Gina and put a hand on her shoulder. "The verdict has been given. He got twenty years of imprisonment. The probability that he gets out of there alive is small, so I consider this a satisfying result."
Gina instinctively hugged him. The feeling of relief was so overwhelming that she felt tears coming to her eyes. She wasn't able to hold them back for long. "Thank you. Thank you so much..."
Kazuma stared. For sure he had expected Gina to be happy and relieved, but not to be hugging Barok this way, and to be hugged back just as tightly. It made sense, Kazuma realized, that they found comfort in each other's arms, and the young apprentice was tempted to join them. They had both lost loved ones because of Stronghart, and now that the man was behind bars for the next twenty years, it felt incredibly relieving. With this ten-year-old conspiracy exposed, the unfortunate victims of this case could finally rest in peace.
Kazuma was hesitant. Gregson wasn't completely despicable but he wasn't innocent either. The inspector had falsified Klint's autopsy report to put the blame on Genshin. Kazuma was well aware that his actions were done under constraint, but it didn't absolve him. Besides, he had led Gregson to Jigoku, knowing perfectly what the outcome would be. And Gina was fully aware of this as well. She wasn't openly hostile to him but he preferred not to push his luck too far today.
"I'll be seeing you tomorrow." He slightly bowed and left the building.
"Where is he going?"
"Most probably on his father's grave." Barok assumed. "On my side, I'll be visiting my brother's resting place."
He didn't seem to be in a hurry to do so, as he didn't let go of Gina yet, and she kept clinging to him. She felt oddly comfortable, protected by his bigger frame, as if he was shielding her from the external world. It was really different from the relationships she had with her friends in East End. She usually was the one protecting the others, younger and less experienced than her. She was like a big sister to many kids there. She always had to be careful, to watch over them, and no one there actually watched over her. She had lost her parents at a young age and had needed to care about herself on her own. It had all changed with Gregson. The inspector had taken her under his wing, he had been more than just her superior, she had almost considered him as the father she never knew. Distant at the beginning, the inspector had eventually warmed up to her and hugged her a couple of times, like the daughter he never had. And she had returned his affection.
With Gregson gone, she had found in Barok her new protector, and it was slightly different this time. The warmth spreading through her heart and the butterflies in her belly were the signs of another type of affection. It was all new to her, the very first time she was actually attracted to someone. As she buried her face in Barok's chest and tightened her grip around him, she felt her heartbeat quickening. She felt so reassured and comfortable that she wanted to stay like this forever.
Barok had no clue yet, he was quite surprised that she was still clinging to him, but he didn't mind. Ten years after his brother's passing, Barok was alone again, as the only people he'd trusted since were either dead, in jail, or back to Japan.
Stronghart had used him in the worst way possible, taking profit of his loneliness and naivety, and more than once Barok had regretted he'd ever opened up to him. Apart from his forced involvement in the Reaper's organization, Gregson had proved to be globally trustable, and a good friend. But he was dead now. As for Ryu... Barok truly regretted his departure. Ryu had literally saved him, and without asking anything in return. He had just done what was right, until his obligations brought him back to his homeland.
Barok glanced down at the blond-haired girl, clinging to him as if he'd just saved her life. He barely knew her but he appreciated her a lot. They hadn't met under the best conditions, that was for sure. Gina's false testimony in McGilded's trial had ultimately led to the latter's acquittal, to Barok's greatest despair. But he didn't blame her for that. After all, she'd been forced to lie. And on top of that, McGilded had met his tragic end anyway, right after being cleared of his charges.
Despite her young age and inexperience, she had proved to be a good recruit for Scotland Yard, truly motivated and committed to her work. She might have been a thief, she still stole stuff from time to time, but she had a good heart. Barok could say without fear that he trusted her fully.
And right now, having her breathing peacefully against him was incredibly soothing, awakening in him feelings he never thought he'd experience again. He hesitated for an instant, he was shy by nature, and doing the first step wasn't his type at all. But at the same time, if Gina considered him only as a friend or as her boss, she wouldn't be holding him so closely, and for so long. He gently stroked her hair and planted a light kiss on her lips. It lasted less than a second, but it felt like heaven. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on the tip of her toes to kiss him again.