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The trial was no more of a public affair than when Katana had called them all to court previously.
When she walked into the courtroom and saw her mother and father stood before the Councillors, bound and gagged, it suddenly hit home harder than before about what was going on.
Jacques took her hand and guided her to the seats at the back of the room. The fact he was now human did not go unnoticed by Malaceia who watched him with great interest as he walked past.
Tobias had driven them all there with a minute to spare. By the time they sat down, the gavel was dropped and court was in session.
“Guards, please remove the gags from Mr & Mrs Kempe,” said Councillor Bembridge.
Two guards glided forwards and unbuckled the leather straps around Shania and Malaceia’s mouths.
“Malaceia Kempe, you are to stand trial for the following crimes; fraud, endangering civilian lives, illegal experiments on civilian lives, and gross misconduct. The Council have evidence to support these claims. How do you plead?”
“Guilty.”
A strange silence fell over the room. After a few seconds, the Councillor resumed his speech.
“If you are pleading guilty, Mr Kempe, then we can move straight to your sentencing. Do you wish to move forward or would you like to hear the evidence the Council has collected against you?”
“Just give me my damn sentence,” he said, sighing.
“These sentences will run consecutively. For the conviction of fraud which includes money laundering, false advertising, and obtaining money by deception—ten years. For endangering civilian lives—three years. For illegal experiments on civilian lives—thirty years. For gross misconduct—five years. That is a total of forty-eight years to be served. You will not be eligible for parole as you are deemed a severe risk to the safety of society.”
Shania turned around and glared at Katana. Hatred oozed from every pore.
“Mrs Kempe,” said Councillor Bembridge. “Do we have your interest?”
“Yes,” she said, turning back around.
“Good. Mrs Kempe, you are being charged with fraud, endangering civilian lives, gross misconduct, and abuse of power. The Council has evidence to support these claims. How do you plead?”
Silence settled around the room. Seconds ticked by.
“Mrs Kempe.”
Shania gave a dramatic sigh and said, “Fine. Guilty.”
“Do you wish to hear the evidence or—”
“Just get on with it.”
“Excellent. Your sentences will also run consecutively. For the conviction of fraud which includes money laundering, false advertising, and obtaining money by deception—ten years. For endangering civilian lives—three years. For gross misconduct—five years. For abuse of power—twenty years. That is a total of thirty-eight years. You will not be eligible for parole as you are a deemed a severe risk to the safety of society.”
For several painful seconds, no one spoke or seemed to even dare breath. Katana sat on her chair, clutching Jacques’ hand so tightly, she failed to realise she’d cut off his circulation.
“You will both serve your sentences in separate facilities. Communication between you is forbidden from this moment forwards. Mr Kempe, you are to serve your time in the laboratory at your family home. Measures have already been taken to secure it into an acceptable prison.”
Katana gasped. “What?” she whispered, glancing over at Tobias.
“That’s absurd,” Malaceia said. “What the hell is this?”
“MR KEMPE, please refrain from shouting out in court. It is not tolerated. The Council’s decision of where you will serve your sentence has been decided by the severity of your crimes. We see it as only fair that you spend a significant amount of time in the same place that you subjected innocent people to. Our decision is final and appeals are not permitted.”
Jacques took his hand from Katana’s and placed an arm around her shoulders. “Bittersweet irony at its best,” he whispered.
Katana nodded.
“Mrs Kempe, you will serve your sentence in the human world. Mr and Mrs Ainsworth will drain your magick as soon as court is over and wipe your memories of the supernatural world. You will likely perish in a human life before your sentence is over.”
Katana choked back a sob. Her mother hated humans more than lions hate hyenas. To have no magick filtering through her veins would mean she had no protection from illnesses or diseases. She would just be a regular human. At nearly fifty, her mother would be nudging ninety before her time was done.
Shania whirled around and glared at Katana. “You fucking bitch! Are you happy with this? You’ve ripped our family apart. Can you sleep tonight knowing you’ve torn this family to shreds?”
“MRS KEMPE.”
“You know you were an accident, right?” Shania said, narrowing her eyes at her daughter. “An unplanned pregnancy that I never wanted to keep. That’s right—I wanted to abort you. I told your father you were a wrong ‘un—I could feel it even when you were in my womb. He saved your life and this is how you repay him?”
All of the emotions Katana had been feeling up to now welled up inside her, rising in a strong wave that could only be expelled in tears.
Jacques wrapped her up in his arms and rubbed her back, soothing her tears.
Lenore stood up and rushed over to Shania. “You should have been aborted, Shania. The Amethyst Coven can finally flourish now you’re not on the board.”
Shania opened her mouth to reply but was silenced by one of the Council guards putting her gag back in place.
Malaceia turned to face his daughter. With her head still buried in Jacques chest, he had little choice but to speak to the man cradling his daughter.
“Tell her I’m sorry and I don’t blame her. She did what was right. That’s the true strength of a Kempe.”
Jacques nodded and turned his attention back to Katana.
Less than five minutes later, the two prisoners were parted and sent on their way to their new lives.