Page 23 of Rebel Rising: A Dystopian Romance

“In the case of Miss Summers, do you find her guilty of a failure to respond in the correct manner in the case of an emergency?" A pause. I forgot how to breathe and then- "Not guilty."

“Do you find her guilty of reckless activities whilst on duty in her position as a scientific researcher for our city?"

Another pause as my heartbeat thundered in my ears.

“Guilty," Lucretia said with a smug look in my direction. The word rebounded in my head as if my brain was refusing to accept what I’d just heard. I struggled to regain concentration and my hands curled into fists in my lap.

"Do you find her guilty of endangering the population?"

The next pause seemed to stretch on and on.

“Guilty."

I hadn't even considered what might happen to me if they found me guilty in all of this.

“Do you find her guilty of endangering the population intentionally?" she asked.

Lucretia’s eyes flicked down to the screen and narrowed slightly. I bit my lip so hard that I tasted blood.

“Not guilty," she announced, though she seemed far from happy with the outcome. I sighed with audible relief but it wasn't over yet.

Tap, tap, tap. Her fingernails drummed against the table as she waited for the room's muttering to quiet back down.

“In the case of Mr Jackson do you find him guilty of a failure to respond in the correct manner in the case of an emergency?" Pause. "Guilty." Lucretia gave a curt nod of approval before continuing. I looked across at Taylor in horror.

"Do you find him guilty of reckless activities whilst on duty in his position as a scientific researcher for our city?" Pause. "Guilty. Do you find him guilty of endangering the population? Guilty." She smirked and it looked like her face might crack.

What the hell is going to happen to us?

"Do you find him guilty of endangering the population intentionally?" Too long a pause followed this, some hands seemed to hover above their tablets whilst people made their decisions. I forgot how to breathe, terror gripping me at the idea of them finding Taylor guilty of such a serious crime.

Lucretia scowled at the screen as if she didn't agree with their verdict. "Not guilty," she read and moved back to her seat at the table with a look on her face like she’d smelled something awful. She drummed her nails along the side of her chair and crossed her legs, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Warden Commander Roberts will decide on the punishment as the crimes caused a danger to the safety of the population within The Wall," Professor Delo announced with a scowl in our direction.

President Rivers yawned and rearranged his toupee, seeming disinterested in the proceedings. He flicked a look at us and started fiddling with his tablet, clearly unconcerned with hearing any more.

Commander Roberts slowly climbed out of his seat. Throughout the trial his suspicious eyes had been studying our faces as if looking for answers from us and now all I could hope was that he hadn’t found us wanting.

He was huge, more muscle than man really. He swung around the table before using it to prop his mass up and crossed his arms in front of his chest, though they barely made it. I felt sorry for the table as it tried to hold his weight.

Several minutes ticked by while he considered what to do with us. I couldn't draw breath. My heart was slamming a panicked rhythm against my rib cage.

I reached my arm out towards Taylor on my right and his fingers closed around mine.

The commander raised a hand and pointed at Artie before pointing at the door without a word. Taylor watched as his dad was escorted out, a mixture of desperation and relief written over his face. A small knot in my stomach released as I watched him leave. I hoped that he hadn't been kept away from Jane this whole time. She must have been worried sick about all of us.

Commander Roberts' attention then shifted to me and he frowned, holding my gaze for a moment. I watched as his eyes moved to where my hand clutched Taylor's.

"Miss Summers is to serve three months as a message runner in the Lawless Trials, it will be strictly non-combat, but should serve to teach her what happens to people who endanger the population and

so dissuade her from any similar mistakes in the future."

My heart stopped working. My pounding pulse thudded in my head and my ears rang.

"Mr Jackson will also serve three months as a messenger but will have to spend one battle running messages to the front line." He looked away from us dismissively and turned around like he hadn’t just offered up a possible life sentence.

"Striving forward together," he said, moving back to sit in his chair.