Challenging: Day 12

Word Count: 72,011

Summary of Events:

Gabrielle and Pastor Renneberg finished their conversation when they realized that it was nearly six o' clock. Jennifer had a breakdown when the judge announced that Nicholas got custody of the children for the weekdays and she only got them daytime on the weekends, but then she got an idea of how to get people turned in her favour. Nicholas went to the foster home to get Daniella and Dylan, who were elated to see him. Reid and Mr. Williams suffered the torture of a few more 'witnesses' brought by the prosecution before Mr. Williams got the judge to make them stop because they were completely unproductive; Reid was then brought to the stand to testify and be questioned by Mr. Williams.

Excerpt of the Day:

""What sort of botheration did he engage in?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Mostly mocking and deriding me and telling me I was going to fail in my efforts at getting out of debt," Reid replied. "He didn't physically do anything to me."

"And how did he cause you to lose your job?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Well, I'd told our boss about his . . . botheration, and so our boss went to talk to him, and he told our boss that I was gloating about how I was so much smarter than everybody else by getting out of debt," Reid replied. "Our boss has a very strong stance on workplace conduct and does not tolerate lying at all, and so — despite the fact that our boss liked my work ethic and had been pleased with me throughout my seven years there — I was fired because he was under the impression that I'd lied to him about who was being the bother."

"And you were not happy," Mr. Williams said.

"No," Reid replied. "To say I was furious was probably the biggest understatement you could ever make."

"Did you entertain any malicious thoughts toward the victim?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "I thought terrible things about him, and how I would like to hurt him, if not even actually kill him."

Mr. Sandahl leapt up from his seat, but the judge glared at him and he quickly sat back down again.

"Did you do any plotting on how you would kill him?" Mr. Williams asked.

"No," Reid replied. "I just thought that I would kill him next time I saw him because I was so mad at him."

"The night in question was the first time you'd seen him since then?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "I'd wanted to find a way to get a lie detector test done to prove to our boss that I had told the truth and the victim had lied, but I never got around to it."

"Why did you not get around to it?" Mr. Williams asked.

"I think mostly because I was mad, and kind of sulking," Reid replied.

"Did you think that you had killed him on the night in question?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "I thought I'd killed him."

"And you had wanted to kill him?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "I'm glad I didn't, though."

"And why is that?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Because I wasn't thinking," Reid replied. "I was just mad, and I wasn't thinking right, and then it all just happened, and if I would've killed him I don't think we'd even be having this hearing right now, I couldn't have lived with myself if I would've actually killed him."

"All of your actions after seeing him on the night in question were fuelled by your emotions?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "And it's plainly obvious to everyone how good of an idea that is."

"You regret what you did?" Mr. Williams asked.

"Yes," Reid replied. "I would do anything to go back and stop myself.""