The Revenge (The Insiders Trilogy #3)(88)

No one commented on that, though to be fair to Payton, she wasn’t not pretty. She was. She just wasn’t stunning like Quinn, but if she’d said this in a room where I could’ve spoken up, I would’ve told her it was more than that. Payton looked submissive. She was submissive. Someone like Calhoun Bastian would’ve disregarded her as anyone or anything useful to him.

“Miss Callas, I’d like to ask the reason the defense called you as a witness today. What were you supposed to say for them?”

“Objectio—”

“Overruled.” The judge’s tone was flat and final. He wasn’t messing around.

“I—” A sheen of tears came into her eyes, and she searched me out. Me? I felt zapped by her look, not understanding it. An almost apologetic look flared before she looked at Quinn, the same sheen of tears just thickening then. “I’m sorry, Quinn. I know you thought I was going to come in and testify for you, but I can’t.” Her voice grew hoarse. She looked at the DA. “Quinn’s team wanted me to testify that I’d seen Bailey Hayes abusing her mother.”

Shock spread through me, piercing me in the chest.

I couldn’t breathe for a second.

A whisper went through the room, but Payton was continuing. “Since Chrissy Hayes was found alive, I was given orders to discredit anything Chrissy Hayes would say. I was supposed to talk about how I saw her daughter hit her on three different occasions. I was supposed to talk about the language Bailey would use with her mother, how I had overheard Bailey blackmailing her mother into being a loving and doting mother.”

The DA didn’t respond at first. She was just as stiff as I was. Then she coughed, and her voice came out strangled. “And for the record, have you observed any of these events?”

“None. Not one.”

“And what was the reason you were given for providing those lies to the court today? ”

“I wasn’t told the reason, just that that’s what I was supposed to say.” She flinched, her eyes so bleak for a moment, before she turned to her sister and said, “I can’t do it, Quinn. I can’t say it. I can’t incriminate Bailey or Chrissy because you and I both know that you did try to kidnap Bailey Hayes. Calhoun was upset with you, I get that, but he also doesn’t know the truth. You shouldn’t have lied to him, and you shouldn’t have underestimated a mother’s love for her son.”

“Shut up!” Quinn sprang up, starting to go over the table. “Shut up—”

All hell broke loose in the court.

Guards streamed in from every corner of the room. Four of them surged on Quinn, getting her under control.

“Miss Callas, can you please explain your last statement to the court?”

“Quinn was always supposed to seduce Peter Francis for Calhoun Bastian. But he didn’t trust her to keep her ‘charge’ in control until she had Cyclone, Curt Francis.” Both head lawyers were standing, but Payton took over. She dipped her head down so she could be heard better through the microphone. “Calhoun Bastian only sees males as important, but Quinn couldn’t get pregnant after Seraphina. She lied to Calhoun when she told him that Cyclone was hers. He wasn’t.”

A pause.

A surreal feel came over the room, as if everyone knew what she was about to say was going to change lives, and an awareness spread. Everyone quieted. Everyone waited.

I was starting to stand.

Payton’s eyes found me. “I’m not letting my sister anywhere near him because Cyclone is mine. He’s my son.”

The court was pandemonium after that.

Reporters were rushing from the room. I wasn’t sure, but I could swear we could still hear Quinn screaming. Fitz appeared at our side and cleared his throat. “You need to go. ”

“Right.” Matt stood up. “It’s probably not safe, huh?” But as he said it, he was dazed.

I was dazed.

Chrissy—I didn’t know what she was, but she seemed in a daze, too. I slipped my hand in hers and squeezed once. “Did you know?”

“What?”

Those dazed eyes blinked, looked at me, and I had a feeling she wasn’t seeing me.

I nodded toward the stand, where Payton still was sitting, but the prosecution lawyers had surrounded her. “Cyclone. Her revelation. Did you know?”

“I—” Her mouth opened. Her lips did a goldfish impersonation, and she closed them. “I didn’t know. I had no idea. I—she was never going to turn on us. I could see it now. I’d been worried. I had…”

I frowned. What was my mom talking about?

“Mom?” I edged closer to her.

I cocked an eyebrow. She was saying that like it was a revelation to her.

“I thought…” She didn’t finish.

Fitz came up behind her, herding her forcibly, and me with them, to the side door and out. Some of the court guards had fallen in line to help, since we’d only been allowed a certain number of men in the court. We were led out, down a hallway, and we swept through a side exit. There was a handicap ramp, which we hurried down, and then we climbed into the waiting vehicles. Two SUVs today. Once inside, Fitz got into the front seat but turned around to us.

“I got the call moments ago.”

I nodded. “About Payton?”

He frowned. “From Kash.”