The sheriff tried to interrupt William several times, but was unsuccessful, and had to wait for William's mood to calm down a little before continuing: "I don't know exactly what you're talking about, but it's Stella's guardian who accuses you, that is, her mother, Ms. Huang. ”

Hearing the sheriff's words, William was stunned, the coffee cup in his hand almost fell to the ground along with the eyeballs in his sockets, and he involuntarily grabbed the hem of his shirt with one hand. It was unexpected, but it seemed logical.

In the matter of his relationship with Stella, Ms. Huang's attitude was very clear, but he didn't expect that she would be disgusted with herself to such a point.

No, every conversation with the sheriff was life-threatening, and he couldn't let the other party see his consternation, hesitation, and entanglement, so William shook his head desperately, and even laughed out loud, as if he had heard something extremely absurd.

He defended himself in a louder voice: "No, I didn't! All you have to do is call Stella herself to ask about it! ”

The smile on the sheriff's face disappeared little by little like a low tide, and his expression gradually became solemn, and he asked, "So, did you have an intimate relationship with each other?" I mean sex. ”

"Nope." William did not hesitate to deny it.

Under federal law, it is illegal to have sex with a minor, and whether the other person is consensual or not, such an act is criminalized as rape.

After that night, William carefully read the famous Romeo and Juliet Act, as well as all the laws concerning minors.

He could never admit it, and he believed that even if Stella herself knew that he had lied to the sheriff for this little lie, she would never blame him.

"What's the most intimate act between you?" The sheriff's eyes flashed with a sharp chill, as hard as the glow on the golden badge above the left pocket of his uniform.

"Kiss. Mr. We are in love with each other. William stressed this, and immediately tightened his lips.

"In that case, why would her mother sue you?" The sheriff removed a pen pinned to the edge of his right jacket pocket, opened the cap and closed it with a slight click.

She ...... Her mother was prejudiced against the two of us, but Stella and I were truly in love! You can call her over and ask her. I believe that prosecuting me must have been against her will. William spoke righteously, as he usually did.

Once the sheriff finds him not guilty, or finds that the evidence is insufficient, he will soon be able to return to school. However, he repeatedly warned himself that when he went back this time, he must be better to Stella, and be better.

"Young man," the sheriff looked directly into William's golden eyes, and his brow revealed the majesty of a law enforcement officer, but his tone was not forceful, at best a bit like reading a book.

"First of all, I want to tell you that the defense has provided us with complete and detailed evidence, so don't leave anything to chance. Secondly, the crime of rape and the crime of unlawful indecent assault on a minor, either of which is a felony, so I beg your pardon for not being able to accept any of your pleas at the first instance. ”

William thought of the Ice Bucket Challenge, which was popular at school a while ago, where the sheriff's words were like a bucket full of water filled with ice cubes, and even though you were mentally prepared to be provoked, it would still feel bitterly cold and unbearable when it was poured on your head.

The expression on his face froze, and he was speechless for a long time. He never thought that the brilliant life he had just laid out would have anything to do with the word crime.

"In accordance with the procedure, I want to tell you first that your right as a citizen: you have the right to remain silent. If you don't remain silent, then everything you say will become your testimony in court. You have the right to a lawyer at the time of trial. If you can't afford to pay for a lawyer, we can get one for you. Are you fully aware of your rights as described above? ”

After routinely reading Miranda's warning, the sheriff looked up at William and calmly awaited his answer.

William felt burning all over his body, his mouth was dry, his Adam's apple rolled up and down a few times, and it took a long time before he struggled to spit out a word: "Yes." ”

A flash of inspiration occurred to him, and he asked the sheriff, "Can I call one of my lawyer friends?" ”

The magistrate looked up and down at the well-educated and extraordinarily bearing teenager and said, "After the questioning is over and the detention formalities are completed, you can make a phone call, but it will only be ten minutes. ”

Staggering out of the inquiry room, William was taken by the black police to a doctor for a full medical examination. When it was determined that he had no infectious diseases, no bleeding wounds, and no family history of genetic disease, William walked out of the medical examination center.

The black policeman was still faithfully waiting for him in the hallway, but with a large bulging gray pocket in his hand.

He took William back to the room where he had filled out the form, and asked him to take off all his clothes, and William had to strip himself naked from the inside out in front of the two-meter-tall black policeman.

The black policeman took out a rough orange shirt and a pair of orange pants from his gray pocket and handed them to William, who put on his fat clothes and felt like a circus clown.

Next, the black policeman skillfully put on a bracelet with a series of numbers for him, hung a rectangular sign with a number on him, and then asked him to lean against the white wall to take a picture of him.

William had to squint in the glare of the click, click, glare of the flashlights.

Front, left, right, not filmed well and then reshoot...... William's face was expressionless and he obeyed the command of the black policeman like a robot, and his heart burned and he felt that he was being humiliated and wronged like never before.

It was getting dark, and Bai Xinrui was still lying on the white marble railing on the top floor of the Science Building, looking down, and it had been a long time since the two police cars drove away from the campus at a lightning speed.

Huang Yaqian really did it...... It's not his fault......" she muttered over and over again.

However, aren't these exactly what you want?

A man with a cold heart deserves such retribution, and now, she finally got her wish, and finally spit out the evil anger that was suppressed in her heart, shouldn't she laugh heartily?

However, why can't I laugh, but I am inexplicably confused. Was this really what she wanted?

The spring breeze of the willows brought the rich fragrance of the flowers, but it made her shiver, she felt cold on her face, and when she reached out to touch it, it was full of tears.

The ruthless law intervened in the game between them, and she suddenly felt her scalp tingle at the thought of it......

When will William come back? What will he face and what will be the outcome? The unknown will no longer be within her control.

Although she denied it in her heart, subconsciously, she was still afraid that she would really ruin him and make him lose everything.

From this moment on, she actually began to miss him......

After going through all the processes, William felt more tired than ever.

After walking long hours through rooms with cheap fluorescent tubes on, his watch and mobile phone were long gone, and he didn't even know what time it was.

He missed his single dormitory at school, the quiet little suite was simply and warmly furnished, full of trophies, medals and certificates he had won, as well as the Xiaoice box with milk and drinks, and the comfortable bed, and he wanted to go back to the dormitory to sleep!

Once again, the black policeman came to his side and reminded him with a blank face: "You just said that you want to make a phone call, if you need to call up the phone number from your phone right now, copy it on paper, I can help." ”

William shook his head indifferently, he had been working for Senator Ryan for three summers, and of course he could memorize the personal phone number that went directly to the congressman's office, even more familiar than the phone at home.

The thought of Senator Ryan gave him another glimmer of hope.

He used to be a respected lawyer and had a wide network of contacts in the legal profession, and as long as he was willing to move his little fingers, he would be safe.

The black policeman led him up to the third floor, and William tried not to squint as much as he could, not wanting to make eye contact with the small cast-iron doors painted crimson on either side of the hallway, not wanting to look at the coded paint on them.

He tried to suppress his disgust and fear, telling himself over and over again: I must find a way to get out of this hellish place and go back to school!

The black cop took William to the central hall on the third floor, which was apparently an activity area.

William noticed a row of phone booths against the wall, and he remembers seeing these old red phone booths with glass on the side of the main road when he was very young, but nowadays, with the spread of mobile phones and the Internet, this thing is almost extinct on the streets of the United States.

The policeman stopped, handed William a small denomination phone card, and said, "You can call here." ”

Unscrewing the dirty, greasy doorknob of the phone booth with three fingers, William walked in and closed the door, feeling a little lighter.

Taking a deep breath, he almost vomited with the pungent smell of urine, and was about to flee when he looked down at the thin little card in his hand, which was now the only link he had with to that free world.

He inserted the small card into a small silver mouth and dialed Senator Eric Ryan's office.

Drip – Drop –

He never imagined that one day he would call the councillor from prison, confined to this small, dirty space, and all he could see was the rusty iron sheet that had been peeled off after the red paint had been peeled.