Life was beginning to get back to normal, well as normal as life could ever be after that fateful night in December. The house no longer felt like home, not since Brooklyn left, not since it was violated by Sam's father, not since Louis was touched by [i]him[/i]. Sam thought he would never leave this house, their first home together, but after the events of that day he realised they were only bricks and mortar and it was down to Sam and Louis to shape their own future together. Brooklyn would always be with them in their hearts and in his memory. Whether they were here or elsewhere his love for Brooklyn would never change. He'd been horrified by what he'd learnt about his Dad. He'd raped Brooklyn's mother - a woman who treated him like a mother when he and Brooklyn were growing up. He raped his own mother until she finally stood up to him and his violence. How Sam didn't know this was going on he never knew but then again he cut himself some slack - he was just a boy. He'd also learnt that Dad was a thief and a drug dealer, by now a hardened criminal. All his childhood memories were now tarnished by this knowledge. And even after all this, there was something darker, much darker. Sam was convinced that his father had killed Brooklyn, he could only guess at the motive but it seemed to relate to Autumn somehow. Whatever hatred thrived in his father's soul he was beyond redeemable to have killed another human being out of revenge. Sam could not comprehend this, yet alone imagine someone doing this to the mother of their grandchild and try to frame his own son, his own flesh and blood. Sam wanted to hate his father, but really hate was not enough. He knew he could never, ever forgive him and he wanted him to be punished but he knew that if he allowed himself to be controlled by hate he would fall into the same pit as his father. Sam no longer recognised that man as anything to do with him and tried his best to believe natural justice would be served. [hr] The day of the trial arrived. Part of Sam didn't want to go. Let justice take it's own path. Brooklyn couldn't be brought back, and he knew his father would be jailed for a long, long time. He didn't need to know.... Sam breathed in deeply as he played with Louis. He owed it to everyone to attend. To Ella who suffered horribly at his hands, for Autumn and Rick - Autumn had chosen not to press charges for the rape a generation ago, not wishing to have her own past under scrutiny of an unfeeling defence lawyer. For Patty, his own mother who suffered alone, not knowing the man she married was a monster. But most of all for Brooklyn - an angel who deserved only the best in life, who never hurt a single person, who was pure love in a bottle. Sam needed to stare the person who killed his dear fiancée and look him in the eye before freedom was taken away forever. [hr] "Mr Harvey Hanson, how do you plead on the charges of 'Assault causing bodily harm of Ella Smith'?" [i]"Not guilty,"[/i] snarled Sam's Dad. "on the charge of 'Child Endangerment of Louis Hanson' how do you plead?" [i]"Not guilty,"[/i] exclaimed the defendant, [i]"as if I'd hurt the boy!"[/i] "Ahem, on the charge of the 'Murder of Miss Brooklyn Jones on the night of December 17th' how do you plead?" Harvey paused, scanned the public gallery before stopping when he saw his son. He stared at his son for a long moment, not breaking his gaze. "Mr Hanson..." [i]"Not Guilty,"[/i] he said, never taking his eyes off his son, his glare burning into his boy with a fire of malevolent evil.