Court Out - By Elle Wynne Page 0,111

pointing at Serena who appears to have lost the battle with her dress and is now sitting where she fell, staring at the ground. “This woman,” continues Lucinda “Is not who you think she is. She is not the perfect fiancée, the perfect barrister, the perfect friend. She is a cheat, a liar and a criminal!”

Stunned silence meets this revelation. Someone a few rows behind me stands up. “Now look here!” intones the male in a deep baritone “You’ve got your wires crossed! It’s not the bride who is the criminal, it’s one of the bridesmaids. Or at least she was supposed to be a bridesmaid...” He tails off and I resist the urge to clamber over the rows of seats and give him a hard kick.

Lucinda rolls her eyes. “God, you lot are so pathetic. You’d believe anything she told you.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see that Serena’s father is inching his way towards the lectern, but to my amazement, Ewan holds up a hand.

“Let her finish,” he instructs, in a deep, commanding voice that I’d never usually associate with him.

Serena’s father looks confused, as I suspect I do, but halts and waits for further instructions.

“My fiancé was arrested this morning,” continues Lucinda. “The police came in and dragged him out of the house. I would say they dragged him out of bed,” at this, she gives a sinister laugh, “But he was sleeping on the sofa. You see, I found out that he has been screwing our blushing bride.”

She pauses for effect. It works. All hell seems to break loose. The guests begin to talk loudly between themselves, Serena’s parents look like they are going to pass out and Ewan’s mother has started to cry. Ewan remains fixed to the spot, eyes darting between Lucinda and Serena. The latter hasn’t moved a muscle. She is leaning forwards, hands on the ground in front of her torso, head down. She looks like she is taking part in an Avant-garde production of Swan Lake.

Amidst the chaos Lucinda starts to bang on the lectern.

“Oh if you think that’s the best bit, there is more!”

The silence is immediate. People take their seats. Lucinda looks like she is about to deliver her Oscar acceptance speech.

“So, my fiancé was arrested. I expect you want to know why! I can see you ‘re thinking ‘Well, it obviously wasn’t because he was shagging the bride!’ Well it’s worse than that I’m afraid. You see, my two-timing, good-for-nothing fiancé has always done anything he can to further his pitiful career. You all heard about the Hobbs trial? Well he was involved in defending that, as was Serena.” She points at Serena who is still motionless on the ground.

“I don’t know whether it was his idea or if the order came from on high, personally, I think he was paid to do it, but nevertheless, he was told that Hobbs had to get off, at any cost. So how did he do it? Well, as some insensitive prick has already commented, you all think Lauren tried to bribe a juror!”

There is a deathly pause and I can feel everyone’s eyes on me.

“Wrong!” she exclaims, in a loud, satisfied tone, making me jump. “They set her up. My darling fiancé and the backstabbing bride set her up. They planted the evidence on her and set her up.”

I can feel hot tears running down my face. I’m not sure how Lucinda knows all this, but if she does, it means DC Connelly believes me.

“But here’s the kicker Serena. I spoke to him at the police station before coming here. He. Used. You. You’re not the first slag he’s cheated on me with. He only needed you to get to Lauren!”

There’s a long, deathly pause. Everyone is looking at Serena. After what seems like an age, she lets out a long, guttural wail that turns into a howl of rage. Her face is red and I can’t tell from her expression whether she is distraught or furious. I think it’s an equal mixture of both. She clambers to her feet and turns to face Lucinda.

“You lying bitch! He told me he loved me, that he was only with you because of your money and connections. He never used me, if anything, he’s been using you for years!”

To my surprise and I suspect to the surprise of everyone in the room, Lucinda nods.

“Yes. He has. I’ve stood by him over the years as he’s cheated and used me