Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Gavin, just plead guilty," my mother pleaded, blinking back theatrical tears. "Mom and Dad just want to keep you on the right path. It's only ten years. Once you've paid your debt to society, we'll be waiting at home for you."

In my past life, her crocodile tears would have melted my resolve, and I would have done exactly what she asked.

Hearing those exact words again now only made my stomach churn with disgust.

"Gavin, please stop being so stubborn," Landon chimed in earnestly. "Mom and Dad have always loved you more than me. You broke their hearts. Just confess and make things right."

They were cornering me in public, putting on a show to make me look like an ungrateful villain.

The surrounding relatives immediately began whispering and pointing fingers.

"What a waste of breath raising a son like that! We all watched his parents treat him like gold when he was little, protecting him from every bump and scratch, yet he turns around and bites the hand that fed him."

"Seriously! I used to think Gavin was more dependable than Landon. This is just sickening. It makes you never want to have kids if the favored oldest child turns out to be such a snake."

One furious aunt even ripped off her shoe and hurled it straight at my face, screaming hysterically.

"You monster! How dare you treat your parents like this? Aren't you afraid God will strike you down? If your parents won't discipline you, I'll do it for them!"

The shoe struck my temple with a sharp thud.

I closed my eyes briefly, refusing to dignify their circus with a response, and turned squarely to the bench.

"I have made my decision. Begin the trial."

The moment the words left my lips, a flicker of panic flashed across my parents' and Landon's faces.

My mother threw herself onto the floor, beating her chest and wailing at the top of her lungs. "Lord help me, what did I do to deserve this? The child I raised with all my heart is dragging us through a trial!"

I smirked inwardly. Had they not been the ones who filed the petition to begin with?

Did they really think a dutiful son was only someone who rolled over, confessed blindly, and hid from the truth?

I had already died like an idiot once, and I would not repeat my mistakes. I had repaid every ounce of debt I owed them; all they ever gave me in return was cold calculation.

The Presiding Judge slammed the gavel down. "Order in the court!"

My mother tried to keep screaming, but the security bailiffs promptly pinned her back into her seat.

"The trial will now commence. For each charge presented by the plaintiffs, the defendant's memories will be extracted and evaluated. Any party with objections may submit a formal appeal after the verdict."

With a sharp metallic click, thick metal bars rose around my defendant pod, surging with high-voltage currents.

Memory extraction was an excruciating process that battered both mind and body. The second the neural probes clamped onto my temples, raw voltage surged through my veins, drenching me in cold sweat.

Yet I did not flinch for a single second.

Compared to dying slowly in prison, hacking up blood with lungs that rattled like broken bellows while agonizing pain racked my body, this minor physical shock was nothing.

Fueled by burning vengeance, I gritted my teeth through the blinding agony.

The colossal monitor lit up with a live feed, drawing millions of online viewers within seconds. I knew they were waiting with bated breath, eager to tear me to shreds in the comments.

That suited my plans perfectly. Without a crowd of witnesses, how else could I rip away this family's saintly masks once and for all?