Convicts usually served out a shorter term on Abaddon than they would on Earth, but some of the jobs were beyond dangerous. A lot of them didn’t survive their term, no matter how short it was.

“Defense, how do you plead?” the judge asked.

“Not guilty, Your Honor. Mr. Murtagh placed his hands on Ms. Martinez’s person and inside her underwear, which—as Your Honor knows—is sexual assault by Mr. Murtagh.”

I went cold at my lawyer’s words. Yes, it was sexual assault, but was it wise to point fingers at Jason right now?

“She was protecting herself from the unwanted advances of Mr. Murtagh, the initiating party. Her actions should, therefore, be ruled as self-defense. We have witnesses—”

The shiny lawyer stood up. “Your Honor, these witnesses’ backgrounds are not—”

Mr. Waterson shot out of his chair. “Objection!”

The lawyers started arguing back and forth—each turning red in the face—but I had my eyes on the judge. He wasn’t listening to either of them. He was too busy rifling through a bag of candy, searching for the right flavor.

This was a full-on farce. My anger was ramping up, and I was doing my best to keep it from showing on my skin, but it was hard—a real struggle—as I watched the judge ignore everything being said. Every argument went unheard.

The judge pulled out a neon green one.

Green apple? That was the worst. This man was the worst.

After he carefully unwrapped the candy and popped it into his mouth, the judge banged his gavel three times. With each slam, I jerked in my seat. The sound was too final. My heart started hammering in my chest as I waited to hear what was going to come next. I spared a quick glance at Declan, but he was leaning forward, staring hard at the judge. His white-knuckled grip on the arms of his chair showed me that he was just as anxious as I was.

“I’ve heard enough. I find in favor of the prosecution. Guilty as charged.”

My breath came in quick pants.

“The Court finds the Prosecution’s request as to sentencing appropriate. One year at the work camp at Base STC-498, also known as the Abaddon Station.”

The room spun, and I put my head between my knees. No. No. Fucking no. This had to be a mistake.

I lifted up just a bit and glanced over to Declan, begging him to do something, but he gave me a small shake of his head.

I was so screwed. If there was one thing worse than signing up for those suicidal lucole mining runs on Abaddon, it was being sent to work off a prison sentence there.

Going to Abaddon was always the worst option. How was I going to get out of this?