I didn't wake up on my own.
Cold water slammed into my face and chest, forcing the air out of my lungs. I gasped and coughed, chains clinking as I tried to sit up.
"Get up, murderer," a guard barked.
My vision was blurry. My head felt like it had been split open. Pain throbbed at the back of my skull where they had struck me.
"What…?" My voice sounded weak even to me.
"You've been unconscious for a whole day," he said impatiently. "And today is your trial."
My trial?
I barely had time to think before they dragged me out. The chains around my wrists scraped my skin raw as they forced me through the streets.
People gathered quickly.
Whispers followed me.
"Murderer."
"Thief."
"Look at him."
I didn't understand anything.
Not yet.
But soon I stood before the judge.
He sat high above everyone else, wearing robes so clean and heavy they looked like they had never touched dirt in their entire life.
He stared down at me like I was already guilty.
"Andre Leonardo," he announced. "You have been accused of theft. Is this true?"
My head dropped.
Shame burned through me.
"Yes," I said quietly. "It's true."
A murmur spread through the crowd.
But the judge wasn't finished.
"And you are also accused of the murder of two people," he continued calmly. "Your mother… and your younger brother."
My head snapped up.
"What?"
The world seemed to tilt.
My heart slammed violently in my chest.
Then the memories came crashing back all at once.
Mama lying still.
The marks on her neck.
Pedro falling.
The blood on the floor.
My chest tightened so badly I thought I might choke.
"How can you say that?!" I shouted, my voice cracking. "They were the only family I had! They were my life!"
The crowd erupted.
Not in sympathy.
In anger.
"How dare he shout!"
"He insults the court!"
"You see how shameless he is!"
"You all saw me!" I yelled desperately. "You saw me running through the streets begging for help! How blind can you all be?!"
The noise grew louder.
The judge slammed his staff against the floor.
"Silence!"
The room slowly quieted.
He looked at me coldly.
"Do you have any witnesses to defend you?"
My throat felt dry.
"No," I said.
"Then listen carefully," he replied. "Because there are three witnesses against you."
My stomach dropped.
"Two royal guards… and your best friend."
The guards stepped forward first.
They spoke with confidence.
With certainty.
They said they found me with the offering box. They said I resisted arrest violently. They even claimed that when they recovered the money, half of it was missing.
I stared at them in disbelief.
Lie after lie.
And no one questioned them.
Then he stepped forward.
Carlos.
My best friend.
He looked at me for a moment… and winced.
Then he turned toward the judge, his face suddenly full of sorrow.
"Do you swear to speak the truth and only the truth?" the judge asked.
Carlos wiped fake tears from his eyes.
"I do."
My fists clenched.
He began slowly.
"In the morning… Andre and his mother had a terrible fight," he said.
My heart pounded.
"He stormed out of the house. Hours later, he returned with the offering box."
The crowd leaned forward.
"His mother asked him where he got it," Carlos continued. "They started arguing… screaming."
He paused, lowering his head.
"And then… Andre lost control."
My vision turned red.
"He grabbed her by the neck… and choked her to death."
Gasps filled the courtroom.
My chains rattled as I struggled forward.
"You liar!"
But Carlos continued, voice trembling.
"His little brother tried to stop him…"
Carlos broke into loud sobs.
"And Andre killed him too."
The crowd erupted in outrage.
Something inside me exploded.
I tore forward, breaking free of the guards for a moment, chains clanging violently.
"You liar!" I roared. "I swear by the gods you will pay for this! You will pay with your life, Carlos! I swear it!"
Guards grabbed me again and forced me down.
Carlos looked at me with wide, fearful eyes.
"Do you want to kill me too?" he cried dramatically. "Just like you killed them? Do you want to silence me because I told the truth?"
The crowd roared again.
"Murderer!"
"Monster!"
"Stone him!"
The judge didn't hesitate.
"Andre Leonardo," he declared, his voice echoing across the court, "for the crimes of theft and the murder of your mother and brother, this court sentences you to death… by stoning."
Just like that.
My life was over.
They dragged me outside the city gates.
The crowd followed eagerly.
A circle formed.
Stones were already being picked up.
I was forced to my knees.
My hands were still chained.
Someone in the crowd lifted the first rock.
I closed my eyes.
So this is how it ends…
Then a voice cut through the air.
"STOP!"
The crowd froze.
"Nobody throws a stone at him."
I slowly opened my eyes.
Someone was stepping forward.