When Rachel heard me say that, she let out a cold laugh.

"Defendant, is your son some kind of irresistible catch? Does my client, Daisy, have nothing better to do than rush to ruin her own purity just to frame him?"

Daisy immediately echoed her. "I really did see Lucas. When I was heading to tutoring, I happened to see him coming out of his apartment. We took the elevator down together. He told me his name was Lucas Cole and that he was a newly moved-in neighbor."

Fiona pointed at me and screamed, "Mrs. Cole, do not think that stirring up trouble here will get your son off the hook! Daisy saw him with her own eyes. She even knows his name. Stop trying to argue your way out of this!"

Watching the two of them sing in perfect unison, I found it laughable.

Daisy spoke with such absolute certainty because the hallway and the rooftop terrace were blind spots in the surveillance system.

It was precisely because those areas were not covered by cameras that the Harpers dared to fabricate lies so brazenly.

I did not continue arguing with them. Instead, I turned to the judge.

"Your Honor, the plaintiff's testimony contains numerous contradictions and points of doubt. It is entirely insufficient to establish that my son, Lucas Cole, committed any assault."

When Fiona saw the judge nod in agreement, she panicked. She shot up from her seat and roared, "Contradictions? Doubts? Mrs. Cole, stop trying to confuse everyone here! Every single word my daughter said is the truth. The injuries on her body are evidence!"

I smiled. "You think you can convict my son based on a few words alone? The law is not something you can fool."

My words made Fiona's face flush red with rage, and Daisy looked like she was on the verge of fainting from crying.

The people in the jury gallery thought I was being deliberately unreasonable, and their criticism grew even louder.

"This woman is completely impossible. Even now, she is still splitting hairs!"

"Why wasn't her own child the one who got assaulted?!"

"If the mother is this cheap, then of course the son is an animal!"

One voice after another, they tried to force me into submission with their outrage.

I straightened my back and swept my gaze coldly across the spectators. "Everyone, the truth has not yet been determined. Do not let yourselves be used as weapons."

They knew nothing about the real facts. They were merely venting their so-called sense of justice. It was foolish.

They choked on my words for a moment, then someone immediately shot back, "Used as weapons? It is obvious your son did something terrible and is still trying to argue his way out!"

"Exactly. Daisy is just a young girl. How could she joke about something like this!"

Seeing that people were siding with her, Fiona grew even more confident. She shot me a sinister glance, a trace of smugness flashing through her eyes.

"Mrs. Cole, did you not keep saying the evidence is insufficient? Then open your eyes wide and take a good look now. I would love to see how you keep arguing once the evidence is right in front of you."

After she spoke, she exchanged a look with Rachel, who immediately took out a document and displayed it publicly.

"The document I am holding is proof that bodily fluid belonging to the defendant, Lucas Cole, was extracted from my client, Daisy Harper."

Those words exploded through the courtroom like a thunderclap.

Every gaze snapped toward the so-called report, including mine.

Rachel held the document high in the air, her posture triumphant, as if she had already won. "This report shows that DNA highly matching the defendant’s son was detected on Ms. Daisy’s intimate clothing and relevant areas of her body.

"Mrs. Cole, the evidence is overwhelming. What do you have left to say now?"

I looked at the test report she was holding up, my expression completely calm. I never imagined Fiona would go this far to fabricate evidence.

I rose slowly to my feet, my eyes sweeping over the Harpers and their lawyer, who clearly thought victory was already secured. My voice was steady, firm, leaving no room for doubt.

"The report is fake. I don't believe it."

"Fake?" Rachel reacted as if she had just heard the biggest joke of her life. She handed copies of the report to Judge Alex Brooks and the jury. "Mrs. Cole, this report was issued by the municipal hospital and bears its official seal. It has legal validity. You say it is fake, so it is fake?"

Daisy lifted her head to look at me. The tears on her face had not even dried, yet her eyes brimmed with resentment.

"Mrs. Cole, you refuse to acknowledge my testimony. Now you refuse to acknowledge a hospital report, too. How can you be this shameless? Are you really trying to force me to my death?"

As she spoke, she began smashing her head wildly against the corner of the table. The dull thuds echoed through the courtroom.

Fiona was terrified out of her mind. She screamed and rushed forward, wrapping her arms around her daughter. "Daisy, don't do anything stupid! If anything happens to you, how am I supposed to live?"

Seeing this, Judge Brooks immediately ordered people to intervene, the gavel slamming down again and again.

"Plaintiff, control your emotions. Do not engage in extreme behavior. No matter what, the law will give you an explanation."

Only then did Daisy gradually calm down.

Fiona held her daughter tightly, her eyes fixed on me with venomous hatred. "Mrs. Cole, if your son does not plead guilty today, I will die right in front of you. Even as a ghost, I will not let you or your son go!"

The spectators erupted, echoing her fury, wishing my son could be executed on the spot.

"This makes me furious. That animal must get the death penalty. Look at what he has done to this mother and daughter!"

"The DNA matches, and they are still denying it? This family truly has no shame!"

"A mother shielding an animal like that should go to prison with him!"

The noise went on and on.

Rachel spoke again, her tone righteous and imposing, "Mrs. Cole, the law will not let any criminal escape. Your son must pay the price for assaulting my client."

Everyone waited for the verdict that was about to fall on my son—and on me.

Judge Brooks cleared his throat and turned to me for the final inquiry. "Defendant, regarding the DNA test report provided by the plaintiff and Ms. Daisy’s testimony, do you have any further objections you wish to state?"

I met Judge Brooks’ gaze and answered slowly, clearly, one word at a time, "Your Honor, my evidence is my son. I request that my son be summoned to testify in court."

The gavel struck.

"Summon the defendant’s son to appear in court."

The courtroom doors slowly opened.

Every pair of eyes locked onto the entrance. Fiona and Daisy stared without blinking, as if ready to tear the animal who had ruined Daisy apart with their bare hands.

However, the moment my son walked into the courtroom—

Everyone froze.

Because my son was, in fact, biologically an animal.