Shifting Grounds
Amber arrived early that morning, hoping for stillness before the court filled with voices and judgment. The corridor outside the courtroom was eerily quiet. But as she approached the wooden door, she noticed a folded piece of paper taped discreetly to the frame. Her name scrawled across it.
She unfolded it with trembling hands.
You cannot save him. You cannot save yourself. Speak carefully, or you will burn.
Amber’s pulse hammered. She crushed the note into her palm, sliding it into her pocket as hurried footsteps echoed behind her. It was Ernie Cabello, his brows furrowed.
“You look pale,” Ernie said, studying her. “What happened.”
“Nothing,” Amber lied quickly.
Ernie leaned closer, lowering his voice. “I heard talk from one of the clerks. Someone has been leaking things about you. About your past. About your… closeness to Harry.”
Amber stiffened. “That is impossible.”
“Is it,” Ernie pressed. “Razel Ann del Prado has been sniffing around. She will twist anything into a headline. You have to protect yourself.”
Amber’s jaw tightened. She whispered, almost to herself, “But what if it is already too late.”
The courtroom stirred to life as people shuffled in. Judge Jennifer Capiña entered with her usual quiet authority. Atty. Fortun adjusted his glasses, scanning papers at his table, every movement sharp and deliberate. Harry was escorted in, his wrists bound, yet his gaze found Amber instantly.
The air between them pulsed, invisible yet undeniable.
Shadows of Betrayal
The clerk called the next witness. Annie Dalisay strode to the stand, her heels clicking like a metronome of intent. She adjusted her blazer, lifted her chin, and gave Amber a fleeting look that dripped with unspoken malice.
Atty. Fortun began. “Miss Dalisay, please confirm for the record: you testified that you saw Mr. Harry Bolaños leaving the vicinity of the warehouse on the night of the incident.”
“Yes, that is correct,” Annie said.
“And you are absolutely certain of his identity.”
“Yes,” she replied, steady as steel.
Fortun’s eyes narrowed. “Yet records show you were engaged in other activities that night. Activities that may compromise your credibility. Would you like to explain.”
A ripple of murmurs moved through the gallery.
Annie’s composure cracked for a moment, then smoothed. “I was near the warehouse. I saw what I saw. That does not change.”
Amber’s chest tightened. She knew Annie was hiding something, but revealing it would expose her own knowledge, her own secrets.
Fortun pressed further. “Miss Dalisay, do you have any prior connection with the Bolaños family.”
“No,” Annie replied sharply.
Celso, seated quietly at the back, shifted forward, his jaw clenching. Amber noticed, her stomach twisting with unease.
Judge Capiña’s voice rang out. “Answer carefully, Miss Dalisay. Perjury is not tolerated here.”
Annie’s lip twitched, but she held firm. “I have no connection.”
Later, during recess, Razel cornered Amber again, her recorder in hand.
“You see what is happening,” Razel said with a sly smile. “Alliances cracking. Lies slipping through. People are going to want your side of this soon. And trust me, Amber, silence will not save you.”
Amber’s eyes hardened. “And what will save me. Telling you everything so you can tear it apart.”
Razel’s smile only widened. “Perhaps. Or perhaps you should wonder who slipped me your letters.”
Amber froze. “What letters.”
Razel leaned close. “The ones you never sent but never destroyed. The ones you wrote when you could not contain yourself anymore.”
Amber’s blood turned cold. “That is impossible.”
Razel tapped her recorder, her voice dropping into a whisper. “Nothing is impossible when shadows are watching.”
Back inside, the prosecutor recalled Amber to the stand. Her hands shook as she took the oath again. She avoided Harry’s gaze, though she felt it burning into her.
Atty. Fortun’s tone was surgical. “Miss Gatmaitan, you testified earlier that you did not see Mr. Bolaños directly at the scene, only near it. Do you stand by that testimony.”
Amber nodded, voice fragile. “Yes.”
“And yet, you have been seen lingering in his presence, exchanging glances that betray more than neutrality. Would you care to explain why.”
Amber’s throat constricted. “Professional courtesy,” she whispered.
“Professional,” Fortun echoed, his brow arching. “Or personal.”
“Objection,” Harry’s defense lawyer snapped.
“Sustained,” Judge Capiña ruled, her eyes sharp on Amber. “Mr. Fortun, stay within relevance.”
But the damage was done. The gallery buzzed with whispers. Amber’s cheeks burned, shame and desire tangled in her veins.
The Weight of Desire
Court adjourned at dusk. Amber slipped out, heart heavy, only to find Harry waiting in the transfer hall, guards distracted.
For a moment, the world fell away.
“You should not have to bear this alone,” Harry murmured, his voice hushed but urgent.
Amber shook her head, tears stinging. “Do not say that. Do not give me hope.”
“Then let me give you truth,” Harry said, stepping closer, shadows cloaking them. “I did not kill him. I swear it. But if you keep looking at me the way you do, they will crucify you too.”
Amber’s voice broke. “Then what am I supposed to do.”
His eyes burned into hers. “Decide whether you want to live in their truth or ours.”
Her breath caught. The guards called his name, dragging him back into the world of chains. But Amber stood frozen, trembling, knowing the abyss was opening wider, and she was already falling.
That night, Amber found another note slipped under her door.
Someone close to you has betrayed you. Trust no one. Not even yourself.
Her hand shook as she read it again and again. The shadows were closing in, and she could not tell whether they belonged to her enemies or to her own heart.
The cost of her desire was no longer a question. It was a debt already waiting to be paid.
ns216.73.216.122da2
and then Add to home screen.