She Used Me for a Dare… Now I Own Her Mother

Chapter 90: Questions Without Answers

”Where exactly is the evidence, Mr. Pierce?”

Miranda stood from her seat with the fluid grace of someone who had spent years commanding courtrooms and academic panels.

Her movement was so deliberate, so confident, that the entire chamber seemed to shift its attention to her like iron filings drawn to a magnet.

Pierce blinked, clearly caught off-guard by the directness of her challenge.

”Evidence? Dr. Whitman, we’ve presented... ”

”Have you?” Miranda’s interruption was seamless, professional, devastating.

”Because from where I sit, you’ve wasted considerable time on emotional speeches. Attempted to manipulate them into confessing to crimes they maintain they never committed. You even threatened them.”

She moved from behind the panel table, positioning herself where she could address both Pierce and the other panel members.

”But actual evidence? Concrete proof of these alleged assaults? I’m still waiting.”

Pierce’s face flushed slightly, but he rallied with the practiced authority of decades in administration.

”Are you suggesting all of this is fabricated, Dr. Whitman?”

His voice rose with apparent incredulity, gesturing toward William and Brad.

”Are you claiming these injuries are somehow staged? That these young men inflicted such trauma upon themselves?”

His tone carried wounded disbelief, as if Miranda’s questions were an assault on the victims rather than legitimate procedural inquiry.

”Oh, no... no.” Miranda’s voice softened immediately, carrying genuine concern.

”I’m not denying their injuries exist. Quite the contrary... I’m deeply sympathetic to what they’ve endured.”

She turned toward William and Brad, her expression showing authentic care.

”These young men have clearly suffered significant trauma. The medical evidence is undeniable on that point.”

Her voice carried the professional sympathy of someone who had seen real victims and understood their pain.

”My concern is not with the reality of their injuries, Mr. Pierce. My concern is with the complete absence of evidence connecting these injuries to the students you’ve accused.”

Miranda’s tone became more pointed, more focused.

She gestured toward William and Brad.

”Mr. Thompson, you testified that your attackers broke car windows during this assault, correct?”

”Y...Yes,” William replied weakly, his voice barely audible.

”And this occurred in a campus parking lot with multiple vehicles and clear lines of sight?”

”Yes.”

Miranda’s voice grew stronger, more confident.

”Well then, we are fortunate, aren’t we? That parking lot is equipped with CCTV surveillance.”

”Which means the assault, if it happened as described, would be on record... every moment of it. Footage that could identify the perpetrators in minutes and allow us to deliver a fair judgment.”

Her eyes swept the room, then returned to Pierce with a blade-like precision.

”So why, Mr. Pierce... after your passionate speeches and repeated appeals to emotion, have we not seen a single frame of this supposed evidence?”

The chamber grew still. Panelists straightened in their seats, their gazes locking on Pierce.

Even the audience leaned in, attentive. William and Brad shifted uneasily, while every eye now waited for his answer.

Pierce’s jaw tightened, but his voice remained controlled, carrying just the right note of administrative frustration.

”Dr. Whitman, as I’ve already informed this panel, the campus surveillance system has been non-operational for the past three days due to equipment malfunction.”

He shrugged slightly, as if this were merely an unfortunate coincidence beyond his control.

”Our facilities management team has been working around the clock to restore functionality, but these systems are complex. The timing is regrettable, but hardly unprecedented.”

”Oh my, ” Miranda’s voice carried a note of mock surprise that barely concealed her skepticism.

”How remarkably convenient. The entire surveillance system fails just one day before this alleged assault occurs.”

Pierce’s voice sharpened with defensive authority.

”What exactly are you implying, Dr. Whitman?”

Miranda’s response was light, almost playful, but with steel underneath.

”Oh, I’m not implying anything at all, Mr. Pierce. Merely observing the rather fortuitous timing of this technical failure.”

She paused, allowing the implications to settle before continuing with renewed focus.

Before she could speak again, Alaric Langford, Vice President for Administrative Affairs, cleared his throat. He leaned slightly forward, his expression calm but deliberate.

”For the record,” Langford said, his voice measured, ”as the administrator responsible for facilities oversight, I can confirm that I reviewed the systems report myself. The surveillance grid did experience downtime due to a hardware fault. Our technicians verified it, and the repair logs are on file.”

He folded his hands neatly on the table, his tone seeking to close the matter rather than fan suspicion.

”The failure was unfortunate, yes, but not fabricated. I take full responsibility for the oversight, and I assure this panel it was a matter of technical malfunction, nothing more.”

A murmur rippled through the room... his statement offered reassurance on the surface, but the weight of his personal responsibility only deepened the tension.

”Very well,” she said evenly. ”Let us set aside the surveillance issue for the moment and turn our attention to other aspects of this incident.”

Miranda turned her attention back to the heart of the matter.

”Mr. Thompson, Mr. Martinez, this assault allegedly occurred in a busy campus parking area during morning hours when students and faculty arrive for classes.”

Her voice carried genuine curiosity rather than accusation.

”Surely someone else witnessed this extended altercation? Ten minutes of violence with weapons and property damage... that would certainly attract attention.”

The silence stretched uncomfortably. William and Brad exchanged uncertain glances, but neither offered a response.

Miranda waited, allowing the silence to emphasize the absence of corroborating witnesses.

”No one saw anything? No one heard the commotion? No one reported suspicious activity.”

Again, silence.

”How remarkably isolating this assault must have been, despite occurring in such a public location.”

Miranda moved to her table and retrieved a folder of photographs.

”Mr. Pierce, you’ve submitted photographs of property damage... specifically, the vehicles belonging to William and Brad, with their windows broken.”

She held up the photos for the panel to see.

”But I’m curious about something. In these images of the alleged assault scene, I don’t observe any glass fragments on the ground.”

Pierce responded quickly, his tone carrying reasonable explanation.

”Obviously, the area was cleaned immediately to prevent injury to other students. Broken glass poses a significant safety hazard.”

Miranda nodded thoughtfully.

”Absolutely logical. Safety must always be our priority.”

She paused, consulting her notes.

”But surely photographs were taken of the scene before this cleanup occurred? Documentation of evidence before its removal would be standard procedure for such a serious incident.”

Pierce’s response came too quickly, suggesting he’d anticipated this line of questioning.

”The immediate priority was student safety and medical care for the victims. Documentation was secondary to human welfare.”

Miranda’s smile was gentle but pointed.

”Of course. Though I notice you’re answering questions I directed to the victims themselves.”

She turned back to William and Brad.

”Gentlemen, were you present when these scene photographs were taken? Did security or administration document the area before cleanup?”

William shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

”I... we were being treated for our injuries. I don’t know about photographs.”

”Naturally,” Miranda replied with understanding sympathy.

”Medical care would certainly take priority over documentation.”

She looked back at Pierce.

”So we have no surveillance footage due to equipment failure. No witness testimony despite a public location. No scene documentation before evidence removal.”

Her voice remained professional, but the implications were devastating.

”This presents certain... challenges in establishing the facts of this case.”

The other panel members began shifting uncomfortably in their seats.

Dr. Brennan frowned as he reviewed his notes. Dr. Carlisle exchanged a meaningful glance with Mr. Langford.

The systematic absence of evidence was becoming impossible to ignore.

Pierce’s confidence was visibly wavering, but he maintained his authoritative demeanor.

”Dr. Whitman, these procedural questions don’t change the fundamental reality. We have victims with severe injuries and clear testimony about their attackers.”

”Ah yes,” Miranda said, her voice carrying renewed focus as she turned her attention to the cafeteria witness.

”That testimony does indeed deserve the most careful examination possible.”

Her slight smile suggested she was just getting started with her systematic demolition of Pierce’s case.