Twins Trial

Charging Joseph with his crime was the last thing Jacob wanted to do. Betraying his brother was the ultimate break to their strong bond they had built over the past twenty-five years, and now everything was coming to an end as Judge Jacob Hinnings announced his twin brother guilty for the murder of an elderly man. Jacob refused to look into the sorrow of Joseph's eyes as he granted the news and the police officers dragged the struggling man away yelling "It's all broken!”
The case of Joseph Hinnings lasted far longer than necessary besides the fact that Jacob new his brother was in fact guilty he couldn't utter those words, not even alone would he dare speak the six-letter word. Born fraternal twins on June 19, 1980 Jacob and Joseph grew up as best friends who helped each other through the good and the bad and the time s where no one else would listen. The neighborhood children and their other schoolmates were continually jealous of the close bond they had always wishing they could be apart of the Hinnings family.
On the boys' tenth birthday Jacob made a promise to brother, "If anything ever happens to you Joe, you know I would never rat you out even if my life depended on it. We're brothers for life." Now, Jacob stares down at the mahogany desk in the courtroom tears rolling down his face as his brother's words echo inside his head "It's all broken!” He had failed why had this case come to him, why had his brother demanded on he being the Judge when it was perfectly clear he was guilty and there was no way Jacob could announce him innocent without losing his job. The fact that Joseph had done this to him had brought an imminent amount of anger and pain into his life; a pain felt deep within the heart moving it to the point where he could beg for it to be ripped out.
Jacob sat waiting for his cue to leave the courtroom, "All rise," said the strikingly handsome black policeman standing at the back of the courtroom wearing a crisp white shirt and police badge. Slowly without raising his head to view the filled courtroom Jacob turned to his right to disappear behind the door. Immediately inside his office he crumpled to the floor crying tears he had not felt in many years, knowing that because of his brothers’ actions and breaking the promise he made to him so many years ago his brother would die. Jacob cried until exhaustion swept over and silently he slept on the cold floor for hours until a knock at his office door awakened his senses.
"Judge Jacob?" Jacob recognized the voice to be that of the cop the man who works in the courtroom with him, "Judge Jacob, its Lionel." Jacob dusted his robe off and opened the door. Lionel was shocked but not surprised that Jacob's face was red and puffy his hair scraggled and his usual sharp black robe were now full of wrinkles.
"Judge Jacob, I am here to give you a message from Officer Jules," Lionel paused not sure if he should await the Judges response or to simply continue the judge nodded his head as affirmation to continue, "Officer Jules says that Joseph wishes to speak with you one last time and you are to meet him at the prison."
"Thank You." Jacob muttered.
Lionel left without another word, Judge Jacob slipped off his robe and put on his extra pair of clothing, jeans and a white polo shirt and began his journey to the prison.
Once inside Officer Jules immediately escorted him without a word into a room with one-sided window so those on the other side could watch and listen to the conversation and interfere if things became dangerous. Jacob saw his brother sitting on the other side sporting a bright orange jumpsuit while his hands were cuffed behind the chair he was sitting. With a nod Jacob entered the room.
Joseph did not look up at him, another tear slid down Jacob's face. Seeing his brother in such a condition was just as painful as sentencing him to his death. Jacob sat down into the chair across the table from his distraught brother when finally his brother looked up. Joseph's piercing blue eyes stared deep into his equally blue eyes. Everything that needed to be said was told inside of eyes.
"Brother," Joseph began with the same still face, "I should not have demanded you declare my sentence. I should have known you are not the kind to help out your own blood. You had the power to release me, to save me from my death. Don't you know that I am innocent?"
"Joe -”
"You no longer may call me Joe."
"Joseph, you stabbed an old man in his sleep, our grandfather," Jacob's teeth began to grit with anger, "Do not tell me you are innocent when all evidence leads to you."
"Do you remember your promise?" Jacob did not utter a reply, only looked away, "'No matter what happens' you said, 'I will NEVER rat you out'. Well, now I know who you really are. A dirty liar and I feel no pain to tell you I you are not my brother you are a simple man who deserves to die more than I." After a moment Jacob looked back into the deep eyes, eyes that once laughed once cried and once loved. Now, as he looked into Joseph's eyes he saw hate, he saw a murderer.
Jacob stood up, never once unlocking the gaze he and his brother shared, "You know what you have done. You knew what I had to do; eventually you would have paid for your actions. But I will always love you brother, and I am sorry that you made a terrible mistake. Enjoy hell."
On the night of October 8 Joseph was sentenced to his final breath. Jacob sat on the highest hills away from all the surroundings of life as the sun set to an orange glow and ultimately into a deafening black darkness.