Day 126: The Court Case

Should be Day 162.

I'm back to my prompts! "Write a short story using this phrase:  More wicked then Samaria and Sodom."

The victim sat quivering in the witness stand.  Her eyes were lowered, and the judge had to continually ask her to speak louder so all the jurors in the room could hear her.  The girl fiddled with her hair as she recounted the story about how the accused had seemed so charming and generous.  He had allowed her to stay in his spare bedroom when she had nowhere else to live.  He gave her money until she had found a job.  She had felt safe.  As time went on, he became, as she put it, "more wicked than Samaria and Sodom."  He wouldn't allow her to go out with any other man, much less be alone with one for more than a minute.  He gave her a curfew and called her often.  He lost his temper often with her, and she had been afraid he would snap and beat her one day.  She lamented over not leaving his apartment when she had the chance.  The night he had stolen her money and bank account information the first time, she had been so tired that she not hear him rifle through her purse.  Once he regulated her pay checks, she couldn't leave. 

The defense attorney, after some brief cross-examining questions, called the defendant to the stand.  The victim was right; his eyes were captivating and sincere.  He seemed confidant without even trying.  The defense attorney asked him to give his side of the story.  The defendant took a deep breath, stared straight into the eyes of the jury, the audience, the attorneys, and even the judge, and recalled how he first met the victim.  She was a seventeen-year-old runaway who claimed to come from an abusive home.  He pitied her and took her in.  He left her alone while he was at work and welcomed her to anything in his home.  After seeing that she refused to go home and wouldn't share where she had come from, he thought she should at least get a job until she saved enough money to move out.  He grew worried for her safety and well-being when he saw the type of people her co-workers were and how her behavior became more irresponsible, such as arriving back at late hours and perhaps drunk.  Since she was still a minor, he felt that stepping in was his only way of protecting her.  He admitted to losing her temper sometimes because his patience had given way, but he solemnly said he would never hurt her.

So, is he "more wicked then Samaria and Sodom" or misunderstood?