Chapter 23: Debating Incestuous Delights

July 23rd, 2027 – Elmer Bennett

The trial was over sooner than I thought. The defense rested abruptly. Something had gone wrong for their case. That sent a nervous slither through my guts. I wanted Clint and his family to win. I wanted incest to be accepted.

My daughter and wife were at home doing Lord knew what while I was here. And when I got home, Candy and Rachel would be eager to do things. We were in that heady stage of exploring the delights of our incestuous threesome. After coming closer and closer over the last two years, we had finally crossed the line and enjoyed it.

Now it was up to the jury to find Clint and his family not guilty. I didn’t know if that were possible. How long would this drag out. But I would fight for them and for incest. Despite my conviction, nervousness rippled through me. If I advocated too hard, would they think I was into family love? It was still taboo. Illegal.

I didn’t want to end up with my own trial.

“So, well, I guess we should take a quick vote and see where we stand?” I said as we all took our seats. The twelve of us sat around a table. “Who finds not guilty?”

I put my hand up. Delilah Midgley’s hand shot up right away. Then came Sandie, a motherly woman with brassy-brown hair. Dirk followed. He was the youngest person on the jury, barely in his twenties. Lyn added her hand, a plump woman. Mildred slowly raised her hand. Last, the grandmotherly woman, her hair a silver perm, held hers up.

“And who’s on the side of decency,” demanded Jonette Walsh. The Black woman thrust her hand into the air.

Cooper, a Black guy my age, raised his hand.

Jonette glared at the four jurors who didn’t put their hands up at all. Berta, a fierce-looking Hispanic woman, glared back at Jonette. An Asian woman named Ahn just shifted from side to side, not meeting Jonette’s gaze. Neither did Callahan. He was an old man, face wrinkled. Last was a round-faced, Hispanic woman named Marisela who had a pained expression.

“What is wrong with all of you?” hissed Jonette. “They admitted that they’re screwing each other. The DNA tests show they’re all related, not that they deny that, either. California Penal Code Section 285 says if you are over fourteen and have sex with a blood relation, you are guilty of incest! What is there to decide? Let’s vote guilty and get out of here!”

“Well, what if we gave them a lower charge,” Callahan said, his voice a little reedy with age.

Jonette shot him a fiery glare that deflated the old man. He shrank back. Then the Black woman swept her gaze at the rest of us. “Are any of you fucking your children? Huh? Is that why you don’t want to find Clint and his family guilty.”

I almost flinched against the accusation. Her eyes bored down at me. I ran into burning buildings for a living. I fought fires. Risked my life. I wouldn’t be intimidated by an angry woman. I faced her withering glare.

“They are consenting,” I grunted. “What does it matter if they’re related by blood? What’s the harm?”

“Inbreeding,” Jonette spat out. “They’ve already polluted the world with their incestuous progeny.”

“Birth control,” Dirk pointed out, a big grin on his boyish face.

“You’re just a pervert wanting to screw your own sister,” Jonette shot back at him.

Dirk shifted. “I don’t have one, but if I did...” A big grin spread on his lips. “Damn, it’d be hot. Clint is the man.”

Jonette snorted in disgust.

“It used to be illegal for interracial couples to marry,” I said, remembering the arguments that Clint’s lawyer made. “That was wrong. Our society changed. And we can all remember, except maybe Dirk, when gay and lesbian couples couldn’t marry. How is this any different? Why do our prejudices get to dictate how other people live. This is America.”

Cooper leaned back. The Black man had a thoughtful look on his face. “That’s a good point.”

“Don’t tell me you’re getting convinced,” groaned Jonette to the one ally she had fully on her side. “You can’t be an idiot. It’s not the same thing at all.”

“Isn’t it?” he asked. “A hundred years ago, it would be illegal for me to marry my wife. We’d be hated just for loving each other. Bigots used to think it was a crime against nature.”

“Bigot?” spluttered Jonette. “You think I’m a bigot because I’m disgusted by a guy screwing his sisters and his mother! And their mothers! It is a crime against nature!”

Cooper’s brow furrowed. “That’s the sort of talk that maintained miscegenation.”

“And denied gays and lesbians the right to marry,” added Lyn, the plump woman nodding her head.

“You can’t be convinced,” Jonette begged of Cooper. “It’s disgusting what they’re doing.”

“A lot of stuff is,” the Black man said and shrugged. “And? I don’t have to do it. You don’t have to do it.”

Jonette looked like someone had pissed in her drink. She glanced around the table, looking for support. She folded her arms across her chest, fury breaking over her ebony skin. She despised the Ellistons.

What did they do to her?

“I think he’s a good man,” Mildred said. The grandmotherly woman leaned back in her chair, a smile on her narrow lips. “I can see it in him. It just shines out of him.”

“Good man?” snarled Jonette. “He whips his sister. That’s abuse.”

“That’s BDSM,” Sandie said, looking offended. The motherly woman’s brassy-brown hair swept about her face. “My husband does that to me. It’s exciting. Hot even. He’s made my butt as red as those pictures of Leann.”

“It is hot,” Lyn added with this throaty purr. The black-haired woman leaned back in her chair, a large smile on her face. “Clint’s such a strong man.”

“I can’t believe he makes you wet,” Jonette hissed.

Lyn shrugged, a distant look in her eyes, a smile playing on her lips.

“And what about you. Berta.” Jonette turned to the fiery Hispanic woman. “Not like you to be silent about anything.”

Berta studied Jonette for a few moments then spoke, “Why are you so passionate against him? This seems personal to you? Any reason?”

Jonette snapped her jaw shut.

“Are we just being bigots by thinking its wrong,” Breta asked the others. “Are we just being the close-minded ones for thinking their relationship is fucked up?”

Yes,” said Callahan. The old man rubbed his hands. “I think we should find him not guilty. Let his entire family go free.”

Jonette’s cheek twitched while I couldn’t help grinning. They were on Clint’s side. The side of incest. This was amazing. Hope surged into me for a better future for California and the rest of the country. This state might be fucked up in so many other ways, but if we could lead the country in this one thing, it would be amazing.

“I found Pam’s testimony intriguing,” Marisela said, her Hispanic accent thick. “I would hate to destroy my relationship with my children. Pam’s words have made me think a lot about what I would do if I caught them together.”

Jonette glared at Marisela and asked her, “Would you accept it?”

“I would,” she said. “My brother came out as gay when I was ten, and my parents disowned him. It was horrible. Tore our family apart. If they had accepted him...” This pained look crossed her face. “It’s a shame. He’s a great guy. So what if he likes guys. I like guys. So, yes, I would accept my children if they wanted to love each other. I mean, my daughter could do far, far worse than my son.”

“If we’re all leaning to not guilty, then I’m with them,” Ahn said. The Asian woman had an exasperated look on her face. “Just vote not guilty, Jonette, so we can get out of here. Don’t make us spend days and days arguing over something futile. Read the room and let’s go home. I have better things to do than this.”

“No!” The word echoed through the room. Jonette fixed us all with hard looks. “I won’t. This is wrong. You’re all disgusting. He’s guilty, and that’s that. If we have to stay in this room until time ends and hell freezes over, then so be it.”

A loud groan ran through the room. I closed my eyes and then the arguing began. Wrangling. Shouting. Everyone was yelling at Jonette to change her mind, but she just stood there, weathering it like a strong bluff before the stormy seas, denying the waves crashing against her. Standing proud and defiant against the fury surging over her.

What would it take to convince her? I had no idea.

Delilah Midgley

Hours later, Jonette still wouldn’t budge. She had dug in. I had stayed mostly silent, thinking of just the right words to say. I had a feeling I understood Jonette. Little things she’d said. How she acted. It wasn’t something I could bring up in front of the others, though.

This had to be done with care. Jonette was a proud woman.

When we took a break for lunch, I acted. I came up to her and said, “Could we talk in private?”

She stared up at me with this calculating look in her eyes. The others were placing our lunch orders with the bailiff. Her nostrils flared then she gave a sharp nod and stood. We moved to the corner of the room.

“I’m not changing my mind,” she said, her words daggers.

“You caught your children, didn’t you?” I asked.

Her jaw tightened.

“I destroyed my relationship with my son. I threw him out of my house, and I’ve regretted it every day. I miss him. How close we used to be. It was dumb. I did it out of shame and anger. I was weak. I couldn’t face myself, so I overreacted. I lashed out and hurt him. Lord, I miss him so much. I want to take it back so bad. Don’t tell me you don’t miss your children.”

She gave me a flat look. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I do. I haven’t seen my son in two years. Thanks to this trial, I finally had the courage to call him and admit I was wrong, but he’s hurt. Wounded by what I did. I’m afraid I’ll never be able to repair it. That I won’t be in his life at all. Don’t make my mistake. If you can fix things, do it.”

Jonette’s expression didn’t change.

“Time is the most precious thing.” I stroked her arm. “We only have so much of it. Don’t we owe it to ourselves to make it pleasant? To reduce how much suffering we have to endure and how much we inflict on others? Especially those we care about it the most.” I gave her a supportive smile. “Don’t worry about this trial. The Ellistons. Just think about your children and if it’s really worth never seeing them. Hurting them. Hurting yourself. Okay?”

She didn’t say a word. I smiled at her and headed off to give my food order. I chatted with Lyn and Sandie while we waited. Jonette stayed in the corner the entire time. She stared at her phone.

When the food arrived, she didn’t move. No one went over to her. She just kept staring at her screen. I didn’t know why. She hid it well. I could see the pain, though. The regret that fueled that anger against Clint and his family. It wasn’t him she hated.

I sighed and grabbed my sandwich, hoping I could fix things with my son, Ian.

Clinton “Clint” Elliston III

“I just heard from the judge,” said Elisabet. She strode into the living room of our house. My family was here, all of us sitting around nervous. “The jury’s reached a verdict.”

“Already?” I asked, shocked. “The judge won’t let them be hung after a half-day of deliberation.”

She shrugged.

The trip back to the courthouse was a blur to me. A frightening, terrifying pit in my stomach that threatened to swallow me, all while I had to be strong for my women. They were all chatting, nervous, skittish even. They debated if it was a good sign or not. If we’d be ending the day in handcuffs again, only this time there would be no getting out of jail. We’d be held in custody until sentencing.

The media waited for us when we arrived. They were shouting questions. Swarming in on us, the vultures aching to feasted on our carcass. They’d heard the rumor that the jury had already reached a verdict. They wanted to know what we thought. We just kept walking through chaos to the courthouse doors.

We passed through the metal detectors and swept through the hallways to Judge Coburn’s courtroom. We slipped in and took our seats. Many members of our legal defense team were already assembled. Ed Thomas stood at the prosecutor’s table looking resolute, his expression stony. Cruzita sat beside him. She had a look of nervous dread on her face.

I felt bad that we were using her. It was serendipitous that she came into my sister’s massage parlor.

The judge swept in. The jury came in. The court recorder began typing at her stenographer machine. My heart tensed as the judge glanced at the jury. The foreman stood up. Juror 12. The bluff-faced man we had fought hard to get on the jury. He held a paper in his hand.

“What does the jury find?” Judge Coburn asked, looking intently.

“We the jury find the defendants Not Guilty of the Crime of Incest and all other Charges.”

For a moment, shocked silence filled the gallery. Ed Thomas sat stoically, his hands gripped tight. I swallowed, unable to believe it. Juror 17, Jonette Walsh, looked like a completely different woman. Her shoulders had sagged. She stared down at her hands. Her body shook. Was she crying?

Then my family burst into celebration as the judge said, “Case dismissed,” and slammed his gavel down with a thunderous rap.

I stood up, my legs shaky. Not guilty. It was like a dream come true. Our incestuous secret was out to the world, and we weren’t guilty of any crime. A jury of our peers had agreed with us. The blood screamed through my veins.

Pam threw herself into my arms, sobbing. “I didn’t ruin it.” She clutched to me. “I didn’t mess it up, Clint.”

I rocked her trembling form. “No, you didn’t. Not at all.”

Melody threw her arms around us and kissed me right there for the vultures to see. The cameras flashed. Then Alicia came in. My mother. Zoey. My aunt and Mrs. Hiragawa. Stefani got her kiss in. Impudent Lee went last. Through it all, Pam clung to me and let her emotions, the strain of carrying the weight of saving our family, release.

“You were amazing, Pam,” I told her, not wanting to let her go.

Our legal team all grinned. Many of them had learned the joys of incest, too. Judge Coburn looked relieved as he marched off the bench. His last trial. He had already announced that he was retiring. Cruzita stood up on shaky legs. She glanced over at us and gave a slight nod, a smile on her lips, then she marched out after her boss who looked like he’d swallowed a dozen rotting eggs.

This wouldn’t be good for Ed Thomas’s upcoming run for the DA’s office.

After Pam had gathered herself, we marched out onto the courthouse steps. Elisabet had arranged a podium to be there. The press was waiting. I had a speech planned for if we won, but I couldn’t remember a word of it. Such joy rippled through me. Pam thought she had ruined things. I could have sacrificed myself. I could have saved my women from prison.

That decision almost broke me. I led us into this mess. I put us into the public spotlight with my desire to change the laws of this nation. I almost destroyed our family, but we had survived. I marched up to that podium with my head held high.

I gripped it and grinned out at the media. “Today was the first step to having incestuous relationships be recognized as a civil right.” I gazed around at the media, the cameras aimed at me. Flashes bursting as pictures were snapped. “My intention is to get incest legalized. Today proved that the people of California know what happened to my family was an injustice. No longer are those of us who practice alternative lifestyles going to be afraid of what society thinks of us. No longer are we going to be silent?

“California has long led the way in civil rights,” I continued, gazing out at them. “Here is the next fight we must champion. California must show the world that they are a shining beacon of tolerance and compassion. We shall legalize incest and bigamy! We shall shed the bigotry of the past!”

Cruzita Martínez

I sat in my office, stunned.

They did it. Clint Elliston and his family actually pulled it off. If anyone even knew the shady things they were doing behind the scenes, if the world ever found out I was helping them ... I shuddered. No one could ever know.

Ed Thomas still shouted in his office. Losing this had hurt. Bad. It was a slam-dunk case. The smart play would have been to plea bargain out, but Clint went for the Hail Mary. He didn’t even flinch. He faced down the world, proclaimed his story, and let them feel like intolerant bigots for thinking there was anything wrong with it.

And there wasn’t.

I glanced at the picture of my daughter and smiled. She was such a gorgeous creature. If Clint really could get incest legalized—and if there was anyone who could to it, it was that man—then I didn’t have to hide my love for Laurita. She was such a beautiful, young girl.

My phone rang. Not my office one, but my cell phone. I snagged it out of my purse and smiled. I swiped the screen and said, “I’m staring at your picture right now.”

“One of my naughty ones?” Laurita cooed, her voice sounding throaty.

I laughed. “No, no, just the one on my desk. You look so gorgeous in your graduation gown.”

“So you lost the big case,” Laurita said with mock pity. “Do you need Eric and me to come over and comfort you.”

Eric was her boyfriend. He knew all about our incestuous relationship. Considering he had sex with his own mother and sisters, he didn’t have a problem with it. Incest was far, far more prevalent than I ever imagined.

“I think I need that,” I said, smiling. “I mean, it was such a loss. It looks like incest will become legal in California.”

“Too bad,” my daughter said. “It’s so hot breaking the law with a prosecutor. I don’t think it’ll be so much fun any longer.”

“Mmm, we’ll have to find another way to make it kinky,” I said, playing along.

“Well, I know a way.” something breathy entered my daughter’s voice.

“What?” I sat up, my chair creaking.

“Eric proposed!” A squeal of delight burst from her. My heart skipped a beat. “We’re getting married! Soon, I can be cheating on my husband with you. That’ll keep things naughty.”

This joy surged through me even as I said, “Is it really cheating if he’s in the bed with us?”

“We can pretend it is.” Laurita let out a sigh. “Mother of God, Mom, he’s the one. I just know it. He’s amazing. I love his family. His Dad’s as great in the sack as he is, and his mother really, really likes licking cum out of my pussy. His sisters are great. You have to meet them.”

“This weekend?” I asked, trembling. This new world before us would be amazing. I couldn’t wait to enjoy living in a time when incest was legalized. The verdict all but made it decriminalized. What prosecutor would want to embarrass themselves with a loss like that?

“That’ll be perfect,” Laurita said. “And Eric and I will be over in a few hours to comfort you.”

“And celebrate!” I bounced in my chair. “You’re getting married, honey.” I hoped her marriage to Eric went better than mine had. But Eric and her had so much in common. They had familial love. They wouldn’t drift apart. I could feel it.

I had no regrets. All that fear and anxiety over the last six months had left me. Tonight, I would make love to my daughter while her fiance watched with relish. My boss, Ed, could fume all he wanted because the right outcome happened today.

True justice had been delivered to the Ellistons.

Alysha Walsh

“I can’t believe he got off,” I muttered as I moved through my apartment. Jaiden was at work and I was about to head to my own job. Money was tight. We both had to work to save up moolah for the baby. I still felt giddy from the news.

My phone beeped.

I grabbed it and saw it was from my mother. “I voted to acquit because of your text.”

Those words arrested me. Instead of ignoring them as I would have, I paused. I glanced at the TV. Clint Elliston was giving his speech to make incest legalized in California. My brow furrowed. I had done this?

Another text message popped up. “I know I’ve been terrible. I didn’t handle finding you and Jaiden together very well at all. I’ve been stubborn, but I would love to meet my grandchild. I’ve been so angry, and I don’t know why. I think I do now. I feel like I failed as a mother but I was too damned proud to admit that, so I took it out on your brother. I blamed him instead. I miss you. Both of you. I’d like us to be a family again.”

I sat there for a long time staring at my phone. Tears beaded my eyes. It felt so surreal. This couldn’t be happening. Like it was a trap. But there was Clint Elliston on the news. He’d been found not guilty.

My mother had voted him not guilty.