"Penelope Redburn."
There was a clanging echo as the name was read out, like a dark bell shouting a warning for all who would listen. Penny jolted in her seat, fidgeting. She stood, wishing that she had worn shoes without a heel. For a moment, when she had been getting dressed that morning, her sensibility had abandoned her, and in a fit of vanity, she had slipped on tall black pumps, which were undoubtedly smart, but rather wobbly.
As she rose, the room seemed suddenly full of eyes, all riveted into her back as she walked up to the front and placed a shaking hand on the Bible.
"I swear by God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."
In the space of a moment, Penny was seated. For a moment she felt her heart start to hammer and feared that she wouldn't have the courage to make a sound. Then she looked out and saw one face in the crowd, and was no longer nervous, but suddenly calmer than she had ever been before.
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