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untilmynextstory · 3 years

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Chapter 8: Family Recipe

Eventually Jax was able to get Nathan to calm down. It was only after Nathan unleashed everything. Namely that he doesn't know when the abuse happened, in fact, he never saw a bruise on his mother, but he just knows Vitaly hurts her. Jax knows that the abuse doesn't even have to be physical, but mentality and emotionally.

It takes everything in his power to not storm to Alma's right now, but he has to be smart. He has to prepare for the worst. He can't just kill Vitaly. The man does have ties to the Russians and any blowback can land on Alma's doorstep.

Then there is the fact in separating Alma from her abuser. He has to be prepared that she won't want to leave. He needs to be prepared for her to fight him on everything.

He does his best to not even think about why Alma got herself in the situation. The anger doesn't lay on her. Now he knows why Alma wanted Nathan to move in with him. The abuse must have been escalating. He knew something was wrong. He should've pressed and pressed even if it would have pissed her off.

Jax walks over to the end table and grabs some stationary. He writes a short and coded message to Lenny to see if he could give him some basic info on Vitaly and his schedule. He knows he can't just show up to Alma's place of work. He wouldn't be surprised if the man kept eyes on Alma while he was away. He needs to be careful.

Alma feels Vitaly only did what he did to ruin her Thanksgiving. After all, he had left promptly three days after his parting gift for a business trip that would leave him gone for three weeks. It would have him back in town just for Christmas. She has a feeling that he may try to ruin that for her as well. She already plans to leave for Christmas early. Nathan has most of December off and since she missed Thanksgiving she can make it up to him by arriving a week or two earlier.

She knows she put Nathan through a lot of worry those two days he couldn't reach her. Vitaly did smash her phone during his fit of rage. She had been able to easily explain that to Nathan, who had demanded a video call, when she was able to get a hold of him.

She hated to see the utter look of relief on his face. It was like he knew something had gone wrong. She had tried to shield him from the decline of her second marriage. She should've gotten out the first time Vitaly ever raised his hand to her, but she didn't. She stayed. She stayed and she didn't even know why she did.

She thinks maybe she didn't want another failed marriage under her belt. She didn't want to admit that she let herself into the situation. She got herself trapped. Maybe, just maybe, it had to do with she didn't want for anyone to know she got herself in this situation. She didn't want to go crawling back to Charming - back to Jax. She didn't want the stares of pity. She wanted to show people that she could move on from the Life she had in Charming.

She also didn't want Jax to go to jail for murdering Vitaly. She knows it would get to that point. Her ex husband was a very smart man, but at the same time,if pushed he shoots first and thinks later. She knows he would not let Vitaly get away with putting his hands on her.

She is just grateful Vitaly never targeted her son. During his rages, he always insults Jax. She ignores them mostly. They seem to stem from a place of jealousy. It makes her wonder if he knew what she had done with Jax on their wedding night.

Alma had always carried so much guilt from that night. She was truly disgusted with herself. What woman cheats on their future husband on their wedding day. She carried that guilt for months until Vitaly's real side began to show. Hell, she even had a pregnancy scare. She didn't know how she was going to explain that to Vitaly. He had made it very clear he didn't want kids. Although, she had found out by accident that he couldn't have kids.

She prayed to god everyday that Jax didn't manage to knock her up again. She didn't even know how she would have managed to make a good lie for that one. She knows deep down what she would've done if she had been pregnant. She didn't know if she could live with that. She probably would've chickened out and would have to manage the embarrassment of running back to Charming with her tail tucked between her legs.

Now, she doesn't feel guilty. It was the last time she truly felt loved from anybody in that way. Maybe she shouldn't have let her mother push her into this marriage. For the first time she ever really listened to her mother she ends up being a victim of domestic violence.

Alma shakes her head. She is not going to blame her mother. She made the choice to continue seeing Vitaly. She accepted the marriage proposal.

Alma sighs as she opens one of the many boxes of decorations for Christmas. This is the first year she will be decorating without Nathan's help. This house is much larger than her two previous homes. The one thing she misses is all the homemade decorations Nathan and Kaylee made. She had left those in Charming. Alot of Kaylee's things were still in Charming.

She is glad because she has a feeling Vitaly's anger might escalate to destroy any connection she has to Charming and Jax.

Alma goes to her record player and puts on some Marvin Gaye and pours herself a glass of wine and begins to decorate. She has been decorating for only about 30 minutes when the doorbell goes off. She frowns as she wasn't expecting anyone. She's never expecting anyone now that Nathan isn't home. There is also the fact that she didn't bother concealing the bruises on her body. She grabs a throw blanket to wrap around her body to hide the bruises on her arms. She can't do much to hide the bruise on her cheek. She peeks through the side window and she stiffens in surprise to find Jax on the other side of the door.

She knows if anything was wrong with Nathan he would've called. The only reason he would come down if it was about Nathan, but she knows he would've called beforehand. She knows this because she is pretty sure he doesn't want to be in the same room as Vitaly. She knows there is no use in trying to act like she isn't home.

She unlocks the dead bolt, but doesn't open the door all the way. She hides half her body from Jax.

"I can admit I am surprised to see you on my doorstep," Alma greets with.

"I can say the same." He replies.

She watches as his eyes narrow at her presence. She takes in his appearance. He isn't wearing his kutte and he doesn't have his bike. She notices his truck parked in her driveway. He is practically incognito.

"What are you doing here, Jax?"

"You going to let me in?"

Alma takes a deep breath and she opens the door wider to let him in her house. He steps in and she closes the door behind her. She takes a deep breath. He knows.

"We need to talk, darlin'," Jax tells her.

Alma nods her head and she leads him through the living room. She knows he doesn't care for a tour of her house.

She leads him to the couch where he sits down and she sits in the lounge chair opposite from him.

He doesn't say anything for a couple minutes. In fact, he doesn't even look at her as he seems to take in the world she lives in. He takes a deep breath and leans forward to rest his elbow on his legs.

"Instead of coming back to my bed, you married a sick fuck that beats you. You let Nathan witness that shit." Jax starts. He doesn't beat around the bush. He gets straight to the point of why he drove down here.

"Nathan was never in any danger."

"Jesus Christ, Alma, that isn't the point." He snaps and looks her in the eyes. His eyes focus on her bruised cheek. The point is that she is in danger. It's a truth that goes unsaid.

"I can't leave him, Jax."

"The hell you can't. I will drag you out kicking and screaming if I have too."

Alma runs her hands down her face. "Don't be ridiculous."

"Let me see it."

"See what?"

"I can see that nice shiner on your face. Let me see the rest." He demands.

Alma pulls the blanket around her tighter. "Look, I appreciate the concern, but you need to go."

"Nah, I'm not leaving until I know you're getting out of this."

"Jax, I'm not your wife or old lady anymore. I'm not your concern."

"You're the mother of my children. You think I am going to go back to Charming knowing you're getting fucking beat. Do you think I can go home to our son and tell him 'hey I left your mother to get fucking beat'." Jax spits back. "Is that why you wanted him to live with me? You were scared Vitaly would take his attention to Nathan."

"I got Nathan out, Jax. That is all that matters right now."

"Do you even hear yourself, right now?" Jax asks in disbelief. "What the fuck happened to you, Alma?"

Alma snaps her head up. "What happened to me?" The laugh that escapes her lips is far from humorous. "How about the fact I had to grieve the loss of two children and my ex-husband decides to bury his grief in another pussy that isn't mine. Then a woman comes along claiming to be pregnant by him. How about the fact you humiliated me in Charming with the croweaters and pornstars leaving me to grieve all alone and taking care of the only child we had left alive. So excuse me while I tried to mend the pieces of me you fucking tore apart led me to fucking Vitaly."

Jax falls to his knees and his hands frame her face. Alma tries to turn away from him, but he forces her to look into his blue eyes.

"Alma, please…"

Alma doesn't know exactly what he is begging for. Does he want forgiveness, for her to leave Vitaly, for her to come back to Charming?

"Did he threaten me and the club?" Jax asks softly.

"I don't want you or Nathan to get hurt, Jax."

"Don't worry about the club. Don't worry about me."

"Easier said than done." Alma tells him weakly with a smile.

Jax smiles. "I know. I know." He brings his forehead down to hers. "You gotta come home, Alma."

Alma doesn't respond because she knows her answer won't please Jax. She thinks Jax must sense what she is thinking he pulls back from her and opens his mouth. She distracts him as she presses her lips against his. He is startled and he falls back. Alma takes advantage of his surprise as she straddles his hips. Her blanket falls off her shoulders and she meets Jax lips again into a burning kiss.

She thinks she has Jax distracted. He moans against her lips as she grinds down on him. A part of her missed this. She misses Jax and the feel of him against her, inside her. She leans down fully against him as she begins grinding against him. She won't feel guilty this time. After all, she can't remember the last time she has actually enjoyed sex. However, Jax's hands grip her hips and she winces as it presses against a tender bruise.

Jax notices the reaction immediately and pulls away from her and leans up. Lips already swollen, pupils dilated, Jax sucks in a breath as he takes in the damage.

Her arms are littered with Vitaly's fingerprints. She doesn't stop Jax when he lifts up his tank and sees the splotchy bruise on her hip from when she was pushed hard into the corner of the dresser in the bedroom. She had been worried about internal bleeding due to the pain she has been feeling for days.

"Al -"

She pushes his hands away and goes back to meet his lips, but he stops her. "Jax, please -"

"You're not coming back after Christmas." He tells her. "I'm not arguing with you about it."

Alma licks her lips. She closes her eyes and nods her head.

Jax sighs in relief and wraps his arms around her. Alma can't help the tears that begin to fall.

Jax is anxious. He has been since he had gone and seen Alma two weeks ago. She is supposed to arrive in a couple days. She had informed him that she planned to come down for Christmas early to begin with. His only comfort was that Vitaly was out on business. Alma would be left alone. She wouldn't see him unless he came down in Charming once he realized Alma wasn't coming back. Despite her assurance that she was leaving and would stay in Charming, it didn't stop the bad feeling in his gut.

It didn't stop him from feeling as if something was going to go wrong. It was hard leaving with the knowledge that Alma was in an abusive marriage. It hurts to know that he was the one that fucked up and it led her to that man's arms. Jax thinks he might hate himself a bit.

He knows Nathan didn't have any comfort either. In fact, Nathan has been calling or texting Alma every day since he came back from his trip to Alma's. Jax thinks he is just lucky the visit managed to slip the radar of his club and mother. They could deal with everything including people knowing the sliver of the truth once Alma was here permanently.

The one thing that was on replay in Jax's mind was the kiss. He knows it was stupid of him to even get partially distracted. Alma was doing it as a means to distract him. He was tempted and it probably would've gone further until he would have seen the damage Vitaly had done to her.

He did cry when he came back to Charming. It hurts to know that she's been dealing with this practically her whole marriage. Jax isn't blind to the fact that in this life men have shown physical dominance over their old ladies and women. Yet, Jax never took on that view. It disgusts him frankly. He even regrets what he had done to Ima. After all, it was his mistake for sleeping with Ima. It all landed on him for inviting Ima into his marriage. After Alma left him, he did apologize to the blond and managed to get her behind the camera as penance.

Even then he has witnessed a few slaps from the guys with the women, but Vitaly is fucking beating her. He knows Alma had to be in pain.

Jax thinks they need to figure out how to handle any potential blowback from the Russians. He doesn't think they would care, but Vitaly could be petty. He was surprised that the Russians did not care about any domestic situations.

Jax feels his phone vibrating in his pocket and he pulls it out and squints at the unfamiliar number.

"Hello?"

"Hi, is this Jackson Teller?" A polite, feminine voice asked.

"Who's asking?"

"My name is Lisa. I'm a nurse at St. Vincent's hospital. You're listed as Alma Petrova's emergency."

"Is she okay? Is she alright?"

"She's stable and sedated, but it's best you come down here."

#the unknown #soa fanfiction #soa fanfic #sons of anarchy #sons of anarchy fanfiction #jax x oc #Jackson Teller #jax teller fanfiction

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melodiouswhite · 4 years

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Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde rewritten - Ch. 59

59. Warnings and awkward emergencies

Lanyon was having tea and cakes with Lady Summers, when her butler announced a visitor.

“Who is it?”, she inquired.

“It's Dr. Faust. He says it's urgent.”

Lanyon blinked.

He hadn't heard anything from Dr. Faust since the day Lady Summers had introduced him as her childhood friend.

And honestly, he was fine with it. Childhood friend of his Lady or not, he didn't need to deal with the likes of the brisk German alchemist every day.

Lady Summers thought differently of course, and so she ordered her butler to bid him come to her.

“Shall I go?”, Lanyon asked, “In case-”

“Go, if he asks you to, but otherwise I wouldn't see why you couldn't stay”, she replied.

As soon as she had finished that sentence, the alchemist in question came in.

He stopped short, when he saw Lanyon.

“Have I interrupted something?”, he asked, but before either of them could answer, Lanyon saw the oh-so-familiar flash run through the other man's eyes.

“Ah, alright. Well, as much as I hate to ruin your tea party, I need to tell you something urgent – no, no, you can stay”, he added hurriedly, when Lanyon stood up. “It concerns you and your friends too.”

“Before you tell us, sit down, Johann”, Lady Summers requested. “You look awful.”

That was true: Dr. Faust was wan and had dark rims under his eyes. He looked, as if he had been plagued by nightmares for weeks.

“I have been”, the redhead confirmed Lanyon's suspicions, as he sat down. “It's been two weeks, since I got a good night's sleep.”

Lady Summers frowned. “They must have been really nasty. Did you relieve your traumata from the Thirty Years War?”

“Haha, I wish!”, the alchemist hissed. “In the last two hundred years, I have learned to deal with those! No, it was different this time. At first I thought they were normal nightmares, but they're not.”

“What was it?”

“Prophetic dreams.”

Lanyon's curiosity was awoken. He could recall the older man mentioning that, just like Alma Donovan, he had the gift of precognition (in addition to his telepathy, witchcraft and alchemy).

Dr. Faust continued: “I dreamed about the organisation that kidnapped you and Victor, Perenelle and Nicolas. They're still kidnapping people for their … scientific crimes against humanity.”

What a befitting description to what they did to my Lady, Lanyon thought grumpily.

“They did it to the others too”, the alchemist informed him. “Apart from the vasectomy, of course. But back to the matter at hand. Like I said, they're still looking for victims. And they have their eyes on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. And of course you, Luise. But they're far more careful, since you shot their spy in the arm. They're more interested in victims who can't defend themselves.”

“Figures”, Lady Summers snarled. “I knew it – verdammt¹, I knew it!”

“Compose yourself, Luise”, Dr. Faust told her. “Anyway, I just wanted to tell you, that going to Soho during the following two months won't be wise. Especially for Dr. Jekyll, considering that Mr. Hyde and you are professionals at combatting several opponents at once and Dr. Lanyon and Mr. Utterson always carry a revolver on them.”

Gabriel has taken to carrying a gun? Good! One thing less to worry about!

“And if he has to go there – be it to visit Mr. Hyde, for whatever reason – he shouldn't stray from the way under any circumstances. Abductions always happen in small alleys, where no one can witness it.”

Lady Summers nodded: “Right. I'll let them know.”

“And also tell them, that those bastards found out, that they're actually one and the same person – and that you gave Mr. Hyde your blood.”

The Countess paled. “Wie zum Donnerwetter² did they find that out?!”

“I don't know that either”, Dr. Faust admitted. “I have yet to find the answer. But I do know that they're interested in Dr. Jekyll's scientific work – and they want to test his blood and see, if he is now ageless, like you and me.”

“He is”, Lady Summers informed him. “He and I both made tests on both his blood and mine. But unlike them …”, she scowled, “… I had his consent and cooperation.”

“Of course, we all know that”, the alchemist tried to appease her, “It is a problem though. If you're both immortal and ageless. It gets harder and harder to hide these days.”

“Was it easy in your time?”, Lanyon asked curiously.

Dr. Faust chuckled: “Certainly, as long as you didn't stay in a place for too long. The only registries we had were the parish registers and they only recorded the baptisms, not the actual birth dates.”

“So you know, when you were baptised, but not when you were born?”

“That would be the case, but I got an emergency baptism. But we're digressing from the original topic. Just tell your friends to be careful.”

“You too”, Lady Summers replied.

“Oh trust me, we do”, Dr. Faust muttered, “Nicolas and Victor always take a loaded gun, when they leave the house and Perenelle and I never go out alone – and no, I didn't come here on my own either; Victor is waiting in the parlour. Accompanying me where I go is one of the few things he's useful for-”

“Don't be so hard on him”, Lady Summers scolded him. “He accompanies you everywhere, because he loves you and because he's just as paranoid as you are.”

The alchemist gawked at her. “Holy Mother Mary! Call me out, why don't you!”

Lady Summers rolled her eyes. “Good grief, Johann, just admit that all the traumata of your past have made you so paranoid that you're frightened of leaving the house alone! And that you're taking him alone, because he's equally paranoid!”

“He already knows that”, Dr. Faust growled. “I would rather burn on the stake than show the weakness to admit to that love-sick fool, that I'm afraid of something!”

Oh, I can sympathise with that.

“Johann, I know that you value your pride, but you should put it aside for a few-”

“I know Victor, Luise! That child will put it into his head that he needs to protect me – me! Like he doesn't know who he's dealing with and what I'm capable of!”

That sounds like Utterson.

Dr. Faust inhaled sharply. “Let us not talk about that! I refuse to turn this into a discussion about my paranoia or Victor's puppy love!”

Lanyon decided that this conversation was none of his business and let his focus wander. That way, something caught his attention; the alchemist's breathing was growing shallow and laboured, close to hyperventilation, like he was struggling to breathe – just like a woman whose corset was too tight.

Hardly noticeable, but Lanyon was a physician – he knew dyspnoea³, when he saw it.

Lady Summers however didn't seem to notice. “… Fine. Be that way. You're as stubborn as a mule – don't you dare flaunt your age! I don't give a damn about it, ich kenne dich doch!⁴”

“Nun hör mal zu, Frau Markgräfin …!⁵”

Whatever he had been about to say, he didn't get to finish it. Instead he supported himself on the table, coughed and gasped for breath.

Lanyon jumped up and ran over to support the other.

Lady Summers' smug demeanour crumbled immediately. “Johann?”

“Can't … breathe!”, he wheezed.

Her eyes widened and she quickly shooed them into the next best empty room.

On the way Lanyon caught her exchange a quick glance with the alchemist – telepathic communication.

Then he too heard her mental voice, speaking to him this time: “You need to help him take off his vest and shirt – but don't be shocked at, nor question what is beneath.”

Lanyon nodded and readied himself for something that would probably be as disturbing as Lady Summers' surgical scar.

Dr. Faust obviously wanted to protest against being stripped of his shirt, but was too busy trying not to suffocate.

When the other man saw what was beneath, he realised why.

But he ignored it, apologised for what he was about to do and took the binder off.

That solved the other doctor's breathing problem, but he promptly snatched a blanket to cover himself and glared over his shoulder at Lanyon.

“I can't believe you just did that!”

“Look, I'm sorry for invading your intimate space like that!”, Lanyon spat angrily, “But it was either that, or you would have suffocated! Don't you dare start raving! I'm a fucking doctor and chemist, I have been called a freak for almost my entire life, I have a best friend who is also my ex-lover and split his own fucking soul like the madman he is and has now an even madder alter ego, the woman I'm in love with is an aristocrat, who can read minds and handle a sword better than any man could and you think that I give a damn, that you're … whatever the word is?! Newsflash, I don't fucking care! My priority is the fact that your binder just nearly asphyxiated you–”

He stopped short.

The ginger-haired alchemist had turned his face away and his head was drooping. He was clutching the blanket tightly to his body and shaking, as if he was-

Guilt set in with a vengeance.

“I'm sorry”, Lanyon apologised regretfully. “I didn't mean to make you even more upset.”

“I'm not upset”, Dr. Faust said quietly and wiped his tears away forcefully. “Not really.”

Now Lady Summers, who had watched the argument with obvious discomfort, spoke up again: “How are you feeling now, Johann?”

“Better, thank you”, the alchemist replied. “Sorry for that. I didn't expect it to happen now of all times. It's been more than ten years since it happened last.”

“That was the stress”, Lanyon pointed out, “Stress always alters breathing patterns. And with the chest binder cutting off your air supply, the lack of oxygen made you panic.”

“You know this from Luise”, Dr. Faust noted. “Anyway, I should pick up Victor and go home.” He stretched a hand out from under the blanket. “My clothes, please.”

Lanyon saw himself out – he had ignored the rules of decency enough for one day.

“Thank you so much for helping”, Victor Frankenstein told Lady Summers, as he and Dr. Faust were saying goodbye. “I've been worried about him for weeks.”

Lanyon almost laughed, when the red-haired alchemist behind Frankenstein grimaced and threw his hands up in exasperation, as if to say: Just as I said earlier!

Suddenly the hoary doctor had an idea and addressed it mentally.

Both telepaths present blinked at him in surprise.

Then Lady Summers looked at her old friend, excited to see his reaction.

At first the immortal alchemist didn't react. But about thirty seconds later his face flushed lightly, his eyes shone and he smiled – that was answer enough.

Frankenstein looked between the three in confusion. “Am I missing out on something?”

“No”, the older immortal told him. “Nothing of your concern.”

The black-haired mad scientist looked a bit doubtful, but then he shrugged and dropped it.

Dr. Faust turned back to Lady Summers and Lanyon: “Thank you two. Much obliged. Also, as I said earlier, don't forget to tell your friends about my warning. And wish Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde a happy birthday from me.”

“Will do”, Lady Summers told him. “And you, Johann, make an appointment with my dear doctor still this week. I happen to know that he's-”

“Free next Friday afternoon”, Lanyon finished her sentence.

Dr. Faust chuckled: “Right, I'll come to make the appointment tomorrow.”

Lanyon smiled back: “See you then.”

“You know”, the ginger-haired alchemist said, “I'm beginning to actually believe that you're truly deserving of her.”

“Johann!”, Lady Summers chided.

“Doctor!”, Frankenstein exclaimed.

But Lanyon took it with good humour and laughed: “Well, who am I to contradict your verdict, Dr. Faust? Have a nice day, you two.”

“You took it really well”, Lady Summers remarked, once they had left.

Lanyon shrugged. “I wasn't that surprised, honestly. But I had never thought about it in his presence.”

She blinked. “You figured it out?”

“I had suspicions”, he told her, “But they were based on vague ideas and a bit of a long shot. A few physical traits I noticed, because I'm a doctor. But even though they're assigned to females, they aren't necessarily. So I didn't want to assume anything, before I knew the truth – and honestly I didn't think that I ever would.”

They went back to the greenhouse room.

“Speaking of the truth – it is like this, right? That he's a man despite his female biology?”

“Exactly”, Lady Summers confirmed.

Lanyon exhaled in relief. “Oh, good. I've seen someone like that before, but I wasn't sure.”

The Countess sighed: “They're called 'deviants', but I don't like that word.”

“Of course you don't!”, the doctor snarled, “Because it's bullshit and you have more than two braincells!”

Lady Summers laughed heartily. “And that, Hastie, is why I love you!”

---

1) Verdammt! - German: Damn! 2) Wie zum Donnerwetter - German: How the heck / literally: How to the thunderstorm 3) dyspnoea: breathlessness 4) "...ich kenne dich doch!" - German: "I know you!" 5) "Nun hör mal zu, Frau Markgräfin!" - "Now listen up, Madam Marchioness!"

#The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde #dr lanyon #Hastie Lanyon #oc #dr faustus #johann georg faust #frankenstein #victor frankenstein

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njawaidofficial · 6 years

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Experts Say Bill Cosby Will Have To Face The #MeToo Music At His Retrial For Rape

https://styleveryday.com/2018/04/08/experts-say-bill-cosby-will-have-to-face-the-metoo-music-at-his-retrial-for-rape/

Experts Say Bill Cosby Will Have To Face The #MeToo Music At His Retrial For Rape

Bill Cosby arrives for his sexual assault case at the Montgomery County Courthouse on April 4 in Norristown, Pennsylvania.

Chris Szagola / AP

Bill Cosby on Monday will walk into the same Pennsylvania courtroom where just last year a jury failed to reach a verdict on charges that he sexually assaulted a woman in his home in 2004. But this time around, the 80-year-old actor faces new challenges that experts say will make it harder to avoid conviction.

For starters, prosecutors will be able to call five women who say they were similarly assaulted by Cosby, as opposed to just one during his first trial. That could go a long way toward establishing an alleged pattern of abuse and assault to bolster allegations that Cosby drugged and raped Andrea Constand at his home.

Andrea Constand leaves the courtroom after closing arguments in Bill Cosby’s 2017 trial in Pennsylvania.

Pool / Getty Images

During the trial last year, Constand said she came to know Cosby while running the women’s basketball program at the comedian’s alma mater, Temple University.

She testified that after she arrived at his home in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania, to discuss her career plans, Cosby offered her three blue pills, which he allegedly said were herbal. Soon after taking the pills, Constand testified, her speech became slurred and she began to lose control of her body. She said she didn’t remember passing out until she was “jolted awake” with Cosby’s hand inside her vagina as he masturbated.

The mistrial spared Cosby from what could have been 30 years behind bars, but it did little to salvage his legacy as America’s Dad, with more than 50 women having accused him of also drugging and sexually assaulting them.

This time, experts say the #MeToo-related cultural shifts that have occurred since the mistrial could significantly affect how the jury of seven men and five women view the evidence in a case in which the comedian is charged with three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault.

“We are in a different place culturally than we were a year ago,” said Maya Raghu, director of workplace equality and senior counsel at the National Women’s Law Center. “The effect of the national reckoning that we have been having for the last six months in particular has helped dispel a lot of stereotypes about victims. People are more willing to understand how things happen, why these things happen, not to blame the victim for them, and to not be so quick to judge.”

Bill Cosby leaves the courthouse in 2017 after attending a court hearing pertaining to his new trial.

AFP / Getty Images

Victim-blaming was one of the reasons the jury for Cosby’s first trial couldn’t reach a verdict, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial. One of the holdout jurors who voted against conviction told the Philadelphia Inquirer he blamed Constand’s actions for what allegedly happened that night.

“Let’s face it: She went up to his house with a bare midriff and incense and bath salts,” he said. “What the heck?”

But legal experts say that sort of outlook has been eroded by the Time’s Up initiative and #MeToo movement and a sea change in how alleged victims who come forward are treated, for better or worse. Of the first 240 jurors polled, 238 said they were aware of the #MeToo movement and one third of those said they had already made up their minds about Cosby’s guilt or innocence.

However, at one point during the selection process, prosecutors blocked one white man who said he thought many of the women coming forward in the #MeToo movement are “jumping on the bandwagon.”

Protesters demonstrate outside of Bill Cosby’s Far From Finished Tour at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center in 2015.

Marcus Ingram / Getty Images

“I don’t think it will change a conservative person’s mind if they are that closed off to the issue, but people who might not have known how prevalent it was are now going to be more open to the idea that these situations happen,” said Alexandra Kazarian, a criminal defense attorney.

The fact that so many of the #MeToo stories revolve around allegations of sexual misconduct that are often years, if not decades, old could also enlighten deliberations when it comes to Constand’s case, which dates back to 2004.

“In the past you might have had a juror who said, ‘How is it possible this happened in 2004 and it wasn’t until many years later that this was reported?’” former federal prosecutor Priya Sopori said. “I think now there is going to be a greater understanding of the fear, the intimidation, and the self-blame that sometimes go hand in hand with an alleged assault.”

That understanding would work in the favor of prosecutors, who plan to call five other Cosby accusers to the stand as they seek to paint the comedian as a serial assaulter who incapacitated his victims with powerful sedatives.

For the first trial, Judge Steven T. O’Neill only allowed the testimony of one other alleged victim, Kelly Johnson, who in the 1990s worked at the William Morris talent agency where Cosby was a client. She alleged Cosby drugged and raped her at a Bel-Air hotel.

But this time, experts predict the cumulative effect of five women telling their stories on the stand will be devastating to Cosby’s case.

“The judge now allowing five women to testify who claim they were victimized by Cosby is a game changer,” Troy Slaten, a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, said. “It will definitely have an impact on the jury. One or two people, you could argue credibility. But when you have five people all telling their same story about how Cosby victimized them, it is going to be very difficult to ignore.”

Janice Dickinson addresses reporters with celebrity attorney Lisa Bloom in March 2016 in Los Angeles. Dickinson alleges Cosby defamed her by telling the media she made up a story that he drugged and raped her in 1982.

Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images

Prosecutors have not officially released the names of the women they plan to call to the stand. But based on pretrial motions, model Janice Dickinson is expected to be among them. She has been one of his most high-profile accusers, alleging that in 1982 she blacked out after Cosby gave her a pill for stomach pain and woke up the next morning in her hotel room with semen between her legs and pain in her anal area.

But Cosby’s defense attorneys will have new arrows of their own this time around after O’Neill ruled that they will be allowed to present testimony from one woman who says Constand told her she had not actually been sexually assaulted by Cosby, but that she “could say it happened, file charges, and get money to go to school and open a business.”

Cosby’s attorneys are expected to portray Constand as someone who framed the comedian to get rich.

The witness, Marguerite Jackson, was not allowed to testify at Cosby’s first trial. O’Neill did say, however, that he would revisit his decision to let Jackson testify after Constand takes the stand.

One central figure experts do not expect to take the stand is Cosby himself. Just like his first trial, his defense team will likely keep him away from the witness stand and the dangers of cross-examination.

Unlike the previous trial, O’Neill hinted that he may block prosecutors from introducing Cosby’s deposition in which he admits to obtaining and giving women quaaludes, the powerful sedative. But if he were to take the stand and deny that, the judge could decide to allow his damning statements.

“The past statements that he has made under oath could be used against him and could be very harmful to his case,” said Sopori. “There are always risks when you put a defendant on the stand. You are going to open doors previously closed.”

Cosby’s legal team will also look different this time around. He has brought in famed defense attorney Thomas Mesereau, known for securing an acquittal for Michael Jackson in his child molestation trial in 2005. Mesereau also initially represented actor Robert Blake, who was ultimately found not guilty of killing his wife.

Bill Cosby’s attorney Tom Mesereau (center) departs the Montgomery County Courthouse on April 2.

Mark Makela / Getty Images

He is regarded as a skilled storyteller who captivates jurors while walking the line of being extremely tough on witnesses. But he is also known as being very personable and relatable to jurors — a talent that will prove useful in a trial that could take a month.

“I think if anyone can relate to the jury, it’s going to be Mesereau,” Slaten, the Los Angeles–based defense attorney, said. “He’s great to listen to, and he is not going to make the jurors go to sleep.”

But don’t expect the charm offensive to extend across the aisle, at least if the acrimonious jury selection process is any indication.

“It’s definitely a sign that things are going to be heated and that they are going to fight tooth and nail,” said Kazarian, who expects the defense attorneys to use “every tool in their bag,” even personally attacking the prosecution.

“This isn’t going to be the kind of the trial where you see the prosecution and defense joking before the jury comes out,” she added. “They have to frame this as a personal attack by the prosecution, so everything that the prosecution does is a personal attack, not just a legal attack or an evidentiary issue.”

LINK: Bill Cosby Admitted To Getting Drugs To Give Women For Sex, Court Records Show

LINK: Bill Cosby Rape Case Ends In Mistrial After Jury Deadlocks

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