The witness nervously laughed sometimes as she told her story in court today about the New Year's Day night attack when the two men who sat in front of her in the courtroom came to the apartment to do a dope deal with her boyfriend.

Then suddenly, it became violent.

Amanda DeCoste told a defense lawyer that she had dated the defendants Kenneth Holland and Chad Loera very brief, perhaps, a few days or maybe a week. It was long ago, and she hardly remembered doing so.

Suddenly, her expression froze on the stand and she began to cry.

She told the judge that she needed a break.

After the break, prosecutor Derek Malan told the judge that for the record that Holland had mouthed "I'm sorry" to the witness while she was on the stand, and she started crying.

Her testimony continued.

The 21-year-old who had been stabbed seven times by Loera sometimes would apologize to the court for stumbling with words and not remembering some specific details about the day when Loera pulled out a knife, Holland took out a gun and things got ugly.

She cried and wept a few more times on the stand.

"It's just really hard for me to have to think about it," she told the judge.

The witness stepped down from the stand and went and hugged her mother who sitting in the audience.

"This is hard, mom," she said crying.

"I know," the mother said above a whisper.

Loera and Holland were held to answer.