Chapter 17
Julian testified against Elaine in exchange for a reduced sentence.
It did not save him.
It only made him smaller.
He admitted he knew Anna had never wanted to give up the baby.
He admitted he chose not to ask questions.
He admitted Elaine told him, “Your future matters more than a poor girl’s pain.”
He admitted he believed her because it benefited him.
That was the only honest thing he had ever said.
When the prosecutor asked why he invited me and Noah to the wedding, Julian looked ashamed.
“I wanted Claire to see I had won.”
Noah flinched.
I put my arm around him.
“And your speech?” the prosecutor asked.
Julian closed his eyes.
“I wanted to humiliate her.”
“Why?”
His voice dropped.
“Because she survived me.”
The courtroom went dead silent.
There it was.
The truth beneath everything.
He hated me because I had not stayed broken.
Lila turned and looked at me.
Her eyes were full of fire.
After court, she hugged me.
“I’m glad he lost you.”
I laughed through tears.
“So am I.”
The verdict came the next day.
Elaine Vance was found guilty of kidnapping, fraud, conspiracy, obstruction, bribery, and involvement in Anna Bell’s death.
Julian was found guilty of kidnapping, intimidation, fraud, and obstruction.
The nurse.
The doctor.
The retired detective.
All guilty.
Justice did not bring Anna back.
It did not erase Noah’s pain.
It did not give Lila her childhood with her birth mother.
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But it did something.
It stopped them.
