Chapter 12
The verdict came after three days.
Guilty.
Kidnapping.
False imprisonment.
Assault.
Forgery.
Fraud.
Custodial interference.
Conspiracy.
Diane gripped the table like she could hold herself above the words.
She could not.
Evan had already pled guilty and received prison time.
The clerk and advisor were convicted separately.
At sentencing, Lucy spoke.
“You took seven months from my son,” she said. “You told him I abandoned him while I was breathing behind locked doors.”
Diane looked away.
I spoke next.
Not as the main victim.
I knew better now.
“I helped your lies by wanting them to be true,” I said. “That is my shame. But your crimes are yours.”
Diane stared at me.
“You will not be remembered as a fiancée or a rescuer. You will be remembered as the woman my son was brave enough to expose.”
The judge sentenced her to decades.
No contact with Lucy.
No contact with Jack.
No contact with me.
Restitution ordered.
Assets seized.
The restaurant sold.
When I told Jack, he asked, “Can Mom sleep without guards now?”
Lucy smiled through tears.
“Soon.”
Jack looked at me.
“And you?”
I answered honestly.
“I still have work to do.”
He nodded.
“Yeah.”
May you like
It hurt.
It was fair.
