Chapter 7 - The Trial of the Decade
The trial took place eight months later. It was a media circus.
I was the prosecution's star witness. When I walked into the courtroom, I wore a sharply tailored navy blue suit. No lace. No silk. Just armor.
Victoria and Julian sat at the defense table. The months had not been kind to them. Victoria’s roots were showing gray, and the stress had carved deep lines into her face. Julian looked hollowed out, entirely defeated.
When I took the stand, the defense attorney tried to rattle me. He brought up my background, my family's lack of wealth, attempting to paint me as an opportunist.
"Isn't it true, Ms. Vance, that you were just angry your future mother-in-law didn't like you?" he sneered.
"I didn't care if she liked me," I answered, my voice carrying clearly across the silent courtroom. "I cared that she was stealing from pension funds to finance her yacht. Her attitude was a nuisance. Her felonies were my jurisdiction."
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The jury actually smirked.
I spent four hours on the stand, systematically dissecting their financial web for the jury. I explained the shell companies, the forged routing numbers, and the fake charities. By the time I stepped down, Victoria wouldn't even look at me. She knew it was over.
