Chapter 15: The Absolute Truth
The courtroom was packed tight, a suffocating sea of reporters, cameras, and spectators.
It had been four months since the wedding.
Sophie’s scar had healed into a thin, pale white line beneath her hairline. She was back in school, happy, thriving, completely insulated from the chaos I had unleashed.
But today, I was here to finish it.
Preston sat at the defense table. He had lost at least twenty pounds. He looked hollow, aged, his arrogance entirely stripped away by four months in the county jail. My father sat in the gallery on the opposite side of the room, out on bond, looking equally destroyed.
The trial had only just begun, but the defense was already drowning.
"The State calls Evelyn Hayes to the stand," ADA Jenkins announced.
I stood up, smoothing down my skirt, and walked confidently to the witness box. I placed my hand on the Bible, swore to tell the truth, and took my seat.
Jenkins walked up to the podium.
"Ms. Hayes. On the night of the incident, what did your brother say to you immediately before he struck your daughter?"
"He told everyone that I was raising a thief," I answered, my voice carrying clearly across the silent room. "He announced to two hundred people that Sophie had stolen his phone."
Jenkins nodded. She walked over to the evidence table and picked up a manila envelope. The envelope Chloe had given me.
"Ms. Hayes, were you aware that at the time of the wedding, your brother was two million dollars in debt to an illegal sports betting syndicate?"
The defense attorney leaped out of his chair. "Objection! Irrelevant and highly prejudicial!"
"Overruled," the judge barked. "I will allow it. The state has already entered the text messages into evidence to establish motive."
"I was not aware at the time, no," I answered.
Jenkins turned to the jury. "Ms. Hayes, can you tell the court what your father, Arthur Hayes, told your brother one week before the wedding regarding his estate?"
I locked eyes with Preston. He couldn't hold my gaze. He looked down at his lap, shaking.
"My father told Preston that half of the family trust was being left to my daughter, Sophie."
A collective gasp echoed through the gallery. The press row frantically began typing on their laptops.
"So," Jenkins said, letting the silence hang for a moment. "Your brother didn't just lose his temper. He orchestrated a public spectacle to frame a child, entirely to ensure she was disinherited so he could pay off his illegal gambling debts."
"Objection! Counsel is testifying!"
"Sustained. Rephrase, Ms. Jenkins."
Jenkins smiled. She didn't need to rephrase. The jury had heard it. They understood.
"No further questions," she said, taking her seat.
Preston’s lawyer stood up, but before he could even speak, Preston broke.
"I plead guilty!" Preston suddenly screamed, standing up so fast his chair crashed to the floor. "I plead guilty! Stop! Just stop making her talk!"
The courtroom erupted into total chaos. The judge banged his gavel fiercely, demanding order. My father buried his face in his hands, completely broken.
I sat quietly in the witness box, completely untouched by the noise around me.
I looked at the judge, at the jury, and finally, at the destroyed man who used to be my brother.
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The trial was over before it even began. The wolves had completely devoured themselves. And the lamb?
The lamb was finally going home.
