Chapter 19 - The Verdict
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When it was my turn to testify, the courtroom fell dead silent. The prosecutor walked me through the marriage, the discovery of the financial rot, the fall, and the agonizing nights in the ICU.
I answered every question carefully and precisely. I didn't cry. I didn't shout. The truth did not need dramatic decoration; it was horrifying enough on its own.
When the prosecution played the audio recording of Cordelia suffocating me, even the hardened judge visibly flinched.
During cross-examination, Adrian’s defense attorney tried to paint me as a vindictive, calculating woman. He asked if I had hidden my financial investigations from my husband.
“Yes,” I answered flatly.
He asked if I hated Adrian Voss.
I looked across the room at the man who had slept beside me, who had promised to love me, and who had stood idly by while I plummeted from a balcony. He looked small, pathetic, and terrified.
“No,” I said into the microphone, my voice echoing in the silent room. “Hate requires far more energy than I am willing to spend on him.”
Cordelia refused to testify. Adrian took the stand, weeping openly, claiming his mother manipulated him. He admitted to the fraud but claimed he was too scared to stop the murder plot.
It didn't save them.
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Cordelia was convicted of attempted murder, conspiracy, and insurance fraud. She was sentenced to twenty-five years. She stood perfectly still as the judge read the sentence.
Adrian was convicted of conspiracy and reckless participation. He received eight years. He sobbed as the handcuffs were placed on his wrists. I realized then that I had once thought his tears meant he had a soft heart. Now I knew they were just the ultimate expression of his self-pity.
