Chapter 9
We waited six hours.
Six long, agonizing hours.
I sat on a hard wooden bench in the hallway, Grandma on one side, Mia on the other. We didn’t talk much. There was nothing left to say.
Mom and Hannah sat across the hall.
Hannah was on her phone, texting furiously, her face dark. Mom stared at the floor, her hands folded in her lap.
Every time the courtroom door opened, my heart jumped into my throat.
Finally, at 7:15 p.m., the bailiff came out.
“Jury’s back,” he said.
We filed back in.
My legs were shaking so bad I almost didn’t make it to my seat.
The judge looked at the jury foreman.
“Have you reached a verdict?” she said.
The foreman, a middle-aged woman with kind eyes, stood up.
“We have, Your Honor.”
She handed the bailiff a piece of paper.
The judge read it, then looked up.
“On the count of whether the last will and testament of Robert Carter, dated October 15th, is valid and enforceable?”
The foreman spoke, clear and loud.
“We find for the plaintiff, Olivia Carter.”
A breath I didn’t know I was holding whooshed out of me.
“On the count of whether the defendants, Eleanor Carter and Hannah Carter, engaged in coercion, fraud, and harassment sufficient to trigger the will’s forfeiture clause?”
“We find for the plaintiff, Olivia Carter.”
Tears started streaming down my face.
“On the count of malicious prosecution related to the false assault report filed by Hannah Carter?”
“We find for the plaintiff, Olivia Carter.”
The judge nodded.
“Based on the jury’s verdict,” she said, “the will dated October 15th is hereby declared the sole valid last will and testament of Robert Carter. The purported will dated October 12th is declared null and void. Pursuant to the forfeiture clause, Hannah Carter’s entire share of the estate is forfeited to Olivia Carter. Eleanor Carter’s share—consisting of her statutory spousal portion of the personal property only—remains intact, but she is ordered to pay 100% of the plaintiff’s legal fees and court costs, totaling $147,000.”
She looked at Hannah.
“A permanent restraining order is issued against you, Hannah Carter,” she said. “You are to have no contact, direct or indirect, with your sister, Olivia Carter, for a period of five years. Any violation will result in immediate jail time. The malicious prosecution claim will be settled separately, but given the jury’s findings, I expect a swift and substantial resolution in the plaintiff’s favor.”
She banged her gavel.
“Court adjourned.”
The courtroom erupted.
Dad’s old workers cheered. Reporters started yelling questions.
Grandma hugged me so tight I could barely breathe. Mia was crying, laughing, squeezing me so hard my ribs hurt.
Mr. Bennett shook my hand, a small smile on his face.
“Told you we’d win,” he said.
I looked across the room.
Hannah was gone. She’d run out the second the gavel banged.
Mom was still sitting at her table, her head in her hands.
She looked up, caught my eye.
She mouthed two words.
I’m sorry.
I nodded.
I didn’t know if I’d ever forgive her.
But for the first time in a long time, I thought maybe, someday, I could.
We walked out of the courthouse into the cool night air.
The rain had stopped.
The stars were coming out, bright and clear over the Dallas skyline.
I looked up at them, thought of Dad.
We did it, kiddo, I imagined him saying. Told you you were strong.
I smiled through the tears.
Justice wasn’t just about the money.
It was about being seen.
May you like
Being believed.
Knowing that my dad’s love for me had been real, and true, and no one could ever take that away.
