Chapter 9
Sentencing day was a week later.
I didn’t have to be there.
Mia told me I could stay home, that she’d handle everything, that I didn’t need to see Daniel or Lila ever again if I didn’t want to.
But I went anyway.
I needed to see it.
I needed to hear the judge say the words.
To know it was really over.
The courtroom was quieter this time.
No press, no crowds.
Just family, the lawyers, and the defendants.
Daniel stood first.
His lawyer begged for leniency.
Said Daniel was a good man who’d made a mistake.
Said he was sorry.
Said he’d learned his lesson.
Daniel spoke too.
He cried as he talked.
Said he was sorry for everything.
Said he still loved me.
Said he hoped I could forgive him one day.
I didn’t believe a word of it.
Then Lila stood.
Her lawyer also begged for leniency.
Said she was young, that she’d been manipulated, that she had her whole life ahead of her.
Lila didn’t speak.
She just stared at the floor.
Then the judge spoke.
He was an older man, with a kind face but hard eyes.
“Mr. Hale, Ms. Voss,” he said. “What you did was not a mistake. It was a deliberate, cruel, calculated plan to destroy an innocent woman and steal from a sick woman fighting for her life. You showed no remorse. You tried to frame your victim. You lied to everyone. And the only reason you’re sorry now is because you got caught.”
He paused.
“Mr. Hale, for the crimes of felony embezzlement, conspiracy to commit fraud, domestic abuse, and conspiracy to commit assault, I sentence you to seven years in state prison, with no possibility of parole. You will also be required to pay full restitution to Ms. Hale and her family.”
Daniel let out a sob.
Two guards stepped forward and cuffed his hands behind his back.
“Ms. Voss,” the judge continued. “For the crimes of felony embezzlement, conspiracy to commit fraud, and assault, I sentence you to four years in state prison, with no possibility of parole. You will also be required to pay full restitution.”
Lila didn’t make a sound.
The guards cuffed her too.
They led them both out of the courtroom.
Daniel looked back at me once as he left.
His eyes were full of hate.
I didn’t flinch.
I just looked right back at him.
And I smiled.
It was over.
Really, truly over.
We walked out of the courthouse.
My mom took my arm.
“Want to get some ice cream?” she asked. “Your favorite. Mint chocolate chip.”
I laughed.
“Sounds perfect,” I said.
We spent the rest of the day together, just the three of us—me, Mom, and Uncle Arthur.
We ate ice cream in the park.
We walked around the lake.
We talked about everything except the trial.
We talked about Dad.
About the trips we’d take when Mom was fully better.
About the future.
That night, I lay in bed and thought about everything that had happened.
The hospital floor.
The lies.
The trial.
The verdicts.
I thought about how low I’d been.
How I’d thought my life was over.
And now?
I had my whole life ahead of me.
I was twenty-five years old.
I was rich, thanks to my dad’s trust fund and the restitution.
I had my family.
My friends.
A purpose.
I could do anything I wanted.
Go anywhere.
Be anyone.
I closed my eyes.
For the first time in as long as I could remember, I didn’t have any nightmares.
I slept straight through the night, peaceful and warm.
May you like
And when I woke up the next morning?
I knew exactly what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.
