Chapter 9 - The Sentencing
The trial was a media circus, but the verdict was never in doubt.
The hitmen flipped on Sylvia for reduced sentences, providing the digital receipts of the crypto payments. Derek, desperate to avoid a murder charge, testified against his own mother, detailing every cruel thing she had done to my grandmother and the exact timeline of the forgery.
I sat in the front row of the courtroom, holding Grandma’s hand.
Sylvia looked hollowed out. The perfectly coiffed hair was stringy and graying; the designer suits were replaced by an orange jumpsuit. When the judge read the verdict—Guilty on all charges, Life without the possibility of parole—she didn't even blink.
As the bailiffs led her away, she stopped in front of the partition, looking at me.
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"You ruined my life," she spat, her voice venomous.
"No," I replied, my voice steady, loud enough for the entire gallery to hear. "You put my grandmother in a cage. You killed my father. I didn't ruin your life, Sylvia. I just handed you the bill."
