Chapter 17 - The Sentencing
The criminal trial was incredibly brief. My mother’s high-priced defense attorneys tried to argue that her age and supposed declining mental health made her unfit for a harsh prison environment, but the federal judge was entirely unsympathetic.
I sat in the front row of the gallery with Sarah. She held my hand tightly, her posture strong and unyielding. When the judge asked my mother to stand for sentencing, the courtroom fell dead silent.
May you like
“Eleanor Sterling, you have demonstrated a breathtaking level of greed, manipulation, and cruelty,” the judge stated sternly, peering over his glasses. “You stole millions from your own son, abused your pregnant daughter-in-law, and attempted to manipulate the justice system. I sentence you to eighteen years in federal prison, without the possibility of early parole.”
My mother let out a sharp gasp, her legs giving out completely as the marshals had to physically hold her up. She looked back at me, tears of genuine terror streaming down her face, silently begging for a mercy she had never once shown others. I simply looked at her, my face a mask of stone, and turned away. Sarah didn't even look back. We walked out of the courtroom together, stepping into the bright, warm sunlight of a new day.
