Chapter 9 - The Fall
The arrests were broadcast on every major news network. The footage of Victoria Sterling being shoved into the back of an FBI cruiser in handcuffs, screaming hysterically, went instantly viral. Arthur Vance hid his face under a jacket, his reputation and empire reduced to ashes in less than 24 hours.
Over the next month, the criminal trials proceeded with brutal efficiency.
Clara took the stand. She was no longer the frightened girl in the torn emerald dress. She wore a pristine white suit, her massive diamond flashing under the courtroom lights, her voice steady and commanding as she recounted the night she was sold, the abuse, and the escape.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours.
Guilty on all charges.
Victoria was sentenced to twenty years in a maximum-security federal penitentiary. Vance received twenty-five.
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As they were led out of the courtroom, Victoria turned back to look at Clara one last time. There was no defiance left in her eyes, only the hollow, vacant stare of a completely broken woman.
Clara didn't smile. She just turned away, slipping her hand into Julian’s. They walked out of the courthouse together, into the bright California sun, leaving the shadows behind them forever.
