I opened my mouth and said, “Yes.” “Write down every single word,” I whispered, my voice sounding hollow even to my own ears. “Write down that he admitted it.”

The room descended into horror.

On the screen, Daniel’s voice rang out through the court speakers, clear and chillingly calm: “If you won't give me a son, Rachel, then you’re useless to me. Spin around. Let’s see if we can turn that girl into something proper.”

Several women in the gallery burst into tears. Two reporters covered their mouths, turning away from the screens. Even the hardened bailiffs standing near the judge’s bench looked visibly sickened.

I buried my face in Emily’s shoulder, my whole body shaking as the nightmare played out in front of the entire world.

Judge Thomas watched the screen for less than two minutes before slamming his hand down onto the desk, his face red with absolute fury.

“Turn it off!” the judge ordered, his voice trembling with rage. “Turn that off immediately!”

The screens went black. The lights clicked back on.

Sterling stood frozen at the defense table, his hands shaking slightly as he looked at the floor. All his legal tricks, all his high-priced eloquence, had been rendered completely useless by two minutes of undeniable truth.

Daniel, for the first time, looked pale. He looked around the courtroom, realizing that every single eye staring at him—including the guards, the clerks, and his own legal team—was filled with pure disgust.

Judge Thomas leaned forward, glaring down at Daniel with lethal hatred.

“Mr. Sterling,” the judge said, his voice deadly quiet. “In my thirty-four years on the bench, I have rarely witnessed such unadulterated, barbaric cruelty. Your motion for bail is denied. The defendant will remain in custody at the state correctional facility without bail pending trial.”

BOOM!

The gavel slammed down.

“Thank you, Your Honor!” Victoria called out.

Guards immediately stepped behind Daniel, pulling his hands back to double-cuff his wrists and attaching heavy leg shackles around his ankles.

As they turned him to lead him out the side door, Daniel suddenly broke away from the officers, lunging toward the prosecution table.

“Rachel!” he screamed, his face contorting into a terrifying mask of rage, his former calm mask shattered into pieces. “You ruined me! You ruined my family! You were nothing before I found you! NOTHING!”

The guards tackled him to the floor, pinning him down against the carpet while he thrashing and screaming like a madman.

“RACHEL! YOU’LL PAY FOR THIS! MY FATHER WILL DESTROY YOU!”

I stood behind the prosecution table, supported by my sister and my crutches, watching the man who had terrorized me for three years get dragged across the floor in chains, screaming like a wounded animal.

The fear that had gripped my heart for months finally began to break apart.

He wasn't a god. He wasn't an all-powerful titan who owned the world.

He was just a cowardly, pathetic monster who had finally run out of places to hide.