Chapter 8 - The Verdict
The jury deliberated for precisely forty-two minutes.
When the heavy wooden doors of the courtroom opened and the jury foreperson walked back into the room, the silence was absolute.
Evelyn stood at the defense table, her hands trembling violently as she held her attorney’s arm.
"Will the defendant please rise," the judge ordered.
Evelyn stood up, her eyes wide, staring at the foreperson.
"In the matter of State v. Evelyn Vance," the foreperson read, her voice resonant and firm, "on Count One, Attempted First-Degree Murder, we find the defendant... Guilty."
Evelyn let out a choked gasp, dropping her hands.
"On Count Two, Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Guilty. On Count Three, Aggravated Child Endangerment, Guilty. On Count Four, Grand Larceny, Guilty."
Guilty on all counts.
The gallery erupted into quiet murmurs as reporters typed frantically.
The judge looked down at Evelyn, his face grim and devoid of sympathy. "Evelyn Vance, you have been convicted of heinous, calculated crimes against your own child and grandchild. You displayed a total lack of remorse and executed a malicious scheme that nearly resulted in the loss of two innocent lives."
He paused, gathering his sentencing papers.
"On Count One, I sentence you to twenty-five years in state prison. On Counts Two, Three, and Four, an additional fifteen years, to run consecutively. You will serve a minimum of forty years before becoming eligible for parole."
At sixty-two years old, a forty-year sentence was a life sentence.
Evelyn collapsed into her chair, sobbing hysterically as the bailiffs pulled her to her feet and handcuffed her hands behind her back.
As they led her toward the side exit leading to the holding cells, she turned her head toward me, tears streaming down her face.
"Lena! Please!" she wailed, her voice cracking with pathetic desperation. "I’m your mother! Forgive me! Lena!"
I stood beside Ethan, holding his hand tightly. I looked at her, feeling no anger, no hatred, no desire for vengeance.
Only peace.
May you like
"Goodbye, Evelyn," I said quietly.
She was dragged through the steel doors, and the heavy lock clicked shut with a finality that echoed through the empty room.
