CHAPTER 7: THE VERDICT
The jury was out for three hours.
Three hours of pacing, waiting, praying.
I sat beside my father, holding his hand, trying not to think about what would happen if they got away with it.
Then the jury returned.
The foreman stood.
"How do you find the defendant, Nathan Ashford, on the charge of aggravated assault?"
"Guilty."
"How do you find the defendant, Nathan Ashford, on the charge of attempted murder?"
"Guilty."
"How do you find the defendant, Nathan Ashford, on the charge of fraud?"
"Guilty."
"How do you find the defendant, Celeste Monroe, on the charge of conspiracy to commit assault?"
"Guilty."
"How do you find the defendant, Celeste Monroe, on the charge of fraud?"
"Guilty."
Each word hit me like a punch to the chest.
But not in a bad way.
In a releasing way.
Nathan was screaming, cursing, trying to get to me.
Celeste was crying, begging, pleading.
It didn't matter.
They were guilty.
And now they were going to pay.
The judge sentenced Nathan to twenty-five years in federal prison.
Celeste got fifteen.
She screamed.
He cried.
And I just sat there, watching, feeling nothing.
May you like
Because the man who had destroyed me had finally been destroyed.
And I was finally free.
