Chapter 5 - The Deposition
Two weeks later, the war moved into a windowless conference room on the thirty-second floor of the downtown civil court building.
The air in the room was thick with tension. On one side of the long mahogany table sat David Vance and me. I wore a conservative navy suit, my cane resting against my chair, a heating pad discreetly tucked behind my bruised lower back.
On the other side sat Graham, Arthur Miller, and a formidable defense team hired specifically for Judith’s criminal case. Judith herself was not present; she was currently out on a $50,000 bond, confined to her home with an electronic ankle monitor awaiting her preliminary hearing.
Graham would not look at me. He sat hunched over his notepad, staring intently at his silver pen, his knuckles white. He looked thinner, exhausted, his eyes underlined by dark purple shadows.
Arthur leaned back in his chair, attempting to project an air of unbothered confidence, but the presence of the video recording David had submitted to the District Attorney’s office had severely damaged his composure.
"We are here today for the preliminary deposition regarding the civil petition for emergency support, asset preservation, and the marital separation of Nora and Graham Miller," David Vance announced calmly, switching on a digital audio recorder in the center of the table.
Arthur cleared his throat, adjusting his glasses. "Before we begin formal questioning, I want to state for the record that my client, Graham Miller, deeply regrets the emotional turmoil his wife has experienced. However, we maintain that the financial freeze requested by Mrs. Miller’s counsel is wildly excessive and severely limits my client’s ability to conduct standard business operations."
"Your client's standard business operations," David countered smoothly, pulling a stack of bank statements from a red folder, "include a transfer of forty thousand dollars from a joint marital savings account to a private defense retainer account for Judith Miller forty-eight hours after she shoved my client down a staircase."
Graham flinched, his head snapping up. "It’s my mother’s legal fund, David! She needed a retainer!"
"It was marital money, Graham," David fired back, his voice cool and cutting. "Money co-owned by Nora. You used the funds of the woman your mother battered to hire a criminal lawyer to defend her abuser. That is an illegal dissipation of marital assets under state law."
"She is my mother!" Graham yelled, slamming his hand onto the table.
"Graham, sit down and quiet," Arthur snapped at his nephew, glaring across the table.
I looked directly at Graham for the first time since the hospital. "Look at me, Graham."
He hesitated, then slowly turned his eyes toward mine.
"You haven't asked me once how my ribs are healing," I said softly, my voice carrying over the quiet room. "You haven't asked if I can sleep, or if I can sit without pain. You’ve sat in legal offices for three weeks worrying about your mother’s legal fund, your uncle’s reputation, and your joint accounts."
"Nora... I..." Graham stumbled over his words, his posture slumping.
"You didn't just fail to protect me, Graham," I continued, feeling no anger now, only a profound, liberating pity for the man sitting across from me. "You chose a side. You chose her side four years ago in Door County, and you chose her side at the bottom of the basement stairs while I was lying in broken glass."
"Let's move to the physical evidence," David interrupted, pulling a large photographic print from his folder and sliding it across the polished table.
It was a close-up photograph taken by the forensic team at the hospital. It showed the distinct, deep purple contusions along my spine, alongside the high-resolution render of my 2022 shoulder fracture.
Arthur glanced at the photo and tried to wave it off. "As we have repeatedly stated, the historical injury from 2022 is irrelevant to this proceeding. There is no contemporaneous medical record proving the origin of that fracture."
"There is no medical record," David agreed, smiling grimly. "Because Graham Miller actively prevented my client from seeking emergency care. Which brings us to our next filing."
David pulled a fresh legal document from his briefcase and slid it directly in front of Arthur.
"What is this?" Arthur asked, his eyes narrowing.
"That is a civil summons naming Graham Miller as a co-defendant in a suit for intentional infliction of emotional distress, civil conspiracy, and fraudulent concealment of a felony," David announced calmly. "We are seeking three million dollars in damages. And because of the witness tampering event recorded on Mrs. Miller’s porch last week, the District Attorney has officially added felony obstruction of justice to the criminal indictment against Richard and Arthur Miller."
Arthur’s face turned an unhealthy shade of grey. The pen fell from his hand, rolling uselessly across the mahogany table.
Graham looked at his uncle, then at David, total panic seizing his features. "Obstruction? What are you talking about?! What video?!"
"Your uncle didn't tell you?" I said gently, looking at my husband. "He came to Maya’s house with your father. They tried to offer me a million dollars to lie to the police. They did it right in front of a security camera, Graham."
Graham turned on his uncle, his voice rising in terror. "Arthur! You told me you were just going to offer her a standard separation agreement! You didn't tell me you offered a bribe!"
"Quiet, Graham!" Arthur snarled, his composure completely shattering.
"No!" Graham screamed, jumping up from his chair. "You lied to me! You told me we could handle this quietly! You told me Mom would just get probation!"
"Your mother is facing three to five years in a state penitentiary, Mr. Miller," David Vance stated matter-of-factly. "And if you continue to follow your uncle’s legal advice, you may very well be joining her as an accessory."
Graham dropped back into his chair, covering his face with both hands, sobbing quietly into the silence of the room.
May you like
I picked up my cane, stood up slowly, and looked down at the broken family across the table.
"We're done for today, David," I said, keeping my head held high. "They know where to send the settlement offer."
