Chapter 8 - The Verdict
The federal trial of Vivian Moretti and Victor Vance lasted exactly four days.
Neither of them took the stand in their own defense. The mountain of digital evidence, financial trails, audio logs, eyewitness testimony, and physical documentation presented by Marcus Webb and the federal prosecutors was so overwhelming that the jury deliberated for less than thirty minutes before returning unanimous guilty verdicts across every single count.
The judge didn't hold back.
Vivian Moretti was sentenced to twenty-five years in federal prison without the possibility of parole for kidnapping, aggravated assault, extortion, and industrial sabotage.
Victor Vance received thirty years for racketeering, corporate conspiracy, and directing a criminal enterprise.
When the gavel came down for the final time in the federal district courtroom in Manhattan, I sat in the front row with Elena’s hand locked firmly inside mine.
As the bailiffs led Vivian away in handcuffs, she turned her head for one final, desperate look toward our seats. Her eyes met Elena’s. There was no defiance left in her expression—only a hollow, consuming despair.
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Elena didn't flinch. She didn't smile, and she didn't gloat. She simply looked at Vivian with a profound, detached pity—the look one gives to a ghost that no longer has the power to haunt you.
Then, she turned away, walking out of the courtroom doors and stepping directly into the bright, unclouded autumn sunlight waiting for us on the courthouse steps.
