Chapter 7 - The Trial and The Truth
Two months later.
The New York Supreme Court building on Centre Street was surrounded by hundreds of reporters, satellite news vans, and crowds of supporters holding signs that read JUSTICE FOR AMELIA.
Inside Courtroom 302, the high-profile trial of the century was reaching its dramatic conclusion.
Selena Drake sat at the defense table wearing a grey prison jumpsuit, her former glamorous hair pulled back in a flat ponytail, her face haggard. Beside her sat Nathaniel, looking hollow, defeated, and fifteen pounds thinner, wearing a plain dark suit provided by his public defender after his assets were completely frozen by the federal government.
Victoria Vance-Cross stood before the jury, holding up a stack of financial documents and the forensic audio report.
"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury," Victoria said firmly. "The defense tried to claim that this was a case of passion, a bad business deal, or an unfortunate misunderstanding. But the evidence paints a single, undeniable picture: cold-blooded, calculated attempted murder for monetary gain."
Victoria walked over to the witness stand where I sat.
I was eight months pregnant now, radiant and healthy, wearing a simple navy blue maternity dress. I held my deposition papers firmly in my lap.
"Mrs. Vance," Victoria asked softly. "When Selena Drake pushed you in that waiting room, what were you holding?"
"I was holding the ultrasound photo of my child," I answered clearly, looking directly at the jury. "And I was praying that my baby would survive the monsters I trusted."
In the back of the courtroom, my father sat in the front row, his arms crossed, watching the proceedings with quiet, proud strength.
Selena’s high-priced attorney tried to cross-examine me, attempting to argue that Selena acted under extreme emotional distress caused by Nathaniel's manipulation. But with every question, I remained composed, dismantling his arguments with precise facts, timeline dates, and bank records.
When Nathaniel’s attorney tried to claim Nathaniel never intended physical harm to the baby, Victoria played the hospital tape one final time for the jury.
The cold voice filled the silent courtroom: "If she dies from complications... even better."
Two jury members visibly shuddered. One wept quietly.
After only two hours of deliberation, the jury returned to the courtroom.
"On the count of Conspiracy to Commit First-Degree Murder," the jury foreman announced, "we find the defendant, Nathaniel Vance, GUILTY."
"On the count of Grand Larceny and Corporate Fraud, we find the defendant, Nathaniel Vance, GUILTY."
Nathaniel dropped his head onto the defense table, letting out a loud, pathetic wail.
"On the count of Attempted Murder and Aggravated Assault," the foreman continued, "we find the defendant, Selena Drake, GUILTY."
Selena collapsed into her chair, covering her face in her hands as her mother sobbed in the gallery.
The judge slammed his gavel down hard, his face grim.
"Nathaniel Vance, for your heinous actions against your wife and unborn child, you are sentenced to twenty-five years in state prison without the possibility of parole. Selena Drake, for your direct participation in this evil plot, you are sentenced to eighteen years in state prison."
BANG!
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The gavel struck the sound block, sealing their fates forever.
I stood up from the witness stand, took a deep breath, and walked out of the courtroom with my head held high, never looking back at the two empty souls being led away in chains.
