Chapter 9 - The Hammer FallsThree days later, the jury returned with their verdict after deliberating for less than ninety minutes.
Judge Thomas, a stern man with decades on the bench, looked down at the defendants with undisguised contempt.
"On the charges of aggravated assault resulting in severe bodily harm, and reckless endangerment, Linda Brooks, this court finds you guilty on all counts. I sentence you to twelve years in state prison, with no possibility of parole for the first eight."
Linda let out a blood-curdling scream, collapsing against her lawyer as the bailiffs stepped forward and snapped handcuffs around her wrists.
"On twenty counts of wire fraud, identity theft, and financial embezzlement, Robert Brooks, this court finds you guilty on all counts. I sentence you to fifteen years in federal prison."
My father didn't scream. He just stared blankly ahead as the second set of cuffs locked into place.
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I sat quietly in the front row, watching them be led away through the heavy wooden side doors. The people who had terrorized, belittled, and nearly destroyed my life were finally caged by the very system they thought they could manipulate.
Emily was nowhere to be found in the courtroom. Without money, without parents, and without friends who only loved her for her status, she had already packed up and fled Charlotte, moving God knows where to start over with nothing. Good riddance.
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