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I place my hand over Charlie’s that still rests on my leg. If it weren’t for her love for me, her instincts and determination to protect me, I wouldn’t be sitting here today to see Malcom brought to justice. She fought for my life when I couldn’t, and for that, I’ll spend every day for the rest of our lives showing her how thankful I am.
This moment is supposed to be about vengeance for all the things Malcom put us through, for all the things he did to us, but I can’t help being distracted by the people sitting with me. Jack and Nathan have been safe places for my sisters, and they’re the brothers I never had. They stepped in and stepped up when I couldn’t be there. I’ll never be able to thank them enough for what they’ve done for my sisters, for me, and for Charlie.
The sounds of people shuffling catch my attention. The jury is being led out by the bailiff. I missed any other charges read, but judging by the satisfied looks around me, none of them went his way.
I look at Malcom to find him sagging in a chair. He must have passed out or nearly passed out for them to have allowed him to sit while his verdicts were read.
“Malcom Shaw, you’ll stand now.” The judge’s voice is once again stern.
Malcom stands on visibly trembling legs. His hands rest heavily on the table in front of him. He obviously relies on it to keep him upright.
Colin finding my old car that Christopher was in when he ran down Tessa was one nail in the coffin for the man I once called Dad. A pair of panties were found stuffed under the passenger seat. DNA could still be extracted from them, and the crime lab matched the DNA in the cloth to DNA from the body found near the college campus.
Once Tessa’s body was uncovered and details of the items found in her grave were released, something caught the attention of a detective from Christopher’s case.
One of items found with Tessa’s body was a small diamond stud earring, but only one. The detective from Christopher’s case remembered a single earring being listed on an inventory of Christopher’s things when the brownstone was searched.
She thought it was odd at the time, but she had no reason to think more of it. A woman, Andrea, used to live there, so it made sense to be there. Later, however, the detective was able to match the two earrings, one from the brownstone and the other from Tessa’s grave. Her testimony explained how sometimes these things are kept as a trophy, and that was enough for the jury to convict him of her death.
Jack and Nathan’s instincts about the security guard at the hospital were another nail in the coffin. The police later dug deeper into the security footage and saw Malcom paying the security officer off to leave me unattended. The officer later admitted to taking the bribe. He was let off with a slap on the wrist because he had a sob story and no criminal record.
“Malcom Shaw, you have been found guilty of three counts of soliciting for murder for hire, one count of attempted murder, one count of concealing a body, one count for improper disposal of a body, money laundering, embezzlement…” on and on he goes, including the assault on Charlie.
“You did it.”
Adalyn’s whisper reaches my ears, and I turn to find her leaning forward, reaching for my hand. I extend my hand to her, gently pulling her towards me.
“No, Addy, we did it.” My whispered voice cracks as my words come out.
I’ve never been more grateful for Andrea and Adalyn. A part of me will always regret not being honest with them sooner. Not allowing them to know the real me. However, what’s done is done. We’ve never been as close as we are now.
Charlie and I plan to move to Fraser this fall before baby Lawson is born. I can’t wait to be an uncle again. Sweet Sophia is over the moon, excited to have a baby cousin to help with. Jack is every bit the protector we all expect him to be.
Irene sold half of Second Chance Café to Charlie. It’s now Second Chance Café and Bakery. Owning her own bakery has been a dream of Charlie’s. I couldn’t be happier to see it come true, and to own it with Irene is a huge bonus.
I look forward to starting my life in Fraser with my family. We consider Irene and Joe our family, too. They’ve been instrumental in all our lives. They’ve taken each of us under their wing with no judgement or any questions asked. They never had children of their own, and my siblings and I never had real parents. It may seem odd, but we all fit together perfectly.
Adalyn kicks ass as wife and mother and running her own self-defense studio. How she’s able to juggle all of that and help Nathan with his private practice is beyond me, but I beam with pride at how we’ve all fought to have the lives we deserve despite those who should’ve looked out for us doing everything to take us down.
“…your sentencing is set for one week from today at nine a.m. Until then, you’ll remain in state custody.”
Once the judge slams that gavel again, I rise, my family following suit. The chatter in the courtroom grows louder. I look at my family to see them gathering their things and turning to exit our row.
As I step out into the aisle, I turn toward the back of the courtroom. Familiar faces catch my eye. Colin throws his hand up, giving me a wave. SJ stands beside him, talking to another man. I can’t see who he is since his back is to me.
I walking toward Colin, determined to thank him and SJ again for all their help. Not just for myself, but for my family. I glance back and see my family close behind me, all of them talking amongst themselves.
As I approach Colin, he extends his hand. I shake his, but he pulls me into a hug. As soon as he releases me, SJ is right there with his hand outstretched to shake mine, too. The man SJ was talking to has now turned to face me.
The gasp from behind me startles me. I turn to see Andrea’s shocked expression.
“What’s wrong? Is it the baby?” I ask her quickly. She doesn’t speak immediately. Her eyes are locked on the man SJ was just talking to.
“Andrea, sweetheart, what is it?” Jack’s voice is filled with concern, and his arm instinctively wraps around Andrea, pulling her tight against his side.
“Mr. Dark Eyes,” she mutters, almost in a whisper.
The man realizes she’s talking about him, and a smile spreads across his face. “I’ve been called worse,” he says. “I’m glad to see you heeded my advice, Ms. Shaw,” he says genuinely.
