Chapter 10 - The Verdict
The autumn leaves were turning gold and amber when Daniel’s trial finally concluded in a federal district courtroom.
There was no dramatic jury deliberation. The digital footprint he had left behind—backed up to the very cloud storage system he forgot I had admin access to—was an airtight fortress of guilt. The prosecution didn't even need my testimony for the final closing arguments; the financial trails of wire fraud and embezzlement spoke with brutal, unarguable clarity.
The judge’s sentence was swift and severe: four years in a federal correctional facility, followed by mandatory restitution payments seized from whatever hidden assets could be recovered.
As the bailiffs led him out through the side wooden doors in a drab orange jumpsuit, Daniel cast one final, lingering look back toward the gallery where I sat alone in the second row.
His eyes were hollow, red-rimmed, and soaked in a bitter, late regret. He mouthed two words: I’m sorry.
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I didn't blink. I didn't nod. I simply watched him disappear through the heavy oak door, closing that chapter of my life with the finality of a deadbolt sliding into place.
I stood up, adjusted the collar of my charcoal blazer, and walked out into the crisp October sunlight.
