Chapter 14 - The Judge on Linda’s List
Judge Ellison immediately removed himself from every case involving Northstar.
He requested an independent investigation.
The payment records showed monthly transfers to a consulting company owned by his brother.
Linda’s attorneys claimed the money bought favorable rulings.
Rebecca felt betrayed.
Judge Ellison had denied Trevor’s guardianship petition and ordered protection for her.
Had those rulings been designed to build trust?
Federal investigators interviewed him for six hours.
Ellison admitted his brother worked for Northstar but denied knowing about the payments.
Then Sarah found a sealed complaint filed by Judge Ellison three years earlier.
He had reported suspected bribery involving Northstar.
The state ethics board buried the complaint.
One of the officials who dismissed it also appeared on Linda’s list.
Ellison had not been taking bribes.
Linda had routed payments through his brother to create leverage against him if he ever opposed her.
The same strategy she used against Rebecca.
Make an innocent person look guilty before they can speak.
A special prosecutor cleared Ellison after reviewing his financial records and communications.
He did not return to the case.
A new judge, Judge Amelia Brooks, took control.
Unlike Ellison, she had no history with the Hale family.
Her first order froze the entire trust and placed Northstar under independent management.
Her second denied bail for Trevor and Linda.
Her third protected Rebecca’s medical decisions and sole custody rights after the baby’s birth.
Trevor reacted violently during the hearing.
He overturned the defense table and shouted that the child belonged to him.
Judge Brooks stared at him.
“You have no biological, legal, or moral claim to this child.”
Trevor was removed from court.
Linda remained seated.
Her expression revealed nothing.
The criminal trial was scheduled for two months later.
Rebecca was now eight months pregnant.
Sarah advised her to avoid public appearances.
But Northstar employees asked her to attend a meeting about the stolen pension funds.
Hundreds gathered inside a union hall.
Rebecca stood before people whose savings had vanished.
“I cannot promise that every dollar will return,” she said. “But Richard, Daniel, and I will surrender our interests before we allow Linda’s crimes to become our profit.”
Richard had agreed to liquidate luxury properties and restore the pension accounts.
Daniel formally declined any claim to the trust’s management.
Rebecca requested that an independent board control the baby’s inheritance until adulthood.
The room remained silent.
Then Helen Porter began clapping.
Others joined.
For the first time, Rebecca felt something other than fear.
She felt purpose.
After the meeting, a young Northstar accountant approached her.
“My name is Emily Cross. I worked directly for Linda.”
She handed Rebecca a sealed envelope.
“Linda made me alter the employee accounts. I kept the originals.”
The records proved the full pension theft.
Emily also carried a voicemail.
Linda’s voice ordered her to delete security footage from the night Caroline died.
Rebecca looked at her.
“You were there?”
Emily nodded.
“I saw Caroline get into the car with Trevor and Linda before they went to the lake.”
“Will you testify?”
Emily looked toward the parking lot.
“I already tried once.”
A black vehicle accelerated toward them.
Daniel shoved Rebecca behind a concrete barrier.
The car struck Emily and sped away.
Rebecca screamed for help.
Emily lay bleeding on the pavement.
She grabbed Rebecca’s sleeve.
“The driver,” she whispered. “It wasn’t one of Linda’s men.”
“Who was it?”
Emily’s eyes filled with terror.
“Sarah.”
Rebecca turned.
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Her own attorney stood several yards away, staring at the disappearing car.
👉 The witness claimed Rebecca’s trusted lawyer was behind the attack, turning the one person who knew every detail of her case into a possible traitor.
