Chapter 14 - THE COURTROOM
I caught Grace as Marcus drove Tyler into the wall.
The glass fell.
Agents handcuffed him.
My mother survived the gunshot.
The bullet missed her heart by less than an inch.
Victoria and Director Shaw were arrested.
The hidden children were removed from Vance facilities and placed with protected families.
Then came the trial.
Tyler’s attorneys called me unstable.
They showed videos of me screaming.
They showed photographs of me holding a knife.
They claimed my injuries were self-inflicted.
Then Marcus played the kitchen recording.
Tyler holding the burning match near my alcohol-soaked stomach.
“Let’s see if this sterilizes the problem.”
The courtroom went silent.
Dr. Nora Ellis testified about the drugs in my blood.
My father testified about Project Eve.
My mother admitted helping hide him and concealing the truth from me.
She did not ask for sympathy.
“I believed secrecy would protect my daughter,” she said. “Instead, I trained her to tolerate lies.”
Victoria testified only to blame Tyler.
Tyler blamed Shaw.
Shaw blamed national security.
The evidence blamed all of them.
Bank records.
Medical files.
Hidden cameras.
Forged consent forms.
Encrypted messages.
Blood samples.
The stolen embryos.
The basement children.
The jury convicted Tyler of attempted murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, medical fraud, and conspiracy.
Victoria received life imprisonment.
Director Shaw was convicted under federal trafficking and unlawful experimentation laws.
My mother was not charged for protecting my father, but she faced civil penalties for concealing evidence.
My father surrendered his medical license permanently and accepted probation for unauthorized experimentation.
Justice was imperfect.
But it was visible.
Before sentencing, Tyler turned toward me.
“You think they’re yours now?”
I held Lily in my arms.
My mother held Grace beside me.
“They always were.”
The judge sentenced him to sixty years.
His face finally broke.
Not from remorse.
From the knowledge that he would never control me again.
As deputies removed him, Marcus handed me a newly recovered Vance file.
The heading read:
SUBJECT E-29: PREVIOUS LIVE BIRTH.
I stared at him.
“What does that mean?”
May you like
His jaw tightened.
“Your daughters may not be your first children.”
