Chapter 9 - The Final Verdict in Court Two
Three months later, the federal district courthouse in downtown Chicago was packed to absolute capacity.
Flashbulbs popped outside the limestone steps as high-priced defense attorneys and disgraced public officials shuffled through a gauntlet of reporters. The trial of United States v. Serena Montigue et al. had become the biggest headline of the decade—a sensational, high-society scandal that exposed the brutal underbelly of Chicago’s elite.
Inside Courtroom Two, sitting in the front row of the gallery behind a mahogany partition, Lily wore a sharp, elegant navy blue blazer, her hair falling in soft waves around her shoulders. Beside her, fourteen-month-old Ethan sat on her lap in a miniature toddler suit, clapping his hands together happily as he played with a shiny silver cufflink.
And standing right beside them, acting as an unshakeable, protective pillar, was Victor Blackwood.
At the defense table sat Serena Montigue.
Gone was the custom silk gown, the diamond jewelry, and the untouchable aristocratic smirk. Serena wore a standard federal orange jumpsuit, her hair pulled back into a messy bun, her face pale and hollowed out by months of isolation in the high-security detention center.
The federal judge, a stern-faced woman with decades on the bench, adjusted her wire-rimmed glasses and looked down from her elevated mahogany podium.
“Serena Marie Montigue,” the judge’s voice echoed clearly through the silent courtroom. “You have been found guilty by a jury of your peers on multiple counts of aggravated assault, felony child endangerment, witness tampering, and conspiracy to commit perjury.”
Serena kept her eyes glued to the defense table, her shoulders shaking with silent, impotent rage and humiliation.
“In light of the severity of your actions against a vulnerable minor, and the chilling, calculated nature of your abuse,” the judge continued, reading from the official sentencing document, “this court sentences you to twenty-five years in federal penitentiary, without the possibility of parole.”
The gavel came down with a sharp, echoing crack.
Bang.
The sound signaled the permanent end of Serena’s reign of terror. Federal marshals immediately stepped up behind her, snapping heavy steel handcuffs around her wrists and lifting her out of her chair. As they dragged her past the gallery toward the side exit, Serena’s head snapped up.
Her venomous, hate-filled eyes locked directly onto Lily.
“You won’t win!” Serena shrieked, struggling against the marshals before her voice was cut off by the heavy oak doors swinging shut. “He’ll destroy you too! Monsters like Victor don't love—they only consume!”
The courtroom doors clicked shut, plunging the room back into absolute, peaceful silence.
Lily didn't even flinch. She simply looked down at baby Ethan, who had already lost interest in the shouting and was busy trying to pull on Victor’s watch strap.
Victor reached out, placing his warm, strong hand over Lily’s hand where it rested on the armrest.
May you like
“It’s over,” Victor murmured softly into her hair.
“I know,” Lily whispered, turning her hand over to interlock her fingers securely with his.
