My Ex-Fiance The Detective Who Arrested Me Chapter 04
On the day the trial resumed, Arthur was dressed in black.
He sat in the gallery with the other victims‘ families.
I kept my eyes down and listened as the charges were
read aloud.
“…The defendant, Hazel Vance, is found guilty on five
counts of first–degree murder, with each victim
pronounced dead at the scene.”
“Over a three–year period, she participated in the
trafficking of human organs in more than four
hundred eighty documented transactions.”
“The defendant may now address the court.”
I didn’t speak.
The gallery exploded.
“What defense? She’s a monster!”
“My son spent twenty years becoming a doctor.
Twenty years! She murdered him, and then she tried to
make it look like he was tied to some black–market organ ring!”
“Five doctors. She killed five of them! She deserves to die for this!”
They clutched framed photos of the victims, shaking with grief.
Reporters packed the room, cameras raised like a
firing squad. The flashes came so fast I had to squeeze my eyes shut.
I opened my mouth. Nothing came out. My throat locked shut.
It was an old problem of mine. Whenever my emotions hit the breaking point, my voice would shut down
completely.
Clara knew. Arthur knew too.
That’s why Clara always fought my battles when we
were kids.
I scanned the gallery for Arthur.
He was lost in the crowd.
Someone lunged at the barrier, hurling a heavy steel
thermos that clipped me hard in the head.
Blood ran into my eyes. Everything went red.
All I could do was shake my head at the judge.
The sentence came fast. Death.
The gallery erupted in cheers.
The families collapsed into each other, weeping.
“If the defendant wishes to contest this verdict, she
has the right to file an appeal. Does the defendant
understand?”
I still couldn’t speak.
I nodded. Yes, I understood. Then I shook my head. No
appeal.
The gavel came down.
Final.
I shut my eyes.
Clara, you win.
Arthur watched the bailiff escort Hazel away. His body
moved before his mind could catch up.
But the families closed around him, pulling him
toward the courthouse doors.
Reporters swarmed the second he stepped outside,
microphones in his face before he could breathe.
“Captain Sterling! You arrested the woman who
murdered your wife, and now she’s been sentenced to
death. How does that feel?”
“Sources say the convicted killer was your
ex–girlfriend. Do you have any comment on that?”
Arthur’s throat closed like a fist.
He couldn’t get a single word out.
The realization hit him like a freight train.
The day Hazel stabbed Clara, she hadn’t said a word
then, either.
She wasn’t refusing to explain herself. She couldn’t.
She never could.
The color drained from Arthur’s face.
“Get back to the station. Pull the case file on Clara’s
stabbing. Everything. The weapon, the medical report,
everything.”
“Now!”
The lieutenant didn’t understand, but the look on
Arthur’s face killed any questions.
When the file landed on his desk, Arthur read it line by
line. He didn’t blink.
When he looked up, his eyes were wild.
“Call the DA. Right now. We’re reopening Hazel’s case.”