Chapter 9 - The Legacy of Ash
Three weeks later.
The autumn leaves had fallen, leaving the Berkshire trees bare like skeletal fingers against the sharp gray sky. The St. Jude Estate was eerily quiet. The grand wedding tents had been dismantled, the flower arrangements had rotted away, and the media circus that had encamped outside the wrought-iron gates had finally migrated to the federal courthouse downtown.
Julian stood in the center of the east wing gallery corridor. The smell of fresh paint and joint compound filled the air. A team of contractors had just finished repairing the ruined wall where Emma had been trapped.
The heavy replica of the Mona Lisa was gone, banished to an evidence locker in the city. In its place hung a simple, beautifully framed black-and-white photograph of Clara, taken during a summer trip to the coast three years ago. She was laughing, her hair blowing wildly in the sea breeze, her eyes full of life and warmth.
"Mr. Vance?"
Julian turned to see his personal attorney, Arthur Pendelton, walking down the hall holding a thick leather briefcase. Pendelton looked exhausted; his hair was messy, and he wore dark circles under his eyes from three weeks of non-stop legal warfare.
"Arthur," Julian said, shaking the older man's hand. "Tell me it's done."
"The Sterling family is completely ruined, Julian," Pendelton said, opening his briefcase on a side table. "Richard Sterling was indicted this morning by a federal grand jury for bank fraud, money laundering, and obstruction of justice. The state's attorney general has frozen every single asset held by the Sterling Investment Group."
"And Victoria?" Julian asked, his voice hardening at her name.
"The grand jury returned an indictment for First-Degree Murder, Attempted Murder of a Minor, and Kidnapping," Pendelton replied solemnly. "Given her public confession on multiple high-definition camera feeds, her defense team attempted to float an insanity plea. The court-appointed psychiatrist threw it out yesterday afternoon. She is entirely competent to stand trial. The District Attorney is seeking life without the possibility of parole."
Julian looked back at the photograph of Clara. "She won't get off easy."
"No," Pendelton agreed softly. "She won't. But there is one more thing you need to see, Julian. Something the police forensic team recovered from Clara’s cloud storage backups when they decrypted her phone."
Pendelton pulled a tablet from his bag, swiped the screen a few times, and handed it to Julian.
"What is this?" Julian asked.
May you like
"A video file," Pendelton said. "Timestamped two hours before her death. Clara knew Victoria was closing in on her. She recorded this for you, in case she didn't make it out."
Julian’s heart skipped a beat. His fingers trembled as he held the glass screen.
