Chapter One Hundred Twelve: The Appeal

The appeals courthouse was smaller than the one where Julian had been tried.

It sat at the end of a quiet street. Brick. Old. Unremarkable. The kind of building you walked past without noticing. The kind of place where lives were changed without anyone watching.

I walked up the steps alone. Adrian was already inside. He'd gone ahead with Felix to review the final documents. Daniel was with Sloane, waiting in the car. He'd wanted to come in. I'd told him no. I'd told him there was no reason for him to sit through it again.

He'd argued. I'd told him I needed him to stay. He'd agreed.

The courtroom was small. Wooden benches. A single window. A judge's bench that looked older than the building itself. Julian was already at the defense table. He didn't turn when I entered. He just stared straight ahead.

I took my seat. Adrian was beside me. He didn't speak. He didn't reach for me. He just sat there.

The judge entered. Everyone stood.

The hearing began.

---

Julian's lawyer spoke first.

He was younger than the one from the trial. Sharper. More aggressive. He stood and addressed the judge.

"Your Honor, the evidence presented at trial was obtained without proper warrants. The recordings, the documents, the witness statements—all of it was gathered through unauthorized surveillance and illegal search and seizure. My client's rights were violated. The conviction should be overturned."

The judge didn't react. He just listened.

"Furthermore," the lawyer continued, "the primary witness—Elena Voss—has made claims that are impossible to verify. She claims she died and came back. She claims she lived her life twice. These claims are not evidence. They are fantasy. And the entire case was built on them."

He sat down.

The prosecutor stood.

"Your Honor, the evidence presented at trial was obtained through legal means. The recordings were made with the consent of one party. The documents were provided by witnesses who came forward voluntarily. The witness statements were given under oath. Everything was documented. Everything was verified."

She paused.

"As for Miss Voss's claims, they are unusual. But they are not the basis of the conviction. The basis of the conviction is the evidence. The messages. The recordings. The financial records. The testimony of multiple witnesses. The fact that Julian Ashford pushed a woman off a balcony and left her for dead."

She sat down.

The judge nodded. He looked at Julian's lawyer.

"Anything else?"

"Yes, Your Honor. We'd like to call a witness."

"Who?"

"Elena Voss."

I didn't move.

The judge looked at me. "Miss Voss. Are you willing to testify?"

I stood. "Yes."

---

I walked to the stand.

I raised my right hand. I swore to tell the truth. The whole truth. Nothing but the truth.

Julian's lawyer approached.

"Miss Voss. You claim you died. You claim you came back. You claim you lived your life twice."

"Yes."

"And you expect this court to believe you?"

"I don't expect anything. I'm just telling the truth."

"A truth that no one can verify. A truth that no one can prove. A truth that exists only in your mind."

"The evidence exists. The records. The documents. The witnesses. Everything I've done since I came back has been documented."

"By you. By your husband. By your team. All of whom have a vested interest in seeing my client convicted."

I didn't respond. I just looked at him.

"No further questions."

The prosecutor stood.

"Miss Voss. Can you tell us what happened on the night of your engagement party?"

I looked at her. I looked at the judge. I looked at Julian. He was staring at me. His eyes were cold.

"I found messages on his phone," I said. "Messages between him and my stepsister. They were planning to steal my mother's trust fund. They were planning to leave me with nothing."

"And what happened when you confronted him?"

"He grabbed me. He pushed me. He tried to keep me from leaving."

"And then?"

"And then he pushed me off the balcony."

The prosecutor paused. She let the words settle.

"Can you tell us what happened next?"

"I fell. I hit the ground. I died."

The courtroom was silent.

"I died," I repeated. "And then I woke up. Five years earlier. In my childhood bedroom. On the morning of my engagement party."

The judge didn't react. Julian's lawyer didn't react. No one reacted.

"I know how it sounds," I said. "I know it sounds impossible. But it's the truth. I lived it. I died. I came back. And I spent the next two years making sure that the people who hurt me—the people who killed my mother—would never hurt anyone again."

The prosecutor nodded. She sat down.

The judge looked at Julian's lawyer. "Anything else?"

"No, Your Honor."

"Then we'll take this under advisement. Court is adjourned."

---

The decision came three days later.

I was in my office when Felix called.

"We won," he said.

I set down my pen. "What?"

"The appeal was denied. The conviction stands. Julian stays in prison."

I didn't respond.

"Elena?"

"I heard you."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

I hung up. I set the phone down. I looked at the window. At the city. At the light.

It was over. For real this time.

I picked up my phone. I called Adrian.

---

He was in his office when I got there.

He was on the phone. He hung up when he saw me.

"We won," he said.

"You heard."

"Felix told me."

"Felix tells you everything."

"He does."

I sat across from him. I folded my hands on his desk.

"It's over."

"It is."

"He's not getting out. Not ever."

"No."

I looked at him. He looked at me.

"I thought I'd feel something," I said.

"And you don't?"

"No."

He was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "You will."

"When?"

"When you stop looking for it. When you stop expecting it. When you just let yourself live."

I looked at him. He looked at me.

"You sound like you know what you're talking about."

"I do."

The city hummed outside. The clock ticked. A car passed below. I listened to the sounds of the afternoon.

"Okay," I said.

He didn't reach for me. I didn't reach for him. We sat in his office, two people who had spent years chasing the same ghost, and watched the city breathe.

Tomorrow, the headlines would run. Tomorrow, the world would move on.

But today, the office was quiet, and the sky was clear, and for once, I didn't want to be anywhere else.