로그인Victor's sentencing was scheduled for Friday. One week after the safe house attack.I'd been dreading it. Another courtroom. Another judgment. Another reminder of everything that had been taken from me.The prosecutor called me Wednesday. "We'd like you to give a victim impact statement. Tell the judge how Victor's crime affected you.""Do I have to?""No. But it helps. Gives the judge context for sentencing."I agreed. But didn't know what to say.Victor kidnapped me. Caused my mother's death. Stole twenty-two years of my life.But he'd also helped destroy The Covenant. Testified against Cross. Tried to make amends.How did I weigh those things?Thursday night, I sat at the desk trying to write. Marcus watching."What are you going to say?""I don't know. Part of me wants him to rot in prison for what he did. Part of me is grateful he helped.""So say both.""Can I? Isn't a victim impact statement supposed to be about demanding justice?""It's supposed to be honest. So be honest."I
Sarah's funeral was on Tuesday. Small service. Just her kids, her mother, and us.Her children didn't understand. Too young. Why was mommy gone?I couldn't look at them. Couldn't face what my foundation had cost.Wednesday morning, I was at the office trying to focus on work. Anything to not think about Sarah.Emily burst in. Face white. "We have a problem."My stomach dropped. "What now?""The Bronx safe house. Someone broke in last night. Jennifer Davis was there. She's at the hospital."Jennifer. Twenty-eight. Escaping her husband. Had been with us for three weeks."How bad?""Broken arm. Concussion. Cuts and bruises. But alive."Thank God. Alive."What happened?""Someone bypassed security. Got past the cameras. Into her room. Beat her. Left a message on the wall.""What message?"Emily's voice shook. "You can't protect everyone."I grabbed my coat. "I'm going to the hospital."Marcus appeared. "I'm coming with you."Dante drove. Security team following. We couldn't go anywhere wi
Three days after Cross's sentencing, Santos called another meeting.FBI headquarters again. Same secure room. But this time, more agents present. Director Collins. Assistant Director Morrison. This was serious.Santos started without preamble. "We've identified The Covenant's new leadership structure. Cross had a deputy. Second in command. Someone who stayed in the shadows while Cross took all the attention."He pulled up a slide. No photo. Just a code name."The Wolf.""The Wolf?" Rachel repeated."That's how members refer to him. Or her. We don't know. Identity is kept secret. Even from most Covenant members. Only the inner circle knows who The Wolf really is.""How is that possible?" Marcus asked."Compartmentalization. The Wolf communicates through encrypted channels. Uses intermediaries. Never meets members directly. It's brilliant, actually. Can't arrest someone you can't identify."Director Collins spoke. "We've intercepted communications. The Wolf has been active since Cross's
Thirty days passed like a blur.The foundation kept growing. Seven hundred women on the waiting list now. Twenty-three staff members. Two new locations opening in Boston and Chicago.I'd started therapy twice a week. Working through the trauma. Learning to sleep without nightmares.Marcus and I were building something real. Slow. Careful. But real.And today: Cross's sentencing.The courthouse was packed again. Same courtroom. Different energy. No uncertainty this time. Just waiting to hear how long Cross would rot in prison.We took our seats. Marcus beside me. Sienna and Dante behind us. Rachel to my left.Cross was led in. Thinner. Gray. A month in maximum security had aged him.He sat at the defense table. Schaffer beside him. Still professional. Still trying.Judge Walsh entered. Everyone stood."Be seated. We're here for sentencing in United States versus Julian Cross. Mr. Cross was found guilty on twelve counts. I've reviewed the pre-sentencing reports, victim impact statements
Day two of deliberations. We'd spent the morning in the waiting room, pretending to read, pretending to be calm.At 2:17 PM, the knock came."Jury has reached a verdict."Four words that changed everything.My legs went weak. Marcus caught me."This is it," he said.I couldn't speak. Couldn't breathe. Just nodded.We filed back into the courtroom. For the last time. One way or another, this ended today.The courtroom filled fast. Media. Spectators. Victims' families.My hands were shaking. Marcus held one. Sienna held the other. Both supporting me.Rachel whispered from behind. "Whatever happens, you were brave."Dante stood at the door. Security tight.Cross was brought in. Still calm. Confident. Schaffer beside him. Unreadable.Jennifer at the prosecution table. Tense but professional.The judge entered. "All rise."Everyone stood."I understand the jury has reached a verdict?"The foreperson stood. Older woman. Maybe sixty. Steady voice."Yes, Your Honor.""Will the defendant pleas
The courtroom felt different on closing arguments day. Heavier. More final.Like everyone knew this was it. No more witnesses. No more evidence. Just two lawyers and their final chance to convince twelve people that their version of truth was the right one.Jennifer Marks stood first. Confident. Prepared. Ready to fight for Gloria. Ready to fight for justice."Ladies and gentlemen," she began, "this is a case about a man who believed he was above the law. Let me show you why he was wrong."She walked to the jury box. Made eye contact with each member."You've heard testimony from eleven witnesses. FBI agents. Financial experts. Covenant insiders. The nurse who committed the murders. Flynn Lancaster. Victor Ashford. And Aria Winters. Eleven people. All saying the same thing: Julian Cross ran a criminal organization. He ordered murders. He laundered money. He corrupted officials."She paused. Let it sink in."Now, the defense wants you to believe these eleven people are all lying. That
Victor spent the next morning showing us everything he had. Documents. Emails. Screenshots.Proof that The Covenant had someone inside the FBI.We gathered around Marcus's laptop. All of us except Sienna, who still wouldn't leave her room when Victor was present."This is from three years ago," Vic
Victor Ashford chose the restaurant. The Princeton Club. Old money, old power, old secrets.I walked in with a wire hidden under my blouse, Marcus listening from a van two blocks away, and Dante at the bar pretending to be a businessman having lunch.We'd debated all night whether this was too dang
The news broke at 6:00 AM.I woke to my phone buzzing with alerts. CNN, New York Times, Bloomberg, all reporting the same thing: Flynn Lancaster arrested on federal charges. Murder conspiracy. Money laundering. Fraud.I lay in bed staring at the ceiling, feeling nothing at first.Then everything. R
I woke up to the smell of coffee and voices in the kitchen.For a disoriented moment, I didn't know where I was.Then it came back. Marcus's loft. Safety. Allies.I checked my phone. Twenty-three missed calls from Flynn. Fifteen texts escalating from concerned to angry to threatening.The last one,







