Chapter 8 - The Day in Court
The legal proceedings began nearly a year after the call.
Emily did not sit through every hearing.
Special protections were used to reduce unnecessary distress.
Sarah attended when required.
Daniel testified.
María testified.
Claire testified about the emergency call.
Experts explained the investigative process.
Thomas's attorney challenged inconsistencies and argued that investigators had interpreted ambiguous statements too aggressively.
Prosecutors responded with corroborating evidence.
The courtroom did what courtrooms were supposed to do:
Test claims.
Examine evidence.
Allow challenges.
Separate suspicion from proof.
Emily was protected from most of the spectacle.
On the morning she needed to participate, she carried Charlie.
Sarah knelt in front of her.
“You don't have to make anything happen.”
Emily frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“You don't have to win anything. You don't have to save anybody. Just tell the truth about what you remember.”
Emily nodded.
“And if I don't remember?”
“Say you don't remember.”
“And if I don't know?”
“Say you don't know.”
Emily took a breath.
“Okay.”
She entered.
Hours later, she emerged exhausted.
María was waiting in the hallway.
Emily walked directly into her arms.
“Was I brave?”
María answered carefully.
“You told the truth the best way you could.”
May you like
Emily nodded.
That seemed enough.
