Chapter 21 - The Trial of Marcus Vale
Marcus rejected the final plea offer.
Against his lawyers’ advice, he went to trial.
Damien understood why.
A plea required Marcus to admit another person had defeated him.
A trial allowed him one final audience.
The prosecution opened with the pool.
Not theatrically.
Methodically.
The snakes.
The container latch.
The disabled cameras.
The forged trust.
Then they moved backward.
Sandra Beech testified about the estate templates.
Nolan Price described transporting the sealed container.
A forensic accountant mapped the payment trail.
Claire explained the stolen voice-authentication file.
Simone testified that her signature on the succession memo was forged.
Gregory Shaw admitted accepting payments while supporting Marcus’s corporate plans.
Then Evelyn entered.
The courtroom changed.
She looked older.
Prison had stripped away the visual armor Damien once associated with her.
Marcus stared at her with open hatred.
The prosecutor asked, “Who proposed using Mr. Crowe’s pool?”
“Marcus Vale.”
“Who arranged the snakes?”
“Marcus.”
“Who released them?”
“I did.”
“Why?”
“Because I agreed with him that my husband should die.”
No minimization.
Marcus’s lawyer attacked.
“You lied to your husband for months?”
“Yes.”
“You committed adultery?”
“Yes.”
“You attempted murder?”
“Yes.”
“You destroyed evidence?”
“Yes.”
“And now we should trust you?”
Evelyn looked at him.
“No.”
The courtroom went still.
The lawyer frowned.
“No?”
“You should trust the records. The messages. The money. The photographs. The things that do not depend on my character.”
Damien lowered his eyes.
It was the strongest answer she could have given.
The prosecution then introduced Marcus’s recovered messages.
His own words did what Evelyn’s credibility could not.
I’ll handle the animals.
Camera override will show Damien as administrator.
After he dies, stay emotional.
Marcus stopped smiling.
The final blow came from the financial evidence.
The $7.8 million exit transfer proved Marcus had planned to abandon Evelyn.
His defense argued that fraud was not murder.
The prosecutor agreed.
Then showed jurors the surveillance board from Palm Springs.
Three years of Damien’s life.
Photographed.
Mapped.
Studied.
“This defendant did not stumble into an angry wife’s fantasy,” the prosecutor said. “He designed access to a family, a fortune and a death.”
The jury deliberated for less than two days.
Guilty.
Conspiracy to commit murder.
Attempted murder liability under the conspiracy.
Fraud.
Identity-related offenses.
Financial crimes.
When the verdict was read, Marcus looked at Damien.
For once, there was no smile.
Damien expected triumph.
He felt tired.
Outside the courthouse, Simone asked, “That’s it?”
“For him.”
“What about you?”
Damien looked toward the sun.
“I think I’ve been waiting for a verdict to make me feel safe.”
“And?”
“It doesn’t.”
Simone nodded.
“Probably not its job.”
The sentencing hearing followed months later.
Marcus received a severe prison sentence reflecting the planned killing and extensive financial conspiracy.
He attempted to speak.
The judge limited him to relevant remarks.
Marcus said Damien’s father had destroyed his family.
The judge replied, “Your father’s history did not compel you to plan another man’s murder.”
Damien thought of Leonard’s letter.
Choices.
Always choices.
After court, Ruiz met him outside.
“This should be the last time you need to be here.”
“I’m going to miss the coffee.”
“No, you aren’t.”
He smiled.
“Thank you.”
Ruiz shrugged.
“I did my job.”
“People keep saying that like doing it well is ordinary.”
“It should be.”
She walked away.
Damien watched her leave.
Then Claire approached.
“Car’s ready.”
“No.”
She frowned.
“What?”
“I’m walking.”
“To where?”
“Lunch.”
“That’s three miles.”
“Yes.”
“You have a security detail.”
“They can walk too.”
Claire sighed into her earpiece.
Damien started down the sidewalk.
Los Angeles moved around him.
Cars.
People.
Noise.
Nothing dramatic.
No threat.
No plot.
No cameras waiting for him to die.
For the first time since the pool, normal life felt extraordinary.
But the last unresolved battle remained inside the Crowe family.
Not with Evelyn.
Not Marcus.
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With Leonard’s company.
Damien and Simone still had to decide what power would look like after nearly losing everything to it.
