“We are adjourned.”

She stood up and swept out of the courtroom.

For a second, there was dead silence.

Then, Claire turned on my father.

“You ruined my life!” she screamed, her voice cracking.

She lunged toward our table, but her lawyer caught her by the arm.

“Claire, don’t,” Vance warned, pulling her back.

Martin Collins looked like he had aged ten years in ten minutes.

He stared at the table, his arrogant posture completely gone.

Ethan Brooks leaned over and patted my father’s shoulder.

“It’s over, Daniel,” Ethan said quietly. “We got them.”

My father looked at me, a soft, weary smile on his face.

“Let’s go home, Sophie,” he said.

We stood up and walked toward the double doors of the courtroom.

As we reached the hallway, the heavy oak doors behind us swung open.

Two men in dark suits and trench coats stepped out of the elevator.

They walked past the crowd of lawyers, straight toward Claire and Martin.

One of them pulled a gold badge from his jacket pocket.

My father stopped, turning to watch.