Chapter 5 - The Fall of the House of Ashford
The court of the Northern District of Illinois was packed to the brim with journalists, corporate tycoons, and curious onlookers.
Three weeks had passed since the shootout in the wine cellar of Blackthorn Manor. Celeste Monroe sat at the defense table, her right leg encased in a heavy medical cast, her face pale and entirely devoid of the smug, elegant arrogance she had once possessed.
Beside her sat Nathan Ashford. He looked hollowed out, his expensive suit hanging loosely on his thin frame, his eyes staring blankly at the defense table. The diplomatic immunity loophole had been entirely crushed after Liam Mercer successfully decrypted the files on the laptop.
The files didn't just contain financial transactions. They contained detailed logs of Nathan and Celeste's direct involvement with international arms smugglers, including shipping manifests for high-grade explosives disguised as "logistics equipment."
I sat at the prosecution's table, my father sitting on my left and Liam Mercer on my right. I wore a high-necked, elegant white suit that completely covered the faint, healing scars on my back. I looked like a woman who had walked through fire and emerged as pure, tempered steel.
Judge Marcus Vance—no relation to my family, though his reputation for ruthlessness was legendary—looked down from the bench, his expression grave.
"Mr. Ashford, Ms. Monroe," Judge Vance began, his voice echoing in the quiet courtroom. "The evidence presented by the prosecution is not merely overwhelming; it is terrifying. You used a legitimate American logistics firm to fund, transport, and conceal weapons of mass destruction for foreign syndicates. And when your own wife discovered your activities, you subjected her to a brutal, medieval assault to keep her silent."
Nathan slowly raised his head, his voice a pathetic whisper. "Your Honor... I was manipulated. Celeste... she was the one who—"
"Shut up, Nathan!" Celeste hissed, her voice cracking with a desperate, venomous anger. "You wanted the money just as much as I did! You’re the one who swung the whip!"
"Order!" Judge Vance banged his gavel, the sharp crack silencing the bickering traitors. "I find both defendants guilty on all counts of international trafficking, corporate fraud, and attempted murder."
The judge looked at Nathan, his eyes filled with absolute disgust. "Nathan Ashford, I sentence you to life in a maximum-security federal penitentiary without the possibility of parole. Your assets, including Blackthorn Manor and all shares of Ashford Global, are hereby seized and transferred to the victim, Luna Vance, as corporate restitution."
Nathan slumped into his chair, his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking as the reality of his fate finally settled in.
Judge Vance turned to Celeste. "Celeste Monroe, for your role as the mastermind of this conspiracy, you are sentenced to forty-five years in federal prison."
The gallery erupted into a wall of sound as reporters rushed to the exit to file their stories.
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I slowly stood up, looking at Nathan one last time. He looked up, his eyes catching mine, filled with a silent, pathetic pleading for mercy.
I didn't say a word. I simply turned my back on him, walking out of the courtroom with my head held high, my hand resting gently on Liam's arm as we walked toward the bright, clean light of the lobby.
