Chapter 15 - MARCUS’S TRIAL
Marcus’s trial lasted three weeks.
The prosecution began with the cellar footage.
Not the confinement.
The conversation before the lock.
Next year, this will be our house.
Clara will receive a settlement.
She built the bakeries.
I built the life.
The jury watched him laugh.
Then they saw the forged signatures.
The sedative instructions.
The insurance policies.
The Brightwater website.
The medical report.
The messages about my driving and the cellar stairs.
Marcus’s attorney argued that the statements were fantasies shared during an affair.
He called the financial transfers informal family support.
He described the medication as concern for my insomnia.
Then Chloe testified.
She admitted lying during the interview.
Accepting money.
Beginning the affair.
Recording my behavior.
Crushing pills.
She did not ask the jury to see her as innocent.
Marcus’s attorney attacked her motives.
“You are testifying to reduce your sentence.”
“Yes.”
“You loved my client.”
“I loved the life he promised.”
“You wanted Clara’s house.”
“Yes.”
“You would say anything now to avoid prison.”
Chloe looked toward the jury.
“That is why you should believe the records more than me.”
The answer made her useful as a witness.
Not trustworthy.
Useful.
Owen testified next.
Then Priya.
The pharmacist.
The security engineer.
The doctor whose name appeared on the false evaluation.
He admitted signing it without examining me after Eleanor donated to his clinic.
Finally, Marcus took the stand.
He said I had become distant.
He said my businesses controlled our marriage.
He said Chloe made him feel valued.
The prosecutor asked:
“Did feeling undervalued authorize you to forge Clara’s signature?”
“No.”
“Did loneliness authorize secret medication?”
“No.”
“Did an affair require insurance fraud?”
“No.”
“Then why are we discussing your feelings?”
Marcus’s mouth tightened.
The prosecutor continued.
“You want this jury to confuse explanation with permission.”
Marcus looked toward me.
“You chose the bakeries over us.”
I met his eyes.
The prosecutor asked:
“Did Clara force you to remain married?”
“No.”
“Could you have filed for divorce?”
“Yes.”
“Could you have left without taking her companies?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you?”
Marcus said nothing.
Because divorce would have ended his access.
He did not want freedom.
May you like
He wanted ownership without loyalty.
The jury convicted him of fraud, forgery, unlawful medication, conspiracy, identity theft, and attempted theft of business assets.
