Chapter 13 - THE SETTLEMENT
The trial of the century lasted less than two weeks.
With the microfilm evidence provided by Nell and the financial records seized from the Vain estate, the defense didn't even attempt to argue. Guilty pleas were entered across the board.
Teddy Vain received three consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole in a maximum-security federal penitentiary in Colorado.
His father died of a massive heart attack in a holding cell three days before the verdict was read.
The city of Boston changed overnight. The newspapers ran front-page stories about the collapse of the Vain syndicate, praising the anonymous tip that brought down the most corrupt network in New England history.
None of the stories mentioned the name Whitaker. And none of them mentioned Ravenscliffe.
That suited Nell just fine.
She sat in the fourth-floor library on a rainy Tuesday afternoon, the rain drumming a peaceful rhythm against the reinforced glass.
The silver locket lay open on the mahogany desk beside her laptop, its secret emptied out, leaving only the faded picture of her father smiling proudly in his police uniform.
The door opened without a knock.
Rafe walked in, carrying two glasses of scotch and a thick manila folder stamped with a federal seal.
"It's finished," Rafe said, setting the folder down on top of the desk.
Nell looked up from her screen. "What's that?"
"The state board of review," Rafe said, pulling out a chair and sitting down opposite her. "They posthumously reinstated your father's badge. Full pension restored. A plaque bearing his name is being hung in the central precinct lobby next Monday."
Nell stared at the document, her vision blurring as hot tears of relief welled up in her eyes—not tears of pain or fear this time, but tears of long-overdue justice.
"Thank you, Rafe," she whispered, her voice breaking slightly.
May you like
Rafe reached across the desk, covering her hand with his own large, steady palm. "You earned every word of it, Nell."
THE END OF CHAPTER 13
