Chapter 10 - The Grand Jury and Emily's Voice
On Monday morning, the Denver County Courthouse was surrounded by local reporters and camera crews.
I walked up the granite steps holding Emily’s hand. She was dressed in a beautiful, modest charcoal wool coat, dark slacks, and her new rose-gold glasses. Her head was held high. The timid, terrified girl who had hidden behind a styrofoam cup a week ago was gone, replaced by a young woman who knew, with complete certainty, that her father was standing between her and the world.
Inside the grand jury waiting room, Margaret sat in the far corner with her defense attorney, a slick man in a pinstriped suit named Richard Vance (no relation to Arthur).
Margaret looked hollowed out. Her designer clothes looked rumpled, her hair unkempt, and the heavy makeup she wore couldn't hide the dark, terrified bags under her eyes. When she saw Emily walk in, Margaret opened her mouth, attempting to step forward.
"Emily, darling, please tell them—"
Arthur Vance stepped directly into Margaret’s path, towering over her with icy authority.
"One word to my client, Mrs. Carter, and I will have the bailiff arrest you for witness intimidation on the spot," Arthur said, his voice ringing through the marble corridor. "Back up."
Margaret shrank back into her chair, clutching her purse to her chest like a shield.
When the grand jury room doors opened, the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Laura Martinez, called Emily to the stand first.
I wasn't allowed inside the grand jury chamber during her testimony, but I waited outside the heavy oak doors. For two hours, Emily spoke to the twenty-three citizens of the grand jury.
She didn't cry. She didn't exaggerate. With the clear, brilliant precision of an honors student, she laid out every single detail of the five-year nightmare: the locks on the pantry, the stolen lunch money, the freezing cellar, the forged school forms, Julian’s parties, and the constant psychological conditioning that her father had abandoned her.
When Emily walked out of the chamber, the heavy oak doors swung open, and several members of the grand jury could be seen openly wiping tears from their eyes.
ADA Martinez walked out behind her, looking at Arthur and me with a grim, determined nod.
"The grand jury has returned a true bill on all twenty-four felony counts," Martinez announced. "Grand larceny, identity theft, money laundering, criminal child endangerment, and forgery. Julian’s bail has been revoked entirely. Margaret’s bond has been increased to one million dollars cash. The trial date is set for sixty days from today."
As the bailiffs walked over to Margaret to take her back into custody, Margaret began to shriek, thrashing against the officers just as Julian had done.
"You can't do this to me! Daniel! Emily! I took care of you! You ungrateful little wretches!"
Emily didn't even flinch at the screaming. She turned to me, slipped Rebecca’s sapphire earrings—which I had given back to her that morning—into her earlobes, and smiled.
May you like
"Dad," she said softly. "Can we go look at houses today?"
"Yes, Emmy," I said, putting my arm around her shoulders and leading her away from the chaos. "Let's go find our real home."
