SCORNED EX WIFE Queen Of Ashes (Camille and Stefan)

Chapter 178

The courtroom sat hushed as Judge Hamilton entered. The wooden benches creaked with the movement of those rising to their feet. Camille felt Alexander's hand tighten around hers as they stood. The past eight weeks of trial had led to this moment.

"Be seated," the judge commanded, her voice filling the high-ceilinged room.

Camille lowered herself to the bench, her back straight, her face carefully blank. She had chosen to sit in the second row today, not wanting to be directly in Rose's line of sight.

Rose sat at the defense table in a simple navy dress, her hair pulled back in a modest style that made her look younger, more vulnerable. A calculated choice, Camille knew. Everything about Rose was calculated.

"The jury has reached a verdict," Judge Hamilton announced. "Bring in the defendant."

Rose stood as the bailiff approached. Even with her wrists shackled, she moved

with grace, her chin lifted. Not once during the proceedings had she shown fear or remorse. Not even when the evidence mounted day after day, witness after witness. Not even when her own words, recorded during her kidnapping of Camille, were played back to the stunned courtroom.

The jury filed in, twelve ordinary people who had listened to the extraordinary tale

of jealousy and hatred that had consumed Rose Lewis's life. None of them looked

at Rose as they took their seats. A bad sign for the defense, Camille thought distantly.

"Has the jury reached a verdict?" the judge asked.

The foreman stood, a middle-aged man with tired eyes. "We have, Your Honor."

"On the first count, attempted murder in the first degree, how do you find?"

"We find the defendant guilty."

A soft murmur rippled through the courtroom. Camille didn't move, didn't blink. Rose's back stiffened, the only sign she had heard.

"On the second count, kidnapping, how do you find?"

"Guilty."

"On the third count, conspiracy to commit domestic terrorism..."

The list continued. Twenty-seven charges in all. Twenty-seven times the word "guilty" echoed through the courtroom. With each pronouncement, Camille expected to feel something, relief, satisfaction, closure. Instead, a strange emptiness spread through her chest, as if she were watching a scene from someone else's life.

Rose never turned around, never glanced back at the half-sister whose life she had tried to destroy. She stood perfectly still, like a statue carved from ice, as the verdict sealed her fate.

Judge Hamilton scheduled the sentencing for the following morning, and the bailiffs led Rose away. Only then, at the doorway, did Rose pause and look back. Her eyes found Camille's with unerring precision. No words were exchanged, but the message in Rose's gaze was clear: This changes nothing.

The courtroom emptied slowly. Reporters rushed out to file their stories. Lawyers gathered their papers. Alexander guided Camille through the crowd, shielding her from questions shouted by journalists.

the car, she finally spoke. "I should feel something,

studied her face. "What do

don't know. Relief? Joy? Something other than..." She gestured helplessly

did to you can't be undone by a verdict," Alexander said quietly. "No matter how many times the word 'guilty' is

turned to look out the window as the car pulled away from the courthouse. Cameras flashed outside, capturing the moment for tomorrow's headlines. Another chapter in the story the public couldn't get

long waiting for this," Camille said. "First with Victoria, planning our revenge. Then with the prosecutors, building the case. Now

reached for her hand. "Maybe that's

is feeling nothing

revenge consumes. Justice

penthouse where they spoke of other things, through the quiet hours before sleep. Justice

*** **

came too quickly. Another dark suit, another car ride to the courthouse, another walk through the gauntlet of cameras and shouted

Camille sat in the front row. She wanted Rose to see her, to know she wasn't

by a red designer outfit that somehow didn't look out of place despite her circumstances. Her hair hung loose around her

Hamilton wasted no time. After reviewing the jury's findings, she addressed

pronounce sentence, you have the right to make a statement to the court. Do you wish to do

her profile was visible to

The courtroom fell silent.

steady, "convicted of crimes that were motivated by a desire to correct

closed his eyes briefly, as if pained. This was clearly

moving toward Camille, "has always had advantages I was denied. Born to

if this is an attempt to justify your

is an explanation, Your Honor, not a justification. I accept the jury's verdict, but I reject the narrative that has been presented. I am not a monster. I am simply

have angered her. Instead, she felt a wave of something like pity. Rose truly believed her own lies. All these years, all these

you finished, Ms. Lewis?" the judge asked, her tone

the first time, Rose turned to face Camille directly.

have cost multiple lives. Your statement only confirms what the evidence

back to face the bench, her

facility at Bedford Hills for a term of not less than fifty years

gavel struck again. "Court

Camille. The hatred in her eyes

sentence. But something net

Róse couldn't understand why Camille wasn't gloating, wasn't celebrating

The spectators rose, the buzz of conversation filling the suddenly smaller-seeming room. Reporters rushed to file their

you okay?" Alexander

to find it was true.

faced the inevitable press line. Questions

directions.

How do you