Chapter 24 - The Maid’s Testimony
The final nail in the coffin came from a witness Grant had completely forgotten about.
During the trial, the prosecution called Maria Santos to the stand. Maria was the sweet, older housekeeper who had worked at the Cherry Creek mansion for three years. Grant had fired her suddenly two weeks before I returned from my deployment, claiming she was stealing.
In reality, he fired her because she tried to feed Lily.
Maria sat on the witness stand, wiping tears from her eyes with a tissue, speaking through a Spanish translator.
"Mr. Carlisle told me that Lily was on a 'special diet' and that I was forbidden from giving her snacks," Maria testified, her voice shaking with sorrow. "But the little girl was wasting away. I found her in the pantry one night, eating dry cereal from the floor. When Miss Vanessa caught her, she..." Maria choked on a sob, covering her mouth.
"Take your time, Maria," DA Alvarez said gently. "What did Vanessa do?"
"She dragged Lily by her hair into the living room," Maria wept. "She made her kneel on the hard floor. And when Lily cried, Mr. Carlisle came out of his office. I thought he would stop it. I begged him to stop it. But he just laughed. He told Vanessa to 'break the brat's spirit so she learns respect.'"
The courtroom erupted in gasps of horror. The judge banged his gavel fiercely, threatening to clear the gallery.
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Grant buried his face in his hands on the defense table. He knew it was over. The jury wasn't just looking at him with judgment; they were looking at him with absolute, unadulterated hatred.
Maria looked directly at me in the gallery. I offered her a small, grateful smile. I had already ensured that Maria's family was taken care of for the rest of their lives, setting up a private trust for her children's college tuition. She had risked her own livelihood to try and save my daughter, and I reward loyalty just as fiercely as I punish betrayal.
