ONE MONTH LATER
The perp walk.
The steps of the courthouse were crowded with press and cameras, waiting for Alyssa Rollins to arrive at the halls of justice. They would record the woman’s legal day of reckoning. She’d been ordered to appear in court to face a long list of state charges that would have effectively ended Lowell’s political career if he had lived. Federal charges would follow. Abby hooked her arm through Luke’s as they walked together past the chaos to get a seat inside the courtroom.
“Do you want to watch her wade through the gauntlet of cameras?” Luke asked.
“No, I’ll be content with seeing her walk into the courtroom.”
When they got inside, Woody, Padre Mike, Orson, and Faye were already there. Abby wondered about Mike. Alyssa must have really cared for him; he seemed to be the only one in her path who wasn’t murdered. From what she’d heard, he’d tried to stay with Alyssa that day, wanting to support her and help her. But he’d been completely and totally rebuffed. Still, he was on a mission to save her soul, so Abby knew that he would keep trying. Luke and Abby sat down next to them, one row from the front of the court.
Faye, for her part, had helped the FBI link Alyssa to the fiasco in the high desert. She’d been able to prove that Kelsey Cox had been there with Quinn the day he was killed. When confronted with the link, Kelsey had caved and admitted to being there on Alyssa’s orders. It chilled Abby to the bone that she’d actually been sent there to kill her and Luke. Cox was now going to be a key witness for both the state and the federal government against Alyssa Rollins.
But the escape was what really sealed Alyssa’s fate. She’d left a trail of coconspirators who, now that the governor was dead and couldn’t protect her, were ready to turn state’s evidence against the former First Lady.
After a few minutes, Abby knew from the commotion she could hear behind her that Rollins had arrived. She turned to watch her walk up the aisle. Alyssa looked frail, broken, walking between two attorneys, arms linked with theirs, and leaning on them. Would she confess? Abby wasn’t going to hold her breath.
Abby thought about Jasper Harkin thanking her for giving him his life back. Today she felt as though God was giving her back her life. True, Alyssa would never be held accountable in court for her part in the Triple Seven murders, but she would never be free again; she’d never be able to hurt anyone else again.
As for the fear that when the investigation finally ended Abby would have nothing to hold on to, that was gone as well.
She looked at Luke and returned his smile. Life was just beginning.