Page 93 of Vicious Hearts

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"I'm so proud of you,charodeyka," Ben wraps his arms around me, "but I wish you'dtoldme you were gonna do this."

"Did you agree with what I said?" I ask, looking up at him.

He grins. "I heard you loud and clear, Rox. But I don't thinkallof it applies to me."

I kiss him. "Of course not. Youarecrazy and exceptional. And not a loser."

"I'll take it."

The lounge is tiny but private, with a cop guarding the door. It's a little oasis away from the madness outside, and we sit together for a while in silence, grateful for the peace.

I see Ali through the glass, remonstrating with the officer. The poor guy hasn't got a chance against her. Getting to my feet, I open the door, beckoning her and Leo inside.

"It's good of them to hold this hearing during kindergarten hours," Ali says, hugging me. "We wanted to be here to support you guys."

"You couldn't keep your mouth shut?" Ben asks, laughing as he shakes Leo's hand. "It's a fucking court hearing, not a boxing match."

"Are you kidding?" Leo asks. "You're lucky I didn't do worse. Ali frisked me for weapons before we left the house in case I was planning to snipe the fucker from the gallery."

Ali leans close to me. "Turns out he's into that," she whispers. "We were almost late."

I smirk. "You kinky bastards."

"Did you see Vivienne Fisher?" Ben asks. "She's here for the sentencing."

Ididsee her briefly when I arrived. Our eyes met across the lobby, and a thread of understanding passed between us.

She knows about Graham and me and what really happened to her son. She also knows what kind of man Graham was, but he didn't deserve to die. Oliver used his history with me to manipulate him with tragic results.

"I guess she wants closure," I say. "We all do."

An usher raps on the door and opens it.

"Jury's back."

* * *

I sit in the gallery, Ali on my left. Ben sits on the other side, holding my hand.

Oliver Buckley's expression is one of disdain. He wrinkles his nose as though he can smell something bad and glares defiantly at the judge. The courtroom is deathly silent.

"Oliver Buckley," the judge begins. "The foreman of the jury has relayed the verdict, which is unanimous. The legality of the proposed sentence has been checked against the appropriate guidelines."

I squeeze Ben's hand so hard that he turns to look at me. He strokes my arm.

"Easy, Rox," he murmurs. "Almost there."

The judge leans over her bench and returns Oliver's glare.

"You are an ineffectual man, small of mind and even smaller of conscience," she says. "In carrying out your disgusting crimes, you destroyed young lives and sought to draw innocent people into your web, forcing them to pay your dues. You abducted and killed six children, mutilating the bodies and taking keepsakes. You presided over a nightmare that would have started all over again if it weren't for the actions of the brave individuals who brought the truth to light."

Oliver sneers. The judge smiles.

"The jury considers you legally sane and finds you guilty of aggravated murder in the first degree on all seven counts. I sentence you to life, without parole, at ADX Florence, Colorado."

"No," Oliver says.

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