The next day, when Olivia arrived at the courthouse, she noticed something strange: neither her father nor Martin had come to see her in the past twenty-four hours. She had last seen her father in front of Snyder Villa as she was being taken into the police van, and Martin when she arrived at the police station. Since then, she had not seen either of them. Furthermore, there were no reporters covering the news or questioning her about the murder, which made her suspicious.

A frown creased her brow in confusion as she observed her surroundings intently. Biting her lower lip, she murmured to herself, "Something strange is happening here. This doesn't feel like the usual courthouse atmosphere. Why aren't they here when their presence is expected?"

After some time, she stood inside the courtroom facing the judge, her mind filled with questions. She scanned every corner of the room, desperately hoping to catch a glimpse of her father. However, a sharp pain pierced her heart when she couldn't find him. Tears welled up in her eyes as she thought that her father must already hate her so much that he didn't even want to see her one last time.

She took a glass of water and drank it in one breath to control her emotions. Yet, she couldn't find a proper reason for Martin's absence. A few moments later, the government prosecutor began hurling numerous allegations at her, including charges of murdering her husband and questioning her motives.

Olivia refused to hire a lawyer, insisting she didn't need anyone to fight for her and that she could defend herself adequately.

"Leo and I were happy after our marriage. When I got a job in Los Angeles, initially he was thrilled and excited. He was the one who came to the airport to see me off. However, after one and a half years, his behavior started to change aggressively.

Two months ago, one day he came to Los Angeles and asked me to come back to New York to stay with him at Snyder Villa because he missed me badly. I did everything he asked to give him some peace of mind.

But after returning to Snyder Villa, one day I discovered some medical reports about him. I learned that he had been suffering from persecutory delusions for the past four years, yet he never informed me about it. When I questioned him about the reports, he insisted that someone, or a group of people, was trying to portray him as mentally ill by fabricating those reports, putting his life in danger.

In the beginning, I believed every word he spoke, because he was the sole heir of the L.S. Corporation. However, as time passed, his mental state deteriorated, and he began to doubt our relationship. His possessiveness escalated, leading him to insist on keeping me within sight twenty-four hours a day. Out of concern for him, I agreed to his request.

But yesterday, while I was making lunch, he came to the kitchen and accused me of cheating on him with someone else. When I asked for proof and the name of the person he suspected me with, he said he didn't have any evidence against me. He claimed his intuition was telling him I was being unfaithful.

After hearing his baseless accusation, I remembered his mental health issues and tried to calm him down by explaining that it was just a delusion. Instead of calming down, he became even angrier, and an argument ensued between us.

At that moment, our childhood friend Edric Bowen arrived. Upon seeing him, Leo began to speak ill of my character.

Edric became upset upon hearing Leo's words and started defending me, which further angered Leo.

Leo insulted Edric, insisting he leave the villa immediately for daring to talk back. I protested Leo's comment, sparking another argument between us. As tensions escalated, Leo pushed me forcefully, causing me to fall onto the center table and cut my forehead.

After seeing my condition, Edric gave Leo a hard slap for his actions, hurting Leo's pride, as no one had ever slapped him before, not even his parents.

After getting slapped, Leo's eyes turned red with anger, and he ran toward the study room. Meanwhile, Edric helped me up from the floor and onto the couch.

All of a sudden, Leo came back with a gun and tried to shoot me. To save my life, Edric stepped between us and took the bullet in his chest. I was speechless, sitting like a statue beside my friend's blood-covered, unconscious body.

After seeing his condition, Leo started to laugh like a maniac. After some time, he came to me and held the gun to my forehead.

Initially, I believed it was my fate to die at the hands of my husband. However, upon recalling his mental condition, I resolved to fight back. I struck his right wrist, causing him to groan in pain, and the gun fell to the floor. Seizing the opportunity, I picked up the gun and shot him in the forehead, ending his life. In that moment, I reasoned that if he survived, his delusions would continue to cause suffering for many others in the future.

I admit my crime and have no regrets for my deeds because I believe that if saving many people requires taking a life, then it is the right thing to do. Therefore, I am prepared to accept any punishment for my actions."

Olivia gave her statement calmly, without showing any emotions, which surprised everyone in the courtroom except two people.

After hearing her statement, the judge smirked at Drake Wilson, his son-in-law. Then, with a sense of satisfaction, he sentenced Olivia to ten years in prison.

  
                                    ***

Olivia didn't react after hearing her punishment because she had expected it. She knew her old enemies would seize any chance to make her life hell by sending her to one of the scariest prisons in New York, where every day began with inmates fighting each other. Besides that, many people there had been arrested by her father and were eagerly waiting for their release so they could get revenge on Ronaldo by hurting his family.

"I don't know what will happen to me in prison because death is waiting for me there, and I don't want to live anymore after losing my loved ones. At least I'm happy that I avenged my love's death. Vini, you were my first love, and I did everything to protect you. But I failed to save your life. Now I'm happy because I was able to do justice to you by killing Leo. I'm missing my parents very much, and I hope I will be able to see them at least once before I die."

Olivia was saying those words to herself as she left the courtroom. She walked like a soulless body. Two female police officers held her handcuffed hands.

"Olivia, please tell us how your father will react when he wakes up from his coma and learns about your punishment."

Her legs stopped moving, and she came back to her senses when she heard the reporter's question about her father.

With a swift motion, she turned to face the reporter who asked the question. For the first time, everyone saw emotions visible in her eyes: fear of losing someone, shock at learning the bitter truth, and anger at those who kept her from knowing about her father's accident.

"What did you say?" Olivia asked in a shaking voice, her lips trembling.

"Didn't you know anything about your father's accident?" the reporter asked, instead of giving her a proper answer to her question.

For the first time, Olivia lost her temper in front of everyone and screamed in anger, "Tell me what happened to my dad?"

"Olivia!" Unexpectedly, a scream echoed through the air. Everyone turned their gaze from the newly declared murderer to the source of the voice, including Olivia. They observed police officers attempting to prevent a reporter from reaching the front of the courthouse. It was none other than Mili Jonson, who had initially reported on Ronaldo Whitley's accident.

"Listen to me very carefully. Your dad was in a car accident yesterday while he was on his way to the police station after arresting you. He suffered a head injury and underwent surgery. The surgery was successful, but unfortunately, he fell into a coma. I tried to inform you yesterday, but certain individuals prevented me from meeting with you. They used their money and influence to ensure you didn't hear the news before your trial. You know very well who these people could be!" Mili said loudly and in one breath. Afterward, she sat down on the ground to catch her breath.

At that moment, the other reporters nervously gulped, some lowering their gazes to the ground while a few wiped sweat from their foreheads and faces. They had compromised their moral values for money, concealing the truth from everyone.

After hearing everything, tears started to fall from Olivia's eyes for the first time, and she stood like a statue in place for several minutes.

Then she shifted her gaze to Drake Wilson, who was standing some distance away, smiling broadly as he met her eyes. Finally, he could see the tears in her eyes, the moment he had been waiting for so long.

At that moment, Olivia realized why her father and Martin were absent. She understood that Martin had also gotten into trouble, caused by their old enemies.

"Come on, let's go. We don't have much time. You can't stand here for a lifetime in sorrow over your father's condition," one of the female police officers said to her, with evident irritation.

After hearing her comments, Olivia closed her eyes to let the tears flow and awaken her inner demon.

Within the next few seconds, the female police officers began groaning in pain and lay down on the ground, as Olivia hit their stomachs with her cuffed elbows. Following that, she took a gun from one of them and fired it into the air.

Everyone, except the police officers, got terrified and sat on the ground after hearing the sound of the gunshot. Olivia then placed the gun on the right side of her forehead and, with a fiery glare in her eyes, commanded the officers sternly, "Get out of my way, or I'll kill myself right now!"

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