CHAPTER 51 —

The moment the judge banged his gavel, the courtroom felt like a body released from a long tide: everyone inhaled and then moved at once. Phones lit like a swarm. Reporters shoved for microphones as if sound could re-trap a story, and Gideon Ashford’s team filed out with the careful composure of people who had rehearsed every exit.

Nicole sat very still, palms flat on her folder. Her pulse had a new shape — closer to a metronome set to urgency. The live stream had been ...