Damian’s POV

The courtroom was unnervingly still, not because nothing was happening, but because everything was about to. The kind of stillness that crept under the skin, pressed against the ribs, and made breathing feel like an effort. Damian sat upright, his hands clasped together, knuckles pale, jaw tight enough to ache.

Vanessa sat only a few seats away now, she was no longer just a witness, no longer merely an observer sitting pretty and composed. She was seated where defendants sat, ...