Mr. Rosenthal told her that he would be eligible for parole by the time he was thirty and that was still very young, but Vanessa had nearly screamed when they placed the handcuffs on him and led him out the courtroom. She wanted to run up to the judge and tell him that she was going to have a baby and that they had a plan for the rest of their lives. That they were good people and that he deserved another chance.

But Beady's hand was holding her—maybe sensing that she might ...