It was then that an idea began to take form.
“No, we haven’t. I have people working on this. Randall’s lead investigator, well, let’s just say he valued the bottle a bit too much and is out of a job. Has been for three or four years.”
Tessa was surprised at this news. Randall had always assured her his team of investigators were the best in the business. She was sure there had been more than one man. It didn’t matter at this point.
“I didn’t know,” was all she could come up with.
“We do have a possible witness,” Whitlow stated.
“Who?” Tessa asked, her voice firm. “And why now?” She was angry. Ten, almost eleven years of her life, she had been living in hell. If there was someone out there with knowledge of her family’s murders, she wanted to know why that person was just now coming forward.
“Calm down, Tessa,” Sam said. “This is good news for you.”
“So you say. Try spending one damned night in this place, then tell me that’s good news.”
“If you’re not willing to go through another trial, I think our business here is over,” Steven said. He took the files off the desk and returned them to his briefcase.
“Wait a minute. I didn’t say that. I just don’t understand. First, it’s the Florida Supreme Court making a ruling that allows my conviction to be overturned, and now you tell me there is a witness?” Tessa informed him. “What kind of idiot do you think I am? Of course I want out of this place!” It was at that moment that she realized why her thoughts of suicide had been nothing more than thoughts, something that she would have never acted upon.
Because deep down Tessa had always had hope.
And now hope arrived in the form of a Florida Supreme Court decision and a new witness.
Yes. I will take my chances.
Chapter 4
December 2021
Tessa was really surprised that the clothes Sam brought her fit. She had lost at least twenty pounds during the ten-plus years she had been locked up. He had a good eye for size. A pair of khaki slacks, a delicate white blouse, and a yellow sweater, along with the fanciest bra she had seen since her incarceration, and soft, silky underwear, a true luxury. He’d sent a pair of leather Sperrys with a set of footies. He’d thought of everything, or maybe Bethany had chosen these clothes. As far as Tessa herself was concerned, she could have worn a flour sack and been satisfied. She had been given one chance to start her life over, and her wardrobe was the least of her problems.
Once she was finished dressing, Tessa was told to wait in the small office next to the control room where she had just changed into her new clothes. She took a seat and waited for what was to come next.
On the one hand, the two months since Lee, Steven, and Bethany had come into her life had sped by quickly. Once the guards learned of her new trial, they treated her a bit better. Except for Hicks. She was as mean as ever, perhaps even meaner now that Tessa might not be there for her to torment, and tried her best to get a rise out of her. Tessa knew if she had even the slightest blemish on her record, she could forget about getting out on bail while she waited for her new trial.
On the other hand, time seemed to crawl as all she could think about was getting out of jail, planning for a new trial, and figuring out how to catch Liam and destroy the perverted son of a bitch in the most painful manner possible. Lee had explained the terms of her release once the judge entered his final order into the record. Her new trial date had not yet been set, so she would be on house arrest and wear an ankle bracelet to monitor her whereabouts. She would only be allowed to leave the house to visit her attorney, and she could go to church if she chose to. She decided she would. She had to believe that it was God’s plan that had sent Lee and his crew into her life, and for the first time since she had lost everything in her life that mattered to her, she was truly thankful to be alive.
The dark thoughts still lingered in the back of her mind, but the bright light of hope was there now, even if it was only a shimmer. If all went as Lee expected, in a few months she would be a free woman. She would be exonerated of all charges, and her record would be expunged.
She had millions in the bank, a successful company that still belonged to her. Rachelle was given $5 million a year as was dictated in her father-in-law’s will, but according to Sam, that amount was a small drop in Jamison Pharmaceuticals’ financial bucket.
The only downside of this change was that she had to return to San Maribel and the house where the murders had taken place. Sam had taken care of the house and assured her it wasn’t the same as she remembered. She certainly hoped not. Just the thought of entering that house again caused her to panic. She had begged Lee to ask the judge if she could rent a place, buy a condo, anything other than returning to the island, but Judge Crider had been adamant according to Lee, whom she now trusted as much as she trusted herself. He cut straight through the flesh to the bone, but she respected that. Life after more than ten years in prison was too short for beating around the bush.
Tessa waited twenty minutes for the Powers That Be to formally release her. It had been confirmed that she would be released into Sam’s
