Chapter 9 - The Hearing Victor Thought He Owned
By nine forty-five, the Cook County courthouse was already crowded.
Reporters stood outside.
Nobody knew exactly why.
Gabriel knew.
Victor had leaked the hearing.
If Beatrice was publicly declared incompetent, the humiliation would pressure the board before anyone could examine the trust.
Gabriel arrived without his usual convoy.
Anthony walked beside him.
Chloe stayed with Beatrice.
Walsh carried Leo's file.
The original trust remained in Gabriel's hands.
They entered the courtroom.
Victor was already there.
His injured leg rested on a support beneath the table.
He looked pale but perfectly composed.
Nico sat behind him.
Gabriel saw him.
Neither man acknowledged the other.
Chloe felt Beatrice's hand tighten around hers.
Across the room, Victor's attorney rose.
“Mrs. Costello.”
Beatrice ignored him.
He repeated louder.
“Mrs. Costello.”
Chloe's jaw tightened.
Gabriel noticed.
The attorney approached.
“Can she hear me?”
Chloe stared at him.
“No.”
He nodded with exaggerated understanding.
“Then perhaps we should speak slowly.”
Chloe almost laughed.
“She is deaf, not underwater.”
Several people turned.
Victor's attorney frowned.
“And you are?”
“Her interpreter.”
“You are court certified?”
“No.”
“Then you cannot interpret official testimony.”
A woman approached from the clerk's table.
“I can.”
She signed fluently.
Chloe felt immediate relief.
Beatrice smiled.
The attorney's expression tightened.
The judge entered.
Everyone rose.
Judge Martin Hale was in his late sixties.
Gabriel watched him carefully.
Victor looked completely relaxed.
That alone was suspicious.
The hearing began.
Victor's attorney described Beatrice as confused.
Forgetful.
Emotionally unstable.
Unable to understand financial documents.
Chloe felt rage building.
Beatrice sat perfectly still.
The attorney presented statements from Dr. Brennan.
Gabriel's eyes sharpened.
The report claimed Beatrice had shown cognitive decline.
It recommended temporary financial guardianship.
The proposed guardian was Victor Salerno.
When the attorney finished, Gabriel's lawyer stood.
“Your Honor, the physician who signed that report died last night.”
The courtroom murmured.
The judge frowned.
“That is unfortunate, but the report remains evidence.”
Gabriel's attorney nodded.
“We also have evidence that the report was falsified.”
Victor looked toward Nico.
Nico stared ahead.
The judge's expression changed slightly.
“What evidence?”
Gabriel placed Brennan's prescription records on the table.
“Mrs. Costello's medication was altered without her informed consent.”
Victor's lawyer objected.
Gabriel's lawyer continued.
“We also have banking records showing Mr. Salerno created three undisclosed holding companies involving assets belonging to Costello Holdings.”
Another objection.
The judge looked irritated.
“This is a competency hearing, not a corporate dispute.”
Chloe watched Victor.
He smiled faintly.
Beatrice saw it too.
She signed to Chloe.
Judge is frightened.
Chloe looked at her.
Why?
He keeps looking at Victor before he rules.
Chloe watched.
Beatrice was right.
Every objection.
Every pause.
Judge Hale's eyes moved toward Victor.
Gabriel leaned toward Chloe.
“What is she saying?”
Chloe whispered.
“She thinks the judge is scared of Victor.”
Gabriel's expression did not change.
Then Victor's attorney called Nico.
The courtroom shifted.
Gabriel stared.
Nico took the witness stand.
Victor looked satisfied.
Chloe's stomach dropped.
Nico swore the oath.
Victor's attorney approached.
“How long have you known Mrs. Costello?”
“Most of my life.”
“Have you observed changes in her behavior?”
“Yes.”
Gabriel's jaw tightened.
Chloe felt sick.
The attorney continued.
“What changes?”
Nico looked at Beatrice.
“She stopped trusting people.”
Victor's attorney nodded.
“Paranoia?”
“No.”
The attorney paused.
Nico continued.
“She stopped trusting people because she discovered they were stealing from her.”
Victor's face changed.
The courtroom went silent.
Victor's attorney stared.
“What?”
Nico reached inside his jacket.
He removed a flash drive.
“For two years, my father has used Costello shell companies to move approximately eighty-seven million dollars.”
Murmurs erupted.
Victor stood.
“You stupid son of a—”
The judge slammed his gavel.
“Order.”
Nico looked at Gabriel.
“I helped him.”
Gabriel's expression did not change.
Nico continued.
“I also witnessed actions that may connect my father to the death of Leo Bennett.”
Chloe stopped breathing.
Victor's attorney demanded a recess.
The judge granted it immediately.
Gabriel stood.
Victor was taken into a side room.
Nico stepped down.
Gabriel intercepted him.
“You could have told me.”
Nico looked exhausted.
“I should have.”
“You let me trust you.”
“I know.”
“You let my mother sit at my table every week trying to warn me while you knew.”
“I know.”
Gabriel's hand curled into a fist.
Nico did not move.
Chloe approached.
“Why were you at the crash?”
Nico looked at her.
“Victor told me Leo had stolen documents.”
“That isn't an answer.”
“I followed Mercer.”
“Did you know he was going to hit Leo?”
“No.”
“You told Gabriel yes.”
“I knew something was going to happen.”
Chloe's eyes burned.
“And you did nothing.”
“I called Victor.”
“You called Victor?”
“I told him Mercer was driving too fast.”
“And?”
Nico swallowed.
“He told me not to interfere.”
Chloe stared.
“And you listened.”
“Yes.”
She slapped him.
The hallway went silent.
Nico did not react.
Chloe's voice shook.
“My brother was twenty-four.”
“I know.”
“No.”
She stepped closer.
“You know his age.”
Her eyes filled.
“You don't know him.”
Nico lowered his head.
“You're right.”
A courthouse officer approached.
“Mrs. Costello is needed.”
They returned inside.
Judge Hale entered.
His face looked different.
Nervous.
He looked toward Victor's empty chair.
“Where is Mr. Salerno?”
A bailiff whispered to him.
The judge's face changed.
Gabriel stood.
“What happened?”
The bailiff turned.
“Mr. Salerno is gone.”
Anthony was already moving.
“What do you mean gone?”
“He left through a restricted corridor during recess.”
Gabriel looked at Nico.
Nico went pale.
“He had help.”
The judge slammed his gavel.
“This hearing is suspended.”
Gabriel's lawyer stepped forward.
“Your Honor—”
“Suspended.”
Beatrice suddenly stood.
She signed rapidly to the certified interpreter.
The interpreter spoke.
“Mrs. Costello says she would like to address the court.”
The judge hesitated.
Beatrice continued.
“I have spent six months watching people discuss my mind as if I were not in the room.”
Every person became quiet.
“I am deaf.”
“I am not confused.”
“I am not incapable.”
“I am not a child.”
Her hands grew sharper.
“My son failed me because he stopped learning how to listen.”
Gabriel looked down.
“Victor failed this family because he believed silence meant weakness.”
She pointed toward the empty chair.
“And all of you nearly helped him because it was easier to trust a speaking man in a suit than a deaf woman telling the truth.”
Nobody moved.
Even the judge looked ashamed.
Beatrice finished.
“I would like my property returned to me.”
Judge Hale cleared his throat.
“The petition is dismissed.”
Gabriel closed his eyes.
Beatrice sat.
Chloe squeezed her hand.
Then Anthony's phone rang.
He answered.
His face changed.
“Gabriel.”
“What?”
Anthony looked toward Beatrice.
“Victor didn't run.”
Gabriel went still.
May you like
Anthony continued.
“He went to the Costello board meeting.”
