He Thought I'd Forget novel · Chapter 30 of 32
Chapter 30: Sentencing
I wrote my statement at the café counter over four mornings.
I threw away nine drafts that sounded like somebody else.
On the fifth morning I wrote it in capitals, and it finally sounded like me.
On the twelfth, Jeanine did my hair in her kitchen at six a.m. without saying a word.
The courthouse hallway was crowded by eight-thirty.
The salon women. The doorman in his tie. The café owner, in a jacket that smelled like pie crust.
The man from Millvale, with his notebook in his shirt pocket out of habit.
Clark held my hand and said nothing and didn't let go.
Then I saw Alexis.
She was sitting alone on a bench near the courtroom doors.
No blowout. No lanyard.
A baby carrier was strapped to her chest, and a small dark head was tucked under her chin.
She saw me and stood up slowly.
Jeanine stepped in front of me without thinking.
"It's okay," I said.
Jeanine didn't move.
"Neenie. It's okay."
She moved. One step.
Alexis stopped an arm's length away.
"I'm not here to ask you for anything," she said. "I'm here because my lawyer said I could stand at the back. If you want me to leave, I'll leave."
The rest of this chapter is part of the paid portion of the series. Chapters 1–16 of He Thought I'd Forget are free to read — start from the beginning, then unlock the rest with coins in the app.
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