Chapter 7: The Mother
Lila’s trial was swift. She pleaded guilty to perjury, obstruction, and conspiracy to commit murder. The judge gave her fifteen years. She would be eligible for parole in seven.
Gavin did not attend the sentencing. He had no interest in watching the woman who had tried to kill him through the state receive her punishment. Chloe asked once if she could see her mother. Gavin told her the truth: when she was older and ready, they would talk about it. For now, she needed to be a little girl again.
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His own mother, who had believed in his innocence from the first day, moved in with them for the first month. She cooked the meals Gavin had dreamed about on death row and never asked him to talk before he was ready.
The hardest part was learning how to be a father without the shadow of the execution date hanging over every moment. Chloe would wake from nightmares about the prison. Gavin would wake from nightmares about the needle. They sat together in the dark some nights and simply held each other until the fear passed.
