Chapter 9: The Evidence He Left Behind
The parking garage smelled like rain and concrete.
The storm outside had arrived suddenly, turning the courthouse windows gray.
I walked behind security officers as they led me down the fourth level.
Thomas tried to stop me.
“You shouldn’t be here.””
“I need to see.””
“Evelyn.””
“I need to know.””
That was the truth.
After everything that happened, I couldn’t stand another unanswered question.
Michael Voss was sitting against a concrete pillar.
Alive.
Barely.
His expensive suit was torn.
Blood covered the side of his face.
But his eyes were open.
When he saw me, he laughed weakly.
“Judge Carter.””
I knelt several feet away.
“Who did this?””
He looked at the officers around him.
Then back at me.
“You still don’t understand.””
“Understand what?””
“That I wasn’t trying to destroy you.””
I frowned.
“You filed a complaint against me.””
“Because they made me.””
“Who?””
His breathing became uneven.
“Everyone thinks I’m the villain.””
“You are accused of serious crimes.””
“Yes.””
The answer surprised me.
He didn’t deny it.
“I did bad things.””
Thomas stepped forward.
“Then why should we believe anything you say?””
Michael looked at him.
Then smiled.
“Because you know exactly what I’m talking about.””
Thomas froze.
I noticed.
“What does that mean?””
Michael looked back at me.
“Ask him about the first case.””
“The first case?””
“The case that made you trust him.””
My eyes moved to Thomas.
He looked away.
Again.
Another secret.
Another missing piece.
“Thomas?””
He didn’t answer.
Michael coughed.
“They all have something to hide.””
The paramedics arrived.
Before they lifted him onto the stretcher, he grabbed my sleeve.
His grip was weak.
But desperate.
“Judge Carter.””
“Yes?””
“The officer didn’t attack you because he didn’t know who you were.””
I leaned closer.
“Then why?””
Michael looked around.
As if someone might hear.
“He attacked you because you were about to uncover what happened ten years ago.””
The words stayed with me.
Ten years.
A decade.
“What happened ten years ago?””
His eyes closed.
“I’m sorry.””
“For what?””
He whispered:
“For choosing survival over telling the truth.””
Then the paramedics pulled him away.
I stood in the parking garage, watching the ambulance disappear into the rain.
Thomas finally spoke.
“You need to know.””
I turned.
“Know what?””
“The first case.””
“Your first case with me?””
He nodded.
“The one where you became a judge everyone respected.””
I waited.
Thomas looked toward the courthouse.
“Ten years ago, there was a corruption investigation.””
“Against who?””
He swallowed.
“People who were supposed to protect the law.””
“And?””
“And we found evidence.””
“What evidence?””
He looked at me.
“Evidence that someone inside the court system was selling information.””
The rain hit the concrete harder.
“And what happened?””
Thomas’s voice became quiet.
“We were supposed to expose them.””
“Supposed to?””
“Yes.””
“What stopped you?””
He looked away.
“A person died.””
I felt my heartbeat slow.
“Who?””
Thomas reached into his coat.
He pulled out an old photograph.
A photograph I had never seen.
A photograph of a woman standing outside the courthouse.
I recognized her immediately.
Because her name was written on every document from my first major case.
The prosecutor who disappeared.
The one Rachel said vanished six months ago.
Thomas handed me the photo.
“She wasn’t a victim.””
I stared at him.
“Then what was she?””
Thomas looked at the courthouse doors.
“She was the person who started everything.””
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
I answered.
A familiar voice whispered.
“Judge Carter…”
I froze.
Because I knew that voice.
It belonged to the woman everyone believed was missing.
“I need you to listen carefully.””
My hand tightened around the phone.
“Where are you?””
A pause.
Then:
“I’m inside your courthouse.””
May you like
The call ended.
And behind me, the courthouse doors slowly opened.
