Page 359 of Wicked Brutal

Her eyes come back to him.

“But we’re not here to decide what Ally should have had to do. We’re here to decide whether she did it.”

The attorney takes a breath. “You love her. You want her to receive custody.”

“Yes.”

“No further questions.” Cassandra steps down. She touches my cheek as she passes, and I lean into her hand, just for a second.

Arthur doesn’t call another witness. Instead he walks to the end of our table and picks up a clear protective sleeve I’ve never seen before. “Your Honor, before we conclude, I have one additional exhibit and a brief authentication witness.”

Roman’s attorney is up at once. “What exhibit?”

Arthur turns. “The last will and testament of Jane O’Toole.”

Everything inside me stops.

“What?” I whisper.

Arthur just looks at me. The clerk takes it.

The judge examines it. “This was recently discovered?”

“Yes, Your Honor. It was among the documents Jane concealed before her death. Once discovered, I had it independently authenticated and located the attorney who prepared it.”

“We haven’t stipulated to its validity,” Roman’s attorney says.

“I didn’t ask you to.” Arthur turns toward the door. “I call Margaret Keene.”

A woman I’ve never seen enters — sixties, gray hair, dark suit. No connection to Edgewood. No connection to us.

After she’s sworn in, Arthur approaches. “Please state your name and occupation.”

“Margaret Anne Keene. I’m an attorney, at Keene and Bellamy. Our office is in Bellweather.”

A few towns over. Not Edgewood.

Arthur hands her the document. “Do you recognize this?”

“Yes. It’s the last will and testament of Jane O’Toole.”

“Did you prepare it? When?”

She checks the execution page. “I did. November seventeenth, 2019.”

Six years ago. Tobias was a baby. I was a kid.

“Did you know Jane before she contacted your office? Had your firm ever represented her husband? The Harringtons? The Walshes? Any family involved in this case?”

“No. To all of it. Not to my knowledge.”

“Did she come to your office alone? Was she competent? Did she understand what she was signing? Was she coerced?”

“She came alone. She was completely competent, she understood exactly what she was signing, and she was not coerced in my presence. The will was properly witnessed and executed.”

Arthur pauses. “Did Mrs. O’Toole tell you why she came to an attorney several towns away rather than someone in Edgewood?”

“Objection. Hearsay.”