Chapter 17 - Noah’s Voice
The prosecution did not play all Noah’s messages.
Only those necessary.
That was merciful.
One voicemail.
Dominic:
Stay off the older launch tomorrow. They haven’t finished checking it.
Then the maintenance email.
Then fake closeout.
Then Dominic’s instruction not to bring Hudson irregularities into fatality review unless asked.
The prosecutor asked corporate auditor:
“Did Alessandro’s cost deferral authorize skipping safety inspection?”
“No.”
“Did Dominic know steering required physical service?”
“Email indicates yes.”
“Can you say lack of service caused Noah’s death with certainty?”
“No.”
Good.
No overreach.
The prosecutor’s point was not that Dominic killed Noah.
It was that he had reason to feel crushing guilt and reason to shift blame.
Nathan testified Dominic repeatedly said:
“Alessandro still gets to tuck his son in.”
Then the search on Dominic’s laptop:
family trauma parental incapacity board succession.
Defense objected to interpretation.
Judge allowed search evidence with limits.
Prosecution could argue.
Jury decides.
Dominic did not testify.
His right.
Defense built alternative.
Nathan had financial motive.
Gavin had debt.
Both needed someone wealthy to blame.
Dominic’s corporate fraud could explain meetings and secrecy without murder.
He handed Gavin harmless container.
He accessed allergy sheet for event planning.
He was grieving, angry, but not homicidal.
The evidence planted for Sophia could have been Nathan’s attempt to protect his own badge sale.
Strong enough that I feared.
Trials should create fear when state carries burden.
Then prosecution introduced recovered message from Dominic’s cloud archive.
To Nathan.
Date three days before party.
If boy never gets a bite, none of this matters.
Defense argued “boy” could refer to a vendor negotiation.
But surrounding messages referenced gala.
Another:
A needs to understand losing control.
A.
Alessandro.
Then:
After episode, board waits. Audit waits. I handle family.
That connected plan.
Defense called a digital expert who said deleted context made some interpretation uncertain.
True.
The jury would weigh.
Final prosecution witness was Paul Renner.
He had pleaded financial fraud only.
No attempted murder deal.
He testified Dominic asked him to place a sealed package in commercial locker.
“What did you think?”
“Records.”
“Why?”
“We had used lockers to exchange vendor files off system.”
“Did Dominic tell you contents?”
“No.”
“Did you know Ethan was target?”
“No.”
“Did you learn later?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“After birthday.”
“Did you destroy evidence?”
“I deleted vendor emails because Dominic told me audit was coming.”
Financial crime.
Not child plot.
Again distinction strengthened honesty.
The defense rested.
Closing arguments took a day.
I did not attend.
I took Ethan to school.
He had a spelling test.
“Shouldn’t you be there?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because the jury has evidence whether I stare at them or not.”
“What if Uncle Dominic gets away?”
“Then we live.”
He looked at me.
“That’s it?”
“No.”
I smiled sadly.
“But yes.”
May you like
Our lives could not depend on verdict.
That was something I had only recently learned.
