“That’s right,” Tom said. “Here’s the thing, Sarah. We all know what happened that night. You know it, he knows it and the witnesses who’ve come to testify know it. But we have no way to prove that Mark Lawry was the one who actually beat you that night. We have your son’s testimony detailing years of abuse at the hands of his father, but we also have no proof of that. No police reports or anything to back up his claims. It becomes a matter of your word and Owen’s against Mark’s. As I’ve mentioned before, Mark’s standing in the community is also working against us. No one wants to believe a high-ranking air force officer is capable of this.”

“You’re recommending we take the plea, then?” Owen asked.

“If Sarah were my mother, I’d encourage her to take the deal to avoid the strain of the trial,” Tom said.

“Frank? Dan? What do you think?” Owen asked.

“It puts him in jail for years,” Frank said, “which has always been the goal.”

“I agree,” Dan said. “It’s not a perfect deal, but it includes prison time, so I’d advise a client to consider it very seriously.”

“Mom?”

After a long period of silence, Sarah said, “I appreciate what all of you are saying, and I see the benefit of accepting the plea deal. But I want to hear him say he did it. I want him to admit, in public, that he beat me and our children while the rest of the world was holding him up as a hero. I want him to say the word guilty. If he’s unwilling to do that, no deal.”

“He’s indicated he’s unwilling to plead guilty.”

“Then I guess there’s no deal,” Sarah said.

“You understand we have no guarantee of a guilty verdict, right?” Tom asked.

“I understand.”

“He could walk free, Mom. Are you prepared for that possibility?”

“He may walk free, but everyone will know what he did, and that would be punishment enough for me.”

“Then we’re going to trial,” Tom said.

“You should’ve seen her,” Owen said to Laura that night in bed. “She was so strong and resolute. I was so proud of her.”

“I don’t blame her for wanting him to have to say the words in public. Do you?”

“No, I don’t, but I sort of wish we could’ve taken the plea and made it all go away. We could’ve chosen not to be in court when he entered the plea and left without even having to see him.”

“That might’ve been easier for both of you, but I’m sort of secretly glad that Sarah is sticking it to him. It’s the least of what he deserves.”

“I have an awful confession to make.”

“What?”