The defense’s close was delivered not by the bulldog, but by her handsome young counterpart. He was chosen, I presume, for his big dark eyes and his buttery voice, his Clark Kent appeal to both genders.

“Penny Cleary-Granger was a neglected child, and this neglect caused her to sometimes seek attention in desperate and strange ways, but she nonetheless grew up to be a dedicated professional, a loving spouse, and a devoted mother. The prosecution has told you a terrifying horror story, but that’s all it is, a story. They have not presented you with a smoking gun because no crime has been committed. A monumental tragedy has occurred; we ask you not to compound it by sending an innocent grieving mother to prison.”

The jury deliberated for four days.

Penny was acquitted.

As the judge read the verdict, I saw my sister’s expression transform from stoic to beatific relief. She smiled bravely and hugged superman and the bulldog. As I watched her, I realized that whomever I was seeing in that courtroom wasn’t my sister anymore. Somewhere along the line, the Penny I loved had disappeared and was not coming back. I would not see my sister, or the monstrous doppelgänger who’d replaced her, again.

Stewart moved his wife to the Air Force base in Macon, Georgia, for a fresh start. Though their marriage did not survive—buckling under the weight of their loss and the stress of the trial—Penny remained in Georgia. The fact that she no longer lives nearby doesn’t stop me from seeing Penny’s face around every corner each time I’m home in Coeur d’Alene, nor does it stop me from seeing her in crowds hundreds of miles away from anywhere she’s ever been. Penny is a ghost who is mine forever.

About a year later, another piece of news made its way back to us, joyful or horrifying depending on where you stood. Penny had met and married someone new after a six-month whirlwind courtship. They were expecting their first child.

During the year of the trial, I didn’t qualify for the World Cup Tour and had an unimpressive run in a handful of NorAms, and I tried to get my bearings while Luke and Blair and all the rest of my friends did their normal run around the globe. I was demoted to Alpine C Team. Red Bull officially dropped me.