Chapter 17 - Savannah’s Choice
Savannah accepted a cooperation agreement.
She still faced prison.
But prosecutors offered a reduced sentence if she testified truthfully.
Nathaniel stared at her as she entered the witness box.
Savannah avoided his eyes.
She admitted the affair.
The shell company.
The false medical reports.
The stolen passport.
Then the prosecutor asked what happened before police entered the study.
Savannah’s hands trembled.
“Nathaniel said Isabella would eventually sign.”
“And if she did not?”
“He said we could say she injured herself.”
“Did he discuss what would happen if she required hospitalization?”
Savannah began crying.
Nathaniel’s attorney objected.
The judge allowed the question.
Savannah answered.
“He said a breakdown would make the documents easier to defend.”
“What did that mean?”
“He planned to say Isabella became violent after signing.”
The prosecutor displayed a message sent by Nathaniel two days earlier.
If she collapses, call the private doctor before emergency services.
The courtroom became silent.
Nathaniel had arranged for the physician who created the false report to see Isabella before any independent doctor documented her injuries.
Savannah continued.
“He said her father would be too ashamed to create a scandal.”
“Did you believe Edward Whitmore was her father?”
“Yes.”
“Did Nathaniel?”
“Yes.”
The testimony revealed something Isabella had not known.
Nathaniel had confirmed Edward’s identity three weeks before the assault.
He continued calling him a poor mechanic because humiliation mattered more to him than truth.
He believed Edward would protect Whitmore Global’s reputation by settling privately.
He expected the billionaire to pay.
Edward sat behind Isabella, motionless.
Nathaniel had not underestimated his wealth.
He had underestimated his love for his daughter.
Savannah described the promise Nathaniel made after the postnup.
He would divorce Isabella.
Take control of her trust.
Marry Savannah after the scandal passed.
Savannah had believed she was replacing Isabella.
Instead, Nathaniel had prepared a separate agreement limiting Savannah’s rights.
He planned to control her too.
She found it after his arrest.
“I thought he chose me,” Savannah said.
Isabella did not feel sympathy.
But she understood the pattern.
Nathaniel offered affection only when it increased his power.
Savannah pleaded guilty to conspiracy, identity theft, financial fraud, unlawful restraint and aiding coercion.
Her cooperation did not erase her choices.
It only ended her final lie.
Nathaniel’s defense collapsed.
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The jury deliberated for nine hours.
👉 The verdict would decide Nathaniel’s freedom, but Isabella’s final victory would depend on what she chose to do with the empire he tried to steal.
