Chapter 21 - Victor’s Explanation
Victor insisted on testifying.
His attorney advised against it.
He believed only he could explain Claire.
He began by describing himself as a provider.
A businessman under pressure.
A husband trying to manage a difficult pregnancy.
He claimed Claire became secretive after reconnecting with Alex.
The prosecutor asked when Claire had ever stopped speaking to her brother completely.
Victor could not provide a date.
He admitted he frequently asked her to cancel visits.
“For marital privacy,” he said.
The prosecutor played the basement video.
“Was this privacy?”
Victor watched himself hold Claire’s phone while she repeated a scripted excuse.
“She was emotional.”
“Why was the door locked?”
“So she wouldn’t run upstairs and escalate.”
“Why did your father install the lock outside?”
Victor’s face tightened.
The prosecutor moved to the financial records.
“You needed her signature by five that morning?”
“I wanted to resolve the loan.”
“You had already forged preliminary approvals?”
“My accountant handled paperwork.”
The accountant had testified Victor gave direct instructions.
Then came the wooden stick.
“Did you swing it?”
“At the floor.”
“Why?”
“To get her attention.”
“She was on the floor looking at you.”
Victor realized too late how the answer sounded.
The prosecutor asked whether he loved Claire.
“Yes.”
“Did love require access to her property?”
“No.”
“Then why threaten her when she refused?”
“I lost control.”
The prosecutor paused.
“You previously told police you never lose control.”
Victor looked toward the jury.
The phrase came from the basement video.
Claire had whispered into the camera:
Victor does not lose control. He chooses when to use it.
The prosecutor repeated it.
“Which is true? Did you lose control, or did you use intimidation because the financial deadline had arrived?”
Victor’s composure cracked.
“She was going to take my child and destroy my family.”
The courtroom became silent.
The prosecutor answered calmly.
“The baby had not been born. Claire had not filed anything. But you had already prepared false psychiatric records to take custody from her.”
Victor realized he had revealed motive.
Not fear of losing family.
May you like
Fear of losing ownership.
For the first time, he stopped speaking.
