Chapter 2
Today marks exactly one month since I buried my wife, who left me here alone with Ellie. At first it was incredibly hard—it still is—but I do everything I can to stay strong, because I have a baby at home who needs me.
My friend Mattia came to stay with me for a while, but he’s already gone—he had too much work to stay longer.
After that fateful day, I tried to focus on gathering evidence with my lawyer while also taking care of my daughter, which wasn’t easy.
Even with the nanny, I made sure to give her the fatherly affection she needed, the physical contact the doctor said was so important.
We’re living like this, one day at a time—some harder than others.
And I keep going, for my precious little girl.
The recent loss of my wife turned me into a complete recluse. I needed that time alone. The only person I let in was Mattia, who stayed with me here at home through all of it.
Right now I’m locked in my office with the best lawyer in the country. We’ve been discussing the accident. The man who killed my wife will not go unpunished.
“Owen, it won’t be easy to put him in jail. You know that better than I do.”
“He killed my wife, so yes, he should go to jail and stay there for the rest of his life.”
“We need to gather more evidence—witnesses, anything we can find.”
“I know, and I’m sure you know what to do. So get to work. I want this man behind bars as soon as possible.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
He shakes my hand, says goodbye, and leaves. I stay in my office. My studies to become a judge are still ongoing, and now more than ever, I need to keep at it—to build more connections.
The name of the man who killed my wife is James Cooper.
He lost his wife to cancer a few years ago.
After that, he stopped working and started drinking.
I found out he has a daughter, but I couldn’t find anything about her.
His late wife was Italian—they met on a trip he took to Rome, fell in love, and got married years later.
They lived here until she passed away. He had a construction company and was an engineer, but it went bankrupt after he lost her.
That’s all the information I could get on him. I don’t know what became of the daughter—I couldn’t find anything about her. His late wife’s family is from here, but I decided not to pursue them. I had everything I needed on James, and I would put him behind bars, where he belongs.
The month flew by. My lawyer came back with some valuable information, and now we’re ready to start the legal process. By my calculations, in two months at most, James would pay for what he did.
The months dragged by slower than usual—or maybe it was just my anxiety, which I used to have under control. Today is finally the day of the hearing, where we’ll present the documentation I gathered.
“The floor goes to the attorney for Mr. Owen Blake.”
“Thank you, Your Honor. As you can see, my client lost his wife in a car accident exactly eight months ago. She was seven months pregnant with a baby girl. Due to the accident, she suffered multiple injuries that led to her death—she never even got to meet her daughter. My client is aware that there was heavy snow that day, so he was driving very carefully and within the speed limit. However, as the photos show, there are clear skid marks from the defendant’s car braking.
From this, we can deduce that he was exceeding the permitted speed of fifteen to twenty kilometers per hour.
Therefore, we declare the defendant guilty of causing the death of Luma Blake. ”
“Now, the floor goes to the attorney for the defendant, Mr. James Cooper.”
“Thank you, Your Honor. My client does not deny that he was slightly above the permitted speed. However, the roads had not been properly cleared that day, which caused his car to skid and collide with the vehicle carrying Mr. Owen Blake and his pregnant wife. My client had no intention of hitting the car, injuring anyone, or causing a death. This was an isolated incident. Therefore, I maintain that my client was not at fault in the death of Mrs. Luma Blake.”
“The court will deliberate on the evidence presented by both attorneys. The hearing is now in recess. We will reconvene in half an hour.”
I stayed there, in the same spot, for exactly thirty minutes—the longest of my entire life. When they returned, we all stood. I stared at James, who was on the opposite side of the room. I saw sadness in his eyes, but I felt no pity. I had lost my wife. He should pay for his mistake.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the judge delivered the verdict—the moment I’d been waiting for. I hung on his every word. I knew this wouldn’t bring my wife back, but it would give me some peace knowing I had sought justice.
“Based on the evidence presented at this trial, I declare the defendant guilty of involuntary manslaughter under Article 121. The sentence to be served is ten years, effective immediately.”
And finally, he brought down the gavel. To say I felt relieved would be a lie, but I had done right by Luma. She had so much to live for. She never got to meet her daughter, let alone fulfill all the promises we’d made to each other. I felt relieved for her sake, and her sake alone.