Chapter 16 - After the Verdict
Everyone expected Cameron to feel better.
He did not.
For three days he felt empty.
Trial had been a target.
Now gone.
School still existed.
Homework still due.
His original Phone A still sat in evidence.
His parents still had flaws.
Dr. Lewis called it normal.
Cameron called therapy annoying.
Aaron asked:
“Do you want to celebrate?”
“No.”
“Okay.”
Melissa asked:
“Want to stay home tomorrow?”
“No.”
Good.
He went to school.
Mr. Feldman gave a quiz.
Cameron got an eighty-four.
He laughed when he saw it.
Tessa asked:
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Psychological breakdown?”
“Maybe.”
Normal failure felt luxurious.
Brayden called.
Not about verdict.
About his mother.
“She wants me to write a sentencing letter.”
“Are you going to?”
“I don't know.”
“What does she want you to say?”
“That she’s a good mom.”
“Is she?”
Brayden went quiet.
“Sometimes.”
Cameron understood.
“Then write sometimes.”
Brayden laughed sadly.
Later he did.
His letter became the most complicated sentencing submission.
My mother loved me. She also used stolen property to give me things and asked me to lie. Both are true. I do not want her destroyed. I want her to become someone I can trust again someday.
Cameron read only because Brayden chose to share.
He respected it.
Aaron wrote no letter.
Melissa wrote victim impact focused on Cameron's privacy.
Cameron wrote his own.
He didn't know what punishment to request.
Caroline explained he didn't need to.
“Describe impact.”
He did.
The worst part wasn't losing Phone A.
It was seeing an adult tell an obvious lie while holding authority over a room.
The slap mattered.
The privacy invasion mattered.
But the psychological break came when Mrs. Donovan called him a liar while her son visibly held his phone.
Reality was directly in front of everyone.
She expected authority to beat observation.
Cameron wrote:
For a few seconds, I wondered whether I was allowed to believe my own eyes.
That sentence made Melissa cry.
He kept it.
School board finalized Harlan's dismissal status.
Administrator license surrendered.
Sentencing pending.
Kevin’s BrightLoop license and district eligibility revoked.
Company entered dissolution.
Marketplace buyers were contacted where recoverable.
Some devices returned.
Most not.
Restitution fund created.
Isaac's family received replacement value plus fees.
Others too.
Money couldn't restore data.
Still.
Principal Price implemented device lockers with dual-signature custody.
Teachers could confiscate during class but never retain overnight.
Parent notices automatic.
Student receipts immediate.
Cameron joked:
“They built a whole bureaucracy because I wanted my phone.”
Price answered:
“Because we should've had one before you needed it.”
Good.
Aaron's company completed private projects.
He considered district rebid next year.
Cameron asked:
“Will you?”
“Maybe.”
“Are you scared?”
“Yes.”
“Would you withdraw if they don't like me?”
Aaron smiled.
“No.”
Good answer.
Melissa’s overprotection improved slowly.
When Cameron got detention for throwing a paper airplane, she did not call principal.
She said:
“Enjoy detention.”
Cameron stared.
“Who are you?”
“Growth.”
Aaron laughed for five minutes.
Family healed through absurdity.
Then prosecutors notified them:
Phone A could soon be released after sentencing.
Cameron had been using a new midrange phone Melissa bought him.
He didn't know what to do with old device.
Tessa said:
“Sell it.”
“No.”
“Keep it.”
“No.”
“Throw it into ocean.”
“Environmental crime.”
“Very mature.”
Cameron placed decision aside.
May you like
The object that started everything would return eventually.
He wasn't ready.
