Most people think our lives got nice and quiet after the trial ended. Well most of our lives did yes. Not for Alice though. Literally the day after, she got a call from Tanya saying that Marcus had asked her to marry him and would she, Alice, come out and help her, Tanya, plan it. Alice of course squealed so loud I think you could hear her in Vermont! Of course, she took off like a bat out of hell. At first she thought of purchasing a plane ticket, then changed her mind and decided to run; finally Rogue solved the issue and said she’d fly her out as both she and Alexander wanted to go see Marcus.

          Marcus really wanted for Rogue to officiate it, so Rogue got an Alaskan license in order to perform the ceremony. They took off that same afternoon. We were all really happy and excited for Tanya and Marcus. Nessie suggested that Alice should start a wedding planning business. She wasn’t far off there. I mean lord knew we had a whole chunk of them in the future and after Tanya and Marcus’, there was going to be Charlotte and Ben’s at some point. Not to mention the wolves and their imprints. But from what I gathered that was still a ways away and both Seth and Leah wanted to have their weddings in La Push. And Jacob and Nessie……well that one, Edward didn’t even want to consider. I guess we’ll just cross those bridges when we get there.

          Meanwhile, Alice was on fire planning the wedding in Alaska. What made things very easy is that both Tanya and Marcus wanted a very simple wedding. The theme was Simply Green (photos of everything are below). Tanya didn’t want an engagement ring. Her jewelry was very simple and a wedding ring would suffice. Even her wedding dress was quite simple; it was silk and very form fitting with diamonds around the bust line and a short train. She didn’t want a veil. Bridesmaids’ dresses were green of the shoulder silk numbers that were knee length. The groomsmen outfits were just simple suits with green ties and white and green flowers in the lapels. Even the cake had a bit of green in it. The reason they chose what they did was because they were both simple people and they never wanted anything over the top.

          So in less time then we could have imagined, we were told to saddle up and come to Alaska for the wedding. The wolves were invited too. It was all very impromptu because they didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. Best man was Alexander with Keith, Peter, and me being the groomsmen. I was honored to be asked. Maid of honor was Kate with Carmen, Esme, and Alice as bridesmaids. Nessie was the flower girl. She was very excited. Rogue was presiding. The actual ceremony was being held inside their gargantuan ballroom and reception outside in the backyard where lanterns were hanging from lines and from trees. Two long tables would house all the guests and the couple would sit at a special table in the front. All very simple yet elegant.

          Everything looked immaculate. Alice did another wonderful job. So those of us, who were just guests, took their seats as Edward sat behind the piano to play some soft Beethoven to everyone coming down the aisle. Nessie came first with white and green petals; Jacob couldn’t get his eyes off of her. Marcus and Rogue stood at the arch in the front. Then came Alice and Peter followed by Esme and I, then Carmen and Keith and lastly Alexander and Kate. Then all of the guests stood up for Tanya as she came down the aisle. Her hair was up in a beautiful up-do with a lot of hair cascading down. It was similar to what she had for Bella and Edward’s wedding but a lot more formal. Marcus’ eyes got so wide, we thought they would pop out of his head. She came to stand in front of him and handed her bouquet to Kate. They held hands as Rogue began the ceremony.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this event has been some millennia in the making and I’m proud to finally be officiating this day of bliss. The two people before me have come a long way to finding true love and even finding it twice. So please join hands and say the vows you have written to each other. Tanya would you read what you’ve written to Marcus?” Tanya nodded and then unfolded a piece of paper and began to speak:

Don’t be afraid to love. Even someone who seems unlovable.

That could have been said for the both of us

I never believed in love

Or rather never let myself believe

Then you came into my life

Someone I should have hated

But instead loved

The goodness of your heart

Your soul

Your innocence

In the face of adversity

Challenges

Immeasurable heartache

Made you a man strong as iron

With a heart of gold

In my eyes

I have never felt safer

Better

Lighter

More beautiful in someone’s eyes

Thank you for giving me

The world and yourself along with it.

          As usual, everyone and their grandmother as Seth likes to say, had tears in their eyes. What Tanya had written was spoken so beautifully and eloquently that you couldn’t not get emotional and considering we didn’t have any full humans at this gathering, tears were relative. Marcus just stared at Tanya as if he was afraid that if he blinked, she would vanish. Rogue then after sniffing a bit herself, turned to Marcus and said:

“Marcus would you please read to Tanya what you have written?” He nodded and held both of Tanya’s hands as he looked straight into her eyes and began to speak:

ΚΑΡΔΙΑ ΜΟΥ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΑΛΗΘΙΝΟ, η καρδιά μου είναι γεμάτη από εσάς.

My heart is true, my heart is full of you.

Those are the words that came to me when I was thinking of what to write

They were the words that I suddenly remembered one of my siblings

When getting married said to his future wife

And it’s so true in this case

I walked for millennia

Alone

A figure of stone

Caught in my grief and bitterness

Thinking my eternity will be spent in this living hell

Until I set my eyes upon you

You were the comet that shot across my starless sky

Brilliant

Vibrant

Beautiful beyond words

And suddenly

My cold dead heart

Felt alive again

You brought me back

From the brink of my own destruction

Gave me something I never thought I could have again

Hope

Love

Freedom to feel

You are my goddess

My princess in this world of unknowns

I love you more than words will ever express

It will be an honor to serve you the rest of my days

          And cue the waterworks again. Even Rogue had tears rolling down her face. It’s a good thing Alice thought to provide every row with tissues! That speech was so powerful and beautiful, especially since he started it off with a phrase in his native Greek. After all that was said, Alice passed tissues around to anyone in the wedding party who needed them. I had forgotten to mention that among the usual guests we had the Amazons joining us as well; Zafrina, Senna, and Kachiri all made the trip for this wedding. All were smiling at the happy bride and groom. Rogue then got down to business again.

“Ok well that was lovely and all but you’re not supposed to make the officiating party cry…..that’s not in the contract.” She said with a sniff and everyone laughed. That lightened the mood again; well that and Jasper doing his thing to which Rogue looked over and gave him a grateful nod, he responded with a large crooked grin. Then Rogue turned back to the couple.

“May I have the rings please?” Alexander handed them over. They were white gold. The only difference was that Kate’s had a little diamond in the middle on one side while Marcus’ was just solid white gold all the way around.

“Ok Marcus take this ring and place it on Tanya’s finger and repeat after me; Tanya, with this ring I thee wed.”

“Tanya my love, with this ring I thee wed.” He slid it on her finger without fanfare.

“Tanya take this ring and place it on Marcus’ finger and repeat after me;

Marcus with this ring, I thee wed.”

“Marcus, with this ring, I thee wed FOREVER.” Everyone laughed as she slid it on his finger.

“Well, that went well.” Rogue said as everyone giggled. “What am I missing? Oh duh! I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss your bride!”

          As we all clapped and cheered, Marcus and Tanya kissed and kissed and kissed and kissed…….finally after some throat clearing they stopped giggled, Tanya took her bouquet from Kate and they ran up the aisle. The wedding party did their thing with Rose being the photographer. After which we all went toward the large open area in the backyard where the reception was to be held. It looked like a very fancy backyard gathering. The dance floor was set up and after everyone entered to applause, the newlyweds went straight to the dance floor for their first dance which was Shania Twain’s “Forever and For Always.” The buffet consisted of Greek, American, and Mediterranean food. Now that we all had the ability to eat, we got to enjoy it.

          The Denali clan had finally come on board with that as well and Rogue gave them the gift of enjoying food. So now everyone in Alaska was paired off as well. We were incredibly happy that both Tanya and Marcus found happiness in each other. Their honeymoon was to be in Greece. Tanya had never been and Marcus was eager to show her all of his favorite places. They were to leave that night. Alice made sure she booked a flight for them with minimal layovers. They were going to go from Anchorage to Denver, from Denver to New York City and from NYC straight to Athens. The honeymoon would last about a month. We couldn’t wait for pictures.

          Meanwhile, we enjoyed the reception and the music. Marcus was actually an amazing dancer and had taught Tanya the tango. They looked really sexy on the dance floor, most of us who knew the dance, joined in while the others just watched with approval. All in all it was a very lovely evening. So now that we were sending off the next happy couple we were looking at Alice like ok, that’s another one done…..who’s next?

“Charlotte and Ben!” Said Alice with a huge grin. We all laughed; maybe we needed to really open a wedding planning business! And Nessie came up with the perfect name for it; Holy Weddings!

Hmmmmm……something to think about.

In the meantime, thank you for joining us here in Alaska for the wedding of our extended family members. I hope you enjoyed yourselves and have a lovely evening.

          We all held our breath; you could have heard a pin drop in that court room. The only sound was the tick-tock of the clock on the side of the room. The foreman was looking at the paper in his hand. The judge had asked Ashley and her defense attorney to stand as the verdict was read.

“We the jury find the defendant Carrie Cunningham . . . ” there was a slight pause and then he said, “Guilty.”

GUILTY!

          She was found guilty. The rest of what the foreman said was drowned out by the applause in the room and the sheer elation of practically everyone there. And she wasn’t just found guilty, but on all counts. Guilty of impersonating a medical professional. Guilty of using a poison with the intent to harm. Guilty of stalking and harassment. Guilty of attempted murder. Guilty of premeditated murder. Guilty of capital murder.

GUILTY!

          After the verdict was read, the judge thanked the jury and dismissed them. He was going to determine the sentencing himself. At this point the defense had one last option, and that was to try and spare Ashley’s life; because the prosecution was going full steam ahead with asking for the death penalty. Now it was time for the impact statements. We really didn’t have an order of those so the judge gave the DA and those of us who had decided to do it some time to figure out in what order we were going to go.

          It was decided that Charlotte was to go first to get it out of the way, followed by Mr. Yang’s daughter, the relatives of those people she murdered cold-bloodedly and finally, I would go. I knew exactly what I was going to say. Before we went, Ashley’s attorney had a chance to address the court and after our statements, Ashley herself would be allowed to address the court as well as her victims. And you know something, I’m not calling her Ashley anymore because that’s not her real name. She may want to live in a fantasy world, but even our immortal world is reality, so from now on—until we no longer have to address her or talk about her—I will call her Carrie.

          The defense attorney stood up before the judge and said, “Your honor, my client has been found guilty but I implore you to spare her life. Death isn’t the answer. She will not learn anything if she receives the death penalty. And she won’t receive the necessary treatment for her illnesses. She deserves a chance to make amends and right her wrongs. Thank you.”

Well that was short, I thought as we filed back into the courtroom. Charlotte and her fiancé then Ben walked to the podium that stood between the defense and DA tables and addressed the courtroom in a statement she had written. Her hands were shaking but Ben was there to support her as we all were.

“Good afternoon your honor and everyone present,” Charlotte said. “Carrie Cunningham doesn’t deserve to live. I have never been a real believer in the death penalty, which is kind of ironic since I’m originally from Texas and that state executes people on a regular basis. But as someone said to me once, ‘You’ll become a believer once it’s happened to you or someone you love or care for.’ They were right. Ms. Cunningham poisoned me and then brutally attacked me with a massive butcher knife that I believe you only use to slaughter sheep. Why? Because of a perceived notion that the object of her obsession liked me better than her. Even if that was the case, which it obviously wasn’t, who does that? Where does that appear in the world of logic? I truly believe that Ms. Cunningham is crazy, but she’s not insane. She’s as crazy as Aileen Wuornos was when she killed 5 or 6 men in Florida because she wanted to rob them and used the guise that they all raped her to justify doing it. Was she insane? No. Neither is Ms. Cunningham. What Ms. Cunningham is, is ruthless, calculating, methodical, cold-blooded, and vicious. She needs to be kept away from society as a whole, even those in prison. She will do this and again. Please don’t let my suffering and the loss of our patients at the hands of this snake be in vain. Thank you.”

          The courtroom was silent as the judge thanked Charlotte and all you heard were the sobs of the relatives of the victims. Carrie, meanwhile, just sat there stone-faced and all but glared after Charlotte as she walked back to her seat. Then all the others who went before went up to say their peace. Mr. Yang’s daughter’s emotional statement brought everyone to tears. Even heartless Carrie couldn’t glare at her. She just sat there with her eyes down. Maybe it was finally getting through to her that she wasn’t going to skate by on her “insanity” crap.

Finally, it was my turn.

“Dr. Cullen, would please like to give us your statement?” The judge motioned me to approach the podium. At the mere mention of my name, Carrie’s head snapped back up and she looked at me with wide, startled eyes. I walked up to the podium and addressed the court. I didn’t have any papers with me, didn’t need them; I was after all a vampire with a super memory. But of course they didn’t know that. But I digress.

“Thank you, your honor, members of the court, ladies and gentlemen. I at first didn’t know whether I was going to be coming here today and speaking with you but then I decided to do it. I’m here on behalf of myself, my wife, and family, but most importantly, I’m here for the people who cannot speak for themselves and those are the patients who were in my care and the care of the hospital where I work; all of whom Ms. Cunningham murdered. I’m speaking on behalf of their families for whom it is too hard to get up here and address all of you. As a doctor, I have witnessed death in many different forms; some more gruesome than others. As a doctor, it is my number one priority to save a life, to spare a life, to make someone better.”

As I was speaking, Carrie’s eyes started to get hopeful, maybe I would actually ask for leniency on her behalf. What she heard next, smashed all of her hope into little pieces.

“However, in this case . . . I do not wish for Ms. Cunningham’s life to be spared. I fervently wish that you, your honor, sentence her to death. She has brought immeasurable pain to my loved ones and those who I work with, as well—if not more—for my patients and their families. That makes me very angry with Ms. Cunningham. It wasn’t her right to play God. The world contrary to her thought process revolves around the sun and not around her. Her obsession with me and perceived notion that I would leave my wife for her was childish and stupid. Ms. Cunningham is a narcissistic drama queen with a superiority complex and that’s where her so called mental disorders end. She’s very good at what she does having perfected her method in 2 other states before coming here. Your honor, this is a woman who even now as we all give our statements, still sits defiant and unapologetic. I beg of you, send her to where she belongs—and that’s straight to hell. Thank you.”

          That last line elicited a gasp from Carrie as she tried to say something but couldn’t. Without even looking back, I then and sat next to my wife as the rest of my family patted me on the arms and back depending on where they were sitting or standing. The daughter of Mr. Yang as well as the families of the other victims all gave me grateful looks and nods of approval; I nodded back.

“Ms. Cunningham, this is your opportunity to address the court and your victims. Is there anything you would like to say?”

          Carrie thought about it for a few seconds, than hopped up to her feet. She first looked at the judge then turned around and looked around the room until her eyes landed on me. She frowned. She looked back at the judge and said “Your honor, is it so wrong to love someone and go after him when you believe he’s interested in you? Is that a crime? Hospitals are for helping people, yes—but hey . . . it’s life, right? Shit happens! I don’t belong in hell. I belong alive and well and free. And all those people who called me names should all go to hell themselves. They’re pathetic! I know right from wrong and I know that I am RIGHT!”

With that she sat down in a huff and crossed her arms defiantly over her chest as we all looked her with utter dismay. She was never going to admit it. If family members came to seek an apology from her, they were sorely disappointed. She wasn’t giving it up.

Now it was time for the judge to speak. It seemed to me that he had made up his mind regarding the sentencing. A nod from Edward and Rogue meant my thinking was correct. All right, well this was it. All or nothing! Two choices were on the table; life without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I have heard everything I had to hear today and then some. Ms. Cunningham will you please rise?” She and her defense stood up. She still had her arms crossed.

“Ms. Cunningham, the brutality of your crimes is unthinkable. Your lack of remorse, compassion, or caring makes me believe that you are a truly sad and soulless creature. You don’t have any concept on what compassion even is. If you are anything; it’s a total and complete psychopath. Therefore, my decision is thus. Ms. Cunningham, I sentence you to death by lethal injection. While you are waiting that date, you will be reprimanded to the New Hampshire State Prison for Woman until the date of your execution, which will be decided upon at a later time. Your crimes leave me no choice and sparing your life is out of the question. You didn’t give your victims a chance at life; why should I give you that chance now? You will not have any further contact with any members of the staff at the hospital, especially Dr. Cullen and his family; there will be a permanent restraining order placed against you on behalf of his family until the date of your execution. Your crimes are despicable and so are you. That is my decision. Thank you everyone for your hard work and effort. Court is adjourned!”

          As soon as he said that everyone started cheering and hugging. We did it! We won the whole entire thing. And got the death penalty. As we were all cheering and talking excitedly, Carrie was being handcuffed to be led away but as usual she was determined to have the last word.

“So you think you are going to kill me? Yeah, right! I’m invincible, you hear me? Invincible!”

The guards proceeded to shackle her completely so she wouldn’t be able to move as she continued to holler. Then out of nowhere, Rogue was right in front of her. She didn’t even care if anyone saw her lightning speed approach. Rogue got right into her face as Carrie’s eyes went wide.

“Shut up, you crazy bitch. It’s over; you lost! It’ll be nice to see them stick that needle into your arm as you gasp for your absolute last breath of air. Gasp, gasp, gasp. And then down to hell you go! Make sure to give the devil a great big kiss; he’s right up your alley!”

          Rogue whispered all of that into her ear through clenched teeth, and in that horrifyingly deep voice of hers that she only uses when the shit hits the fan. It gives even vampires’ goosebumps. So no one really heard what she said other than Carrie and all of the immortals in the room. The officers didn’t care, they just wanted to throw her in her cell until she was transported to the prison, lock the door, and throw away the key until her execution date. Besides, they all knew Rogue and knew that if she was up in someone’s ear, whatever she had to say wasn’t pleasant anyways.

          After Rogue said what she said, she turned and walked away without looking back. Carrie was standing there in shocked silence with her mouth gaping open as the officers had to push her to get her to move. We all walked out of the courtroom and met everyone, and I mean everyone outside of the court house on the steps where there was a ton of media that the FBI quickly moved aside so family members could quickly get to their cars. They all left very quickly, but not before coming up to me and thanking me personally for all I said and had done for them. Some even hugged me, like Mr. Yang’s daughter for example. I knew her father would be released from the hospital in the next week or so, so that was wonderful news. I would check up on him a few times before then.

          Charlotte was standing off to the side with Ben and her parents. When most of everyone left, except my family and the Watchers, they came over to me. Charlotte and I hugged. We didn’t need to say anything. But then Charlotte turned to Alice, who was standing off to the side and speaking softly with Rose.

“Hey, Alice?”

Alice immediately focused her attention on Charlotte and walked over. “Yes, Charlotte?” Alice, of course, knew exactly what Charlotte was going to ask and was trying very hard to keep still. We all had to hold back our laughter.

“Now I know this is probably too soon, and too soon for me as well, but I was wondering, could you please help me plan my wedding to Ben here? Dr. Cullen has said on multiple occasions how amazing you are at those kinds of things. I mean, I’m not ready yet to plan it but when I am . . . and you know, fully recovered, I can’t afford a wedding planner. They are so very expensive,” Charlotte said.

“Really? You want me to plan your wedding? I would absolutely love to! Just tell me when you’re ready and we can sit down at a Starbucks or something and go over what you guys want, or you can come to our house. It’s totally up to you! And don’t worry about the price, I don’t charge a dime for my extraordinary planning skills.” Everyone laughed at that one. Looked like our little pixie had another wedding lined up to plan. At least she’ll keep busy.

          As we all hugged and before we dispersed, we had invited Charlotte, Ben, and her parents to our house for dinner the following evening, which they graciously accepted. Bella and Leah winked at each other as they were going to help Esme cook. Finally, this large dark cloud had begun to lift off of all of us. Even though there will be appeals on behalf of Carrie’s attorneys to postpone the death penalty. We hope sooner or later it’ll get done.

This God willing that would be the last time we would ever see or hear of Carrie Cunningham!

Good riddance!

          Looking back to my testimony, I thought that I handled myself pretty well all things considered. Ashley, though……well……not so much. To wig out to such an extreme where she had to literally be carried out of the court room was a spectacle to be seen for sure. After I testified and left the court room that day, I had in fact gotten a whole bottle of wine and went to sit with my family on the porch as we discussed what happened. I called Bill and Betsy and told them what happened. To say they were stunned would probably be the understatement of the month. But they too were glad that she went wacko on me instead of on Charlotte when she testified. At least poor Charlotte would get some form a reprieve without having to look Ashley in the eye.

          Even though I said I wouldn’t be returning to the courtroom again until the closing arguments and so forth; all of us from the hospital went back to be there for Charlotte when she testified. Her parents had flown in for that part of the trial and her fiancé Ben was also there. She was very glad she had such a huge support system. Her testimony was so compelling and emotional that it brought several jurors to tears. Nothing the defense attorney said or asked could discredit her testimony. He gave up after about the 3^rd question in. When Charlotte was dismissed from the witness stand, she walked with her head held high right out of the courtroom followed by pretty much everyone who had come to support her.

          Finally, on a Thursday after both the state and defense had rested their cases; just as the DA, Mr. Allen, had predicted the defense only brought in doctors to show that Ashley was crazy but no actual family members or friends or colleagues; it was time for closing arguments. The defense went first. We were all there; Ashley wasn’t. She wouldn’t be allowed back in the courtroom until the verdict was read. And there was still the matter of jury deliberations. No one ever knew how long that would take; it could be anywhere from one hour to multiple days and even weeks sometimes. Considering there was a mountain of evidence to review, we had a feeling it would be a while before they would return. They were going to be as thorough as possible.

          On the day of closing arguments, most of us piled into the courtroom to hear what both sides had to say. Rogue as mentioned previously, had sat throughout the whole entire trial. She was up to speed with everything both sides were doing. She also with her mind reading abilities was able to determine what the defense was going to say. She just shook her head and smiled. So as everyone sat down after the judge entered, he motioned to the defense to do his thing. Mr. Woods got up from his chair but continued to stay at his desk as he began to speak.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, good morning. Today we have here a life we are trying to say. I am not saying my client isn’t guilty because she is. She even admitted that she is on multiple different occasions but she is not mentally stable to be found guilty. Every crime she committed, she did because of the different chemical imbalances in her brain. The doctors we’ve brought before you had classified Ms. Cunningham as a paranoid schizophrenic with borderline personality disorder who also has a severe case of Munchausen by proxy or MBP. My client didn’t and doesn’t have enough mental stability to understand that her actions have consequences. She doesn’t understand that by harming someone, you’re doing something wrong. To her it seems right because that’s how her mind functions. Ms. Cunningham does not deserve to be put to death for something she was never diagnosed properly with nor had treatment for. Ms. Cunningham needs to be in a facility where she can receive the proper treatment for her multiple illnesses.”

          At this point he was standing before the jury speaking passionately and waving his arms dramatically. He then walked over to his desk and took a sip of water before continuing.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please find it in your hearts to see that my client is a victim too. She isn’t the monster the prosecution wants you to believe; she’s just a very sick person. And a sick person cannot and should not be put to death; it is inhumane. Please find her not guilty by reason of insanity. Thank you.”

           The defense having made his point, went and sat down as the judge turned toward the DA, who hesitated only slightly to look over any last minute notes and then stood up and walked up to where the jury was sitting and looked straight at them.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. We are gathered for a very important reason here and that is to remember who the real victims were. The defense will want you to believe that his client is a victim when in reality she is a criminal with a rap sheet a mile long. His client heartlessly and cold-bloodedly murdered 9 people grand total in two states. For what? Attention or because she could get away with it? The defense would also have you believe that all her multiple illnesses caused Ms. Cunningham to become violent and that she didn’t know what she was doing. Yet she traveled through multiple states with multiple aliases that she stole from unsuspecting people. The only thing Ms. Cunningham is….is….ironically cunning. Just like her last name suggests. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, there are millions of people in America today that suffer from similar psychiatric illnesses that go untreated for years but live as law abiding citizens. What makes Ms. Cunningham so special? Absolutely nothing.”

He paused briefly so that his words would sink in, and then continued.

“She poisoned people, she tried to kill people, and succeeded on several occasions, she stalked someone, and she brutally attacked another person. She has held people at gunpoint in order for them to give her recommendations so she could get jobs. That’s not normal but it doesn’t make her insane either. An insane person wouldn’t be so calculating, going from state to state. Ms. Cunningham only became ‘insane’ when it came to something she didn’t like to hear like Dr. Cullen’s testimony or when things went on in the hospital as you heard from previous people’s testimonies. Have America’s worst serial killers been classified as insane? Look at Ted Bundy, Aileen Wuornos, Gary Ridgeway, and Jeffrey Dahmer! What makes them any different from Ms. Cunningham. Ms. Cunningham killed more people than Aileen Wuornos, who was executed in Florida. There is absolutely nothing mentally wrong with Ms. Cunningham except a really bad acting job. Think of the victims like Dr. Cullen and his family, the nurses and staff at the hospital, the patients who she killed or who survived but will never be the same again, like Charlotte Clark who lost more than half of her blood volume after being stabbed repeatedly by Ms. Cunningham.  Think about that when you are sitting in deliberation. This woman said……no screamed it herself that she will kill as many people as she needs to; not even wants to but needs to. Ladies and gentlemen, please help these victims and their families find closure and find Ms. Cunningham guilty on all counts especially capital murder. Thank you.”

          With that, the jury filed out of the court. It was a very intense morning. The proceedings lasted 2 hours and it was only noon when we all made our way out of the court house. It was now up to the jury. We had done every single thing we could. Now all anyone could do was hope and pray. My family and the Watchers dispersed to our respective homes. I needed to hunt so when I mentioned that, I realized my whole family needed to go so we all went while Nessie stayed with the wolves. No one said a word as we picked off lions, bears, deer, and any other juicy animal that crossed our path.

          There wasn’t anything to say. We all just prayed that the jury would see the light and convict her. Of course then we would have to go through the sentencing phase which was up to judge to decide whether that would be on the same day as the verdict or on a different day. It was also mean that those of us who want, can give victim impact statements. I know Charlotte and Ben both will as will Betsy, Melanie, and the 4 other nurses she poisoned. Mr. Yang still being in the hospital is sending his daughter to do it for him. I met her; she’s a sweet girl who was just accepted into Harvard Law School. She and Rogue had a lot to talk about on the subject. She wants to go into medical malpractice and that’s really no surprise all things considered.

After thinking about it very carefully and consulting with my family and Rogue who was sort of our in house counsel if you will, I decided that I would give one too. After all the havoc Ashley created in my life and the lives of my family, she deserved for me to give her a piece of my mind!

Just two days after deciding this, we got the call; jury was back with a verdict! It took them 3.5 days to decide on Ashley’s fate. So Friday as it were, we were all gathered in the courtroom, pretty much squished in because of family and relatives of victims. Rogue and Agent Kramer were sitting directly behind the DA in case Ashley would try something again. She was actually in court that day. She was wearing a lighter blue floral dress, with beige flats and a beige shawl over her shoulders. She had a dark blue brooch in her hair. You’d think she was some southern belle waiting to be called for tea or something (pictures of the courtroom and Ashley’s clothes are below).

After the judge called order, we watched as the jury filed in. Then once they all sat down, the judge looked at the foreman of the jury and said:

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict?”

“We have your honor.” The foreman said.

“Bailiff please bring me the paper.” The bailiff did and the judge looked over it, frowned and nodded. He then returned the paper to the bailiff to return to the foreman.

“Mr. Foreman, will you please read out the verdict for the court.”

          We all held our breath as the foreman put his glasses on, took the paper and took a deep breath.

“We the jury find the defendant Ms. Carrie Cunningham………”

To be continued………