Chapter 15 - KATHERINE TESTIFIES
Katherine testified.
She wore navy.
No silk.
No jewelry beyond small earrings.
Defense began gently.
“Did you intend to injure Clara?”
“No.”
“What happened?”
“She was climbing on the chair.”
False.
“She spilled water.”
Water spilled after shove.
“I moved her away from the table.”
“With both hands?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“She had food on her dress.”
Then:
“Did you call her a parasite?”
Katherine closed her eyes.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I was angry.”
“Do you regret it?”
“Yes.”
Maybe.
Then cheek.
She admitted touching Clara earlier.
Claimed she “tapped” her cheek when Clara grabbed centerpiece.
Witnesses described sharper.
No severe injury.
Then prosecutor.
“Did Clara belong in the chair?”
Katherine frowned.
“What?”
“Was she allowed at the table?”
“Yes.”
“Was the chair yours personally?”
“No.”
“Then what did you mean by ‘my chair’?”
Silence.
“Family chair.”
“Did Clara have permission to sit?”
“Yes.”
“Then what exactly was she taking from you?”
Objection.
Argumentative.
Sustained.
Still landed.
Then:
“Did you know Clara had an education account funded partly through Briar House Foundation?”
Defense objected relevance.
Judge limited.
Criminal assault case not corporate trial.
Good.
We did not smuggle financial misconduct into child case merely to prejudice jury.
Prosecutor returned to facts.
Katherine admitted:
She was angry at Jocelyn.
She knew acquisition might involve Meridian.
She believed Jocelyn planned to remove her.
Did that affect her temper?
“Yes.”
There.
Not planned assault.
Context.
Then verdict.
Guilty on shove-related misdemeanor assault.
Guilty on separate unwanted-contact count for cheek? One count merged at sentencing.
No felony.
No jail necessarily.
Sentencing later.
I felt nothing.
Clara asked that evening:
“Is Aunt Katherine going to jail?”
“Maybe not.”
“Why?”
“Because different crimes have different consequences.”
“She pushed me.”
“Yes.”
“Bad.”
“Yes.”
“But not jail?”
“Maybe probation. Court decides.”
She thought.
“Can she come here?”
“No.”
That was the consequence Clara cared about.
Safety.
Then Meridian vs Hawthorne.
Special committee selected Meridian despite lower headline price because adjusted value after debt and closure costs favored Meridian long-term.
Hawthorne challenged.
Shareholder vote required.
Dad supported Meridian.
Mom abstained after counsel advice.
Katherine voted Hawthorne.
I abstained due role conflict.
That surprised people.
Why not vote my shares?
Because I was Meridian executive.
Conflict.
Independent trust handling part? My shares direct. I could vote but chose abstain voluntarily.
Dad said:
“You could swing it.”
“Exactly.”
Then shareholder vote passed Meridian by narrow margin.
Acquisition moving forward.
Katherine lost.
Again.
Then she sent one text through lawyer-approved channel:
You think you won. Wait until Dad’s trust votes.
Dad’s trust.
The estate structure.
Not current shares?
There was still a block we had not accounted for.
An employee-voting trust Dad controlled as adviser.
Six percent.
Its consent to acquisition was assumed.
But documents showed the adviser designation expired next month.
Successor?
Eleanor.
My mother.
May you like
And Mom had not told anyone.
The deal was not closed yet.
