The following morning, the Hardy family stared at the check…rather Mrs. Hardy and her sister-in-law stared at the check. Joe was staring at Taylor. Frank kept an eye on his brother. He didn't want the entire story about Taylor's father being said until he could figure out how to break it to her. Mrs. Hardy asked Taylor in a near calm voice, "Are you certain about this?"
"Very. The dowry was set up by my family and by rights, it's yours."
"But this…I mean…Taylor, I'm not sure what to say."
"I want you to have it. You've done so much for me and I wouldn't feel right not giving something to you."
"But…"
"Please." Mrs. Hardy saw the look in Taylor's eyes and agreed to place the money in an account. Later that night, Joe was unable to get over what Taylor had done. He was starting to wonder what she was up to.
In the Shaw family living room, Callie Shaw was in a state of shock. Her lawyer had informed her that because it would cause a "conflict of interest", both Callie and Mr. Gray would be allocating to ALL charges. "What does that mean?" Mr. Shaw held his wife's hand as they stared at the lawyer. With a calm shrug, the lawyer replied, "That means that instead of the death penalty, your daughter will get a sentence of life in prison with a possibility of parole in….40 years."
"Is there any other way?"
"Do you want to hear what Mr. Gray has to tell the court and see the evidence that there is to back up what he claims?" When the Shaws said nothing, the lawyer nodded once and said coldly, "That's what I thought. Now, all you have to do young lady is say 'Yes, your Honor' to every question that he asks you as far as your guilt. Once that's done, he'll tell you the same sentence that I just did and it will be all over." Callie nodded and turned to look at her parents. They stared at her sadly and then at each other.
"In breaking news, tomorrow morning, Callie Shaw will be in court, allocating to the charges against her. A relative of one of the victims had this to say; quote 'Seeing her locked up won't bring back my wife, but I will have a sense of justice that what happened to me won't happen to someone else.'"
Chet watched the news broadcast in a state of shock. Callie was on her way to prison. There was no way to prove that she was innocent if she was willing to make such a statement. With a sigh, he stood and went outside. Shadow jumped up and followed him. Iola walked away from where she had been hiding, a grin on her face.
In Paris, Fenton Hardy listened at the door to the cell that he was in. The guards were bragging about how the Gray Man had been arrested for 'being too greedy. Unable to figure out what they were talking about, Fenton began to pace the cell, hopeful that sooner or later, he would be able to escape.