**Federal Courthouse, Chicago – Eight Weeks Later**
The courtroom was silent except for the distant clicks of reporters' keyboards and the hum of camera shutters. Marble pillars loomed like judges of their own.
Sophie took the stand.
“I was twenty-four when the Bureau assigned me to Operation Violet," she said, voice calm but firm. “My mission was to infiltrate Arthur Morgan's criminal empire. I was trained to lie, to manipulate… but no one trained me to fall in love."
Gasps rippled through the gallery.
She met Arthur's eyes—unshackled, seated beside his legal team.
“We weren't perfect," she continued. “We were broken, both of us. But we were never criminals together. We were a chance at something better."
---
**Later that day – Defense testimony**
Arthur adjusted the microphone,
