Chapter 8 - The Trial of Simon ColeSimon’s trial began eleven months later.
By then eighty-seven families had joined civil claims.
The number grew weekly.
Vanessa pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy charges.
She cooperated.
Marcus Hale cooperated too.
Neither escaped consequences.
Nathan testified for three days.
Simon’s defense tried to destroy him.
—You hate your uncle.
Nathan answered:
—Sometimes.
—You lost your position because of these allegations.
—Yes.
—You gave away family assets.
—I returned property I believed was obtained improperly.
—You are trying to cleanse your reputation.
Nathan looked at the jury.
—My reputation does not change signatures.
The answer became the headline.
Rosa testified.
She admitted her silence.
The defense attacked.
—You kept secrets for thirty years.
—Yes.
—You lied to Nathan.
—Yes.
—Why should anyone trust you now?
Rosa looked at Nathan.
—They shouldn’t trust me because I became brave late.
She faced the jury.
—They should trust the documents I preserved while I was afraid.
Lily testified about Simon’s offer.
Ten million dollars for her signature.
Vanessa testified last.
Simon would not look at her.
She described how he recruited her.
How he investigated her father.
How he used debts.
How he introduced her to Nathan intentionally.
—Did you love Nathan? the prosecutor asked.
Vanessa cried.
—Yes.
—Then why betray him?
She remained quiet for a long time.
—Because I kept telling myself I would stop after one more thing.
Nathan lowered his eyes.
That sentence sounded like the entire case.
One more signature.
One more secret.
One more family protected.
One more victim ignored.
Until decades passed.
The jury convicted Simon on most major counts.
He received a lengthy federal sentence.
At sentencing he refused responsibility.
—Everything I did preserved what my brother built.
Nathan listened.
Then realized Simon would probably never understand.
That no longer mattered.
Justice did not require the guilty person to agree with the verdict.
Civil settlements followed.
Cole Global created a compensation fund under court oversight.
Nathan used much of his personal wealth to add to it.
The company eventually offered him his CEO position back.
He declined.
Instead he accepted a temporary board role overseeing restitution.
Lily mocked him.
—Still incapable of having a normal job.
—Apparently.
Marcus Greene received legal control of Cole House through a settlement recognizing the fraudulent original acquisition.
Then he did something Nathan did not expect.
He refused to live there.
—What?
Marcus stood in the great hall.
—This house is too big.
Lily laughed.
—I said exactly that.
Marcus continued:
—I don’t want my family’s victory to be that we finally get to become the people who live behind these gates.
Nathan asked:
—What do you want?
Marcus looked around.
—Housing.
The plan took a year.
Cole House became the Greene Center for Housing Justice.
The west wing became legal offices.
The guest suites became temporary housing for elderly people facing fraudulent property transfers.
The ballroom became a public community space.
Samuel Greene’s original architectural drawings were displayed near the entrance.
Not Nathan’s family portraits.
Some remained.
But beside explanations.
History without mythology.
Nathan moved out.
He bought a three-bedroom apartment in Manhattan.
Lily visited.
She walked through the living room.
—Only three bedrooms?
—Very funny.
—How are you surviving?
—Barely.
Rosa moved into a small cottage near the Greene Center.
She finally retired.
Mostly.
She still arrived every morning to criticize the coffee.
Nathan visited his mother’s grave monthly.
Sometimes Lily came.
Sometimes neither spoke.
One afternoon Lily asked:
—Do you miss the house?
Nathan thought.
—Yes.
—Do you regret giving it back?
—No.
May you like
Both feelings existed.
He was learning that was allowed.
