Three months after the accident, the investigation reached a turning point.

Investigators recovered messages showing that Dominic had authorized surveillance of Hannah after she began collecting financial records.

A witness described an attempt to frighten her into surrendering a storage device.

The allegations about the precise cause of her fall remained disputed, but the evidence connected the surveillance operation to her movements that night.

The criminal cases moved slowly.

There were motions, hearings and disagreements over what could be introduced.

I sat through proceedings as a witness when required, answering questions about invoices I had signed and decisions I had once dismissed as routine.