The Associate
Page 23
I clapped my hands together, as if I was getting rid of something vile. “Simple as that. Two birds, one stone. Shelly no longer has the ability to undermine Argyros, and she no longer has the ability to produce a brown baby. A filthy brown baby who would soil the McMason bloodline.” My voice was dripping with sarcasm. I nodded my head. “The prosecutor would have you believe that my client killed Shelly. That he was the one with the most motive to have done it. But I submit to you that the only one who had motive to kill Shelly was her father. Andrew McMason. He had motive to kill Shelly, and he is the one who did it.”
“Therefore, you must acquit. There’s enough reasonable doubt to drive a truck through. Seriously. There’s not just reasonable doubt here, there’s no proof that my client did anything wrong. No proof at all, except for the weakest of circumstantial evidence. And you know the law. You cannot convict on conjecture and circumstantial evidence. You must have proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecutor didn’t supply that. It’s that simple. You must acquit.”
I bowed my head. “Thank you very much.”
At that, I sat down. The judge gave the jury instructions, and they filed out.
And the waiting began.
Although I had the feeling that we wouldn’t be waiting long.
Two hours later, I knew that my hunch was correct.
The jury was back with a verdict.
“Has the jury reached its verdict?” Judge Clarion asked.
“We have, your honor.”
“Would the defendant please rise?”
I stood up with Erik next to me, and Harper on the other side of Erik.
“In the case of State v. Erik Gregorian, on the charge of murder in the first degree, how does the jury find?”
“The jury finds the defendant not guilty, your honor,” the foreman said.
“Is this the unanimous verdict of the jury?”
“It is, your honor.”
Judge Clarion nodded his head. “The defendant is free to go. Thank you for your service. You perform perhaps the most valuable service in the judicial system. I understand your sacrifice, and I am humbled by it.”
At that, the jury started to file back out of the courtroom.
I glanced over at Ally, who was smiling at me. She came over.
“Looks like I’m buying,” she said.
“Let’s go out tomorrow. Tonight, I have to get my daughter out of the hospital.” I shook my head when I saw Ally’s concerned look. “Don’t ask.” I looked over at Harper, who was gathering her things. I put my hand on her arm. “Looks like you will live another day. And so will your girls.”
“I know. I didn’t think that Sargis would have made good on his threats after all. I don’t know. I think that he and I have a weird connection.” She shook her head rapidly. “And I somehow think that I haven’t heard the last of him. But I guess I’m happy that Erik was acquitted. It’s bittersweet, though, knowing that you got our scum client off of one charge, but you know that he’s just going to catch another case in a month or two. Maybe even sooner.”
“Ah, but them’s the breaks. We just deal with the case in front of us. That’s what we do. Anyhow, Ally and I are going to get a much-needed libation tomorrow evening. You want to come with?”
“And horn in on a first date?” Harper said with a snort. “I wouldn’t think of it, but thanks.”
“It’s not a date,” I protested. “We made a bet.”
Harper laughed. “Okay.” Then she whispered. “I’ve seen the way that girl looks at you. Talk about undressing you with her eyes.”
I shook my head. “I’ll see you tomorrow in the office.”
At that, Harper and I walked out of the courtroom.
We didn’t say a single word to Erik before we left.
Ally and I had a great time on our date, and we made plans to do it again. She was a lot of fun, and we spent the entire evening catching up on each other’s lives and having a lot of laughs. It had been so long since I laughed, I had forgotten what it felt like.
Things were coming together in my life. Finally.
And professionally, things were also going well.
I picked up a new murder case, and it was one that was going to be a doozy. The accused’s name was Gina DeGrazio, and she was accused of murdering her husband, Vittorio DeGrazio. Vittorio was a notorious mobster who was perennially standing accused of every crime in the book.
“I didn’t do it,” she said, in a voice that was heavily tinged in Brooklyn accent. “I was busy fucking his brother Enzo at the time that rat was choking on his own last stinking breaths.” She shook her head. “Vittorio deserved so much worse than what he got.”
“I’m sorry? What does that mean?”
“That means that bastard died good and easy. Not painful and hard like he should have died.”
“I take it you and Mr. DeGrazio were in love and in a good marriage,” I said sarcastically as I made notes.
She snorted. “What do you think? I would have burned him alive in a car if I had my way. That’s how you know that I didn’t do it.”
I had to smile.
This was going to be an interesting case.
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Also by Rachel Sinclair
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