He winked at her.
“Your Honor,” complained the defense team’s lead hired gun. “Mr. Reddick is famous for his courtroom shenanigans. Please try to rein him in today.”
“With all due respect, Counselor, I’ll thank you not to tell me how to run my courtroom. That said—” Judge Greer leveled a stern glare at Quentin “—let’s keep the theatrics to a minimum, shall we, Mr. Reddick?”
Quentin blinked, giving him a look of sham innocence. “Me?Theatrical?”
A ripple of laughter swept over the courtroom.
The judge jabbed a finger at Quentin. “You’ve been warned, Counselor.”
“Duly noted, Your Honor.” He glanced down at the row of expensive, gleaming Italian loafers marching down the opposition’s table.
“Nice shoes,” he complimented.
The lead defense attorney gave him a small, patronizing smile. “Whose?”
“All of them.”
The audience laughed. A few jurors looked mildly disgusted as they regarded the team of defense attorneys.
Bingo,Quentin thought. Since the trial began, he’d constantly looked for ways to reinforce the perception of the big, bad corporation armed with an arsenal of high-priced goons. The common man versus the greedy insurance giant. David versus Goliath.
Everyone loved an underdog. He was counting on this jury to be no exception.
He sauntered toward the witness stand, where Mary Tanner sat calmly waiting to be cross-examined. Spine erect, shoulders squared, hands folded primly in her lap, she was the picture of perfect composure. She’d been coached, and coached well.
So it was Quentin’s job to find the crack in her armor and exploit it to his advantage.
Not unlike what he intended to do with Lexi.
He’d spent years studying the law, just as he’d spent years getting to know Lexi. He knew the inner workings of the legal system, just as he understood the intricacies of Lexi’s mind.
So how do you conquer an adversary like fear? By facing it head-on and never backing down. By presenting incontrovertible evidence that the fear is unwarranted. Not unlike the way you’d deal with a child who’s afraid of the dark by showing her that there are no monsters hiding under her bed or lurking in the closet. By assuring her that she’s safe with you around, that she can rest easy because you’d never let any harm come to her.
And speaking of providing evidence…
“How often have you been promoted in the past year, Ms. Tanner?”
The woman raised a defiant chin. “Twice.”
“Twice? Congratulations.” Quentin sauntered over to the jury box and casually leaned on the banister. The twelve jurors met his lazy gaze with varying expressions of amusement and admiration. “Just out of curiosity, Ms. Tanner, how often had your predecessor been promoted in the seven years she worked for the company?”
“My predecessor?” she echoed blankly.
“Yes. The woman who occupied your position before you were hired. Would you happen to know how often she was promoted duringhertenure with the company?” Silence.
“You don’t know?” Quentin prompted.
“Twice,” came the low response.
“Twice,” he confirmed, deliberately looking each juror in the eye as he meandered down the length of the jury box. “So in the three years you’ve been with the company, Ms. Tanner, you’ve already been promoted more times than your predecessor was in seven years. Doesn’t that strike you as a bit too…convenient?”
“Objection, Your Honor. Counsel is leading the witness. And when didherjob become the issue here?”
Quentin heaved a bored sigh. “Goes to credibility, Your Honor. The main reason my client lost his job was that Ms. Tanner was trying to preserve her own. In other words, she did her employer's bidding at Mr. Henry's expense.”
Judge Greer nodded. “I’ll allow it.”
