No. She wasn’t okay. And she remained not okay for the next two hours as the depositions were read. The crime was described to everyone by the fire marshal. The judge asked questions, on and on, repetitive and tiresome. She willed it to be over.
Her gaze fell on the rail dividing the benches from the front. She wondered if Stephen had been in a courtroom since that day he’d told her about. Even after everything, her heart hurt for him.
The ADA spoke to the judge, read the facts aloud. Barrels of fire accelerant had been found in the woods near Stephen’s house, which had led to his original questioning, but it wasn’t holding up. No fingerprints, no record of sale, and even the fire chief admitted they couldn’t be certain it was the exact accelerant used.
Didn’t mean he was innocent. A lot of people, including her brothers, were convinced that Trace Development’s somewhat devious buying scheme made him suspect.
Then she was called.
Nick stood to let her out. He gave her hand a last squeeze. “Don’t look at him.”
With her pulse thundering in her ears, she walked slowly to the front of the room. She wiped her damp palms on her skirt, then swore to tell the whole truth.
The courtroom was daunting from this position. All eyes on her, bracing for whatever question they threw at her. Way worse than it looked on TV. It took everything she had not to look at Stephen. He was her support. He was the one who made her feel strong. It killed her not to reach for it now.
The slightest turn of her head, a tiny shift of her eyes would lead them to his. But no matter how much she avoided him, she still felt his burning gaze. So hot she was sweating. For two weeks all she could see when she thought of him was his face when she’d asked for the truth. His silence and the answer in his eyes couldn’t have been more clear.
Once again she’d misjudged, only this time it hadn’t been her bones crushed, but her heart.
The assistant district attorney came first. Zach had explained that because the city had taken legal ownership of the land before the fire, they needed to pin this arson on someone and get out of the shit storm before they got dirtied.
And the media, fickle as a horny rabbit, was clawing for a story. Love gone wrong, or big government burning out a citizen over a land dispute. They’d swing whichever way proved juiciest.
The ADA was a tallish woman, mid-forties. Her black skirt and jacket were offset by a Christmas-red blouse. She smiled at Hannah, asked if she was comfortable, and the questions started, easy at first. What did she do, how long had she been there. Though she was careful not to lead Hannah into saying anything that might shine a sympathetic spotlight.
“When did you first learn that Trace Development had purchased the property?”
“About two weeks ago.” She sat perfectly still on the edge of the hard seat, held her hands tightly together. The urge to touch her hair was strong. She focused on her brothers, all suited up and serious. Took comfort from Nick’s nod, shoring her up, silently telling her she could do this.
“And who told you?”
“Dave Pietro, Stephen’s…um, Mr. McKinney’s partner.”
“That man?” She pointed to where Dave sat on the other side of Camila.
“Yes.”
“And what did he tell you?”
“Just that it had been sold, and his company had bought it.”
“Were you surprised?”
“Yes.” Surprised. Shocked. Heartbroken.
“Did he say anything else to you?”
“He said…” It was one thing to be gullible, another to sit and tell a roomful of people. She took a breath, and another. “He said he was surprised I didn’t know. That he was surprised Stephen hadn’t told me himself. But then he laughed and said,”—she swallowed and looked down—“he said he really wasn’t, because Stephen always got what he wanted. That no matter what, he didn’t lose.”
There was a muttered “son of a bitch” from across the room. Stephen’s voice. But Hannah kept her eyes trained on the woman in front of her.
“That’s all the questions I have, Your Honor.”
Next came Stephen’s attorney, Andrew Stark. Tough. Relentless. She’d been warned his goal would be to throw a dark enough shadow over her that by the end of it the judge would have no choice but to throw out the case against Stephen.
She’d thought she was prepared.
“When did you meet Stephen McKinney?”
“About two months ago.”
“About the same time you learned that the property on which you currently reside and work was being absorbed by the city?”
“I guess.”
“Yes or no?”
She looked down at her fingers, one hand gripping the other, and tried to relax. “Yes.”
“And how long after you met before you began dating Mr. McKinney?”
“Um…we went to dinner that night.”
“That same night you met?” The lawyer glanced up at the judge, then back to her. “Pretty fast for someone who up to that point had had little contact with men?”
Her already pounding heart seemed to beat all over the place now. A painful and irregular bumping in her chest.