Seven Days to Die by Michelle Kidd

Author:Michelle Kidd [KIDD, MICHELLE]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-01-18T18:30:00+00:00

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I am now going to sum up the facts of the case and then direct you on some matters of law.” His Honour Judge Geoffrey Campbell-Smythe paused and let his heavy-lidded eyes roam across each and every member of the twelve-strong jury sitting to attention at the side of courtroom number one.

Sitting high up upon the bench, his bright red robes stood out against the dark mahogany wood panelling of the courtroom walls. As he shifted in his seat to pick up his legal notepad, the bench creaked beneath his weight.

“I want to start with the facts as set out by the prosecution in this case . . .”

Anthony Saunders stifled a yawn. Six weeks this trial had lasted and at last they were on the home stretch. He glanced at the old-fashioned clock mounted on the wall behind His Honour, and calculated how long the summing up might take. With any luck, they could be out within the hour. Hopefully less than that if the old man hurried up. But His Honour Judge Geoffrey Campbell-Smythe was not renowned for being speedy.

He felt the trial had gone well. His client stood a reasonable chance of a not-guilty verdict. Whether he deserved one was an entirely different matter, and not one that troubled Anthony Saunders. He hadn’t become such a sought-after defence solicitor by troubling himself with such minor details. The law wasn’t about the truth — and it wasn’t about justice, either.

It was about who could play the best game on the day.

And Anthony Saunders was backing his team.

Yes, there was circumstantial evidence that could possibly place his client at the scene, and yes, he didn’t really have an alibi. And, unbeknown to the jury at this present time, due to the quirkiness of the English legal system, he had a list of convictions as long as his tattooed arm. But did that make him guilty in this game called the law?

Not if you played the game well enough.

Collecting up a pile of loose papers, Anthony Saunders quietly slipped them inside his laptop bag, not taking his eyes off His Honour Judge Geoffrey Campbell-Smythe for one second. The old man was moving on to the defence facts now.

Not that there were many of those to trouble the jury.

With nothing left to tidy away that wouldn’t draw the disapproving scowl of the judge, Saunders picked up his pencil and began outlining a sketch on a spare page in his legal pad. Anything to pass the time. He glanced up at the wall clock, wondering if time was actually going backwards instead of forwards.

And there were still the judge’s directions on points of law to go.

His pencil made little or no sound on the blank white paper, certainly nothing that could drown out His Honour's monotonous tones. As he sketched, he kept an ear open to gauge the progress the judge was making to bring the case to a close.

Moving onto points of law now.

Anthony Saunders groaned inwardly.

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