The Final Seduction by Allison Cassatta

Author:Allison Cassatta [Cassatta, Allison]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf

20

JANSEN SAT in the first row behind the defense table, wringing his hands and tapping his foot fast enough to generate some major kinetic energy. Hell, his whole body shook with the movement. He was probably vibrating the whole wooden bench beneath his ass. Rebecca Chambers sat up front with Dorian. Angelo and Lister sat on either side of Jansen, towering over him.

“Dorian Grant,” the judge’s loud voice boomed through the quiet courtroom. It tugged Jansen’s already knotted stomach up into his throat. In unison, his and his husband’s heads darted straight up. “Please stand.”

Dorian popped up from his seat, and Jansen was about to pull a lost-puppy move and follow, but Angelo arm-barred him across the chest. “Relax, kid,” the behemoth whispered from the corner of his mouth.

Relax? You’re kidding, right?

“Your honor, in light of new evidence,” the prosecutor drawled in a thick, swampy accent. The guy was about a hundred pounds too heavy for his height. His solid white hair and wrinkles meant he was probably on the upper side of fifty… or he’d lived a very rough life. He even wheezed a little when he spoke. “The state of Louisiana is willin’ to allow Mr. Grant bail until the hearin’, if your honor would so oblige.”

“Mr. Wheeler, now”—the judge sat back, crossing his arms and arching his brow—“didn’t ya stand in this here courtroom not six months ago and tell me Dorian Grant was a flight risk?”

“Well, I—”

“Did ya not say it would be easy for a man with his means to flee the country to avoid bein’ incarcerated for murder?”

“I—”

Jansen’s stomach pushed its way up to his tonsils. All the food he’d eaten that morning threatened to paint the tiled floor beneath his rapidly pounding foot.

“Now you want me to give him bail?”

“As I said, your honor—”

“Shut it, Wheeler. This is the second time this month your office has reneged and come back for a new rulin’. I’m gettin’ damn tired of it.” The judge looked down over his glasses, licked his thick thumb, then flipped back a few pages. His dark, baggy eyes darted over the black and white. “A million dollars, huh? Ya think he can afford to get the hell outta Dodge, but can’t afford a million dollar bond?”

“I—”

The gavel pounded and it was like a jolt to Jansen’s already fragile nerves. He jumped in his seat, heart rushing a little too long, then gradually slowing to a dull thud. His temples started to pound as adrenaline surged and receded. He exhaled a breath he hadn’t been aware of holding.

“In the case of the State of Louisiana versus Dorian Grant, I hereby grant bail in the amount of one million dollars. Mr. Grant, you will remain within the boundaries of the state of Louisiana and in the custody of the indemnitor until you are to return to this court for your hearin’. Understood?”

“Yes, sir, your honor,” Dorian said, folding his hands behind his back.

“Bail is set for one million dollars,” the judge said, striking the gavel again.

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