Page 107 of Forgotten Prejudice

“But we did win juror number ten. He has a soft touch for animals,” I said, recalling the man’s face after we brought up the vegan arguments and how unlikely it was for Camilo, a firm animal lover, to kill the cat. Sadly, they’d also found a poor, lifeless kitten at the crime scene. As tragic as it was, it came in useful because proving Camilo’s deep affection toward animals was easy. All it took was showing the scar on his back, one he got after he refused to hurt some stray dog years ago, along with speaking about his choice to go vegan. It was amazing how the small details in life could suddenly turn significant.

“But after Jones brought up the DNA evidence, jurors three and one also seemed doubtful.” Jones was the leading prosecutor. An idiot son of a bitch.

Camilo’s DNA was all over the apartment, and while I did manage to explain it was normal, given the fact he and the victim were dating, not all jurors believed it. The crime scene being a penthouse owned by the man the victim allegedly had an affair with and left Camilo for wasn’t helpful.

“Agreed.” I moved numbers three and one to the left side, then took a step back to examine the wall.

“Well, shit,” my co-counsel hissed as we studied our stance. “We’ve got five against us, two with us, and five pending.”

“Don’t worry, Charlie.” I patted his back. “It will change soon enough. You also can’t forget that Christian took the stand today. That piece of shit sure knows how to sway a crowd.” I rolled my eyes, thinking back on today’s events.

“The cross-examination didn’t help much,” he pointed out.

I smiled.

“Well, I didn’t expect to get much out of it,” I admitted.

“How come? We know he’s an abusive father.”

Once again, I laughed.

“Allegedly, Charlie. He is an abusive father, allegedly.”

Eiv sighed. “Seven months in, and I couldn’t find one piece of evidence to prove that Christian W. Rogers is a piece of shit who hits his own son.”

It was definitely a shame because without solid evidence of the abuse, bringing it up was a high risk. All we had was hearsay testimony from Andrei, Camilo’s friend, which could be easily dismissed. Christian wasn’t some nobody but a beloved public figure. Putting him on the stand while accusing him of something so outrageous would be like shooting ourselves in the foot.

“We don’t need Christian when we have him,” I said, picking a photo from the table and pinning it to the wall.

“The mobster?” Eiv chuckled. “Why am I not surprised?”

Dion Bianchi, the rightful heir of the famous crime lord Francesco Bianchi, was one of my key witnesses. I’d bet my family’s wealth Dion knew who committed the murder but would never tell us. Not that it mattered. All I needed out of him was a reaction—one that proved he and Shay-Lee were never a couple. If I could manage to show Shay-Lee didn’t leave Camilo for Dion, then that would put a crack in the prosecutor’s argument.

“You got something up your sleeve, don’t you?” Eiv teased while placing his hand on my shoulder and leaning closer.

“Of course I do.” I winked at him, and he grinned. We’d been working together for quite some time, and I always found his cheeky attitude to be amusing. He’d been nothing but a punk when I first offered him a bit of cash in exchange for gathering information. Street cats always made the best PIs simply because they went unnoticed. Although, it was hard not to notice Eiv, with his beautiful looks. And yet, I couldn’t say he was my taste, as I wasn’t a fan of blonds.

“Soren,” Charlie said while cocking his head in the direction of the door.

Turning around, I was surprised to see Ashton standing there, a paper bag in his hands.

“What a nice surprise.” My lips quirked up at the beautiful sight. Unlike Eiv, Ash was a perfect example of my taste. From head to toe, there was nothing about him I’d change.

“Am I interrupting something?” He glanced at the wall behind me. “I can come back later—”

“Nonsense. Eiv and Charlie were just leaving.”

“Were we?” Charlie cluelessly asked before Eiv elbowed him.

“Yes, C, we are,” Eiv chuckled, already pushing Charlie to get moving.

When he passed Ash, Eiv stopped to give me a knowing look over his shoulder before walking out of the room.

“Who’s that?” Ashton asked as soon as we were alone.

“Eiv is our PI.”

“Oh.”