Chapter Thirteen
Reggie followed Brooke into the jury room. She hadn’t expected the judge to pull them into chambers, but if Mitchell was lying to her attorney about Benton’s influence over her, it was probably for the best Leland had heard about it from someone who’d seen it all go down. Not that she’d believed it. Still, maybe there was a chance that, once they were alone, Leland would be able to convince her client she should take a deal and tell Flores how Benton had threatened her.
“What did you tell them?” Brooke asked.
Reggie kept her voice calm in response to the indignation in Brooke’s voice. “I told Lennox and Sarah what we heard in the garage. That I think Benton is the one behind the threats against you and, if that’s the case, they should beef up security on you and up surveillance on him.”
“Did it ever occur to you I wouldn’t want to be put on the spot like that? It’s pretty clear, Mitchell’s attorney thinks I’m a liar.”
“Leland? That’s just her personality. She’s going to do or say whatever it takes to get the best deal for her client.”
“It didn’t sound like she wanted a deal at all. It sounded like she was only interested in getting all the charges dropped.”
Reggie raised her hands in the air. “Why are you mad at me? What did you expect me to do?”
Brooke put her face in her hands. “I don’t know. And I know I’m not sounding rational. I just want this whole thing to be over and I’m telling you, a mistrial sounds like the best thing in the world right about now.”
Reggie looked around to make sure they were alone before stepping closer and pulling Brooke into her arms. “I get it. I really do, but if Benton is the one behind all of this, then I’m not sure a mistrial would end things. He’ll think you went to the judge even though he or whoever is threatening you on his behalf told you not to.”
“Did it ever occur to you he may think that anyway? How do you know Mitchell hasn’t already told him?”
“If she did, she’s a really good actress. Did she sound like she was mixed up in this when we heard them in the garage? She might be involved in some shady deals with him, but she sounded genuinely surprised when he brought up tampering with the jury.”
Brooke sighed. “You’re right.” She eased out of Reggie’s arms. “What do we do next?”
Reggie instantly missed the moment of intimacy and wanted to pull her back, but she resisted, knowing that with Brooke’s life spinning out of control, anything between them had to be on her terms. “We wait and trust the process.”
“Not an easy thing to do.”
Reggie smiled. “I know, but I’m right here if you need me. You don’t have to go through this alone.”
Brooke reached for her hand and threaded her fingers through hers. “Thank you.”
They stared at each other for a moment, while Reggie ran through a list of lines she wanted to say, but before she could settle on one, the sound of the door opening startled them both and Brooke stepped back, dropping her hand in the process.
Leroy poked his head in the door. “Judge says you can go. Asked me to remind you not to talk to anyone about what happened in chambers. Got it?”
“Got it,” Reggie answered for both of them. When he shut the door, she pulled out her keys. “Let me save you an Uber and drive you home?”
“Only if you let me make dinner. It’s going to be omelets this time, though. I haven’t exactly had time to grocery shop.”
Reggie hesitated for a moment knowing she should take advantage of the early release to study, but torn by the prospect of some alone time with Brooke.
“It’s okay if you have other plans,” Brooke said, her tone wistful.
“My other plans consist of flash cards for the PI exam.”
“I’m excellent with flash cards. Besides, Ben needs to study and so do I. We could have a study date.”
Reggie latched onto the word date and made her decision. “Well, I do love a good omelet.”
Brooke laughed. “I didn’t say it would be good.”
Reggie reached for her hand and led her to the door. She had no idea where a study date might lead, but she was up for just about anything that included her and Brooke—far away from the courthouse and this case.