Page 24 of The 1 Lawyer

You too. Good luck with law school.

I was thinking you’d be a GREAT resource for my project in Trial Practice class! Any chance we could talk over coffee? Or lunch? I know you’re super-busy!!!

Let me check my calendar.

Exhibit thirty-nine was light, friendly. With the possible exception of the winky-face emoji from Caro, nothing pointed to the beginnings of an intimate relationship. Still, a person might conclude that my client was trying to send a subtle message.

Fast-forward about six weeks to the next authenticated screenshot.

Good morning, Doc! I had a sexy dream last night… Guess who was in it? Hint: U.

I hope you rested well.

Someone at the courthouse tried to flirt with me today. He asked me out… RU jealous???

I’ll have to tell you in person. Tonight?

The prosecution threw up another series of messages from February. As the jurors read the exhibit, I saw one young woman look at Iris with an uneasy expression. Presumably, at 6:53 p.m. on a Thursday, Caro would have been at home with his wife.

Iris Caro was seated behind us in the courtroom, her eyes averted from the projector screen.

Bored right now. Thinking naughty thoughts about U. Want to hear?

Sure.

Lol! U know wut? I’m going to shut the door and take off my panties & pretend ur here with me. What does that do to you?

And we were only through exhibit forty-one. Jesus.

CHAPTER 19

GORDON-JAMES REQUESTED that Detective Stokes read the texts aloud. He read them soberly, without inflection.

I glanced over at my client. If he could sit like a statue at the sight of his lover’s corpse, he should have had the strength to withstand the sight of an eggplant emoji. But hearing those texts read on the witness stand finally made him crack. He shifted in his chair, fumbled in his pocket, pulled out a monogrammed handkerchief, and wiped sweat from his forehead and upper lip.

Caro’s discomfort was obvious to some of the jurors. The young woman who had checked out Caro’s wife now gave our defense table the side-eye. And a middle-aged man frowned at Caro, seemingly in judgment.

While Caro sweated, Gordon-James was going for maximum impact. The date on the screenshot flipped to March. “For the benefit of the jury, Detective Stokes, what is the eggplant emoji generally believed to represent?”

I was halfway out of my seat, primed to object on the grounds of speculation, when a cry from the spectators’ section stopped me.

“That’s enough!” Benjamin Gates was on his feet, struggling to make his way to the center aisle. He shook his finger at the DA. “Henry, no! I told you—you can’t do that to her!” His anguish was plain as he pointed to the screen on the wall. “Take it down now. Now!”

Gordon-James stepped away from his laptop and said, “Please, Benjamin. Go back to your seat.” He turned to the judge. “I request a recess, Your Honor.”

Walker rapped the gavel, but it didn’t stop Gates. The courtroom had no barrier to keep spectators back, and he continued down the aisle, now focusing on Daniel Caro.

I jumped out of my chair, but the bailiffs were already moving. Two uniformed deputies, Charlene and a stout, gray-haired man, restrained Gates by the arms while the judge addressed the jury.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we apologize for this interruption. We’ll have a brief recess.”

Gates spoke over the judge, calling out to the jury as he struggled with the bailiffs, “Why’s the judge apologizing about me? Caro’s a monster, a damned monster! My baby was an angel until he corrupted her and sucked her into adultery.”

Judge Walker beat his gavel on the bench. “Order! Bailiffs, escort the gentleman out.”

“What if it were your daughter?” Gates shouted to the jury as the deputies hauled him to the door. Charlene kept a tight grip on him, but the older bailiff must have loosened his hold, because before they reached the exit, Gates broke free so unexpectedly that Charlene stumbled to her knees.

Gates roared as he charged back down the aisle. “He soiled her, then he killed her! And now y’all think you can smear her name and her memory?”

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