Page 2 of Sweet Pea

I understood it all too well.

* * *

Callie

“Not guilty.”

After she read the verdict on the final count, the foreperson folded the verdict sheet and looked at Judge Reynolds who sat silently. If this had been any other courtroom, pandemonium would have surely broken out by now, but the judge had already made it perfectly clear that he would not tolerate any outbursts in his courtroom. He’d proven that twice on the first day of trial by removing two family members and a reporter for what he called inappropriate behavior.

“It is with great regret that I must declare this trial concluded. Mr. Knight, you are free to go,” Judge Reynolds said, and hastily banged his gavel before quickly exiting through the side door that led to his chambers.

I’d worked in his courtroom enough times to know when he was unhappy, but I’m not sure I’d ever seen him stunned before. Not that I could blame him. This was, by far, the biggest miscarriage of justice I’d ever witnessed, let alone been a part of. I turned and made eye contact with my client, Elsie, and her mother, Rita. I tried to mouth the words, “I’m sorry,” but my face betrayed me, choosing instead to convulse as I burst into tears.

“Callie? Are you okay?” Rob asked.

I heard him clearly, but responded with, “What?” I didn’t know what else to say at that moment. I suppose I could have asked, “What the hell just happened?” or better yet, screamed, “What the actual fuck?” at the top of my lungs. Better still, I should have grabbed the foreperson and shook her silly. How could the jury have possibly come back with not guilty on all charges? I’ll admit that my confidence wasn’t at an all-time-high when it came to the third count, but not guilty? I knew it was a mistake to rush to trial, and I sure as hell would have handled jury selection entirely differently if I had been the lead prosecutor.

“Let’s get out of here,” Rob said and gently guided me through the sea of audience members and media. Rob Glass and I had both started at the DA’s office around the same time and had worked together closely ever since. We made an excellent team and had assisted each other on several successful cases. This was not only our first loss, but by far, our most important and personal case.

“We have to talk to the Millers,” I said in a panic.

“We will, Callie. Let’s get you some air first,” Rob said.

This case had consumed our lives for the past sixteen months, all leading up to a trial we thought would be a slam dunk. And it was. Our team had worked their fingers to the bone and our witness testimonies were as compelling as they come.

Our witnesses.

I began to openly sob as that thought washed over me. Our witnesses were a family who’d been ripped to shreds by a monster. A monster that was now free to prowl their neighborhoods again despite their bravery on the stand. I could not believe that we, the legal system and me personally, had let these children down.

Gregg Sterling, the lead prosecutor and the DA’s golden boy, met Rob and me as we passed. “I’m so sorry. I know you both put a lot of hours into this case. This was a tough loss for all of us.”

“Screw us!” I snapped. “This was a loss for Elsie. Not to mention, the children like her who haven’t come forward yet. Or worse, the ones he’s free to target now.” I’d always been able to look past the fact that I didn’t like Gregg on a personal level, but now that he’d blown the trial, I was outright hostile. “He’s going to do this again, Gregg.”

“Even though Knight walked, what kind of parent would let their kids near him now?” Gregg asked, flippantly.

“The kind that just voted him not guilty, Gregg. Were you asleep while the verdict was read?”

“Careful, Ms. Ames,” Gregg warned.

“The truth is, you’re so focused on becoming the next DA, you rushed through jury selection. I warned you about at least four of those jurors and you ignored me each time,” I replied.

“What did you just say to me?”

“Oh, you heard me,” I snapped. “Look at what just happened. The jury heard from the kids themselves and still let Knight walk. There are a lot of people out in the world who trust the church more than they trust their own eyes, ears, and guts. You overestimated your ability to select a jury and underestimated Knight’s ability to work them.”

“So, this was my fault?” Gregg asked.

“Getting justice for Elsie was our responsibility. The fact that you don’t feel like a failure right now speaks volumes, Gregg. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to go try and help comfort the families if I can.”

Rob and I continued our push through the crush of people into the hallway, which was now as crowded as the courtroom itself. Using our key cards, we gained access to the secured rear exit and made our way outside. I headed for the courthouse steps, but Rob stopped me.

“You sure you want to head right back into all that chaos? Maybe you should take a beat.”

“I can’t, Rob. I need to talk to the Millers. I need to explain to them how sorry I am that we failed.”

“You did everything you could have, Callie. This wasn’t your failure.”

“Come on,” I said, ignoring his words. I knew he was only trying to make me feel better, but there was no way in hell I wasn’t going to take this personally. The initial shock of the loss already transitioning to rage within the pit of my stomach. A rage that would only be quelled by justice. Although, right now I’d take Knight’s blood as a substitute.

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