Page 32 of Trial Run

“Want to go off campus for a few?” Reggie jangled her keys.

“Actually, I was thinking—” Brooke stopped as Mark joined them, an eager look on his face.

“Did someone say something about getting out of this place for lunch? I’ll buy if I can tag along.”

It wasn’t the scenario she’d envisioned, but including him would keep her from having to talk about anything related to the looming threat and she could use the break. Ignoring Reggie’s subtle head shake, she said, “That sounds great. Reggie, do you know a place close by?”

“Uh, sure.”

Clearly, Reggie had expected them to dine alone, but Brooke squelched the twinge of guilt and pressed on. “Great. Let’s go.”

A few minutes later, Reggie pulled her Jeep up to a diner down the street from the courthouse. One of the waitresses waved at Reggie with a friendly smile as they walked in the door.

“Back so soon?” she asked as she led them to a booth in the corner.

Reggie’s smile was more of a grimace. “Yep. We have to get back to the courthouse soon. Give us a second and we’ll be ready to order.” She shot a quick look at Mark who was staring at something outside and didn’t appear to notice.

Brooke slid into the booth, curious about the exchange and Reggie’s chilly demeanor. She hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings by inviting Mark, but she was tired of being the victim who had to be tended to when what she really wanted was to get to know Reggie on equal footing. Maybe when this trial was over, one way or another, they could spend time together without the power imbalance, and she could find out if the closeness she felt was more about real attraction and less about some kind of damsel in distress meets her knight in shining armor scenario.

“I might get the chicken fried steak,” Mark announced. He turned to Reggie, his tone eager. “Is it good here?”

Reggie kept her eyes on the menu and her voice was monotone. “I usually order breakfast, but I’ve heard it’s great.”

“I’ll give it a go,” Brooke said, feeling bad now that she’d invited Mark into the middle of a situation he knew nothing about. “I’ll even live dangerously and have the fried okra.”

After they placed their orders, there were a few uncomfortable moments of silence before Brooke decided to take the reins. “So, Mark, you still think the case is more boring than your job?”

“Mostly. At my job, I at least get to talk to people and take breaks when I want, not when some old dude in a uniform says I can.”

“That old dude is in charge of security in the courtroom, and he’d take a bullet for you if he had to.”

Brooke stared at Reggie, shocked at her raised voice and the edge of anger behind it. She was certain Mark hadn’t meant any harm, but obviously he’d struck a nerve. Instinctively, she reached for Reggie’s arm, but stopped herself because she wasn’t sure how Reggie would react to her touch with Mark sitting righthere watching. Thankfully, the waitress arrived at that moment with their food and the tension in the air dissipated as they focused on their meals.

A few minutes later, Mark waved his fork in the air. “I remember now,” Mark said. “You were at the courthouse when the shooting happened. I’m sorry. That must’ve been rough.”

Reggie’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “It was. One of the bailiffs almost died trying to save Judge Aguilar’s life. Those guys may seem like they’re just a bunch of old dudes, but most of them have served a decade or more in law enforcement and they’re qualified to do way more than herd a bunch of jurors around the courthouse.”

Mark nodded. “I stand corrected. Besides, I’m sure it’s a cool job for them because they get to hear everything that goes on.” He hunched down and whispered. “Think about it. They hear not just what happens in the courtroom, but everything we say too.”

“You really think they’re listening to what happens in the jury room?” Brooke asked, wondering why it hadn’t occurred to her and what she might have said that Leroy had overheard.

“I’m not saying they would spy on us, but I’m sure they can’t help but hear things, right?”

He looked at Reggie as if seeking affirmation, but she merely shrugged. “They have better things to do than listen to people gripe about being called for jury duty. Like I said, they’re in charge of security.”

Mark seemed unfazed by Reggie’s gruff demeanor. “Sure, but think about how much power they could have if they wanted to listen in. They could sway a verdict simply by telling the wrong person something they overheard.”

Brooke shot a look at Reggie whose stare was boring holes through Mark’s head. Meanwhile, Mark, seemingly oblivious, shoved a huge bite of his chicken fried steak into his mouth andhummed happily while gnawing at his meal. Brooke reached over and tapped Reggie’s thigh under the table and Reggie nodded slightly and mouthed “not now.”

Brooke raced through eating half of her meal and then pushed it aside, declaring it was great, but she was full. The truth was she was too jacked up to eat. All she wanted to do was get Reggie alone and discuss whether it was possible someone who worked at the courthouse, like god-forbid Leroy, was responsible for keeping tabs on her.

On the way out of the diner, Brooke stole a moment while Mark was loading up on mints by the cash register to have a brief whispered exchange with Reggie.

“Offer to drop us at the front of the courthouse,” she said.

“But—”

“Trust me.”

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