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“She’s a fashion icon.”

I rolled my eyes. “She likes attention.”

Jack grimaced but didn’t argue. His wife was a devoted llama mama, a social media powerhouse, and kind of sweet when you got to know her, but she was polarizing as hell. People either loved her or wanted to tear her apart. Keeping her away from the trial had been a strategic necessity.

Down at the other end of the hallway, Lou Corwin stood huddled with his attorney. Even from this distance, I could see the tension in his shoulders. This was not the same version of him that had walked into court this morning with his head held high and his shoulders pushed back.

Good.

A smile tugged at my lips. I’d earned that. Every hour of prep in front of the mirror in my bedroom paid off. I had planned every calculated pause. I knew what to wear and when to smile and when to look sad. It had all led to that look on Lou Corwin’s face.

His attorney had been practicing law longer than I’d been alive with a success rate that earned him an hourly rate that would make even a Blackwell do a doubletake. Going up against him? It felt like donning gladiator armor and facing off in the Colosseum of ancient Rome.

Lou’s attorney caught me watching them. I nodded, giving him the respect his career deserved. He sneered back, which almost made me laugh. He should have anticipated someone would knock him on his ass eventually. I decided to go grab a bottle of water from the vending machine behind them, just to ruffle their feathers a little more, but drew up short when the clicking of high heels announced the arrival of a petite, icy blonde bombshell stomping toward Lou.

Her pantsuit fit her like armor. She looks like way more fun to go toe to toe with, I thought, wishing Lou had chosen her as his representation. She moved with power, purpose, and precision.

How many strings would a man have to pull to unravel all that? I mused.

She wore her platinum-blonde hair in a thick braid that hung down her back, not a single strand out of place. The kind of braid that said she’d perfected it over years of practice. I immediately knew chaos wasn’t welcome in her world. Her skin was pale, almost luminous under the harsh courthouse lighting. And her eyes were cold blue. The color of a frozen lake. Those icy baby blues swept the hallway like she was marking threats.

Her gaze passed over me but I honestly couldn’t say if she saw me. It was a half-second scan before she dismissed me.

Ouch.

I wasn’t used to being ignored. Not an ego thing. Just a fact thing.

Her lips were pressed into a firm line, the corners turned down slightly. Not a frown exactly, but close. Like she’d looked at the world and found it wanting.

Damn.

“Who is that?” I asked, not taking my eyes off her.

Jack followed my gaze. “Oh, that’s Corwin’s daughter. Darcy, I think?”

Darcy Corwin. I filed that away, watching as she leaned in to say something to her father. Whatever it was made Corwin’s expression tighten further. She wasn’t there to comfort him, that much was obvious. She was there to assess the damage.

So not a lawyer, I thought, but not just his daughter here to offer support, either. Before I could think too much about it, a bailiff appeared at the courtroom doors. “Jury’s back.”

Jack’s eyebrows shot up. “That was fast.”

“That’s a good sign.” I pushed off the wall, already feeling the victory humming in my veins.

Quick deliberations almost always favored the defense in cases like this. We just needed them to see the obvious.

We filed back in. The Corwin contingent took their seats at the plaintiff’s table. I noted the way Darcy positioned herself directly behind her father, her posture rigid, those icy eyes fixed forward.

I wondered why she hadn’t been in court all week.

The jury filed in. I watched their faces. Number Seven had a small smile on her face. Number Four looked relieved.

Yeah. We had this.

The foreperson stood when prompted.

“Has the jury reached a verdict?” the judge asked.

“We have, Your Honor.”