Page 8 of Wild Omega

“I’d like to recall Clark Saunders, the cleaner on Ms Felton’s floor, to the stand, Your Honor.”

“Objection!” the opposing counsel calls. “He’s already testified.” The smug looks on their faces evaporate, replaced with concern.

“I have additional evidence,” I assure the judge, and he nods.

“I’ll allow it.”

I press my lips together to hide my grin. Bet the opposing counsel are regretting pushing for a bench trial now. I swear Judge Harmon has a soft spot for me, because he knows I’m good at what I do. I’d never have risen through the ranks at the Laversham branch of Harkman and Laurance Legal otherwise. If I work hard enough this year, I’m sure I can make partner. And one day I’ll also get my name up on our building. Harkman, Laurance, and Wren Legal sounds pretty good.

Clark Saunders gets up in the box, already sweating through his lanky brown hair. He removes his glasses to wipe his eyes on his sleeve. I don’t even have to get close to make him feel pressured.

“Would you say you’re good at your job, Mr Saunders?”

“I’m proficient,” he mutters, looking down.

“And what does your job entail?”

He rubs his nose, glancing at the Velos Corp acting director hiding between his two lawyers. “I clean the building and manage trash and minor repairs. I also oversee two other cleaners on the floor.”

“And do you interact with customers, or answer the phones?”

“No.”

“Answering and sending emails? Special software for, I don’t know, cleaning logs?”

His brow furrows. “Only what’s required for managing the maintenance queue or reporting on cleaning our activities. Our logs get done on paper.”

I flash him my most disarming smile. “I see, thank you. So would it be accurate to say you’re proficient at your job but have little interaction with either customers or the other staff, and you don’t have tasks requiring computer use?”

He nods, and the judge reminds him to answer out loud. “Yes, I guess so.”

Better and better. I swivel my body enough to see the opposing counsel squirm. “Mr Saunders, please tell the court your professional Information Technology qualifications.”

His gaze drops. “I don’t have any IT qualifications.”

“Oh?” I feign surprise and drop a piece of paper on his desk. “Could you please tell the court what this is?”

“Obj—!”

I cut off the outraged lawyers as I pass the judge a second copy. “It was in discovery, Your Honor. No new material here.”

He waves his hand. “Overruled. Continue.”

The witness scans the convoluted spreadsheet. “I think it’s a record of Velos staff training for the year to date.”

I press him further. “Which staff?”

“Me.”

“And what training does it list in the expense details?”

Clark reads again, and I see the cornered beast in his gaze when he lifts his head. “Information Technology. But I never finished the diploma.”

“Ah, you never finished. But you attended this course, yes? These payments are installments for all of last year.” I flip the page over in front of him. “Oh, and look at that, the previous year as well, but for different amounts. A certificate and then a diploma, was it?”

He grinds out a yes, before asserting he didn’t complete any qualification and only attended part of the training. And when I ask, he says he didn’t take part in any other work-related training.

I straighten my tie and take a moment to let the judge soak in his answers. “All right, so Velos Corp paid for you to undertake IT certificates, which you attended for two or more years but never completed, for a job which requires no computer use except for the most basic of tasks?”

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