Page 75 of EverGreene
I peered up at the man being questioned by Conrad, having found nothing in his responses that would make me think we could boot him out. Was he a bit bland? Sure. A tad arrogant? Perhaps. None of that would get him kicked off the jury, though.
What’s the cause?
I wrote back, passing the note back to Loche like we were in fourth period. He scribbled his response to me quickly as though he’d been waiting on pins and needles.
‘Cause he’s a douchebag.
Conrad glared at me as I quickly tried to conceal a snort with a cough, momentarily taking him off his game. Face flushing with what I’m sure was a red that could stop traffic, I cleared mythroat and regained my composure, waiting a minute or two for the dust to settle before writing a note back to Loche.
I. Fucking. Hate. You.
Loche eagerly took the note from my hand when I handed it to him, pausing to read it only briefly before, again, penning his confident response.
No. You. Don’t.
Fuck me, I didn’t. And I couldn’t even lie about it without him picking up some subtle change in my penmanship. Suppressing a sigh, I folded up Loche’s note and tucked it in my tote bag, which I’d stowed under the bench, keeping it out of sight of Conrad because the last thing I needed was another thing about me for him to dissect. As though taking my hint, Loche returned his attention to the juror box and Conrad, only casually inspecting me from the corner of his eye every now and then, which I tried to tell myself I didn’t see.
“I swear to God,if that man tells me to take a CD out of a disc drive and blow on it one more time like it’s a video game cartridge from the nineties, I’m going to lose my shit on him,” Jason said as he, Caroline, and I sat at the bar back at the hotel, commiserating over the first day of trial.
“Yeah, well, I can’t help you there, but if you think of a way to snap your fingers to make a witness appear on the stand an hour earlier than they were subpoenaed to be there, please let me know.” Caroline finished off her rum and Coke and plunkedthe glass down on the bar. “Because Conrad seems to think that’s a thing I can totally do.”
“You see, that’syourproblem, because expertise in conjuring was clearly on the job description they posted online.” I rolled my eyes at the absurdity that was Conrad Harrison, trying not to let myself think about how goosebumps had erupted over my arm whenever Loche’s arm accidentally brushed against mine while taking notes during the trial.
“Online?” Jason asked. “You mean, you didn’t get their classified ad written on a stone tablet delivered to your house like I did?”
Caroline sighed. “For a firm that boasts so many multi-million dollar verdicts, you would think we would have the technology to back it up. Makes you wonder where all that money is going.”
Straight into Conrad’s pockets or an offshore account earmarked for firm pizza parties.
“I don’t know how Loche does it, being Conrad’s nephew and having to work with him. You would have to commit me.”
“You’ve known Loche and Conrad for a few years now, right? Has their relationship always been strained?”
Caroline nodded. “Pretty much, but it feels like something has shifted with them. There’s more tension, which is saying something because there’s always been tension. Conrad has always nitpicked everything Loche does, from his work performance to his appearance, tattoos, and such. It’s like he has something over him, and he knows that he can’t push back.”
“Well, that’s it for me,” Jason said, getting up from his stool. “It’s eleven and Conrad wants me at the courthouse at seven in the morning, sharp, which I don’t know how I’m going to accomplish considering the courthouse doesn’t open until eight.”
“Just blow on the door,” I muttered.
Caroline giggled. “Don’t suggest that to Conrad or he’ll have him do it.” She stood up, throwing a five down on the bar for the bartender. “I’m done for the night, too. You coming, Ever?”
I looked down at my vodka cranberry. “Not yet. I need to decompress for a few more minutes if I want a fair chance of falling asleep. I won’t be long.”
Caroline nodded. “See you bright and early.”
“Which already isn’t going to be early enough for Conrad,” I grumbled. Caroline’s comments on Conrad and Loche’s relationship brought back the memory of a conversation I’d had with Shelby. Hadn’t she mentioned that Caroline had seen Loche’s tattoos? What if?—
“Caroline,” I called out to her. She turned around, looking at the purse clutched in her hand.
“Did I forget something?” she asked, confused.
“No, uh, quick question. Have you ever seen Loche’s tattoos?” Images of V’s inked torso flashed through my head as Caroline furrowed her brow in thought. “Shelby said she thought you had.”
She rolled her eyes. “I bet Shelby did. I’m not sure exactly what he has, but I did see some ink on his chest and stomach area. Maybe some on the arms. I really can’t remember. He was kind of a ways back, and it was only for a fleeting second. Why do you ask?”
I nodded. “Just curious.”And back to the drawing board.
I picked up my phone and opened a text message from Katy. She’d attached a selfie she’d snapped of her and Vinny. She was crouched in front of Vinny’s aquarium with Vinny looking directly into the phone as though she knew Katy was expecting an Instagram-worthy photograph.
