Page 15 of Lawful Mate
“Yes, I believe she can, Your Honor. I’d like to call Alina Petrova to the stand.”
Theo heard Petrov exhale with relief as his sister, Alina, took the stand. Gracefully, she sat down, folding the hem of her simple blue dress beneath her legs. She was dark-haired like her brother and tall, thin, and regal, with an innocent face, bare of any makeup. Petrov had told him she was a ballerina.
“State your name for the record,” Theo said.
“Alina Petrova.”
“You are the sister of the defendant?”
“Yes. Konstantin Petrov is my big brother,” she replied in heavily accented English.
“Did you just arrive in New York?”
“Yes—”
“Your Honor! Must we listen to this drivel? Who cares when she got here?”
“Your Honor, it is relevant. I promise.”
“Continue then, Mr. Jensen. And Mr. Ermine, you know better than to shout in my courtroom without making a formal objection. Do it again, and you will be held in contempt.”
“Apologies, Your Honor,” the Weasel said with a smirk.
“Ms. Petrova, how did you come to be here in New York City?” Theo asked.
“I was kidnapped by order of Gleb Ivanovich. His three sons, Grigory, Evgeny, and Gavriil, all participated in taking me from the ballet company where I was practicing and bringing me here.”
“To your understanding, why did they do this?”
“Ivanovich is bratva. They do what they want, and they want to use me to coerce my brother to wash their blood money.”
“I see. So, to your knowledge, was Konstantin meeting with Ivanovich to make a deal?”
“He did not know they had me until that meeting.”
“And they tried to force him to act, didn’t they?”
“Yes.”
“Hearsay!” Ermine shouted.
You didn’t say objection, you fucker!
Did they actually let him graduate from law school?
“Your Honor, please. After looking closely at the warrant filed by Mr. Ermine against my client, his entire case is not only hearsay, it’s entirely baseless. The wiretap he used to get the warrant was not fully translated at the time it was issued.” Theo grabbed a paper from his pile. “Here is the transcript and the full translation.” He glared at Ermine. “My client was undeniably being threatened by the mob to do their bidding. Luckily, before he could make any move, Mr. Ermine had him arrested.”
“I need a moment to read this.”
“But your Honor—”
“Mr. Ermine,” the judge growled, and the Weasel immediately quieted.
The Weasel was fucked!
Ermine fumbled with his paperwork with shaking hands as the judge perused the transcript.
The shit-show of a circus began shortly after.
