“To the degree that I can, that is exactly what my job is. But I’m just one woman. People say I’m the judge for this, but I’m no judge. If people decide to tear you apart, and feed you to the hogs, I am powerless to stop them. You need to give them—at least some of them—a reason to believe you and stick up for your rights.” She gave a few seconds to let that sink in.

“And that, young man,” she finished, “is all up to you.”

She stood, didn’t wait for a reply. She’d said everything she’d needed to say.

As soon as the door closed behind her, she swore that she could hear Brandon-Lee start to cry.

George Simmons’s testimony came first, and after Victoria had let him have his say, it was time for the defense. “Dr. Stevenson, do you have any questions for the witness?”

Rory stood. “I do, Your Honor.” He straightened his back and tucked his thumbs behind the waistband of his jeans, flanking his belt buckle. Clearly, he’d seen his share of TV courtroom dramas. He walked to the witness chair, kept a respectful distance. “Mr. Simmons, did you see Mr. May steal any of your goods?”

“I saw him taking inventory of what he’d stolen.”

Victoria rapped on her lectern with her gavel—actually a rubber mallet from Simmons Gas and Goodies. “You’re out of order, Mr. Simmons. Answer the question as it was asked.” As she made her ruling, she was again aware of how toothless it was. Simmons could do anything he wanted here in the presence of his friends.

“I’ll ask it again,” Rory said. “We can talk about what you saw up on the mountain later. But for right now, let’s concentrate on the night when your store was robbed. Did you witness the robbery itself?”

“When I got to my store the night after the bombing—”

Rory held up his hand, a stopping motion. “Nope. Again, not to interrupt, we can go there later. My question is about the moment when your windows were broken and people invaded your gas station. Did you witness that?”

George clearly saw where this was going, and he was annoyed at being pressed to give an answer he didn’t want to give. “No, I did not witness it. But I—”

Victoria gaveled again. “The question required only a yes or a no. You did that. Thank you.” She indicated for Rory to continue. His skills impressed her.

“On that morning, when you noticed the damage to your station, what did you think?”

George’s features knotted up into an Are you kidding me? “I thought, well, oh, shit, somebody ransacked my store.”

The incredulity with which he delivered that testimony triggered laughter. Victoria let it go and order returned on its own.