At Close Range
Members of the Phoenix press filled her courtroom. Tension filled her gut. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Hannah Montgomery leaned forward.
"We are back on the record with case number CR2008-000351. Would those present please identify themselves?"
Hannah heard the attorneys state their names for the record. She knew both lawyers well. Had been listening to them drone on for six days now in this trial that seemed as though it would never end.
But she wasn't looking at them.
Her eyes locked on the dark-suited man who'd just slipped quietly into the back of the room. There wasn't anything particularly remarkable about him. He was twenty-nine years old. Average height. Average weight. His straight brown hair was thick and short. Wholesome. Businesslike.
Hannah couldn't seem to pull her focus away from him. Because she'd been dreading this moment for the entire nine months she'd been administering this hideous case? If so, the nondescript man would have been a disappointment.
Surely an icon, a godlike figure to his followers, should stand out more.
He met her gaze and nodded, his expression properly respectful. Taking a seat in the second row, arms at his s ... read full excerpt from: At Close Range ebook
