Chapter 13

Hale looked up. He looked at Alicia Grant. Then he looked at the case file: Grant v. Oakridge Estates. Then he looked back at the chairwoman.Hale, a veteran of a thousand legal battles, physically slumped in his chair. He closed his eyes and let out a long, defeated exhale. He knew instantly that the case was over. There was no defense. There was no plea deal. They had walked blindly into an ambush of apocalyptic proportions.Alicia Grant did not gloat. She did not smirk. She simply opened her binder, pressed the button on her microphone, and looked down at the trembling, broken man before her."Good morning, gentlemen," Alicia said, her voice echoing with crystal clarity through the silent room. "This panel is hereby called to order. We are here to address the formal disciplinary charges against Superior Court Judge Gregory Shaw."Shaw tried to speak, his voice reduced to a pathetic squeak. "Ms. Grant... Chairwoman... I... I didn't know—""You didn't know what, Judge Shaw?" Alicia cut in, her voice slicing through his stammering like a scalpel. "That the woman standing before you in your courtroom was the chairwoman of this commission? Is that the prerequisite for being treated with basic human dignity in your courtroom? Must a citizen hold high office to avoid being subjected to your racial animus?""No... no, Your Honor. I... I was having a terrible day. My blood pressure—""Save it," Alicia commanded, her tone dropping to a dangerous, freezing register. She picked up a sheet of paper. "Let us dispense with the theater. I am not going to ask you to explain your actions, Judge Shaw, because your own words have already provided all the explanation this panel requires."Alicia picked up the authenticated transcript. She began to read. She read his words exactly as he had spoken them, but stripped of the booming, theatrical courtroom echo. In the sterile, quiet boardroom, his quotes sounded even more horrific, even more venomous:"Did you even graduate high school, Miss Grant?""People from your background always seem to think the rules don't apply to them.""You try to bring a Section 8 mentality into it."

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