“He loses his license for thirty days, mandatory alcohol counseling, and a hundred hours of community service.” She kept her eyes on his and knew she was pushing it.
“One hundred hours! Ms. Mason, that is uncalled for. You are clearly prejudiced against my client.”
Kenna rolled her eyes. “Mr. Nichols, your client coached when I was still in high school. You think I give a damn about that? I'm giving him community service, and I want that service to be performed with children to make up for having his granddaughter in the car with him. I'll move you to the afternoon docket so that you can confer with your client.” Mr. Nichols nodded and stormed out of the room, fishing out his cell phone as he left.
“Very impressive, Miss Mason,” a voice said from behind her.
Kenna spun around to find Judge Cooper leaning against the doorframe. “Your Honor,” Kenna placed her hand on her heart, “you startled me. I didn’t know anyone was in here.” She gestured around the attorney meeting room just outside of the courtroom.
Judge Cooper shrugged his shoulders. “I probably shouldn’t have stopped by and eavesdropped, but it was too interesting a negation to ignore. You know, Mr. Nichols is the most sought-after attorney in the state, and his client is one of the most loved figures in the state.”
“Everyone likes to remind me that I'm not from around here. But I guess that is a plus for once,” she said as she glanced at the clock. She had fallen behind and needed to get these attorney conferences over soon.
“You may just be right. I’ll see you in the courtroom in ten minutes. We have a schedule to keep after all.”
Kenna hurried through her next three attorney conferences and then through a long morning traffic docket. It seemed from today’s lengthy docket that no one believed traffic violations were really breaking the law. She glanced at her watch and figured she had just enough time to run to the Blossom Cafe for a quick sandwich before the afternoon docket started. She pushed open the door and was caught by surprise when several microphones were shoved in her face.
“Miss Mason, Miss Mason, what is the status of Coach Faulk’s case?”
She guessed this was big news, but she didn’t see how. Maybe it was because politicians and pro athletes got pulled over in New York all the time. It only got a quick blurb on page six. It had to reach the levels of vehicular manslaughter or getting pulled over with a hooker in the car to garner television coverage.
“I'm sorry, but I do not comment on cases.”
“Just a quick update, Miss Mason!”
“You can see for yourself this afternoon. It’s a matter of public record and I can’t stop you from entering the courtroom. But I will not comment about a case now or in the future. Now, if you all would excuse me, I'd like to grab some lunch. Thank you.” Kenna pushed her way through the crowd and came face to face with Mr. Nichols.
“Ma’am, I may have misjudged you. Can we conference over lunch?”
She took note that his nose was no longer red and he seemed much calmer. “And what has changed your mind?”
“I saw you make your way through the media. I thought you were making such a stand so that you could get the media attention.”
“No, I'm taking such a stand because your client did something wrong. Now please, Mr. Nichols, I only have fifteen minutes before we have to be back in court. We can conference over lunch if you’d like.” She pushed open the door to the cafe and went in. She noticed that he followed.
Miss Daisy was making her rounds when she saw Kenna come in. “I got a table right over there for you. The clerk was in earlier and said court was running long. I went ahead and made you up some lunch. I'll go get it, dear.” Before turning to leave, Miss Daisy glanced at Mr. Nichols. “Will he be joining you as well?”
“Yes, ma’am. If you have time, I'll just take whatever I can get quickly.” Miss Daisy harrumphed but went to get their lunch. It was clear Miss Daisy knew Mr. Nichols and didn't have a high opinion of him. She wasn’t really surprised, though. It seemed the Rose sisters knew everyone. Miss Daisy brought out olive nut sandwiches with a side of mixed fresh fruit for them as they discussed the coach's case and came to a settlement.
They walked out the door and back to the courthouse, surrounded by reporters asking questions about their lunch meeting. Kenna had to work at keeping her mouth shut when a reporter suggested the prosecutor was in bed with the defense. She managed to not hit anyone on the short trek across the street although she did smile when the heel of her shoe came down hard on an overly aggressive reporter’s toe, accidentally, of course.