“Thank you, Ethan,” she said softly. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”
Ethan gave a nervous laugh.
“Go. Seriously. Good luck on your first day.”
She smiled, climbed into her car, and disappeared into traffic.
Ethan jumped back into his own car—never noticing that in the rush, his USB drive had slipped out of the inner pocket of his briefcase… and landed on the passenger seat of her car.
It was 7:42 when Ethan sprinted through the doors of the Cook County Civil Courthouse.
His shirt was soaked with sweat, and his flimsy briefcase looked ready to fall apart.
A security guard pointed him toward Courtroom 2B.
The hallway felt endless.
Every step was a heartbeat. Every door a threat.
He entered—and the first person he noticed was Attorney Grant Salinger.
Expensive suit. Poison smile. The look of a man who already considered himself the winner.
Beside him sat Paula Grant, the company’s payroll supervisor—dressed modestly, eyes cold as ice.
And then Ethan saw her.
Seated up front in a black robe, expression solemn, posture commanding—
the judge.
The same woman from the flat tire.
Ethan’s blood turned to ice.
For a second he thought exhaustion was playing a cruel joke.
But no.
No doubt.