Chapter Thirty Eight
Cassian’s trial date arrived three months after his arrest, the delay eaten up by pretrial motions his lawyers filed with the particular persistence of a legal team being paid handsomely to buy time.
Rafael expected the case to be straightforward — the evidence was overwhelming, the timeline airtight. What he did not expect was the angle Cassian’s defense chose to pursue once jury selection finally began.
“They are arguing motive,” Warren told him, two days before opening statements, sliding a copy of the defense’s filing across the desk. “Not disputing the evidence directly. Arguing you had personal reasons to want Cassian discredited that go beyond simple justice.”
“What reasons?”
“The Reynolds Foundation,” Warren said. “They are framing your public reckoning wi
