Noise echoed around the courtroom on the unusually hot March morning, as the crowd waited for the trial to get underway.
Lance saw Jamie glance nervously at the door from her chair by the prosecuting attorney. He got up from his seat.
"What are you doing?" he heard Justin ask.
Lance looked at him. "I'm just gonna go talk to Jamie for a moment."
Justin nodded. "Okay. See ya."
Lance made his way up to the front row, and kneeled down behind his daughter.
"Honey, are you okay?"
Jamie whirled around, a hand over her heart. "God, Dad! You scared the living shit out of me!" She paused, as if to think about what her answer should be. "I'm fine."
Lance watched what she was doing. Holding her breath, and biting her lip. Two sure-fire ways that he'd always been able to tell she was lying.
"Okay," Lance slowly said. He knew from experience not to argu with Jamie. He let her lie about her emotions, because he knew that he'd just end up in a fight with her, if he tried to insist the opposite of what she had answered.
"You're gonna be okay," Lance told her. He kiseed her cheek, and turned to go to his seat.
A couple minutes later, the judge came in, and the trial started.
It was a short one, and the deliberation only lasted an hour.
At 6:15 pm, the jury filed back into the room, one-by-one, and sat down.
"Do you have a verdict?" Judge Hodgkins asked.
The Jury Foreman stood up, and handed the piece of paper to the bailiff, who gave it to the judge.
He looked at the paper, but gave no emotion when he found out what it was. He looked up and said, "Will the defendant please rise?"
Lance saw Jamie look at Nick with a menacing glare, as he stood up in place.
"We, the jury, find Nick Foulger . . . "
Lance's heart dropped, as the words reached his ears
" . . . not guilty."