companion ghost

Leon didn't sit down, nor did he answer Shen Lie's aggressive questions. He just raised his head slightly and reiterated his appeal: "If you don't mind, my client won't answer any questions now."

Shen Lie was not surprised at all. He said to the police officers, "Transfer Mr. Osterley to the Central Detention Center."

Casey and Dino stood up and took out the handcuffs to signal Vincent to stand up too, was handcuffed and taken away.Leon finished speaking in Vincent's ear: "Don't worry, I will help you get out, just like before." Then he watched the three of them walk out of the interrogation room, and when Shen Lie was going to follow him, he Suddenly a voice came out: "Prosecutor."

Shen Lie stood still and turned to look at him: "What else do you need?"

Leon smiled slightly: "I remember you."

"Congratulations, your memory is not like a fish with only seven seconds left," Shen Lie sarcastically said, "We just ended a battle about your client in front of the judge a month ago."

"No, I mean, I remember you when I was in law school."

Shen Lie frowned suspiciously: "No offense intended, but you and I don't look like students in the same year."

Lyon's smile became more and more obvious: "Of course, I am too old. In fact, I am an alumnus of yours who graduated ten years ago."

"Don't you think it's meaningless to come here to get married at this time?" Shen Lie didn't quite understand his motive.

"I don't want to be related, I just want to say, why do I remember you." Leon pushed his expensive leather bag on the table and stood it up again, tossing subconsciously back and forth like this, "When I was invited I met you when I went back to my alma mater to serve as a judge in a moot court. At that time, you were a defense lawyer, a man of yellow race and a Chinese, showing your sharpness like a knife drawn out of its sheath, which is worthy of appreciation."

Shen Lie recalled that moot court, he said lightly: "I remember I lost."

"Yes." Leon nodded, "I judged you to lose. It's not that you didn't perform well enough, but because of you, I can't see your future value."

Shen Lie didn't expect this answer at all, and thought he heard it wrong: "Excuse me?"

"Just like you are now," Leon said, "you graduated from the top law school, but chose the most disappointing job - working as a small prosecutor's assistant in the system, dealing with trivial matters every day case, I’m curious about one thing—did you earn back your law school tuition?”

Shen Lie understood what he wanted to express, and was unmoved at all: "It's none of your business?"

Leon finally stopped tossing his bag, and walked over Shen Lie towards the door with it on his arm. The moment he opened the door, he seemed to suddenly remember something, turned around and smiled at Shen Lie: "As for the question you just asked I forgot to answer your question. I sleep well every night in a [-]-square-meter villa in the city center."

Ning Yuan was outside the single-sided glass and heard all the conversations between them clearly.

After Leon finished speaking, he left.Ning Yuan raised his hand and knocked on the door, Shen Lie in the room looked up at him: "What door are you knocking on?"

Ning Yuan smiled: "Give me some private time?"

"No need," Shen Lie walked towards him, "Let's go, Vincent's place is destined to be monolithic, and I'm going to directly sue the grand jury."

"Is the evidence enough?" Ning Yuan walked out with him, "Don't need to wait any longer?"

Shen Lie said: "After the grand jury confirms the indictment, there are still two weeks to collect evidence, and things will change later."

Ning Yuan nodded, and asked hesitantly: "I heard it just now," he pointed to the direction Leon left, "Are you not mad at him?"

"What's there to be angry about?" Shen Lie was noncommittal, "He made his choice, and I made mine."

Seeing no one around, Ning Yuan stood on tiptoe and kissed the corner of Shen Lie's lips.

The next day, Court No. 1

"Mr. Read, please describe to the court and the grand jury the night you were assaulted."

In the grand jury room, which is slightly smaller than the trial court room, there are twenty jurors sitting on the right hand side after entering the door [Note 1].In theory there are 23, but it includes a "headman" and two voluntary secretaries.At least 12 of the [-] people must vote to prove the case and Vincent Osterley will be formally prosecuted.

On the left is a witness stand, and now Klein Reid is sitting on it. He put his hands on the table and subconsciously tightened them because of some nervousness. He has been in the legal profession for almost ten years. For the first time, he sat in a seat symbolizing the victims the witness stand.

Shen Lie was standing next to him now, deliberately not blocking the view of the grand jury from looking at him, and took a quiet step back after asking the question.

Klein took a deep breath, looked up at the twenty jurors of different races, skin colors, ages, genders, and social classes, and said slowly: "I used to be the defendant Vincent Osterley's Lawyer, helped him win the case. One night about half a month after the case ended, he knocked on my door with a bottle of red wine."

"I didn't expect him to..." Klein swallowed hard, "He would do this."

"So he entered your house," Shen Lie asked, "and then?"

"We talked for a while, and I realized that he has been lying to me about the truth about the last case." Klein shook his head and smiled self-deprecatingly, "Then he started to touch me, and I tried to resist , but I found that something was wrong with me, my body was weak, my vision was blurred—"

Shen Lie continued: "—GHB's reaction."

Klein nodded: "Afterwards he..." He paused, and it was very difficult to speak, "Did those things to me."

"You mean, rape." Shen Lie didn't want to touch his scars, but in front of the grand jury, every point of view must be accurate.

"Yes."

Shen Lie then asked: "Mr. Reid, please answer this question seriously, it is very important. During the whole process, did you clearly refuse and say 'no'?"

Klein looked straight into his eyes, and then into the eyes of the jurors: "Yes. I said it many times, I beat him, scolded him, and even begged him, but he just refused to stop."

Shen Lie asked the last question: "How many times has he raped you?"

Klein opened and closed his lips, and then said softly, "I don't remember."

Shen Lie scanned the expressions on the faces of each juror, and knew in his heart that it would be no problem to sue Vincent Osterley.

He looked at Klein, whose shoulders were not broad, and was even a little thin, and reached out to pat him on the shoulder.

【Note 1】Cited works