Betrayal of the Dove - By Capri Montgomery Page 0,36
and securing encampments and you think she hired him because of the color of his skin.”
Gregory nodded, “yes I do.” He shifted in his chair. “I mean look at her. Clearly she’s a mutt and she’s just unhappy that she can’t pass so she hired the cream sickle instead.”
“Excuse me?” Alyssa felt her anger starting to rise. She wasn’t some dog that he could call a mutt just because she had a mix of blood running through her veins. Much like Eve, she looked more black than any of her other races, except for her hair, which most people assumed was fake anyway, and her eyes…she had her dad’s side of the family blue eyes—only a deeper blue than any of the others. Still, she was not a mutt. Her attorney put his hand on her forearm to silently tell her she needed to settle down. She knew she did, but right now she wanted to knock that man’s head off for insulting her family lineage.
The judge took one hard knock of his gavel on the wooden base on his desk. “There won’t be any racial bigotry in my chambers,” he said. The stenographer was swiftly typing. Alyssa was sure she, too, was silently shaking her head just from the look of shock on her face. Gregory might have had a chance before he threw in that bit of an insult, but now, she was sure he didn’t have a snowball’s chance in a four alarm fire of painting her as the racist. At least she hoped he didn’t.
“From careful consideration of the evidence and facts presented to me,” she heard the judge say and right now her heart was beating so hard in her chest that the sound of it almost seemed to drown out his voice. She wanted this over and she was praying the judge would make a decision to end this case today instead of making them take it inside the courtroom. “Therefore,” he said. “I find in favor of the defendant.” She felt overcome with joy. It was over. The judge had sided in her favor. He rambled on several other words, words that basically chastised Gregory for bringing a frivolous suit before him, but she wasn’t paying any of it too much attention. She had won. Thank goodness for that because had she lost the man obviously had a mean streak that told her he would go for her entire bank account in court.
The judge had dismissed them, but that hadn’t stopped Gregory from inflicting one last threat before they were out of the courthouse. He narrowed his eyes, his lips thin and brittle with disdain and he said, loud and clear, “this isn’t over,” before turning on his heels and exiting the courthouse. Her attorney assured her they could get a TRO if Gregory tried anything, but right now there wasn’t anything she could do.
“Yes there is,” she smiled. “I can go home.” And that’s exactly what she did, taking the journey out of Phoenix and back into Scottsdale.
Her case had been delayed for several hours before they even made it before the judge. There were three cases before them and even though she had to be at the courthouse by nine that morning, her case hadn’t actually been scheduled to go before the judge until almost eleven. One delayed case led to another and it was three o’clock before she even set foot in chambers. She needed to get back and tell Eve and Shane the good news, but she was also starving. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until she drove past Fidora’s Sweets, which just happened to be one of the best bakeries off the Row. Deciding she needed more than just a delicious apple fritter she bypassed Fidora’s. She could eat something when she got home. A quick salad and sandwich and then she would rescue Eve from the duties of the store. She could handle the store for the remainder of the open hours and let her sister get some rest.
She was going to have to give Eve something for her help. She had saved her—big time, and she wanted to repay her for that. Eve had been eyeing a few of the summer dresses in her closet, maybe she would let her take the few she liked the most. They had a distinct habit of sharing clothes after Eve hit high school and wanted to look more business adult than “teeny bopper” high school. She never