Marcus nodded.
"That's better."
Whitmore leaned back.
"You're very careful with words."
"My mother taught me."
"Your mother was a lawyer?"
"No. Paralegal."
"Good one?"
Marcus smiled faintly.
"The best."
The judge looked at the files.
"Where did you learn criminal procedure?"
"Books."
"Which books?"
Marcus began naming them.
The judge's expression slowly changed.
"You actually read these?"
"Some of them twice."
"Why?"
"Because my sister couldn't afford another mistake."
The judge looked toward the window.
"What happened to your mother?"
"She died."
"I'm sorry."
Marcus nodded.
"She was working on a case when she got sick. She kept studying until she couldn't."
"And your father?"
"Works nights."
"Does he know you're doing this?"
"Yes."
"Does he approve?"
Marcus smiled.
"He told me to stop."
The judge laughed quietly.
"Smart man."
"He changed his mind yesterday."
"Why?"
Marcus looked down.
"Because he realized nobody else was going to help Nia."
The judge didn't answer.
After a moment he stood.
"Bring every document you have to the afternoon hearing."
"I will."
"And Marcus?"
"Yes, sir?"
"Don't confuse finding mistakes with proving innocence."
Marcus looked up.
"I won't."
"Good."
The judge walked away.
Marcus watched him leave.
Then he returned to the file.
There was something bothering him.
The police timeline.
It wasn't merely inconsistent.
It was too inconsistent.
Three separate timestamps had been altered.
That suggested more than negligence.
It suggested someone had rewritten events.
Marcus turned to the evidence inventory.
The laptop.
The jewelry.
The envelope.
Then he stopped.
The envelope.
He searched the property report.
The alleged stolen money was listed as cash.
No serial numbers.
No photographs.
No bank withdrawal records.
Nothing.
Marcus grabbed his phone.
He called his father.
"Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"Did Nia ever have an envelope of cash?"
"No."
"Are you sure?"
"I handle the household money. Why?"
Marcus exhaled.
"Nothing."
He ended the call.
Then he searched the victim's name.
Dr. Evelyn Hart.
Sixty-one.
Local property developer.
Owner of the house where the burglary allegedly occurred.
Marcus found a newspaper article.
Then another.
Then a court filing.
His eyes narrowed.
Dr. Hart had been involved in a lawsuit three months earlier.
Against the same police department.
Marcus leaned back.
Now he understood why the prosecutor had been so confident.
This wasn't just a burglary case.
Someone had a reason to make Nia look guilty.
He returned to the courthouse.
The afternoon hearing began at two.
This time, the gallery was full.
Word had spread.
People had heard about the teenager who challenged the police timeline.
Judge Whitmore entered.
"Mr. Reed."
Marcus stood.
"Yes, Your Honor?"
"You have additional evidence?"
"Yes."
"Proceed."
Marcus called the gas station manager.
Then the manager authenticated the footage.
He called a forensic technician.
The technician explained that the evidence photographs had metadata inconsistent with the official timeline.
The prosecutor objected repeatedly.
Marcus remained calm.
Every objection was answered with a document.
Every question was supported by a record.
Then Marcus reached the most important file.
He held it in his hand.
"Your Honor, I would like to introduce evidence concerning the alleged stolen cash."
Price stood.
"Objection."
"On what basis?"
"This is outside the scope."
Marcus looked toward the judge.
"The money is part of the charge."
Judge Whitmore nodded.
"Overruled."
Marcus turned toward the victim's attorney.
"Dr. Hart, you stated that $3,800 was stolen."
"Yes."
"Where did the money come from?"
"My business."
"Which business?"
"Hart Development."
"Do you keep cash records?"
"Of course."
"Did you report the withdrawal?"
She hesitated.
"My accountant handles that."
Marcus opened a document.
"According to your company's bank records, there was no cash withdrawal of $3,800 during the thirty days surrounding the alleged burglary."
Dr. Hart's face tightened.
"My accountant may have—"
Marcus interrupted politely.
"So the money was never withdrawn?"
"I don't know."
"Then you cannot establish that it existed."
Price objected.
The judge sustained partially.
Marcus nodded.
He had expected that.
He turned to another document.
"Then let's talk about the laptop."
The laptop had supposedly belonged to Dr. Hart.
Marcus produced a purchase record.
It had been purchased by a technology company.
Not Dr. Hart.
And the company had sold it to a liquidation service two months earlier.
The liquidation service had then sold it to Nia's employer.
Nia had bought it legally.
The courtroom became restless.
Judge Whitmore stared at the documents.
"Mr. Price," he said quietly.
"Yes, Your Honor?"
"Why was this not in the state's file?"
Price didn't answer.