Approaching Oblivion (Jezebel's Ladder Book 4) Read Online Free PDF Page A

rubbing an eyebrow. “Aren’t you
afraid I’ll be biased because he took my eyesight?”
    “You
let him off with Sensei,” Herk allowed. “Do you promise to attempt to be
unbiased in this trial?”
    “Sure,
but I get paid in beer,” Lou requested.
    “I
would ask that no women be allowed on the bench because of prejudice,” Zeiss
said.
    “A
woman must be placed on the bench because men don’t take the issue
seriously enough,” Red countered. “We’re over half the population; therefore,
we deserve at least one seat.”
    Lou
said, “Might I suggest Oleander? She’s more mature and has spent far more time
in the legal system than I have.”
    Herk
asked, “How about it, Ole?”
    The
guard chuckled. “Being an old felon—what wonderful qualifications.”
    “Please,”
Zeiss said, pausing again. “You make a good compromise. You were falsely
accused of a crime and served many years. I’m hoping your experiences may make
you willing to listen to all evidence before ruling.”
    Oleander
asked, “How did you know I was innocent?”
    “Your
statements in the signed confession were all passive. The bomb was planted. The
time was selected to minimize injuries.” Zeiss didn’t mention that he suspected
the real criminal had been her younger brother.
    “Because
you gave me the benefit of the doubt, Z, I will try to do the same.”
    Lou
announced, “That leaves only Park, Johnny, and Sojiro, who aren’t married.”
    Sojiro
shook his head. “I’ve been an assault victim before. It wasn’t rape, but he
held me down and cut off two of my fingers.” The young artist swallowed. He
coped so well with his prosthetics and machine interface ability that people
forgot. “I can’t listen to descriptions of any violation and remain impartial.
Sorry.”
    Red
put an arm around the man. “It’s okay.”
    Johnny
said, “I think Park should do it. People will know what I’m thinking. I throw
things at the TV and shout. Italians are very passionate people, not
inscrutable and logical like Asians.”
    Calmly
and barely above a whisper, Park said, “Objection: racial stereotyping.”
    “See?”
said Johnny. “I would’ve punched me in the face by now for what I said.”
    Lou
asked, “Have either of you been a judge of any kind before?”
    “For
a martial-arts tournament,” Park admitted.
    “Good
enough. You’re in. Ole, how do we get this party started?”
    “After
we read the charges to the accused, he makes a plea: guilty, not, or no
contest. If he fights the charges, the state presents each piece of evidence
and their witnesses. For each of these, the defense gets a chance to
cross-examine and rebut. Once those cards are played, the defense presents
witnesses, who Red will call names and reduce to tears. If Dr. Baatjies is
found guilty, we do another round of testimony for mitigating or increasing the
penalties.”
    Zeiss
raised a hand. “We actually begin with pretrial motions and deals. I would start
by removing talk of the death penalty from the table. The charter is founded on
the idea that in space, we’re all necessary to survive. Jezebel Hollis wrote
that criminals need to be reintegrated in the society.”
    Red
grumbled, “You’re not allowed to use my mom’s words against us.”
    “Mercy,
you thought Lou killed Yvette by accident or negligence, and you forgave him
readily.” Zeiss nodded to her pregnant belly, causing her to blush.
    “Your
point?” Red asked.
    “It
seems your rules apply to any crime except rape,” Zeiss replied.
    “That’s
not fair.”
    “According
to Mercy’s own discoveries, repeated exposure to subspace radiation has
unbalanced Toby—”
    “Objection!”
Red shouted.
    Lou
winced. “I’m blind, not deaf. Let him finish the sentence, Red. Only people
born with talents like you and Mercy are immune to the transition to subspace.”
The jumps made everyone else nauseous, drunk, or worse.
    Zeiss
pressed his advantage. “Mentally ill people cannot be executed. Even