On trial days, Weiss went to great lengths ensuring everything went according to plan. From the moment she woke up to the moment she stepped into the courtroom, she had absolute control of everything around her. That control gave her confidence, and that confidence was how she succeeded at her job.
Control had been torn away from her today, leaving her reeling as she hurried through the Hall of Justice. Not only was she running late, but she hadn't planned to face Ruby on the stand. The other tech specialist - the one closer to an idiot than an expert - was supposed to be on this case. Ruby's unexpected presence normally caused silent cursing and rapid adjustments, but today threw Weiss into disarray - and not only because the technology evidence just became harder to dismiss.
It was Ruby. The girl Weiss literally just invited to her car in hopes they would do exactly what they ended up doing. In Weiss' imagination, they went much further than they just did, but before that happened...she realized she didn't want their first time to be in a car.
She'd answered her question though - Ruby did want her in that way. As wonderful, invigorating, and just a little arousing as it was to know Ruby was attracted to her, she had far more pressing issues right now.
Part of her wished that Ruby had given her more notice, but she also knew exactly why that hadn't happened. It was her rule - her stipulation - and Ruby's adherence to it made it crystal clear that she wanted this to work.
Even though the situation was spinning out of control, Weiss felt even more drawn to Ruby.
She wasn't an idiot. She knew why these relationships were forbidden, yet she decided to experience the situation firsthand. Ruby was, in a single word, a distraction. Now Weiss had to pull together her focus and win this case without hurting Ruby's feelings - conflicting priorities that were probably impossible to accomplish.
Arriving at the security checkpoint, she mentally reviewed her arguments while preparing to pass through the scanner. Focusing specifically on what she'd planned for the tech specialist, she considered making changes. Softening her strategy.
But she couldn't do that. If she did and Ruby found out...Ruby might be legitimately upset.
The last thing Weiss wanted to do was upset Ruby, so she had to do her job the only way she knew how. She wouldn't deviate from her plan. She would follow her original strategy regardless of who was on the receiving end of it. And she would hope it didn't blow up in her face.
Of course it was this case, with the one client who left her with the gnawing suspicion of guilt. She hadn't dropped him because he owned one of the largest financial institutions in Vale, had some obscenely powerful friends, and, if guilty, 'only' swindled a couple hundred people out of large sums of money.
The victims were wealthy on their own accord and, from what she'd heard, various degrees of unpleasant. But being wealthy asses didn't mean they deserved to be lied to and misled...that was just Weiss' excuse to make herself feel better.
So, not only did she have to cross-examine Ruby after they literally just made out in her car, but she had to do so while defending one of the most pompous, arrogant clients she'd ever had the 'pleasure' of working with. If Ruby didn't already have a negative opinion of her, this was sure to do the trick.
Spotting her client standing near their courtroom, she plastered on a smile and walked over.
"William." After quickly shaking his hand, she motioned to the door. "Shall we?"
"Absolutely," he replied before falling into step beside her.
His expensive suit and recently-shined shoes portrayed every bit of his wealth - exactly what she'd asked him not to do, but the rich and powerful were horrible at following directions even when their livelihoods depended on it. Of all his possessions - yachts, mansions, expensive cars - he apparently didn't own an ounce of common sense. Why else would he wear nearly unaffordable attire while on trial for effectively robbing innocent, albeit naive, clients?
"A few ground rules," Weiss said as they approached the counsel's table at the front of the room. "Don't speak unless I tell you to and, no matter what, do not comment on your wealth."
"Wouldn't want to anger the poor people."
When he chuckled at the 'joke,' she attempted a thin smile and resisted the urge to smack some sense into him.
"Actually, just don't talk until this is finished," she added before gesturing for him to sit down.
With him hopefully shut up for the time being, she remained standing and watched the other important actors arrive. The prosecuting attorney, the recorders, a couple of journalists, and a handful of onlookers or people claiming to be victims. When Judge Jones entered the room, however, she allowed herself one deep breath before meeting him at the bench.
"Judge Jones." With what should look like a genuine smile, she extended her hand to shake his. "It's nice to see you again."
"You too, Councilor. That's a lovely color on you."
Pretending to be surprised, she glanced at her icy-blue blouse before giving him an even warmer smile.
"Thank you -"
"It matches your eyes," he added, making her suppress the urge to roll them.
"So it does," she replied instead. "Is that a new tie?"
When she nodded at his tie, he looked down and grinned.
"It is. A gift from my wife."
"It's lovely. She's a lucky woman."
Why did he always bring up his wife when he was a well-known philanderer? That never made sense to her.
"I hope she feels that way," he said with another short laugh. "How have your cases been treating you?"
"Just as well as I've been treating them."
After throwing in a wink for good measure, Weiss returned to her seat. Before sitting, however, she shot a smug glance to the prosecuting attorney, Charles, who approached the bench in an attempt to duplicate what she just did.
Schmoozing with the judges was one of the worst parts of her job, but also one of the most important. They supervised the flow of information and speed of discourse, so having them on her side meant more leniency and control during the trial.
Unfortunately, her control began and ended with convincing Judge Jones that she was more appealing to look at than Charles. Beyond that...she felt out of her element, which was ridiculous. This was her element.
When Judge Jones motioned for the court recorders to turn on the data feeds, her nerves announced themselves loud and clear. Normally, she was calm and collected. Now, she waited on pins and needles for the trial to begin.
The best she could hope for was...what? Winning outright was the usual answer, but today...she didn't know what she wanted. Losing sounded horrible, but what if that made Ruby happy?
If Weiss started tossing cases just to make Ruby happy, she might as well quit right now. She had to show that she could still do this, even after what happened. Kissing Ruby didn't make her any less of an attorney - she was still Weiss Schnee. She still possessed, somewhere within her, all of the skills and capabilities she needed to do this.
As soon as Judge Jones motioned for the trial to begin, she took a deep breath and clasped her hands together on the table in front of her.
"Councilor Miller," Judge Jones said while motioning for the man to stand. "Your opening remarks, please."
"Thank you, Your Honor," Charles replied in his slow, deep voice before turning towards the jury camera. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we're here today in search of justice for nearly two hundred families that lost an incredible sum of money to this man - William Pruitt. He presents himself as an honorable, successful financier, but his profits were stolen off the backs of others through schemes designed to deceive honest, hard-working citizens.
I'm sure you've heard of his company - Pruitt Finance - and you've seen the gorgeous, newly-remodeled Pruitt Building at the edge of downtown. What you don't see are the dirty details - the lies used to steal money and funnel it into his personal endeavors.
In this particular case, he reached out to the victims with a proposed business idea - the world's most advanced, luxurious, spectacular yacht, designed to host parties and soirees out on the bay, keeping the rich and famous away from prying lenses. All they had to do was invest, and they would be partial owners of this new venture. What they didn't know was that Mr. Pruitt had no intention of hosting a single party, as he sank that magnificent boat and claimed the remaining funds for himself.
Today, we'll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Mr. Pruitt's actions before and after the so-called 'Rich Wreck' were malicious, intentional, and constitute fraud as well as willful negligence. Help Vale send a message that his behavior isn't acceptable in our city, and never will be."
Satisfied with those remarks, Charles nodded to Judge Jones and returned to his seat. Once he sat down, Weiss took the floor and turned towards the jury with a patient, patronizing expression.
"Not all business ventures work out," she said simply, letting those words sink in before continuing. "All investments carry risk, whether it's your credits or those coins made of ancient metal that your brother-in-law convinced you to buy.
My client has been starting businesses since before he graduated high school. Some of those became immeasurable successes, others less so, and even fewer end in failure. The results may be different, but he gives each one his best effort to ensure they succeed. Why wouldn't he? His credits are at risk too - why would he intentionally throw that money away?
The accident in the bay was exactly that - an accident. It was no more my client's fault than any one of ours. After the wreckage was cleared and it became clear that this business was, unfortunately, no longer viable, he followed each investment agreement down to the letter in returning funds to their rightful owners.
Then why, you ask, are we here today? That answer lies in denial, and our human nature to abhor failure. A risky investment was made and money was lost, but these clients can't accept that they simply had bad luck. No, someone has to take the blame. They believe my client wronged them when, in actuality, he did everything he promised and then some.
Accidents happen, plain and simple. Blaming Mr. Pruitt for something over which he had no control runs counter to the fabric of our legal code. Over the course of this trial, you'll see that the Getaway's sinking was just an unfortunate accident and that my client still went through great lengths protecting as much value as possible for his investors."
Having planted more than a few seeds of doubt, Weiss nodded to Judge Jones, returned to her seat, and tapped to the next page of her case files. She felt like she won the opening remarks, like she usually did, but what came next gave her real reason to worry.
"Your Honor," Charles began. "The prosecution would like to call Ruby Rose, Vale P.D.'s head of technology."
Hearing Ruby's name was enough to make Weiss' heart beat faster, but she tried not to stare while Ruby walked to the witness stand. Had she been here for opening remarks? Had she heard Weiss imply that the victims were essentially greedy whiners?
The moment Ruby sat down and met Weiss' gaze, Weiss knew this would be harder than usual.
"Miss Rose," Charles addressed Ruby, thankfully drawing her gaze. "Please state your qualifications for the jurors."
"I've been the lead tech analyst for Vale P.D. for the past three and a half years," Ruby replied in her calm, self-assured voice. "I'm CIMA, FLO, and PIR certified, which are all of the master-level computer certifications that exist right now."
Listening to Ruby rattle off her qualifications was always something of a struggle, but today was even worse. Today, Weiss knew that Ruby was actually being modest.
"Thank you," Charles replied even though he should prod Ruby to elaborate on just how qualified she was. "Now, when the charges were filed against Mr. Pruitt, Vale P.D. was tasked with finding evidence of wrongdoing. Can you explain what was found?"
"Yes." Ruby shifted in her seat and glanced at Weiss before refocusing on Charles. "The ship was almost completely destroyed, but our dive team recovered quite a few electrical components. Most of it was standard issue for that type of boat, but then there was this."
Ruby gestured at the evidence screen as a photograph of a small, circular device popped into view.
"Can you explain what that is?" Charles asked, even though Ruby had already opened her mouth to do just that.
"It's a magnetron, or what's left of one. They're typically used in cars or maintenance vehicles for braking but have no use on any kind of watercraft."
Weiss opened her mouth to object to that statement but, when Ruby glanced her way, said nothing. She let that one slide - she shouldn't let it slide, but she didn't want to interrupt. But part of her job was interrupting.
"Objection," she got out right before Ruby continued. "Speculation - these devices could easily have purpose on a ship under certain circumstances."
"Um, no, actually," Ruby replied before glancing at Judge Jones, who gave her silent permission to explain. "Any ship built in the last hundred years shouldn't have one of these on board because it fries the electronics. I checked Vale's registration logs and the oldest ship in the city is only eighty-four years - and that one's in the maritime museum, not the water."
Silently cursing the response, Weiss nodded and sat down rather than press the issue. She should have known Ruby would do more research than necessary, as usual.
"Anyway..." Ruby continued, again glancing at Weiss. "The reason why they're so bad on a ship is that they mess with this thing." Another picture from the wreckage popped up on the screen. "It used to look like this," she added when an undamaged one appeared in a side-by-side view.
"This is, essentially, what keeps modern boats floating, and it hates strong magnets. Over time, and based on proximity, a magnetron will erode it to the point that it stops working. Once that happens, the boat will likely sink."
"So the Getaway sank because someone put a powerful magnet on board," Charles summarized. "What does this have to do with Mr. Pruitt?"
"According to his transaction history, which was layered through a small business account owned by one of his businesses, he bought a magnetron shortly before the accident."
More charts and graphics accompanied the claim. And they were all easily understandable regardless of how complicated the underlying transactions actually were.
"So he buys this magnet and sinks his own ship," Charles prodded Ruby. "Why would he do that?"
"Um...probably because the investment agreements let him pay himself 'reasonable compensation' before returning any money to investors."
"Objection," Weiss added, taking her feet and shaking her head at Judge Jones. "Conjecture - the witness isn't an attorney or legal aid of any kind. She can't speak to the contracts."
"Allowed," Judge Jones replied.
Weiss scowled at Charles before sitting down. He knew Ruby couldn't comment on the law yet led her into that situation and forced Weiss to interrupt her. What an imbecile.
"Ok, then I can't say why he sank his own ship," Ruby corrected. "But the evidence suggests it wasn't an accident."
"Thank you, Ruby," Charles replied before nodding to Judge Jones and returning to his seat.
As usual, the prosecuting team left so much unexplored and so much wiggle room for Weiss to operate in. Today, however, that mattered little.
When Weiss stood and walked up to Ruby, same as she had a hundred times before, everything felt different. This was someone she was undeniably attracted to, both physically and emotionally, but her job forced her to do everything in her power to prove Ruby wrong.
Before Weiss started to panic, however, something in Ruby's eyes caught her attention. There was no unease, worry, or distaste swimming in gorgeous pools of silver. There was only anticipation, expectation...and excitement. Suddenly, Weiss understood that she'd missed something - again.
Ruby loved being challenged. And she wanted Weiss to challenge her.
Maybe that interpretation was wrong. Maybe it was projection. But it was all Weiss had to go on right now, so she grasped onto it like a lifeline. If Ruby wanted a challenge, she would get one.
"Hi Ruby," Weiss said without thinking, and smiled when Ruby responded with a baffled expression.
"Uh, hi."
The unorthodox greeting unsettled Ruby. She probably didn't even notice herself leaning back in her seat, trying to wrap her head around the new situation.
"About what you said," Weiss began with a wave signifying the evidence presented. "How do you know that magnetron was on the boat? What if it was just sitting on the bottom of the bay and the Getaway accidentally anchored on top of it?"
"By testing the rubber gaskets, which showed nearly identical levels of waterlog compared to similar forms of rubber found on the ship."
It took Ruby only a second to put the test results on the screen and, as usual, she'd reformatted them so even the simplest minds could understand.
"So, in your opinion, you're positive that this magnetron sank the Getaway?"
"Yes."
"What makes you think it's the same one my client purchased? Did you match the serial numbers?"
"It was too damaged to do that," Ruby explained. "But he was asked to surrender his to authorities, which he couldn't do."
This was where the case became someone else's - because Ruby would have figured out how to match the devices without a serial number. Unfortunately for her, her coworkers dealt her a poor hand and not enough time to work her magic.
"He couldn't remember where he put it," Weiss corrected. "Which the police, for some reason, interpreted as a sign that he intentionally sabotaged his financial wellbeing."
Turning back to Ruby, Weiss felt almost guilty about what she was about to do. But it was her job - she had to do it.
"Do you have the serial number for the magnetron Mr. Pruitt purchased?" she asked, and Ruby's brow immediately furrowed.
"Yes…"
Ruby sensed that something was about to be revealed but couldn't figure out what. Weiss, meanwhile, returned to her desk and picked up a plastic bag holding a small, round, magnetic device.
"Well, he found it," she said while holding it up for the jury to see. She then held it out to Ruby, who numbly accepted it. "Can you check the serial number?" Weiss prodded her, and she lifted the device to check the tiny number etched on the bottom.
"It's...the same." When Ruby looked up, her eyes were filled with disbelief. Already, she was working through how that could be possible - if this was the same device, then who planted a different one on the ship? "But -"
"No further questions," Weiss interrupted before spinning around and taking the device back to the table. Once there, she busied herself preparing for the next witness and made sure not to meet Ruby's gaze while she exited the room.
As soon as Ruby was gone, Weiss relaxed ever so slightly. That wasn't as hard as expected, but now she worried that she read Ruby's emotions wrong. What if Ruby hadn't been anticipating Weiss' questions - what if she'd been dreading it?
"Councilor Miller," Judge Jones prodded. Quickly standing, Charles cleared his throat and tried to salvage his case.
The rest of the trial passed in a blur. With Ruby physically absent and her testimony out of the way, Weiss settled into her usual tempo. The witnesses called by the prosecution were, for lack of a better word, horrible. They hadn't been adequately briefed on their story, allowing her to tear holes in their testimony and point out glaring inconsistencies from one to the other. Besides, as she often pointed out, she had the supposed cause of the accident sitting on the edge of her desk.
By the time they reached closing remarks, which Charles fumbled his way through, confidence blossomed in her chest. She always thought she would win, of course, but sometimes she was more confident than others. So, after the jury deliberated for hardly over an hour, Judge Jones had her full attention as he read from the screen in front of him.
"Councilors," he called out, and they both stood in unison. "The jury has found Mr. William Pruitt not guilty of the crimes for which he was charged. His record will be expunged, and he's free to leave under his own accord."
Exactly what Weiss wanted to hear. Turning towards her client, she nodded and offered a quick, "Congratulations."
"Congratulations to you," he replied with that smug smile she'd come to hate. "You've been an invaluable help."
"It's my job. But I'd advise you to take more precautions next time. Public perception will eventually catch up to you."
"I know who to call if that ever happens."
With a wink that made her skin crawl, he walked away with that smug smile still in place. Some of the victims scowled as he left a free man, but he sent them a friendly wave before leaving the courtroom behind.
Weiss still didn't know how he did it. He just showed up with the device, and she didn't question it. Pulling at those threads was guaranteed to lead her down some bad roads, but...maybe ignorance wasn't bliss.
After shooing the paralegals away, she checked her phone and found that Damon had already extended his congratulations and an offer of another case. She didn't want a new case right now though. She wanted a shower to wash away the lingering stench of privilege and money. And she needed to find Ruby.
Quickly gathering her belongings and leaving the courtroom, she made it back to the police station in no time. When Ruby's lab came into view, however, her pace slowed, and her heart stuttered when she saw Ruby talking to one of the patrol officers inside.
Weiss hoped for some type of reassurance that what happened was ok. That they were fine. That no feelings had been hurt. When Ruby only glanced her way, however, she realized that was impossible right now. It wasn't as if she could walk into the lab and demand a conversation. Instead, she left the police station and pulled out her phone as soon as she reached her car.
She didn't want to be demanding, but she wanted to talk to Ruby as soon as possible. The growing unease in her stomach wouldn't go away otherwise. So she typed a polite, 'Come over later, if you're free?' and sent the slightly beseeching invitation on its way. Once done, she headed home rather than return to the office.
When her phone buzzed several minutes later, a succinct 'sure, will leave soon' waited for her. Not exactly effusive, but Ruby could be brief when she was busy. It still felt like a positive sign that Ruby responded at all.
That's what Weiss kept telling herself as she returned home and waited for Ruby to arrive. With each passing minute, however, her worry grew.
So much time and effort went into these cases that when they didn't turn out the way you wanted - or, in this case, when a potentially guilty man went free - hurt feelings were unavoidable. Or maybe it was worse than that - maybe Ruby just realized what a horrible person Weiss was and decided that they shouldn't see each other again.
Part of her argued that that was unfair - Ruby knew who she was before getting into this...whatever this was. Another part of her accepted that someone with her...'murky' morals...didn't deserve someone with such a pure heart. She tried to be a good person, but her job sometimes required willful ignorance…
Those were excuses. She'd always been fine with excuses before, but if this just cost her Ruby...was it worth it? Were the money and success really worth it?
"Get a grip, Weiss…" she scolded herself while pacing the entryway and glancing at the clock every few minutes. It was getting late now...when would Ruby get here? Had she gotten caught up at work? Or had she decided that she didn't want to see Weiss, after all?
Just when Weiss considered sending a second message, the bell rang.
"James, who is it?" she asked while already hurrying to the back door.
"An unidentified visitor."
"Did they leave a message?"
"Yes. 'Colon, right parenthesis.'"
The message made her smile as she opened the door and found...a pizza delivery girl. Complete with pizza.
"Sorry I'm late, but I brought food!"
After raising the box in her hands, Ruby grinned and stepped past Weiss into the house.
"I tried to figure out what you like," Ruby added while making her way to the kitchen. "But apparently you've never ordered a pizza before. So I ordered half with everything and half with nothing. Figured you'd be an extreme type of girl."
Stunned by the nonchalant entrance, Weiss followed Ruby into the kitchen and watched her set the pizza box on the island.
"Want to watch a movie tonight?" Ruby added. "I have one in mind, but it's scarier than the first. Supposed to be good though, if you're up for it."
When Ruby finally stopped talking and waited for a response, Weiss opened her mouth but struggled to find words to say. She'd expected a somber entrance followed by a serious, soul-searching conversation, not...pizza.
"Are we not going to talk about today?" she came right out and asked, knowing she couldn't move on otherwise. Ruby, however, blinked.
"What about it?"
"The case! The trial. Me cross-examining you."
"We're not supposed to talk about work," Ruby pointed out, but Weiss shook her head.
"This is an exception."
"There are exceptions?"
"Ruby," Weiss said, knowing she didn't have to point out that everything had an exception.
"Ok, ok." After softly chuckling to herself, Ruby gave the question the consideration it deserved. After only a second, however, she waved it away. "I have no idea how those serial numbers matched, but I'll figure it out!"
Weiss expected more than that - anger, frustration, something - but Ruby just smiled.
"You're not mad at me?" Weiss finally pressed, but Ruby tilted her head.
"Why would I be mad at you?"
"Because…" So many reasons flashed through Weiss' mind, but she chose the one that felt most important. "Because we both know that he shouldn't have walked out of that courtroom, and I'm the one who made that happen."
Acknowledging that inescapable truth, Weiss felt awful. Usually, she just pushed those thoughts aside and moved on to the next case. Ruby's presence, however, forced her to consider the repercussions of her work and her actions. Sure, William wasn't a physical danger to anyone, but his business deals were designed to make himself wealthy at the expense of others. He would do something like that again.
"I'm not mad. You're just a different person at work. I mean, you kind of have to be to do what you do."
"Yes, but -"
"Weiss," Ruby interrupted with a small laugh and shake of her head. "It's ok, really. I'm not mad at you, or upset, or any bad emotion."
"Then...that was ok?"
"I think so." When Ruby stepped forward and lightly touched Weiss' arm, disbelief stirred in Weiss' chest. "Do you?"
If that was ok - if they were ok - that meant...besides being against the rules, this had no bearing on their jobs. They could continue this...whatever this was...and still work.
"I think so."
When Weiss hesitantly touched Ruby's cheek, and Ruby leaned into her touch, she knew so. Somehow, the bond between them felt even stronger than before. Quite possibly stronger than their attachment to their jobs. That didn't seem possible, but when she curled her fingers around Ruby's ear and Ruby smiled down at her, her heart told her it was true.
She tilted her chin up and closed her eyes when Ruby leaned down to her, butterflies fluttering everywhere the instant Ruby's lips met hers. There were so many emotions in that tender touch - emotions she'd never experienced before - and she couldn't help wanting more.
So she returned the kiss, then added another while pressing closer, hoping to express through actions what she felt racing through her heart. When she looped her arms around Ruby's neck, as if Ruby might try to slip away, Ruby's hands landed on the small of her back and pulled her even closer.
Feeling Ruby pressed against her sent heat rushing through her veins, and an inescapable desire swelled as the kiss continued. Their breaths grew heavier, their hands began to roam, and Weiss willingly parted her lips when Ruby deepened the kiss.
As soon as their tongues met once again, the mood changed. Suddenly, there wasn't enough oxygen between them. Their movements suggested desperation for more - more of anything they could get away with. And when Ruby pressed Weiss against the countertop, taking control and drawing a gasp from her in the process, she knew there was no stopping anytime soon.
Why would they stop? She'd tried to resist, but these feelings were too powerful. She wanted Ruby. Ruby wanted her. Right now, that was all that mattered.