AUTHOR'S NOTES: A pretty busy week for me, so this one is a little later than I'd like. I've also been doing some homework on this story, as I'm leaving the stuff I know really well (air combat) and entering a sphere I know very little about (lawfare).

So pretty much from here on out, this story is going to be a courtroom drama. If that interests you, great...but if you're here for air combat action, then you are going to be disappointed by the rest of ORW VI. There's not going to be any sudden Salem attack where Ruby Flight saves the country and gets the charges dismissed. Too easy, and not "realistic" (though realism in a story with Irradiated Mommy Salami and GRIMM drones is laughable). Ruby and her bunch will survive by how good their lawyer is...and it just so happens we get to meet the guy this chapter. Again, if you're here for fast-moving fighters taking on hordes of GRIMM-sorry; not until ORW VII. But if you want to read how Ruby Rose gets found innocent or gets found guilty, written by a guy who has less experience writing law scenes than the writers of She-Hulk, then continue on. I'll do my best...

One quick note of explanation: the term "Space-A" gets used in this story a bit. Space-A is a neat perk given to US armed forces personnel (or they did when my dad served). Basically, you and sometimes your family can fly anywhere in the world for free...if they don't mind flying on a military transport (uncomfortable) or a tanker (even more uncomfortable). Of course, you go where the transport goes. So if my dad wanted to take me to Disneyland when I was a kid, flying from McChord AFB, Washington to the nearest base at MCAS El Toro, we could do that...but the tanker or transport might have to fly across the country to Seymour-Johnson AFB in North Carolina (the real-life Signal AFB) first, then down to Kelly AFB in Texas, then up to Mountain Home AFB in Idaho, and then down to El Toro. At any point, me or my dad could be kicked off the flight for no reason with no voucher to continue on our way. Luckily for Ruby Flight, the C-141 was going their way. (My dad flew as a passenger in C-141s in the USAF, and he said it was loud, uncomfortable, boring, and in bad weather, terrifying.)

Signal Air Force Base

Goldsboro, North Carolina, United States of Canada

19 September 2001

Unlike Europe, which was enjoying a late summer, North Carolina was enjoying—though that was entirely the wrong word—an early fall. The C-141 Starlifter landed in a drizzle, and when the doors were opened, the humidity hit them like a wave. "Uggh," Ruby groaned. It felt like someone had just wrapped her in a cold, wet blanket. She instantly felt her flight suit getting soaked.

"Welcome home, Ruby!" Yang laughed. "Whew! I'd forgotten how humid it was. At least it's not too hot."

"Yay," Blake grumped. She followed the sisters out onto the tarmac, her ears flattening against the wet. "Why did I come here instead of going home?"

"Because we're being court-martialed!" Yang replied with forced cheer.

"Oh yes, how could I ever forget."

Weiss came out next and coughed. Germany could be humid, but this felt like a physical blow. "I think I should just go back home…"

Yang turned. "Not too late, Weissy. That bitch Senator is likely to make you stay now."

Weiss made a show of thinking about it. "No…the last time I got separated from you lot I ended up almost being sold into sex slavery." She stopped. "Which seems to happen with alarming regularity to me, come to think of it."

Yang was absolutely determined to lighten the mood. She dropped her overnight bag on the tarmac, clasped her hands to the side of her head, and batted her eyelashes. "But we all know you're Marrow Amin's slave of looove…"

"Oh, kiss my ass," Weiss shot back.

"Only if you ask nicely, Weiss." Yang made disgusting kissy noises at her, then picked up her bag and followed Ruby and Blake across the tarmac. They had flown from Europe through the night: the C-141 had no windows and the seats faced backwards, at the front of the fuselage. The enlisted loadmaster had told them with glee that the seats were there to cushion the cargo if it broke loose and hurtled forward; the transport had been carrying a pair of generators that alone weighed several tons. Besides being sealed in a tubelike fuselage with almost no windows for eight hours, there was a storm the C-141 had fought through, and an air refueling in the middle of it. Weiss had thrown up in the turbulence, which would not have bothered her in her own fighter or an airliner, but with no frame of reference as the transport heaved up and down, it had been enough to make her violently sick. Yang joked that it was clearly morning sickness, but then the C-141 had hit a particularly nasty downdraft, and she had nearly once more seen the McDonalds she had gorged on before leaving Ramstein.

The walk across the tarmac was done mostly in silence after the banter, mainly because the four of them were trying just to breathe in air that seemed three parts moisture and one part oxygen. In the distance were the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing's F-15E Strike Eagles, lined up—dozens of the strike fighters. Yang watched the rows of the dark gray aircraft and wondered if she'd ever fly a F-15 again, or anything at all for that matter.

Then a door opened up in the adminstration building beneath the base tower, and Yang even forgot the F-15 and the trial for a moment. Taiyang Xiao Long stepped out: he was dressed in his usual tan shirt, brown vest, cargo shorts and sandals, which made Yang wonder how they let him onto base and didn't arrest him for vagrancy. She dropped her overnight bag and ran towards her father as he stretched out his arms. Ruby was faster, and hug-tackled Tai, nearly knocking him to the ground. Yang was only a second behind. The girls cried as they held their father, and he hugged them with all the strength he possessed, as if he could somehow take away all the pain and hurt and hate. Blake and Weiss watched them—Blake wishing she could hug her father, and Weiss wishing she had a father worthy of the name to hug.

Tai then motioned the other two women forward. Yang let go, but Ruby continued to hold onto him, just like she had when she was little. "You must be Blake and Weiss," Tai said warmly, and put out a hand. "Good to finally meet you." The handshake was a trap, and Weiss fell for it first. She got drawn into a hug as well, then it was Blake's turn. Neither minded in the least. "My home is your home," Tai proclaimed after he'd let them go. "One of you might have to take the couch and one of you might end up on the floor, but we'll find you a place to sleep."

"Thanks, Dad!" Yang grinned.

Tai led them back into the administration building, where all four signed yet more paperwork; the USAF ran on it, but Yang wondered aloud if she had to sign a form to reproduce. Then she remembered that, in theory, she did have to sign a form to do that. To their surprise, the person who took their in-processing paperwork, temporarily stationing them at Signal, was not an admin officer or even the familiar face of Major Oum. It was a legal officer. He informed them that the arraignment would be in three days.

"Arraignment?" Tai asked. "What about the Article 32 investigation?"

"It was finished last night," the legal officer informed them. He was not smiling; in fact, he seemed almost hostile. "The board stayed up late. This is being expedited."

"On whose order?" Tai wanted to know.

"None of your business."

"Lieutenant," Tai snapped. "Despite the way I am dressed, I hold the rank of Major in the Air Force Reserves. You will answer my question and address me as 'sir.' Otherwise, I will find your commanding officer and we will have a chat. Your next duty station will be Shemya, Alaska. Do you understand me, Lieutenant?"

The legal officer swallowed involuntarily. Tai was a big man, and his tone of voice brooked no argument. Technically, Tai didn't need to know, as he was not involved in the trial, but the lieutenant wilted under those hard eyes. "Er…sir. I don't know, sir, honestly. I do know that it is being expedited from the highest level."

"The Senator," Blake commented. "Great."

"I'm afraid I don't know, Captain."

"But the court-martial is going forward, then." Yang's hopes crashed.

"Yes, Captain." The legal officer took a step back. "You will check in every morning at 0800 hours until then. You are not allowed to leave the state of North Carolina. Should you do so or fail to check in, you will be arrested for desertion." The words were now clipped legalese, with none of the contempt of before. "Your arraignment is at 0800 Hours local, in Building 72223, Legal Affairs. A defense counsel has been appointed for you; he will call you tomorrow morning. You have the right to reject Lieutenant Commander Forrest if you choose; you also have the right to retain a civilian counsel at your own expense if you so choose."

"Lieutenant Commander?" Blake asked. "He's Navy?"

"Yes, ma'am." The lieutenant took another step back, out of reach of Tai's long arms—or Yang's. "He was the only one who would take the case is my understanding."

"Oh, shit." Ruby said the words in the same tone of voice of a pilot hearing their engine quit in midair.

"Are we going to be put in prison until the trial?" Yang asked quietly.

"It is my understanding that such a requirement should not be necessary." The lieutenant stole a furtive glance around the room. The dozen enlisted people in it pretended to be ignoring them. "That also comes from the highest level, though I don't know who…again." Arashikaze, all of them thought. "In any case, please sign those forms, saying you understand these restrictions." He pointed at the forms, but still didn't come any closer. "Not you, Hauptmann Schnee," the lieutenant hastily added. "You're not being arraigned, so far as I know. You are being ordered to remain here in the United States for the trial. Er…that form is right there. Over to your right."

"If I'm not on trial, why I am ordered to remain here?" Weiss said.

"As a witness, ma'am."

"For the defense?"

The lieutenant shook his head. "No, Hauptmann. For the prosecution."

Tai led them out of the administrative building. "What an asshole," he said after they left.

"Just doing his job, Dad," Ruby told her father.

"You don't have to be a jerkoff about it." Tai put his hands in his pockets. It had begun to lightly rain, and he hunched over, which reminded them of Qrow Branwen. Qrow had called them the night before and promised to visit before the trial, if one happened. Well, it's certainly happening, Ruby thought, her optimism falling like the rain.

Tai had parked a few blocks away. "Girls, listen," he said, "I wanted to say this before we got into the paperwork phase, but that didn't happen, so…" He glanced at Yang and Ruby. "I've got good news and bad news."

"You brought Zippy and we're all going to risk our lives today," Yang said, still trying to make a joke about it.

"Nah, rented a van. No way all of us were going to fit in Zippy. That's not it." He looked at Ruby very pointedly. "The good news is that Oscar Pine flew in this morning. He called me and I told him come on up to the house."

"Surprised we didn't see his F-18," Blake said.

"He didn't fly it in. He came in space-A, same as you. Remember, he's on trial too." He continued to look at Ruby, who now was the one to wilt under that gaze and swallow involuntarily.

Yang caught the look, but didn't want to ask if Oscar was still alive, or if Tai had already murdered his youngest daughter's lover. "He's staying at the house?"

"Yes. We set up the old tent out back, so everyone has some privacy. Figure you didn't want him walking around in his boxers in front of you." Ruby was starting to blush now, and there was no way Tai wasn't going to notice.

Yang came to her sister's rescue. She took her father's arm. "Dad, we just came off of three months of ops. I've already seen Oscar naked. He's seen all of us naked." Tai's head came around like a battleship's main battery. Yang didn't quail under his eyes. "C'mon, Dad. You know how it is out there, in a combat zone! Everybody sees each other naked. You're too tired to care. Hell, I had Ren's dick less than ten feet from my face. I can give you length and girth."

"When did that happ—" Weiss began, but Blake surreptitiously put a hand over her friend's mouth. She didn't remember Oscar or Ren ever being naked in front of any of the girls-aside from Ruby and Nora, of course-but she also knew why Yang was saying what she did.

"Anyway, it's not fair to exile the poor bastard to that old Army tent you and Mom stole," Yang finished.

"He volunteered. Anyway, that's the good news." He continued to look at Yang. "The bad news…" They were at the car, and then Tai didn't need to tell them the bad news.

Leaning against it, in the rain, was Raven Branwen.

Yang increased her stride, dropped her overnight bag, and swung a vicious right cross. Raven tried to dodge at the last minute when she realized that Yang was not going to pull the punch, but it was too late. Metal knuckles caught her first on the lips, then on the nose. Raven's last minute turn saved her from broken teeth or a broken nose, but blood still splattered on the van's white side and window. She staggered and dropped to one knee. "You fucking bitch!" Yang shouted, turning heads across the base. "Get up. I'm going to fucking kill you. What the fuck are you even doing here?"

Raven spit more blood onto the street as Yang was grabbed by Ruby and Tai. She grinned bloodily up at her daughter. "Hi, Yang. It's good to see you."

The four hour trip back to Patch and the Xiao Long-Rose home was made in sullen silence. Raven used handfuls of tissue to staunch the blood from her split lip and nose, and sat up front, where Yang could not punch her. Ruby wanted to ask why the woman who had tried to kill them in Japan was sitting in a SUV going to a house that was no longer hers, had not been hers in over 20 years, but a warning look from Tai kept her quiet. Clearly, that conversation was going to wait. Yang settled for glowering at her biological mother the whole way. She expected Raven to smirk back, or at least meet her gaze with a contemptous one, but Raven did neither, staring out the window and dabbing at her wound. Blake and Weiss, feeling extremely awkward, also said nothing, except for an idle comment by Weiss that western North Carolina was rather pretty. No one answered.

The rain had stopped by the time they reached the town of Patch, and a westerly mountain breeze abated the humidity at their house. Raven was temporarily forgotten as Tai parked the van: waiting on the porch, barking happily, was Zwei. Weiss slid back the van's door and was nearly run over as Ruby jumped past her, ran across the lawn, and embraced the dog, spinning the corgi around. Zwei licked her face and moved his stubby legs, trying to climb onto her shoulders. Then she set him down, and he pounded across the grass to leap into Yang's arms. The metal arm had never bothered him. After having her face licked, Zwei spotted Weiss, and barked as he recognized her scent, even after all the time since Beacon.

"Oh, go see her," Yang laughed, and set Zwei down. Weiss knelt and it was her turn to be smothered. "Oh, who's a good boy? You are! You are!" Weiss cooed. "I missed my wittle buddy sooo much!" She let the corgi drop back to his feet and slowly reached for a flight suit pocket. "Did Weiss buy her widdle friend some treats! Yes, she did! Oh yes she did!" Zwei was now spinning in place, and was overjoyed to accept some dog treats that the far-thinking Weiss had bought at Ramstein's base exchange. She scratched his ears as he munched on the treats. "Oh, you're so cute! You're so cute! Now's your chance, Blake! Yes, he's such a cute doggie!"

Blake went around the side of the van, keeping it, Raven and the overnight bags between her and Zwei. It did no good. The wind shifted and Zwei instantly forgot the treats, as he recognized another smell-the one of his favorite chew toy. "Oh God," Blake breathed, as the corgi turned and charged her. She could not resist her instincts and ran for it, into the house, as Zwei tore after her in pursuit.

Weiss straighted up. "You'd think she'd learn. Any time Blake runs, Zwei thinks it's play time with the cat Faunus."

"This happened a lot at Beacon?" Tai asked.

"You have no idea," Yang said. Her temporary good mood was shattered as Raven got out of the van. Then she was distracted again, this time by Oscar Pine walking out of the house. He was dressed as casually as she had ever seen him, in a T-shirt with a VF-1 emblem on it, blue jeans, and tennis shoes.

"Oscar?" Ruby whispered.

"H-Hi…" Oscar wavered, almost as if he was going to pass out, then Ruby went after him like Zwei had gone after Blake. He had a second to prepare as a red haired, female missile hit him and knocked him back against the door. She brought her lips down on his as if he would disappear in her arms.

Tai sighed. "Dammit to hell. I thought so." All the same, he said nothing more as he brushed past both of them. Ruby and Oscar were too lost in each other to notice.

"Tai," Raven called out. He turned at the threshold of the house. "I'll take the van into town and spend the night at the Dewdrop." A small smile; she and Tai had spent a month at the Dewdrop Inn in Patch, waiting for the realtor to close on the house. It had been a very pleasant month.

"Like hell you will," Yang snarled. "I want to know what the fuck is going on."

"And I'm happy to tell you," Raven answered. "But I think you deserve a night to talk to your father, alone. We can talk tomorrow, after we're all rested and have some time to process this."

"I should kill you right here," Yang hissed.

"Yang, that's enough," Tai warned. "Raven is a guest here, whatever else is going on."

She whirled on her father, her teeth bared. "You fucking her, Dad?"

Tai slapped Yang across the face, his hand like a striking snake. The slap caused all of them to turn around, even Oscar and Ruby, who had stopped kissing each other but were still embracing. Yang's left hand came up to her face, in stunned surprise. Tai had never struck one of his daughters, aside from a quick swat on the rear end on rare occasions they acted up as children. "You talk like that to me again, Yang, and you'll be walking back to Signal to stay at the VOQ." Tai took a deep breath. "Raven, that might be for the best. You're right; we all need to get some sleep."

"All right." Raven didn't look back; she shut the doors on the van, climbed in, and drove off.

Yang was still staring at Tai. He shook his head at her. "Yang, you're my oldest and I love you. But you do not talk like that to me. Ever. No, I haven't been fucking Raven. She hasn't asked and I haven't offered. I love your mother too much for that. It's a long story, and one we'll talk about tomorrow. Now let's have a nice pleasant dinner, talk about the present situation, and try to enjoy the evening as best we can. Let tomorrow's evils take care of themselves."

Officer's Quarters, Naval Air Station Oceana

Virginia Beach, Virginia, United States of Canada

19 September 2001

Lieutenant Commander John Forrest took off his cap and peacoat, hanging them up on a peg. He took a moment to look over the pictures of aircraft that he had flown, hanging off the wall—F-14 Tomcats, F-18 Hornets, the TA-4J Skyhawk he'd flown in training. He looked down; his wings of gold glinted back, above the two rows of ribbons; on his sleeves were the three stripes, two wide and one narrow, of a lieutenant commander, above which was the marking of the Judge Advocate General corps of the US Navy. Forrest sighed, wishing he had never accepted the appointment to the JAG. Well, he thought, if I can get through this, I can get back up there. Then he felt bad, because on the stairwell leading to the upstairs bedrooms, were pictures of his wife and two children. Getting back up there might mean going to sea, and going to sea meant not seeing his family for months. As the old saying in the Navy went, if the service wanted someone to have a family, they would have issued them one.

"Hi." Forrest looked up to see his wife, dressed in her pajamas. They looked frumpy, even on a rather attractive woman like Brittany Forrest. When they had first gotten married, and she was a young woman aspiring to be a professional soccer player and he was a dashing fighter pilot ensign, Brittany would have greeted him dressed in sexy lingerie or nothing at all…but that was fifteen years and two children ago.

"Hey." He went over and kissed her on the top of her head, between her ears; Brittany was a Faunus. "Sorry I'm so damn late…I've been going over this case. Kids already in bed?" He knew they were; it was well past eleven.

"Yes." She stared up at him. "You took the case?"

Forrest said nothing for a moment, then tiredly nodded. "Yeah. Mad at me?"

"No…probably should be, but no." She went past him and into the kitchen.

"I ate at the office," he told her.

"Burger King?" Forrest nodded. "I'll warm up some real food." He wasn't going to argue with his wife. One, because like most husbands he had learned it was best not to, and two, Brittany was a very good cook. She took out some leftovers and put them in the microwave. While it warmed, she turned to face him. "John, are you sure about this? You told me that you were going to tell the admiral no. You also told me that you didn't want to be anywhere near this case because of the publicity."

"And I meant it. Told the admiral, too. Then he told me to look over the particulars of the case for an hour and get back to him."

Brittany sighed and got out the food. He took off his blue uniform tunic and hung it over the chair, then sat at the table, eating in his undershirt. She sat down across from him. "And you never do back down from a challenge, do you?"

"Nope," he said from around a mouthful of jambalaya.

She stared at him. "And what else did the admiral promise?"

Forrest put down the fork. He should have known he couldn't get that past her. "Back on flight status."

Brittany almost brought her hand down on the table in frustration, then remembered the sleeping children. "Dammit, John!" She got out of the chair and stood over him; Forrest knew that if his wife had a tail, it would be lashing. "God, it's been so good having you home for the past five years. JAG duty has been great for you—and great for the kids! We don't have to worry about you out on that…that…fucking carrier!" He smothered a smile; Brittany rarely used that word. "Or fighting the damn GRIMM out there! You know what's been happening in Europe. If you get Atlantic Fleet duty, you'll be gone for a year at least. Bob Walker's wife was telling me they're putting at least four carriers out there next month!"

"Nice to know that Bob has a big mouth," Forrest observed. He got up, came around the table, and took her hands in his. "Brit, look…yes, the admiral offered me another flight slot, but he didn't say where. I can probably talk him into giving me a slot down in Pensacola or Kingsville—training duties. Or even adversary at Key West. I've got enough time in for that."

She shook her head. "John, they're going to send you to sea."

Forrest chuckled. "Brit, at this point, I could probably ask to be promoted to rear admiral and command Pensacola, and Admiral Global would agree to it. He's desperate."

Brittany blew out her breath. "Good heavens. It's that bad?"

"Well…not as bad as he thinks. Sit down—grab you something, Brit."

"Okay." She went over to the refrigerator and got out two beers; something told Brittany it was going to be that kind of case. Ever since her husband had gone to JAG, he had talked over cases with her; he said that it helped him see angles he might not see otherwise, even if it broke several regulations and attorney-client privilege. She cracked open both beers and listened while he talked and ate. Once he wolfed down the jambalaya, he got up and began to pace, which was another habit.

"So we've got four defendants—Captains Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, Blake Belladonna, and Ensign Oscar Pine," he began. "Two Air Force, one Marine, one Navy. From what the admiral told him, the Air Force JAGs don't want to come anywhere near this thing because they're afraid they'll be accused of bias if they win the case, and hated by us and the Jarheads if they lose. They already asked five other Navy and Marine JAGs, and they turned it down."

Brittany sipped her beer. "The press makes it sound pretty bad," she said. "Mutiny, and all that. Some people even say they're the ones who lost us Poland." She rolled her eyes. "Which I think is total crap."

"It is total crap. People seem to even forget this Salem person exists. They want to either hang Ironwood or hang Ruby Flight."

"Speaking of which, I notice you didn't mention the Schnee girl."

"She's not being named as a defendant. The Germans are already dealing with putting her father on trial for treason; the last thing they want is the Americans trying the youngest daughter for mutiny." Forrest paused and took a drink himself. "They are naming her as a witness for the prosecution, which is a bit odd."

"Doesn't that help you?" Brittany was leaning forward in her chair now, getting into the case.

"It might. Haven't really looked into that just yet." He took another drink and started pacing again. "Anyway, they've got them on eight counts—Missing Movement, Disrespect Towards a Superior, Failure to Obey Orders, Mutiny, Destruction of Military Property, and Conduct Unbecoming. They might add a ninth count, Conduct to the Prejudice of Good Order and Discipline. In fact, I hope they do."

"Why?"

"Because they're already overcharging them." Forrest smiled at his wife. "After I took the case, I called up the guy who drew up the charges—Major Victor March, SACEUR's JAG officer. He was a piece of work. I could hear him practically rubbing his hands together over the phone."

Brittany nodded. "That's something. You think he's got something personal going on?"

"He's one of Ironwood's old staff. I know he does. He wanted to hit those pilots with everything in the book, hoping that one of them will stick. He wants a conviction so he can get revenge for his boss. He told me they were guilty, told me I was ruining my career by even considering the case. I'm hoping he'll do something really stupid and tell the press they're guilty, and then we can move for a mistrial…but I think he's too smart for that."

"So you can beat this." Brittany made it a statement. Her husband won more cases than he lost.

"Kind of." He took another drink. "The mutiny charge I can beat…mainly because what Ruby Flight did wasn't mutiny."

Her eyebrows went up. "That's the charge the press keeps talking about. I'm surprised they haven't called this the 'Ruby Mutiny' yet."

"True, but the UCMJ defines mutiny as the 'intent to usurp or override lawful military authority.'" Forrest could quote the passage by heart; he had looked over it a dozen times that evening. "Ruby Rose never intended to do that. She didn't want to overthrow Ironwood; she just thought his order was unlawful. The second clause in the UCMJ is 'intent to cause the overthrow or destruction of lawful civil authority.' She didn't do that, either."

"Then they'll dismiss the charge?"

Forrest shrugged. "Maybe. The problem is, the first clause also states 'refuses to obey orders or otherwise do their duty, or creates any violence or disturbance.' She did do that, though Rose did her duty as she saw fit, which was to save Poland. She and her bunch weren't running away; just the opposite. I don't think she caused any violence or disturbance, but the prosecution might find something." He finished the beer. "The Destruction of Military Property I can get dismissed, easily. That's what I mean by I say that Major March overcharged…" He trailed off for a moment, and Brittany waited patiently. Forrest was thinking of something.

"What about the other charges?" she finally asked.

"That's the problem. They're guilty of all of them. Hell, Rose admitted as such to General Gale. March was happy as a clam about that."

"She should've kept her mouth shut until she spoke to a lawyer."

"Probably," Forrest agreed. "Then again, it's hearsay—March wasn't in Gale's office. No way that gets admitted as a confession. Still…if it was anyone else, I'd tell them to enter a guilty plea and take a plea agreement. Their careers would be over, but they wouldn't go to jail."

"Why don't they?" Brittany asked.

"One reason why I'm so late is that I got their personality profiles from their last evaluation. They're like most Huntresses and Huntsmen: highly motivated, independent individuals. Wild cards. That's why we make them Huntresses and Huntsmen, because you need that when you're in the air. Hell, if it wasn't for you and the kids, I might've gone for Huntsman status."

"Thank God you didn't." Brittany suppressed a shudder. She had seen the casualty rates. Three out of four Huntresses and Huntsmen didn't finish their careers; most didn't come back.

"In any case, Ruby Flight thinks they're in the right. They think that Ironwood gave them an unlawful order, and it was their duty to disobey it and stay in the fight. In the end, they might be right…but they still disobeyed orders." Forrest stopped pacing and leaned against the couch. "They'll want to enter a not guilty plea. If I ask them to go for a plea agreement, they'll tell me to shove it up my ass and find another lawyer. Especially this Xiao Long woman. Oh, and March is trying to get another charge leveled on her and Belladonna—Providing Classified Material Without Authorization." Forrest snorted. "That won't stick, not when Ironwood told Robyn Hill the same damn thing a few days later." He reconsidered. "Then again, maybe it will stick. What a general does is different from a captain." He pushed off the couch and walked over to his wife. "But even with a not guilty plea, I think I can win."

"You wouldn't have taken the case otherwise." Brittany reached up and patted his hands. "Who's the prosecuting attorney? You find out?"

He nodded. "Captain Jane Chapel. She's a Marine."

"Oh crap," Brittany said, getting out of her chair. "I've heard of her. She's good."

"She's very good. Unlike me, she does this JAG thing full time. She plans on going Federal court after she gets out, and she'll get it." Forrest laughed. "It would be better if it was a prosecutor who was an idiot or someone I can't stand, but I like Jane."

"We've met. She seems like a pleasant person," Brittany said, then grinned. "For a Jarhead."

"She is a nice person, except in court—then she's a damn barracuda." He yawned. "Holy crap, Brit, it's after midnight."

"Well, let's go to bed." He kissed her. "Careful," she purred as he started reaching for her bottom, "this is how we got those two children, and I really don't want a third right now." She kissed his nose. "However, I will accept being carried up the stairs by my manly fighter pilot, who has already worked out how he's going to win this thing and become the most famous lawyer since Thurgood Marshall or something."

His smile faded. "Yeah. I do know how I'm going to win this thing…and I wish I didn't."