Salvation

16

The day of the court hearing soon drew near. Adelaide was sitting wrapped up tightly in a blanket sitting on the sofa. Beside her Harvey was getting his things together. "Nervous?" Adelaide questioned quietly.

Harvey looked over at her and nodded. "A little."

"Does your old friend Mort add to your nerves?"

"Yes."

"Well I guess I'll see what he's like when they broadcast the court hearing."

"I guarantee you'll switch the television off after listening to him preach for five seconds." Harvey smirked.

"He's that bad?"

"Yes," Harvey clipped his briefcase shut. "He's that bad."

"Perhaps I won't watch."

"Liar." Harvey stood up and straightened out his shirt and trousers. "You will, because you want to. Perhaps you can pause it when Mort talks. That should save your sanity. Shame there's not a mute button in real life, that'd come in real handy when in court." Harvey laughed quietly at this, Adelaide shook her head slowly. "I'm just saying, he's one person who needs a mute button."

"You don't have to explain your words to me." She smiled lightly and looked up at him. "You off?"

"Better get there early...I guess."

"Don't sound so hesitant! You'll be fine, I know you will be." Adelaide smiled.

"Shock horror, are you putting faith in me here? I'm actually shocked. You, having faith, in me."

"Oh shut up." Adelaide narrowed her eyes at him.

Harvey smiled, "Is it too much to actually ask you to wish me luck?" She narrowed her eyes at him again. "Take that as a yes."

"I won't, because it'll boost your ego. And we can't have that can we?" Adelaide smiled, Harvey crossed his arms. Rolling his eyes and letting out a sigh he reached down and picked up his briefcase.

Walking out of the sitting room he stopped when Adelaide called quietly out to him. Turning around and taking his hand off of the door handle he looked down at her. "Good luck." Adelaide smiled and tiptoed to wrap her arms around his neck, the blanket which was wrapped tightly around her slipped slightly. "Not that you need it."

Harvey smiled, he was a little proud of himself for getting a 'good luck' from Adelaide. Putting a hand on her back he leaned his head against hers. "Thank you. I better go, are you going to watch?" Harvey looked down at her when she went back to standing normally again.

"Of course, like you said, I will because I want to."

----

"I'm sure most of you think that my client deserves this. And you know, some of you may be right in this thinking, I'm not going to stand here and say he's a legitimate Italian business man. We all know this city is full of characters." Mort Weinstein preached, Harvey was bored of listening to his monotone preaching already. At this point in time Mort kept shooting glances in his direction, it was disconcerting to say the least.

Behind him Jim sat, "Relax, Harvey. You've got this." He said in an attempt to be reassuring. Why didn't it work? He didn't feel reassured by Jim's words. Not at all.

"But in fact, what this man does deserve is due process. You deserve, all of you deserve, to be investigated by a district attorney who is accountable to the public who in fact, elected him, not someone who hides himself behind a mask." Of course Mort would bring Batman into this. It seemed too hard not to do. Harvey frowned and leaned back in his chair. This constant preaching was now becoming too much. He did wonder, however, if Adelaide had by now switched the television off. Preaching, or long winded conversations and her, didn't go hand in hand. "Keeping this in mind, I've clearly shown you that the evidence which was gathered was gathered by someone who carries with him a huge blood lust. If put in a situation where the Batman is in front of you, wouldn't you say anything just to not suffer a beating?" Mort paused. "If you send my client away, you're sending a message to the whole city, not the underworld, that it is all right to take the law into your own hands."