His Permanent Mistress: Mistress Under Contract. Kate Hardy

a moment. ‘You don’t know what it’s like. Victims don’t have a voice.’

      ‘Not true, Lucy. Not nowadays.’

      ‘The system is geared towards the defendant. When it’s he said versus she said, it seems like nine times out of ten they believe him.’ She paced the tiny room. ‘Are you putting him on the stand? Are you going to ask him all about his private life, his past, like you did her?’

      ‘We have to test the credibility of the witness’s evidence.’

      ‘Hers, sure. What about his credibility? He doesn’t have to get up there and face a scary inquisitor like you—she does. She’s the one who’s been through the wringer and you just make it worse. The bad guy gets to sit back and watch it all.’

      ‘We’re talking about a person’s liberty, Lucy. We have to err on the side of caution. Beyond reasonable doubt.’ Deliberately he kept his voice slow and low, forcing her to stop her pacing so she could hear him. Treating her as he would a fragile witness on the stand.

      ‘What about justice, Daniel? Look at the stats—the bad guys hardly ever get put away. You know this—not unless you have some solid scientific evidence. They never believe her. It’s always him.’

      ‘So what would you have—anarchy? Vigilantes retaliating who knows how violently in their code of justice?’

      She looked at her boots. ‘Why don’t we tie a rock to him and toss him in a lake? If he sinks he’s telling the truth and if he floats he’s lying? You know, that worked for all those witches a couple of hundred years ago, didn’t it?’

      He wanted to put his arms around her and cradle her—she was putting on the brave front but her eyes were over-shiny and her voice wobbled. ‘We work within the system, Lucy. I’m not saying it’s a perfect system, but it’s not bad. If we work at it, we can make it even better.’