Monika smirked as reporters packed the gallery. “Nobody would be surprised if a bullet caused bedlam in the courtroom. But here it was a description deemed to be offensive.” The transcript glowed on every screen. The accused hadn’t shouted or lied. She had called the president “below average.”
Gasps rippled harder than gunfire. By noon, careers were cracked, alliances shattered, and the verdict seemed almost irrelevant to everyone watching from the city beyond it.
