"Please stand up."
The man remained seated.
Around them, several people in the gallery began turning their heads.
Marcus took another step forward.
"I'm going to ask you one more time."
The stranger leaned back.
"And I'm going to tell you one more time that you should check the morning docket before you do anything."
Marcus frowned.
"What does the docket have to do with this?"
The man said nothing.
At that exact moment, the courtroom clerk entered through the side door.
She was carrying a thick stack of files.
Her name was Evelyn Harper.
She had worked at Franklin County Superior Court for twenty-seven years.
She knew every judge, every bailiff, every attorney, and almost every employee who had ever passed through the courthouse doors.
She stopped when she saw the man sitting behind the bench.
The files nearly slipped from her hands.
"Oh my God."
Marcus turned.
"Ms. Harper, I was just—"
"Stop."
Her voice was so sharp that the entire courtroom became silent.
Evelyn walked toward the bench.
She looked at the man.
Then at Marcus.
Then at the brass nameplate on the desk.
Her face went pale.
"Deputy," she whispered, "you need to apologize."
Marcus stared at her.
"For what?"
Evelyn placed the docket on the desk.