"But Gabriel..." I began. "Not everyone he defends has those excuses."
"It doesn't matter. That's human justice. If the court fails to find them guilty, they will still be punished in some way. That is how the world works."
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I could point out that even the Cwn Annwn couldn't punish every crime against fae, but I kept my mouth shut. If Ioan believed I only set people free to face a more cosmic justice, it was best to let him keep that illusion.
"The point," Ioan said, "is that you know if Gabriel's clients are innocent or guilty. You discover that in your investigating. That is what you need to do here."
"It's not that..." Ricky began. Then he saw Ioan's expression and stopped.
"It's not that easy," I finished. "I'm not sure I can ever say, with absolute certainty, that someone is guilty."
Ioan only smiled and patted my shoulder. "Of course you can. That's what you do, Liv, and you're very good at your job. Tonight's Hunt is over. Take a few days, investigate and prove to yourself that Johnson is guilty. Then Brenin will see that you are satisfied, and we can finish this."
Seven
Gabriel
"He's right behind us," Rose assured Seanna, who kept glancing back as she was led into the living room.
Did Seanna sense Gabriel's urge to flee? It was possible--there had always been something feral in his mother, and while Rose might say that had been her lack of a conscience, Gabriel had gleaned enough from the elders to know she'd always had that, even as a child. A preternatural sense for trouble. A preternatural instinct for survival. Gifts of the fae, passed on to her son.
Rose sat Seanna on the couch and tried to take the spot beside her. Seanna made a noise, not unlike a dog's low growl of warning, and she reached for Gabriel.
"Gabriel can take the chair," Rose said.
"No, I want my son here."
"It's all right," Gabriel said, and he kept that mask firmly in place as he lowered himself to the sofa.
Seanna took hold of his hand, gripping it with ice-cold fingers.
"They wouldn't let me see you," Seanna said in her petulant-child voice. She aimed a glare across the room. "Rose said you were busy."
"I work in Chicago," Gabriel said. "My condo is also in Chicago. You know that. I cannot get here in an instant."
A crafty look lit her blue eyes. "So you were in the city?"
"Yes."
"Then you weren't with her. Is it over then? You've dumped the little--"
"I am still with Olivia. Very happily with Olivia. She is away this evening, so I was working late."
"I don't like--"
"Yes, you've made that perfectly clear."
"She's a spoiled bit--"
"I am well aware of your opinion of Olivia, and you are well aware that if you continue in this manner, I will leave."
His mother grumbled.
She saved your life.
He wished he could tell Seanna that. Wished he could tell her everything.