The Prosecutor
Two attorneys with everything to lose fight for justice in THE PROSECUTOR by USA TODAY bestselling author Adrienne Giordano Chicago assistant state’s attorney Zac Hennings just got handed a political hot potato: keeping the convicted murderer in a high-profile case behind bars. He’s up against his most formidable - and alluring - adversary. First-year law student Emma Sinclair is passionately fighting to free her brother. But she needs the take-no-prisoners prosecutor’s help. Caught between attraction and letting a killer go free, Zac walks a tightrope. Until evidence surfaces that the real culprit’s still out there. With his career and Emma’s life on the line, Zac races to right a terrible wrong. Refusing to back down, he’ll bring a cunning lawbreaker to justice - or die trying.
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“Something tells me that down deep, you don’t agree with what you have to believe.”
Her touch spilled heat into Zac’s gut. He was no saint, but he could honestly say he hadn’t felt that kind of fire in a long time. Whether it was wishful thinking or plain wanting action, he didn’t know, but he liked it. Given his current status as the prosecutor on her brother’s case, thinking like that would lead him nowhere good.
Emma snatched her finger back. He smiled and her cheeks immediately flushed. Too damned cute. Even if he should be running like hell.
“I need to go,” she said.
For safety, Zac stepped far enough out of reach so he didn’t do something stupid and touch her. “Yes, you do.”
Acknowledgments
Thank you to my husband, who continually offers support and incredibly corny jokes that make me smile. You are the love of my life and I’d be lost without you. To Gigi Giordano Pallitto, you rock, girlfriend! Thank you for your never-ending patience while I tackled legal research. I’ve always said it’s good to have a lawyer in the family. Hopefully, I haven’t mangled the massive amount of information you provided!
To John Kocoras, I so appreciate your early input while I plotted this story. Who knew I’d find Brady and Giglio material so fascinating?
And now for my usual suspects, whom I couldn’t complete a book without. Thank you, Theresa Stevens, for once again pushing me on the tiny details in my writing. I wish I could bottle all you’ve taught me and share it with other writers. You’re the best! To Tracey Devlyn and Kelsey Browning, thank you for your constant support and for traveling this road with me. It’s been an amazing ride. Lucie J. Charles and Misty Evans, you always allow me to disturb your day with critiques and brainstorming ideas, and I’m continually thankful for your help.
John Leach, there aren’t enough words to thank you for sharing your law enforcement knowledge. With each book, you give me new possibilities for my stories.
Thanks to my editor, Denise Zaza, for joining my lunch table the day we met. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work with you. It’s been a wonderful experience. To Dana Hamilton, thank you for your guidance throughout production on this book.
Finally, to my son, who reminds me every day why love is so important. I love you.
USA TODAY bestselling author ADRIENNE GIORDANO writes romantic suspense and mystery. She is a Jersey girl at heart, but now lives in the Midwest with her workaholic husband, sports-obsessed son and Buddy the Wheaten Terrorist (Terrier). She is a cofounder of Romance University blog and Lady Jane’s Salon-Naperville, a reading series dedicated to romantic fiction.
Adrienne decided to write The Prosecutor after seeing a news segment on a wrongly convicted man. For more information on The Defender, Adrienne’s next Mills & Boon>® Intrigue book, please visit www.adriennegiordano.com. Adrienne can also be found on Facebook, at www.facebook.com/AdrienneGiordanoAuthor, and on Twitter, at www.twitter.com/AdriennGiordano. For information on Adrienne’s street team, Dangerous Darlings, go to www.facebook.com/groups/ DangerousDarlings.
For Elisa and Chris, who make the complexities of sibling relationships easy to navigate. I love you.
Contents
Chapter One
Assistant State’s Attorney Zac Hennings leaned back in his chair the second before a newspaper smacked against his desk.
“If there’s any blowback on this,” Ray Gardner said, “it’s yours.”
Zac glanced at the newspaper. On page one, below the fold, was a photo of a young woman—brunette—gazing out a window framed by a set of gold drapes. Someone’s living room. The headline read Fighting for Justice. He skimmed the first few paragraphs. The Chelsea Moore murder.
A burst of adrenaline exploded in Zac’s brain. Big case.
Turning from the newspaper, he looked back to his boss. Ray’s generic gray suit fit better than most he wore but still hung loose on his lean frame. Once in a while, to keep his staff sharp, Ray would show up in a blue or black suit. Regardless, the guy needed a good tailor, but Zac wasn’t going to be the one to suggest it. Not when Ray led the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau, the largest of the six divisions of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Ray gestured to the newspaper. “The Sinclairs got traction with this. Steve Bennett—”
“The detective? The one who died last week?”
“That’s him. Brain cancer. He apparently refused to face his maker without clearing his conscience. He sent Emma Sinclair a video—starring himself— telling her the witness who ID’ed her brother wasn’t sure he got the right guy. According to Steve, detectives pressured the witness into saying he was positive.”
Zac took his time with that one, let it sink in. “We locked up Brian Sinclair for murder and now we’ve got deathbed revelations?”
