Candace was holding up well.

She was determined. She was focused. And while she was uncomfortable in her present circumstances, she had borne up well under the confinement — the close contact with the other inmates, the rules — because that was what it took to get to this day.

Now it was up to him.

If Phil won an acquittal, Candace would go back to her job as head of cardiac surgery at Mercy Hospital. The stain on her name would be eradicated. She would be able to pick up the parenting of her two children, who were, even now, waiting for them outside the courtroom.

Phil had talked to both of the kids, and in his judgment they could handle the pressure. But he did expect a challenge from opposing counsel.

Phil had gone up against Yuki Castellano before, and he quite liked her. She was feisty and she was smart, but Hoffman knew her greatest weakness, too. Yuki bulled ahead, wielding her passion while skipping over potholes and ignoring warning signs that the bridge ahead was out.

Without being cocky about it, he liked his odds of winning better than hers.

Phil stopped pacing. There was a clanking of barred doors, then the echo of footsteps, and Candace came through the door in a tailored suit and handcuffs.

“Hey, Phil,” Candace said.

Phil came toward her, touched her shoulder, and said, “How are you doing? Okay?”

“Way better than okay, Phil. I’ve been waiting for this day for a lifetime. A year, anyway.”

The guard removed her handcuffs and said, “Good luck, Dr. Martin.”

Candace rubbed her wrists. “Thanks, Dede. See you later.”

Phil held the elevator door for Candace and smiled at her as they descended to the third floor.

He’d also been waiting for this day for more than a year. And he was pretty sure that today was going to be a very good day.