SEATTLE − An attorney for Washington state opened the antitrust case against the proposed $25 billion Kroger merger with Albertsons by unleashing a torrent of harsh language: he quoted the emails, texts and other messages of grocery executives,

The battle waged by the state of Washington to stop the proposed merger of Kroger and Albertsons is now playing out in a King County court room.

The case is one of three challenging the $24.6 billion deal, which was announced nearly two years ago. The Federal Trade Commission is currently fighting the merger in federal court in Oregon, where closing arguments are expected Tuesday. (Oregon has joined in that case.) Colorado has also sued to block the merger.