Chapter 79
Istand up and so does Reese, both of us facing each other. “I know we talked about Dana and Reginald working together, but we all believed Martha when we were at the police station.”
“But what if she lied?” Reese says. “Yes. That’s been on my mind as well. What if she lied?”
“What if she lied again,” I supply, “since a lie is what got her put in jail in the first place.”
“I have to break her on the stand just like I would Reginald.”
“Treat her like a hostile witness,” I assume.
“Exactly,” he agrees, his hands coming down on my arms as he pulls me to him and kisses me. “I need to call Royce and make sure he’s still digging around on her.” He reaches for his phone and I feel the words in my head forming, with a need to put them on paper.
I slip away again and return to the kitchen, sitting down in front of my computer, considering all that happened today with Martha and even Debbie, before I finish my column and then write my closing.
Too often, we let other people scare us into doing nothing. It’s easy to think that if we do nothing, we get nothing in return, which sounds pretty horrible, but it can feel safe. The problem with doing nothing is that the result is not nothing. Something happens because we choose not to act, but we choose to allow the result to be out of our control. By doing nothing, we leave the results to someone else. We accept their outcome. What does this have to do with the day in court? Martha Banks went to jail for lying. Lying is not doing nothing. It’s doing something. She chose to lie. A lie is complex, rooted in a truth that doesn’t want to be told. What is that lie for Martha Banks and what is the truth that hides behind it?
I’m interested to find out what happens tomorrow when she returns to the stand when she must choose to a) tell the truth, b) lie again, or c) plead the fifth. I certainly hope she chooses to tell the truth, but what is that truth? Her own guilt or perhaps knowledge of someone else’s? Until then, —Cat.
I think of Debbie and her lie. The lie hides the truth. Her lie hid the real father of her baby, to in turn deliver her a payoff. Desperate people do desperate things. Tomorrow, Reese is going to make a lot of people a whole lot more desperate, including the prosecutor.
Morning comes with a jagged-edged energy. I’m hanging over the toilet and hiding it. Reese is hyped up on caffeine, and eager to step into the courtroom, where we all believe he’ll win the trial by way of reasonable doubt, even if he doesn’t end it by way of a confession. I dress in a black dress that fits loosely around the waist, while Reese wears a blue pinstriped suit he has me pick out because he’s on the phone with Royce and can’t seem to actually get dressed.
“Well?” I ask when we’re finally in the kitchen with coffee in hand and he’s off a good half dozen calls.
“Royce doesn’t have anything else for me,” he says. “It’s going to be all on me to break her.”
“You can’t lose,” I say. “You’ll get your reasonable doubt.”
The doorbell rings. “And it’s time,” he says, finishing off his coffee and setting the mug in the sink.
We both gather our things and head to the door. Reese opens it and Savage stands there. Reese and I look at each other, memories of last night in the kitchen encounter between us and we both laugh. Savage runs his hand over his face. “What? Do I have lipstick on my face?”
We all laugh now, and I feel the stress of the last week fading into the past. Even more so, when Royce is waiting for us downstairs. “Wilson was so freaked out about his attack that he confessed to blackmailing you two for money in exchange for police protection. He says the baby’s his.”
Of course, I knew the baby wasn’t Reese’s but knowing that we have that closure is still a relief to hear, and when Reese pulls me to him and kisses me, I know he feels the same. “It’s going to be a good day in court,” I promise him.
We settle into the SUV and Reese pulls me close. “And a good night, too,” he murmurs, the sexy promise warming me all over. We’re back to us, and the idea that someone tried to take that from us doesn’t go away because we won. It just reminds us to hold on and never take each other for granted, which is perhaps the best lesson we could have learned before having this baby.
Lori calls me on the way to the courthouse. “I heard all of the news. My God, we’ve been in hell with a client. I feel horrible that I haven’t been there for you, but I’m so happy it seems to be over.”
“Me too,” I say. “You and Cole are wonderful to be so supportive.”
“Supportive? We haven’t been there for you since you heard at all, but Cole’s been talking to Reese. He’s been keeping me informed and I was afraid if I called too, I might just stir the demons and make you have to keep thinking about them.”
We chat until the SUV pulls up to the courthouse. Reese and I head inside and once we’re there, he kisses me. “Wish me luck, sweetheart.”
“You don’t need luck. They do.”
He winks and I know he’s feeling confident. “Savage,” he says. “Protect what’s mine.”
“Like she is mine,” he says.
Reese arches a brow at him and Savage immediately adds, “But of course, she will never be mine.”
We all laugh again and soon I’m in the courtroom with Lauren by my side. “I heard everything about everything.” She hugs me and then whispers, “I can’t wait to see how this plays out.”
And she doesn’t have to wait long. The judge and jury enter, and it’s minutes before Martha takes the stand and Reese steps in front of her. Once she’s stated her name and swears her oath, Reese takes control.
“Why did you lie yesterday?” he asks.
“I was scared,” she replies.
“Of what?” Reese presses.
“I was afraid if anyone knew I was in a relationship with Mr. Warren, they’d consider me a suspect.”
“How long were you in a relationship with Mr. Warren?”
“Three years.”
“Describe that relationship,” he says.
“We were close,” she says. “He wasn’t the bear to me that he was to others.”
“Did you fight?”
“Never.”
Lauren and I look at each other, and Lauren whispers, “There is no couple that doesn’t fight.”
“Did you fight the night before he died?” Reese asks, ignoring her “no fight” reply.
“No. We didn’t fight.”
“Did you see him that night?” Reese asks.
“Yes. I did.”
“And what happened?”
“I told him that Reginald Hicks came to me and wanted me to help kill him.” The courtroom blows up into a gasp that explodes into murmurs.
Reginald jumps to his feet. “She’s lying! She’s lying.”
Dana gasps and actually turns to try to find me in the audience. When her eyes meet mine, I mouth, “Easy. Let him do his job.”
She inhales and turns around, but her fingers are squeezing the wooden chair arms, her knuckles white.
The judge does a lot of banging on the desk and finally, Reese can continue questioning Martha. “Why didn’t you tell someone else? Like the police?”
“Mr. Warren, Nelson, didn’t want me to. He said he’d handle it himself.”
“How did he plan to handle it?”
“He wanted to confront Reginald. He said he was going to confront him.”
“Did he?” Reese asks.
“I don’t know,” she whispers. “He died the night he was supposed to talk to him.”
Reginald is on his feet again, screaming. “Liar!”
More chaos ensues, and finally, Reese asks, “Did you consider Reginald’s offer?”
“No!” Martha shouts. “No. I would never do that. I loved Mr. Warren. I loved him.”
“Did he love you?” Reese asks.
“Yes. He loved me.” Martha replies.
I lean over to Lauren and whisper, “She told us sleeping with him was her job.”
Lauren eyes me with an arched brow. “And now he loved her?”
“Exactly,” I whisper.
“But you weren’t in his will,” Reese points out.
“I didn’t want his money,” she snaps. “I didn’t care about his money, but he was very generous. I’ll never find a job that pays that well. He took care of me.”
“And yet you’re not in the will,” Reese comments.
“Is there a question?” Milton demands, in his first objection.
“I’ll withdraw,” Reese says, looking at the judge.
“What did Reginald offer you, Martha?”
“Money,” she says. “He said he’d marry Dana, inherit, and pay me. He said Dana was going to walk away from the money, and he couldn’t let that happen.”
“What do you think he thought was your motivation to help?”
“I guess money,” she says.
“Did he know that you weren’t in the will?”
“He might have. Dana knew.”
“And he believed since you were cut out of the will, you might want to kill your lover to ensure your good job continued to pay.”
“I don’t like how that sounds,” Martha says. “I didn’t want a payday.”
“Everyone just thought you did,” Reese comments.
“Objection,” Milton shouts. “Again. Is there a question?”
“Did everyone think that you wanted a payday?” Reese asks, rephrasing.
“I don’t know,” she says.
“What did you tell Reginald when he offered you money to help kill your lover?”
“I told him I’d think about it. I was scared of him. I was afraid to say no.”
“To clarify,” Reese says. “You said you’d think about killing your lover, the deceased, who was murdered?”
“I—it wasn’t—”
“Yes or no?” Reese presses.
“I was—I—”
“Yes or no,” the judge demands.
“Yes.”
“I’m through with this witness,” Reese says and walks back to his table. Milton doesn’t cross-examine. He can’t. Anything he’d ask would just make Dana look more innocent.
Reese has won this case long before the trial ends.
Lauren leans close. “He made that look easy.”
I smile, pride filling me. “Yes. He did.” I lean close and whisper. “That’s the father of my baby.”
She grins. “Yes, he is.” She reaches in her purse. “I got you this to give him.” She hands me a long, narrow box that might be a pen box. I open it to find a cigar that has pink and blue ribbons on it. Girl or boy. Which will it be? Which will he want?
My stomach knots. What if he doesn”t want this now? If he”s shocked, if he”s hesitant, this isn”t the birthday present I want it to be. He won”t be hesitant. Will he? I need to feel him out before his birthday. I have to know he wants this.