Dismas Hardy: Nothing But The Truth Part 48

'Every minute?'

'Yes, sir.'

'And were there other people who you believe could testify to this as well?'

'Well, yes. His children, some friends. It was a long day, as funerals often are.'

Hardy stood a minute to let the import of the priest's words sink in, then whirled and faced Pratt and Randall. 'Your witness,' he said.

What could they do? Here was an absolutely credible man of the cloth providing an unimpeachable alibi for their main suspect. They conferred for a long moment at their table, then Pratt stood. 'No questions, your honor.'

Braun told Bernardin that he could step down, took off her gla.s.ses, put them back on, and looked from Hardy, in the center of the courtroom, to Pratt and Randall at their table.

'Mr Hardy?' she said.

'Your honor, it's clear from the testimony of Father Bernardin - and there evidently are several other witnesses who can corroborate his statements - that Mr Beaumont could not have killed Sergeant Griffin. If that is the case, it follows that he did not kill Sergeant Canetta and, based on our earlier discussion, it can then be a.s.sumed that, for the purposes of this hearing, he did not kill Bree Beaumont.'

Braun's face was set. 'Counsel approach the bench,' she said.

When they got there, she turned a hard glare on to Pratt and Randall. 'It seems to me, counsellors, that you have wasted a great deal of this court's time - to say nothing of Mrs Hardy's - when any reasonably thorough investigation into Sergeant Griffin's death should have turned up this rather obvious alibi.'

'Your honor.' Randall was ready with an excuse. 'At the time I pursued the contempt charge against Mrs Hardy, we were unaware of any connection between Bree Beaumont and Sergeant Griffin's death.'

Hardy had to get it in. He worked to keep the gloat out of his voice. 'A connection provided by Lieutenant Glitsky, I might add, your honor.'

But Braun wasn't interested in excuses. She was furious. 'Turn around and look at this courtroom, Mr Randall. I said turn around! Ms Pratt, you might, too.'

They both half-heartedly did so, and Hardy did, too, noticing that Abe Glitsky had returned to the courtroom. There were other very welcome additions to the gallery as well. Mr Lee from Heritage Cleaners, even though Hardy hadn't subpoenaed him, had told Hardy when he'd called this morning that he'd try to make it to the courtroom, and now he had. So, too, at last, had Jim Pierce. He was even now edging his way into one of the rows of seats, accompanied by another of the city's well-known attorneys, Jared Wright. And not a moment too soon, Hardy thought.

Pratt and Randall came back to facing the judge. 'Look at the number of people you have seriously inconvenienced by this irresponsible pursuit not, apparently, of a murderer, but merely of one person whom the police had not yet seen fit to charge because they had not yet built a case. And now it appears that we know why that was, don't we?' She shook her head in disgust. 'This is appallingly irresponsible behavior.'

Randall stood silent. Pratt mumbled something.

As the gallery hummed, Braun dismissed them all back to their desks, then raised her voice. 'Mr Hardy,' Braun said, 'I believe I am ready now to rule on your habeas motion.'

Hardy was rummaging in his briefcase, arranging more papers in front of him on his table. He looked up and spoke in measured tones. 'If we can just take a few more minutes?'

This brought a perplexed frown to the judge's visage, another rumbling in the gallery. 'And do what, Mr Hardy?'

He came out from behind his table and stood in front of Braun's podium. 'We have been working on a limited a.s.sumption provisionally accepted by both the court and the district attorney that the killer of Sergeants Griffin and Canetta is the person responsible for the death of Bree Beaumont.'

'Yes?'

'That a.s.sumption, however, is not legal proof that Mr Beaumont did not, in fact, either commit the latter act, or contract to accomplish the former. Any suspicion that may one day fall upon Mr Beaumont leaves my client's future liberty at grave risk. I believe I can eliminate that risk with a few more minutes of the court's indulgence.' - The courtroom was stonily silent behind him. Braun removed her gla.s.ses and brought one of the earpieces to her mouth. Finally, she stole a glance at her wrist.w.a.tch and made her decision. 'And what do you propose?'

'I'd like to call one more witness, your honor.'

'One more?'

'Yes, your honor. I'd like to call James Pierce.'

40.

This is ridiculous!' Hardy heard Pierce's grumbled outburst from the back of the courtroom but as he turned he saw it was Jared Wright now on his feet, objecting. 'Your honor, Mr Pierce has spoken to the police and their representatives at least a half-dozen times. He has cooperated with every investigation related to the Bree Beaumont case, and he...' He was out of his pew into the aisle of the gallery, coming forward.

Braun gaveled him quiet. 'Mr Wright. If Mr Pierce has cooperated all that much before, he surely won't mind doing it one more time.'

'This is pure hara.s.sment, your honor.'

'And why would that be, Mr Wright?'

Wright had made it up to the bar rail. 'Because Mr Pierce's employer, Caloco Oil, has been a contributor to Ms Pratt's campaigns and a supporter of her administration. We have seen today the animosity between the police department and Mr Hardy here, and the district attorney's office. As a good citizen, Mr Pierce responded to Mr Hardy's high-handed, last-minute subpoena, but now to endure another round of questioning on these events will serve no purpose. He is not implicated. To imply such is reckless at best and criminal at worst.'

Braun heard him out, then eyed Pierce who was standing directly behind his lawyer. 'Mr Pierce. You've been properly subpoenaed to appear and now called as a witness. Come forward. Mr Wright, your objection is noted for the record.'

'Your honor.' Wright, not giving up.

'Yes, counsellor? What now?'

'I would ask the court's permission to accompany my client to the witness stand. He had endured several police interviews without the benefit of his attorney, and I believe...'

Braun held up a hand, interrupting him. 'Mr Hardy, do you object?'

Hardy didn't like it, but he wasn't going to say so. 'No objection, your honor.'

The oil man hesitated for another instant, then angrily stood up, and marched up the aisle, past Hardy, to the witness stand. Wright met him at the rail and now stood at his side. The clerk held the Bible out for him. 'State your name.'

'James Pierce.'

'Mr Pierce, do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you G.o.d?'

'I do.'

'Please be seated.'

'Mr Pierce, have we spoken before?'

The bailiff had pulled up a chair and now Jared Wright sat in it, next to his client. He wasted no time getting on the boards with an objection. 'Immaterial, your honor.'

Braun gaveled him quiet. 'Overruled. Mr Pierce?'

The witness spoke. 'You know we have.'

Hardy was all business. 'Your honor, would you direct the witness to answer the question?'

Braun did so, Hardy repeated it, and Pierce growled out a yes.

'And on that occasion, when you and I spoke, did you deny having a personal relations.h.i.+p with Bree Beaumont?'

'No, of course not. I had been her mentor and friend for several years.'

'Mr Pierce, did you have an intimate relations.h.i.+p with Bree Beaumont? s.e.xually intimate?'

Jared Wright spoke up again. 'My client has answered that question a hundred times, your honor. He's...'

Bam! 'Mr Wright, legal objections, please.'

'All right, immaterial.'

It was immaterial, but Hardy had already pulled a rabbit from his hat with Bernardin, and Braun was inclined at this point to let him go for two. 'Overruled.'

Hardy bowed slightly. 'Thank you, your honor. Mr Pierce, would you like me to repeat the question?'

This time, Wright whispered something into his client's ear, but Pierce brushed him aside. 'No, I heard it, and the answer, as it's been every time, is still no.'

'No, you did not have a s.e.xual relations.h.i.+p with Bree Beaumont?'

That's right.'

Arms crossed over his chest and sulking at the mistreatment he'd suffered at the hands of the court and his client alike, Wright sat back in the hard chair. Hardy noted the change in affect and took it as a good sign.

He spun and walked back to his table, fiddled with some papers, and left them where they lay. 'All right. Did you have a personal relations.h.i.+p with Sergeant Canetta?'

'No, I did not.'

'But you did know him, did you not?'

Pierce s.h.i.+fted in his seat, answered impatiently. 'I gather he helped to provide security at some Caloco events. I may have talked to him at those. I really don't remember.'

'You don't remember,' Hardy repeated. 'And how about Sergeant Griffin? Did he interview you?'

Pierce hesitated, throwing a quick glance toward his attorney.

This time, no reaction was forthcoming, so Pierce answered. 'Yes, I believe he did.'

'You believe he did? Don't you remember?'

'All right, then. Yes, he did.'

'And when was that?'

Another stutter. 'I'd have to check my calender. I don't know exactly.'

But Hardy was sure. 'Perhaps I can help you remember, Mr Pierce. Wasn't it directly after Bree's funeral?'

'No. I don't think so.'

'You don't think so? Do you remember what you did do after the funeral, Mr Pierce?'

'Your honor!' Jared Wright's short fuse had lit up again. 'Your honor, I must protest. What is Mr Hardy's basis for any of these questions? Mr Wright isn't on trial here. He doesn't have to answer these questions.'

Braun pondered it for a moment. In actual fact, Pierce's attorney was right. And while she admired Hardy's point - he was treating this hearing the same way Scott Randall would conduct a grand jury proceeding - she should not allow this interrogation to go forward. The whole line of questioning was suspect.

But before she could even tell Wright that he was correct and make some kind of ruling, David Freeman stood and came to Hardy's rescue. 'Your honor, Mr Pierce can always take the Fifth.'

But things here were getting out of control. She tapped her gavel and glared over her podium. 'Gentlemen, sit down. This is my courtroom and I will instruct in the law.' She turned to look down on the witness. 'Mr Pierce, if you feel that your answers will tend to incriminate you, you may invoke the Fifth Amendment. Do you wish to do so?'

Sweat had broken on Pierce's forehead and seemed to surprise him as he wiped a couple of fingers across it. If he took the Fifth, he knew that his troubles with the law would only be beginning - the police investigation going forward would be relentless.

Everyone had lost track of Wright's objection that the original question was immaterial.

Hardy felt he could almost see the thoughts playing in the man's head, deciding to take his chances here and now - to put an end to the accusations and suspicions. It was a joy to watch. Successful, arrogant, insulated by money and position, Pierce's world view simply didn't include the notion that mere mortals could best him in a fair fight. This was because there could never be a fair fight.

Pierce a.s.sumed a fighting pose - a palm down on the railing to the witness box - and spoke up to the judge. 'I have nothing to hide, your honor, though I deeply resent these questions.'

And Braun had to admit that by permitting Hardy to continue without any evidentiary base, she was opening herself up to rebuke. But lawyers can ask anything they want unless the other party objects, and Pierce was answering.

'Your resentment, which is not a legal objection, is noted.' Braun turned her attention to Pierce's tormentor. 'Mr Hardy,' she said sternly, 'I will tolerate more questions only if you can provide the court with some kind of evidentiary framework. Otherwise, I'm going to dismiss this witness.'

Hardy stood still for a moment. 'Of course, your honor.' He returned to his desk and this time brought a small handful of pages back with him. He first showed them to the judge, then handed a copy of one of them to the witness. 'Mr Pierce, do you recognize this doc.u.ment?'

Pierce gingerly held the paper out in front of him. His shoulders slumped visibly. Wright grabbed the paper from his client while Hardy kept talking. 'Would you tell the court what this doc.u.ment is, Mr Pierce?'

Pierce looked down, set his lips, looked back up. Couldn't find his voice. Nor, apparently, could his attorney.

Hardy kept up his onslaught. 'Would you please identify this doc.u.ment, Mr Pierce? For the court?'

Pierce seemed not to hear. Eventually, he sighed, seemingly unable to take his eyes off the doc.u.ment, reading the words silently over to himself.

Hardy: 'It's a letter written by you to Bree Beaumont, isn't it?'

More silence.

'Would you characterize the doc.u.ment as a love letter?'

Pierce did not answer.

'Mr Pierce, would you like me to read the first couple of lines to the court? Contrary to your earlier testimony, isn't it a fact you were having an affair with her?'

By now, Wright was whispering furiously to his client, who seemed not to hear.