Unsympathetic Victims: A Legal Thriller (Ashley Montgomery Book 1)

by Laura Snider

  “The chief tried to block it,” George said, “but he was unsuccessful. Hopefully, it won’t be all that long.”

  “Wait, what?” She wasn’t understanding him. It was as though her mind had formed a cage around itself, refusing to accept his words at face value.

  “I know it’s hard to believe, Katie, but it’s the best choice considering the circumstances. Officer Jackie was a jailer for years before we hired him. He is the only option for an interim jail administrator.”

  Katie forced her mind to focus. It did make sense. Logically, he was the best option. “Who suggested Officer Jackie for the position?”

  “Elizabeth Clement.”

  Katie bit her lip. “I don’t like it.”

  Her thoughts drifted back to the letter Ashley had received before her arrest. (1) Von Reich, (2) You, (3) Petrovsky. The only benefit to Ashley’s incarceration was that she was 100 percent safe in Tom’s care. That was not the case anymore.

  George patted her on the shoulder. “Don’t beat yourself up about it. There isn’t anything we can do.”

  “Speaking of Elizabeth,” George continued. “You know how Officer Jackie said Elizabeth told him to draft those warrants for Ashley’s arrest?”

  “Yeah.” He had said it after Chief Carmichael chewed him out for issuing complaints without a superior officer’s assistance.

  “Well, I pulled the surveillance video from inside the police station. I saw him take the call, then that was it. Elizabeth never came into the police station. She never told him to do it.”

  “Really?” Katie was shocked, but she supposed she should not have been. There was no reason for Elizabeth to be at the police station in the middle of the night. She worked regular hours, 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. “Seems like Officer Jackie’s lies are starting to catch up to him.”

  “Yeah,” George said, “but I’m not sure that it proves anything other than the fact that he wanted to cover his ass with the chief.”

  They both fell silent. She was having a hard time working out where to go with the investigations into Von Reich’s and Petrovsky’s murders. Erica Elsberry had been her primary focus, with all roads leading in her direction, but some of those roads were starting to curve back toward Officer Jackie.

  But the new revelation did not get Katie any closer to solving the murders. It simply meant that Officer Jackie took advantage of a situation and chose to punish Ashley for her work as a defense attorney. It could lead to Ashley’s release, but Katie still had nothing solid on the real killer. At least not yet.

  “Have you heard anything from the lab?” Katie asked hopefully.

  It was taking the forensic lab forever to process that knife. She expected a delay with Christmas, but not this long. She hoped it wasn’t a bad sign. She needed it to be the murder weapon.

  George shook his head.

  Damn. Another dead end. Katie stared at the illuminated trees without seeing them. She wished she could talk to the county attorney, the prosecutor, about the investigation. She was supposed to be able to go to Elizabeth with the evidence she had gathered and talk it out, looking for advice. But that wasn’t possible. Elizabeth didn’t want to hear anything that came close to questioning Ashley’s guilt.

  “I went to Elizabeth yesterday,” Katie said.

  “You did?”

  “Yeah. I asked for a search warrant,” Katie said.

  “For Christopher Mason’s bank account?” George had helped Katie draft the request for search warrant, but he hadn’t known she was taking it to Elizabeth for approval.

  “Yeah.” Katie nudged a clump of snow with her toe. “She said she wouldn’t take it to the judge. That our affidavit was too weak. She had the balls to say Brooke was lying.”

  George shrugged. “She has a little bit of a point. Brooke does think Christopher is having an affair. She could have created the story to jam Christopher up. You know the saying about scorned women and hell.”

  Katie knew the saying. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. But she did not believe that was Brooke’s motivation. “No,” she said firmly. “Brooke didn’t lie. She showed me the proof using her bank’s mobile app. I took a picture of the deposit as well as the prior deposits for the past year. There isn’t one for more than five hundred dollars at a time. Then, boom,” she clapped her hands together, “there’s a hundred-thousand-dollar credit.”

  “Did you give that information to Elizabeth?”

  “Yeah.” Katie sighed and rubbed her face. “All of it. But she still refused to take the search warrant to the magistrate.”

  George stood and brushed his pants off. “You don’t have to have Elizabeth’s approval, you know.”

  Katie narrowed her eyes. “I don’t?” She knew that technically any officer could bring a proposed search warrant to any magistrate or judge. But Brine’s police department had an unwritten rule that required Elizabeth to approve every warrant before a judge laid eyes on it. In the years that Katie had been an officer, that rule had never been broken.

  George grinned and held out a hand. She ignored it and pushed herself off the ground.

  “You’ve got two legs,” George said, tapping her shin with his toe. “You can walk it over to the magistrate as easily as Elizabeth can.”

  “You know, George,” Katie said, “I think I might do that.”

  And just like that, the darkness receded, and Katie thought, perhaps for the first time, that the Christmas lights were starting to look rather inviting.

  37

  Katie

  December 17th – 9:00 a.m.

  “Hello, Officer Mickey,” Violet said as Katie stepped through the front door of the County Attorney’s Office.

  “Is Elizabeth in?” Katie asked, walking up to the receptionist’s desk. It was long, an L-shape, with a computer at front and a corded telephone to the right.

  Out of habit, Katie scanned the contents of the receptionist’s desk. It was something that officers were trained to do, to observe anything within plain view, and Katie found it was not a practice that she could easily shut off. She noticed that there were two cell phones sitting next to the corded office phone. One was Violet’s personal line, no doubt, but what was the other?

  Violet followed Katie’s gaze. She startled. “Do you have an appointment?” she asked as she placed a white sheet of paper over the two cell phones. It was not a subtle move. Violet didn’t want Katie to get a good look at one or both of the phones.

  “No,” Katie said, meeting Violet’s gaze. There was something nervous, shifty, about the girl’s demeanor. “I’d like to see Elizabeth all the same.”

  “One moment.” Violet lifted the receiver on the corded phone and pressed a button.

  “Yes, Violet,” Elizabeth said after a couple of rings. The volume on Violet’s phone was loud enough for Katie to easily overhear.

  “Someone is here to see you.”

  “It better be important. I’m halfway through a brief in resistance to a motion to suppress evidence. I don’t have time for nonsense.”

  Violet lowered the receiver and leaned toward Katie. “You are here for a reason, right? I mean,” she pursed her lips, “it isn’t nonsense, is it?”

  Katie would have laughed if the poor girl wasn’t quite so pathetic. Violet’s hands were shaking. She was terrified of Elizabeth.

  “No. It’s important,” Katie said. “Definitely not nonsense.”

  Violet lifted the receiver back to her ear. “It is important.”

  “Who says it is important?”

  “Officer Mickey.”

  There was a short pause and a heavy sigh. “You can let her in, but if this is more ridiculousness about Ashley Montgomery, I’m going to be pissed. Ashley is guilty. Period. Exclamation point. And I don’t need to keep rehashing this with Katie.”

  Violet covered the mouthpiece with her hand. “Do you need to talk to her about Ashley Montgomery?”

  “No. I need a search warrant.” It was only a half lie.

&
nbsp; “It’s about a search warrant,” Violet said into the receiver.

  “Send her in.”

  Violet ushered Katie back to Elizabeth’s office. Elizabeth did not stand to greet her. She did not say hello or smile. She merely motioned to a chair across from her desk. “Have a seat.”

  Violet hovered in the doorway.

  “Don’t you have something better to do, Violet?” Elizabeth said without looking away from Katie.

  Katie sat in the chair closest to the door. The meeting would only take a couple of minutes.

  “What can I do for you?” Elizabeth said. She was trying and failing to keep her tone neutral.

  “I need another search warrant.”

  Elizabeth cocked an eyebrow. “Another? I specifically remember refusing to bring your search warrant to the magistrate yesterday. So, what other search warrant are you referring to?”

  “Oh.” Katie leaned back, reclining in her chair. A smile quirked into the corners of Katie’s lips. She had been preparing for this moment. The time she could metaphorically spit in the prosecutor’s face. “About that search warrant. I went ahead and took it to the magistrate. She signed it. I got access to Christopher Mason’s records. Brooke Mason was right. The hundred-grand transfer does exist, but it is coming from an unknown account. I need to track down the owner of the other account now.”

  “You did what?”

  “Oh, yeah. I went over your head. I’d apologize, but I’m not sorry.”

  “Are you some kind of fucking moron?” Elizabeth said through gritted teeth.

  Katie glared. “No. I’m not.”

  “You work for the government. You are supposed to find ways to support my case against Ashley. Not find ways to implicate someone else. You are casting doubt on my prosecution. You’re playing into her hands. That makes you a fucking moron.”

  “Tell me,” Katie said, her tone icy. “What’s the deal between you and Christopher Mason?”

  “Excuse me?” Elizabeth’s breath caught, and sweat glistened along her brow.

  “You dismissed his domestic assault case. Even before talking to Brooke. She was supporting his prosecution. But you still dismissed it. Now you’re refusing to get a search warrant on his accounts.”

  Elizabeth’s face reddened, and she looked like she was about to explode. But then she took a few calming breaths and regained her composure. “You’ve been spending too much time with your defense attorney friend.”

  A strategic change in subjects. “Am I?”

  “You’re starting to act like her.” Elizabeth tsked. “It’s unbecoming of an officer of the law. Maybe you would prefer to be a private investigator instead?”

  Katie’s eye twitched. “Is that a threat?”

  Elizabeth smirked. “Is it?” She studied her carefully manicured nails. “I’m simply saying that you seem to have an affinity for damaging my cases. Especially this one. Instead of merely pretending to be on Ashley’s side, maybe you would prefer to work for her. We could make that happen, you know. At least I could arrange your release from employment at the police department. Then you could beg and grovel to the Public Defender’s Office.” She shrugged. “They probably won’t hire you. I doubt they have the money, but it’s worth a try. Would you like that?”

  Katie bit her lip and shook her head. “That’s not what I want.”

  “Then,” Elizabeth said, a smile forming on her lips. “Forget this Christopher Mason business and get out of my office.”

  Katie nodded and rose to her feet. She would leave, but she would not quit. Elizabeth had won this battle, but there were more to come. And Katie was going to get that search warrant. Whether Elizabeth liked it or not.

  38

  Ashley

  December 17th – 9:30 a.m.

  Footsteps approached her. Ashley lay on her bed, facing the wall. She stared at a cluster of scratches in the cement. Furrows that formed into the letters K.S. Initials. Created by another inmate at another time. Someone who wanted to make her mark upon the cell, to own it. Ashley once thought she would do the same. On her last night, she planned to take the nail clippers from Katie and gouge the letters A.M. next to it.

  “Breakfast is here,” Kylie said. She shoved the tray of putrid-smelling food through a small slot in the cell door.

  Ashley rolled onto her back and shifted her gaze toward Kylie. She felt nothing. Her world was muted. Everything was a shade darker. Her dogs were gone. Tom was suspended. All items of comfort were gone. Officer Jackie, the interim jail administrator, had even taken the reports that Katie had given to her.

  Kylie sank to the floor and hugged her knees to her chest. “You haven’t eaten since breakfast yesterday. You can’t refuse to eat.”

  “Sure I can,” Ashley said.

  “Come on, Ashley. This isn’t what Tom wants.”

  “I don’t care what Tom wants.” He had specifically disregarded her request to keep his mouth shut at the bond review hearing. And as she predicted, the worst possible thing had happened. So much for relying on others.

  “Please eat.”

  “No. Call it a hunger strike.”

  Kylie’s eyes shifted nervously, and her voice dropped to a whisper. “I don’t know what he’ll do if he finds out.”

  “You can tell Jackie to go fuck himself.”

  “Why don’t you tell me yourself,” a deeper voice said. It came from far away, at the end of the hallway, echoing off the walls.

  A shiver ran up Ashley’s spine, and she turned back to face the wall. She did not want to see Officer Jackie. His heavy gait came down the hallway, growing louder with each step. He walked like Elizabeth Clement. They shared the same aggressive manner of slamming their feet into the ground.

  “You have other duties to tend to, right, Kylie?” Officer Jackie said. He was so near. Just outside Ashley’s cell.

  “Umm, sure,” Kylie said. Ashley could sense her hesitation.

  “Don’t worry about our little inmate here.” Officer Jackie tapped a bar of Ashley’s cell with what sounded like the steel toe of his boot. “I’ll make sure she eats every last bite. Even if I have to shove it down her throat.”

  “You can’t do that,” Kylie said in protest.

  “I can’t or I shouldn’t? Comparing her size to mine, I’m certain I could force this ragdoll here to do whatever I want.”

  Ashley cringed. Officer Jackie cleared his throat. He was losing patience.

  “Just go, Kylie. This place is full of cameras. I’ll be fine.” Ashley kept her back turned and listened with quiet trepidation as Kylie’s footsteps disappeared down the hall.

  Officer Jackie was silent for a few moments, then he began to cluck disapprovingly. “What are we going to do with you, Ashley? I can’t have you dying of starvation in here.”

  “I’m not going to starve by missing a few meals. Trust me.”

  “See, there’s the problem, Ms. Montgomery.” He tapped the toe of his boot. There was a rhythm to it. Tap, pause, tap, pause, tap. “I don’t trust you. I never have, and I never will. I’m not like Katie Mickey. I don’t let people like you manipulate me.”

  Ashley sighed. She could argue with him. That’s what he wanted, but she didn’t have the energy to take the bait. A different day in different circumstances, she’d go toe to toe with him. But not now. Not here.

  “I have a constitutional right to refuse food.”

  “I have a right to force you to eat.”

  “You might want to brush up on Constitutional law, officer.”

  “I could pry your mouth open and jam the food inside.”

  “You won’t touch me.”

  “What?” Officer Jackie’s tone was mocking. “You can’t eat unless it’s a delicious muffin from Genie’s Diner? Well, unfortunately, your muffin days are over. You can eat what we serve, or you can eat nothing.”

  “I choose nothing,” Ashley said.

  “That’s not an option.”

  “You just said it was.”

 
; “Well,” Officer Jackie sputtered, “I didn’t mean to.”

  “Seriously, Jackie.” Ashley rolled over and met his gaze. “Are you done here? You’ve had your little minute to poke fun. Now, get the fuck out of my space.”

  Officer Jackie’s face reddened, and his hands became fists. He was silent for a long, tense moment as he fought to regain control of his temper. His nostrils flared several times, then he relaxed his hands.

  “You will eat the next meal I bring,” he said, his jaw clenched, “or I will shove a tube down your throat and force you to eat.”

  “That’s unconstitutional.”

  Officer Jackie chuckled, a rumbling not unlike a growl. “I’m your constitution now, bitch.”

  Ashley shuddered and rolled over, turning her back to him. “I’ve never given in to bullies. I don’t intend to start now.”

  There was a shuffling sound, then Officer Jackie grunted like he was straining. Something ran across the back of Ashley’s head. A light tread of fingers across her scalp creeping through her hair before curling and gripping. It was Officer Jackie’s fingers. He yanked, and heat surged through Ashley’s scalp. Her head snapped back, and she fell off the steel bed. Pain exploded in her shoulder as she crashed hard against the cement floor. He didn’t let up, pulling and pulling until she was right up against the bars.

  Officer Jackie’s lips brushed her ear. Her vision swam. His breath smelled like a nauseating mixture of garlic and onions. Ashley’s stomach roiled.

  “You listen up. This is my house now. We play by my rules. You do as I say, or there will be consequences. You will sit when I say to sit and eat when I tell you to eat. You want to act like a bitch, then I’ll train you like a dog. Do you understand?”

  Ashley nodded slowly, and he released his grip. She scurried away from the bars. Her scalp throbbed. What ego she had left was gone. She wrapped her arms around her body and pressed herself into the far corner of the cell, curling into a ball and trying not to whimper for all that she had lost.