by Londyn Skye
“W-well, y-yessa’, I … m-maybe.” Carolyn lowered her head in shame. “I -I don’t know. A-all, I know is that he’s the last p-person I eva’ saw my h-husband with,” she said as she broke down into sobs.
“No further questions, your honor,” Mason replied, taking mercy on her.
“Any follow-up questions for this witness, Mr. Crumwell?” Judge Lucifer asked.
“No, your honor.”
“You may step down Mrs. Whitfield.”
As Carolyn was escorted to her seat, Tobias took a moment to go over his witness list. “We’d like to call Jesse Roscoe Adams Senior to the stand next,” he then announced.
Judge Lucifer nodded and motioned for the bailiff to go and get him from the witness holding room.
Once Jesse was sworn in, Tobias began his line of questioning. Jesse was angry that he had not been allotted the opportunity to torture James in the way that he would the slaves at his rallies. He now sat in the witness box trying to torture him with his testimony instead. He responded with many of the same well-rehearsed lies as J.R. to ensure that James wore shackles like a slave for the remainder of his life. Listening to one lie after another made Mason eager to spill more podunk country-folk blood. Tobias’s soft questions had guided Jesse to paint himself as an upstanding pillar of the community, but Mason was now ready to gut him and reveal the true monster buried beneath his bulging belly.
When Tobias was finished, Mason stood and looked at Jesse in silence, taking a moment to begin breaking him down with a cold stare. Jesse reciprocated the glare, unfazed by it in the least. Mason then stepped into the center of the gallery. “April seventeenth of this year, you just testified that you had to break up an altercation between your eldest son, J.R. and one of your slaves, Lily, correct?”
“Yes,” Jesse replied flatly.
“You also admit that after breaking up this fight, J.R. informed you that the father of the baby Lily was carrying was your youngest son, James, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Did J.R. explain how he had gotten that information?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Mary Jo Parker told ’em.”
“Did J.R. mention that he had also read about Lily’s pregnancy in a letter?”
“I don’t recollect.”
“Mr. Adams, did you, yourself, ever see any letters that proved James had impregnated your slave, Lily?”
“No.”
“Did you ever see any letters that proved that James taught Lily to read or write?”
“No.”
“You just testified that you punished Lily after you learned that she had stabbed, J.R., correct?”
“Yes.”
“You admit to whipping her that day as a form of punishment, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Do you recall how many times you whipped her?”
“No!”
“In your testimony with Tobias, you said that you had to drag Lily to your whipping tree, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Was that because she was unconscious?”
“I don’t recollect!”
“Did you ever punch Lily with a closed fist that day?”
“I don’t recollect!”
“Did you kick her that day?”
“I don’t recollect!”
“Was Lily naked when you broke up the fight between her and your son?”
“I don’t recollect!”
“Was she naked when you strung her up to the tree to whip her?”
“I don’t recollect!” he fired back again.
Mason paused and glared at Jesse with annoyance when he continued his intentional repetitive defiant reply. “After punishing Lily, you testified that you left to see Dr. Whitfield, correct?”
“Yes.”
“What for?”
“To get stitches for J.R. and to have my hand looked at.”
“What did Dr. Whitfield say was wrong with your hand?”
“It was broken.”
“Was that injury sustained while punishing Lily?”
Jesse scowled at Mason. “I! don’t! recollect!”
“Was it bothering you before punishing Lily?”
“No!”
“Then is it likely to have occurred while in the midst of punishing Lily?”
“Maybe!”
“Have you ever broken your fist while simply whipping a slave before?”
“No!”
“Mr. Adams, is it possible that you broke your hand while punching Lily in the face?”
“Lily’s my goddamn property! I can punish her how I see fit!”
“And I suppose you saw fit to break your hand across her face?”
“OBJECTION! He is way outta line with this questionin’!”
“Sustained! Move on Mr. Rockefella’!” the judge warned.
“Did you ever actually see James take Lily off your property the night she stabbed J.R.?”
“No!”
“Were you there when Willard McKinley, Jethro Blankenship, and Jeb McClintock were allegedly shot by your son, James?”
“No!”
“So essentially, you have absolutely no solid evidence as to any of the claims made against your son here today?”
“I don’t need no goddamn evidence to know that he’s a nigga’ lovin’, murderous, thief!” Jesse yelled, turning to glare at James.
“You’re not very fond of the Negro race are you, Jesse?” Mason boldly asked.
“They’re property! Ain’t much thought about Niggers past ’em bein’ profitable chattel,” Jesse replied just as boldly.
“You’ve been a lifelong slave holder, Mr. Adams, correct?”
“Yes.”
“How do you typically punish any of your misbehaving slaves?”
“I follow the slave code guidelines. Dependin’ on the offense they’ve committed, I give ’em as many stripes as the slave codes allow.”
“You seem well-versed in slave punishment. So, is it typical for the slaves you punish to lose consciousness while you’re whipping them?”
“They all react differently.”
“But have any that you’ve personally punished ever lost consciousness that you can remember?”
“Not to my recollection.”
“Have any of them ever died?”
Jesse suddenly froze and locked eyes with Mason.
Mason reciprocated the glare, walked toward the witness box, put his hands on the bannister, and leaned toward Jesse. “Have any slaves ever died while you were punishing them?” he asked again.
Jesse’s scowl deepened, his eyelids lowered, and his lips pursed tighter. “I don’t fucking recollect,” he replied through gritted teeth.
“Now I see where your namesake gets it,” Mason murmured as he walked over to his table. He picked up a document, cleared his throat, and began paraphrasing its contents. “According to this court document, back in 1825 at the age of sixteen, you were convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to one-month community service after the punishment you inflicted upon one of your father’s misbehaving slaves ultimately led to his death.” Mason laid the paper down and glared at Jesse. “Does that help you recollect that faded memory?”
“Involuntary! You read it! The court ruled it as an accident!” Jesse fired back.
Mason held up the sheet of paper again and read from it. “Seventy-three bruises, sixty-one stripes, ten missing teeth, two blackened eyes, a shattered jaw, a cracked skull, a missing tongue, and rope burns around the slave’s neck were all … an accident?”
“OBJECTION!” Tobias yelled. “He’s already stated that the court ruled the death as an accident!”
“SUSTAINED!” the judge yelled. He then banged his gavel when the audience began audibly reacting to the savage list of injuries. “QUIET PLEASE!”
James stared at Jesse with his mouth partially agape. It was the first time he was hearing of a crime that proved his father lacked a conscious sinc
e birth. James then glanced at the judge and then over at the jurors. From what he was currently experiencing with the judicial system, he was not surprised that twelve soulless men had ruled blatant butchery as an accident.
“You testified that James tried to shoot you while you were in the process of whipping Lily, correct?” Mason continued.
“Yes!”
“Do you have any spent bullet shells from his gun to prove it?”
“I don’t need no damn bullet shells to prove that nigga’ lova’ tried to kill me!”
“Well, given your record of accidents while correcting slaves … can you blame him?”
“OBJECTION!” Tobias yelled, struggling to his feet again.
“No need to rule, your honor,” Mason said, still glaring at Jesse. “This witness is finished.”
“Any follow-up questions for this witness Mr. Crumwell?” the judge asked.
“No, your honor.”
“You may step down, Mr. Adams.”
The courtroom immediately began buzzing as Jesse exited the stand. Harsh words were whispered about him while even harsher glares were aimed in his direction. But Jesse was oblivious to it all; he was locked in a hateful glare with James. After Jesse exited the gallery, James shook his head, wondering why God had yet to strike his father down.
“Your next witness Mr. Crumwell,” the judge announced after Jesse took his seat next to J.R.
“I’d like to call Ms. Mary Jo Parker to the stand,” Tobias replied.
When James heard that name, he massaged his temples and exhaled to help soothe his instant annoyance. He refused to even turn and look in Mary Jo’s direction, knowing for a fact that she was probably going to enter the courtroom in a fashion that would be just as overdramatic as her testimony.
James’s assumptions were spot on. Mary Jo Parker was paraded into the courtroom in a way the town of Fayetteville had come to expect of her. Instead of being escorted from the witness holding room by a deputy, her father was marching her down the aisle with his arm around her. He patted her gently on her arm with his other hand, trying to soothe his emotionally distraught daughter. Wearing an expensive dark dress, Mary Jo was nestled against her father’s chest, dabbing at her puffy red eyes with a handkerchief, as if she were being escorted toward a casket. Joseph held his daughter all the way to the witness stand and kissed her on the cheek before turning her loose. Mary Jo then sniffled her way through being sworn in before taking her seat. James still had his forehead resting on his hand, trying to brace himself for the sort of heinous picture she was about to paint of him.
“Ms. Parker, I know it will be incredibly hard for you to testify, considerin’ the topics we’ll be coverin’. So, we appreciate you bein’ here today,” Tobias praised.
“I just had to find the strength to be here to help get justice for those poor families who lost their husbands and fathers.”
“And I’m sure they’ll appreciate that,” Tobias replied with a smile.
James scoffed and shook his head.
“Can you tell us how you know the defendant, Dr. James Adams?” Tobias started out.
Mary Jo exhaled and dabbed her handkerchief at the corners of her eyes before proceeding. “My fatha’ has done business with the Adams Plantation since before I’s born. So, I’ve literally known James since I’s a baby.”
“Did you spend a good deal of time with Dr. Adams throughout your youth?”
“Yessa’. Several times in any given month, James and his fatha’ would have dinna’ at our place or we would have business dinna’s ova’ their place from time to time. We also attended the same church, so we saw each otha’ there on a regular basis too.”
“Since you were around him so often throughout your youth, is it fair to say that you know Dr. Adams’s characta’ well?”
“Yes, I sure do. But…” Mary Jo suddenly began to tear up again.
“But what Ms. Parker? Go on.”
“It’s just that I wished I hadn’t been forced to spend so much time with him.”
“And why not?”
“James was as mean as a snake when we were kids. I can rememba’ bein’ so scared of ’em from a very early age.”
“What sort of things did he do that made you so scared of him?”
“It started off as childish things, at first. When we were really young, he’d pinch me or put things in my hair or pull it when nobody was lookin’. He knew I’s terrified of snakes and frogs and bugs, but he’d chase me around with ’em if eva’ he found any while we were outside. It got to the point that I’s afraid to be alone with ’em.”
“Did you eva’ tell your fatha’ about any of his behaviors?”
“No. I’s afraid James might take it out on me somehow. I didn’t think my fatha’ would believe me anyway, because James neva’ misbehaved in front of him. It’s like he knew how to straighten up and be decent when he needed to. Felt like he was always puttin’ on a show for folks to make himself look like a gentleman. He was so good at pretendin’ to be a little gentleman that my fatha’ adored him. My daddy always went on and on about how he hoped James and I would get married one day. He always spoke highly of him … and I partially blame myself for that.”
“Why would you blame yourself for James’s actions?”
“Because I should’ve told my fatha’ the way James really treated me when folks weren’t watchin’, so he could’ve done somethin’ about it. If only I’d had the strength to tell ’em the truth, then maybe…” Mary Jo suddenly buried her face in her handkerchief and started to sob.
“I know it’s difficult, Ms. Parker, but please, go on,” Tobias prompted.
She held her head up again and blew out a calming breath. “If I’d’ve told my f-fatha’ about all the h-horrible things James had done to m-me as a child, then perhaps…”
“Perhaps what?”
“Perhaps he wouldn’t have f-forced himself on me when I w-was a teenaga’,” Mary Jo sobbed, dropping her face down into her handkerchief again. She wept uncontrollably for nearly a minute as the crowd gasped and murmured amongst themselves.
James pinched the bridge of his nose, closed his eyes, and shook his head. He was damn near ready to give Mary Jo a standing ovation for her award-worthy theatrical performance. Considering the appalling nature of her character destroying accusations, James should have been just as mortified as the crowd. But, oddly, he found the entire charade amusing. He suddenly leaned back in his seat and waited for the comedy show to continue.
“You kept that a secret as well, didn’t you Ms. Parker?” Tobias asked after Mary Jo collected herself enough to continue.
“Y-yessa’,” Mary Jo sniffled, dabbing at her tears with her handkerchief.
“Did the problems with Dr. Adams stop there?”
“No, they got worse.”
“In what ways?”
“When James got back from university, it happened again.”
“What happened again?”
“H-he.” She dabbed her eyes again and took a deep breath. “I’m s-sorry this is j-just so difficult to t-talk about.”
“Ms. Parker, I know this is hard. It’s okay. Take your time.”
Mary Jo exhaled again. “James forced himself on me again afta’ I found some letters in his bedroom. I’ve neva’ seen ’em so angry.”
“Why did that make James so angry?”
“Because they were letta’s that James had written back and forth with a slave on his fatha’s farm, and they revealed intimate details of their love affair.”
“What was the name of this slave?”
“Her name is Lily.”
“Can you tell us some of the details you read in those letta’s?”
“I can’t even repeat some of the things they discussed. He and Lily were ramblin’ on and on about the sort of inappropriate things that two unmarried individuals should neva’ talk about, let alone do togetha’. A slave especially should neva’ be allowed to say or do the sort of things that Lily was with
her own masta’.”
“I know this may be inappropriate to ask a woman to discuss, but it’s necessary for this case. So, just for clarity, did James and Lily confess to havin’ intercourse with one anotha’?”
“Yes! In the most graphic distgustin’ ways possible! Turns my stomach to think about the sort of things they were doin’ behind closed doors, in carriages, in hotels, outdoors in the dark, and while in bodies of filthy wata’. They were fornincatin’ whereva’ they could hide their abominable acts! But what disgusted me most of all was readin’ that James was overjoyed by the fact that he had impregnated that nig– … that slave!”
The crowd suddenly erupted in loud chatter again.
“QUIET DOWN!” Judge Lucifer scorned, banging his gavel.
“Was that the only letta’ regardin’ Lily’s pregnancy?” Tobias asked once the courtroom was silent.
“No! There were several letta’s that they had written back and forth, discussing baby names and such,” Mary Jo lied.
“Did Lily eva’ mention who taught ’er to read and write?”
“Yessa’. I couldn’t hardly make out what Lily wrote because her penmanship was so god-awful! But in the very first letta’ I read, she was thankin’ James for teachin’ her to read and write. She also said she’d found some otha’ book she wanted to stumble through readin’ to ’em.”
“Were there any discussions of love or marriage between the two of them?”
“James told Lily that he loved her in nearly every letta’! And he wrote constantly about his dream of marryin’ her!”
“What happened when you confronted Dr. Adams about all these crimes?”
Mary Jo lowered her head onto her handkerchief again and began to weep. “H-he forced himself on m-me again. R-right then and there, he t-tore my clothes off and f-forced me onto the bed. He s-said h-he was gonna p-prove to me that he was in l-love with me and n-not Lily.”
“And why didn’t you go to the sheriff about this Ms. Parker?”
“B-because James threatened me. He told me to keep the letta’s a secret and then demanded that I marry him, so that nobody would eva’ suspect that he was the f-fatha’ of Lily’s baby. H-he told me that if I didn’t do what I’s told that he’d do somethin’ to hurt my fatha’. And I l-love my d-daddy with all my heart. So I w-wanted to do all I could to protect ’em.”