by Sandra Ryan
His lawyer had tried his best to ensure that the recording was excluded from evidence, but the judge had overruled his objection. It had almost been comical the way it turned out. Nathan had always thought that his car was the best place to have private conversations to avoid bugs and other listening devices. To think that it was while he was there that Anderson had recorded the conversations that turned out to be the last nail on his coffin.
The company had been taken away from him. The other board members had voted to remove him as a member of the board and quickly sold the company. As he stared at the slow moving traffic, he realized how futile all his efforts had been. The lengths he had gone to save the company had all been a waste. He was not a man given to regrets, but in that moment he felt the first stirring of regret at his actions. Perhaps he could have done things differently. But he knew deep down that he’d probably make the same decisions all over again.
The door opened and someone stepped in. Nathan knew without turning that it was his attorney. The man breathed with his mouth open, as though he had just finished running a marathon and was exhausted by the effort.
“What is it?” Nathan asked.
“The jury is back. It is time,” the man said.
*******
“All rise!” the bailiff shouted and everyone in the court stood. The judge strode to her seat. When she was seated, the bailiff shouted again, “The Honorable Judge Banks presiding.”
Holly looked around. The courtroom was filled to the brim, half of the people there being reporters. The judge had gotten tired of throwing them out all the time so just let them stay with a warning to comport themselves with the utmost decorum.
The members of the jury filed in. Ordinarily they were not supposed to show any emotion or let it slip which way their verdict would swing, but it had been clear even from the beginning that every single person in the jury box hated Nathan Benson. Nobody had been surprised when less than 30 minutes after the defense had closed their case, they were returning with a verdict.
“Foreman of the jury, have you reached a verdict?”
“Yes your honor,” the foreman replied.
“Let’s hear the verdict.”
“In the case of the City of New York against Nathan Benson, we the people find Nathan Benson guilty...”
There was a gasp as the news filtered down the length of the hall. The Judge had to shout ‘order’ severally before the hall calmed down and the foreman then finished the rest of the verdict.
“The city of New York thanks you for your services, you are hereby dismissed,” the judge said.
As the court rose again for the exit of the judge, Holly stole a glance at Elizabeth seated on the other side of the room. She was hugging her son tightly and tears rolled down her cheeks.
******
Three Months Later.
Samuel Clark strode purposefully towards the ticket agent on the counter.
“I need a ticket to Austin, please?”
He handed her his credit card and then pulled down his glasses. He probably should have done the whole business of booking the plane online but he had been trying to avoid any contact with the internet. It was part of his wellness plan according to his therapist. He was supposed to stay off of the internet and social media in order to aid his recovery. He got all the information he needed from newspapers.
The important ones, like the fact that Anderson Singleton had committed suicide in prison, he found out when a reporter called him for a comment.. The others like the gossip blogs and all, he did not bother trying to find out what they carried.
The woman handed him his ticket and then smiled as she recognized him,
“Wait; are you not that Clark character? The one accused of kidnapping a child or something?”
“No. You must be mistaking me for someone else, ma’am,” he replied with a smile and walked away.
Days after the news broke; he became a celebrity overnight and got a lot of attention from sympathizers. Each day, thousands of mails form individuals all over the world arrived at his door. He had tried reading them at some point but gave up. He realized that he lacked the mental energy to keep up with everything happening to him. The only place he felt so measure of safety was with his therapist. He had done well with his therapist and as a gift to himself, set out for a trip to Austin Texas.