Common Enemy

by Sandra Dailey

  “No,” she said in a dull voice.

  “I think that’s enough, your Honor.”

  The judge looked uncomfortable. “Do you have any questions, Mr. McCrae?”

  Connor stood. “Yes I do, your Honor.” He approached Jordan and smiled. “Ms. Holbrook, please tell us who your father was.”

  She sat up straighter. “My father was Sgt. Troy Jordan, of the United States Army.”

  “Why hadn’t you ever met your father?”

  “He was killed in action before I was born.”

  “Why did your mother leave you in the care of your grandparents, Ms. Holbrook?”

  “She was struggling with the pain of my father’s death. She didn’t want me to be affected by it.”

  “And how did she die?”

  “People who knew her believe that she committed suicide, because of her grief for my father.”

  “It sounds like they must have been very much in love.”

  “Yes, they were.”

  “Your grandmother died recently. How old was she?”

  “She was sixty-nine-years-old.”

  “And you’ll soon be thirty-years-old?”

  “Yes.”

  “That makes her forty-six at the time you started living with her. That doesn’t seem elderly to me. I’ve heard of women having babies of their own at that age. Perhaps I’m wrong. What do you think, your Honor? Is forty-six considered elderly?”

  Judge Bender gave a rare smile and shook his head. Connor went on. “I’ve listened to all the questions and answers given today with all my attention. I’ve made an interesting observation. Not once has your daughter been referred to by name. What is her name, Ms. Holbrook?”

  Jordan’s whole face broke into a wide smile. “Her name is Elizabeth Holbrook.”

  “That’s a big name for a little girl. She’s five years old?”

  “That’s right. She was named after my grandmother. We call her Lizzy.”

  “What would you like the court to know about Lizzy, Ms. Holbrook?”

  “She’s beautiful, smart, and funny. She’s looking forward to starting kindergarten this fall, and she has a cat named Tom. She just learned to ride a bicycle. And she has a huge appetite.” A few of the female observers laughed.

  “Describe the kind of home life you’ve provided for Lizzy.”

  “I wouldn’t say it’s fancy, but we get by. I’ve worked hard to give her a safe, clean home. She has ample food, clothes, and toys. Even though I’ve always worked, we spend a lot of time together.” Jordan turned to face the judge. “We’ve only had each other until moving back to Mayville. Now, we both have plenty of friends.”

  “Ms. Holbrook, can you please explain to the court why Lizzy is currently staying with friends.”

  “In the last few weeks, we’ve had problems.” Jordan folded her hands tightly in her lap. “It started with anonymous phone calls from someone claiming to be watching us. After I received a summons for this hearing, Bobby Ray Butler called. He suggested I give him money to avoid this case. He even implied that I take money from the bank where I work. More recently, I encountered him in the grocery store. He said he’d get Lizzy, and if I wanted to keep her safe, I’d have to also stay with him too. I felt threatened when he told me he plans to punish me.” Jordan turned to the judge again. “I don’t want Lizzy to be hurt because of any of this.”

  Bennett stood, but before he could speak Connor said, “I think I’ve heard enough, your Honor.”

  “Do you have anyone else to call, Mr. Bennett?” the judge asked.

  “No, your Honor,” Bennett grumbled.

  “I have calls to return in my chambers. We’ll take a one-hour break before Mr. McCrae continues. I’ll expect everyone who wants to be admitted back into this courtroom to be on time.” Judge Bender tapped his gavel.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “What just happened in there?” Bobby Ray cornered Bennett in the restroom as he came out of a stall. “He just made Jordan look like Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. Everybody in the room loved her when he was finished.”

  “All that matters is what the judge thinks. He could see that dog and pony show for what it was.”

  “You tore her down and he built her right back up. That’s what I saw. Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

  “Yeah, okay, the guy was pretty good, but so were you. I think he just shot his wad. He doesn’t have any more to go with. Your testimony was touching. They aren’t going to forget that. You’ll at least get visitation.”

  “If I don’t, your wife will hear from me. When I tell her all I know, she’ll be history, along with her daddy’s money. Just remember that.”

  ****

  In the courthouse cafeteria, Connor looked up to see Jordan watching him with a serious expression. He gave her a big smile and a wink. She brightened and smiled back.

  “This has been hard on Jordan,” he told Caleb. “I wish she didn’t have to be here for the rest of it.”

  “You know how these judges can be. He’d call this thing over if she didn’t show. Then, we wouldn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting rid of Butler.”

  “We aren’t going to get rid of him anyway. Not until he’s put away or dead.”

  “That’s why we’re still on this investigation, Con. John and Ted are looking as hard as they can to find some way to trip him up.”

  “I can’t keep those guys here indefinitely. They have families to get back to.” Connor cocked his head curiously. “You know, I haven’t even asked if you have a family yet, Cal.”

  “Close, but no cigar. That’s a story for another time, though.” He didn’t look up as he snapped his laptop closed. “We’d better get back inside.”

  Connor walked over to Jordan and put his arms around her. He whispered in her ear as they walked back to the courtroom, “It’s going to get really nasty in there now. You know I’m going to do anything I have to, to tear him apart. Can you handle it?”

  “I can handle anything that will save Lizzy, especially if you’re there.”

  “I don’t know if you understand how bad this may get. Let me say now that I’m sorry if any of this hurts you. I’d give anything for you to be spared from all of this.”

  “I love you, Connor. It’s going to be all right.”

  “You’re an amazing woman, Jordan. I’m so lucky to have you.” He kissed her hard on the lips. “Let’s get this over with.”

  Ted leaned over the railing to hand Connor another folder as they sat down.

  “You understand that you’re still under oath, Mr. Butler?” Judge Bender asked as the proceedings resumed.

  “Yes I do, your Honor.”

  “You may proceed, Mr. McCrae.” He nodded to Connor.

  “Mr. Butler, I would like to go over some of your previous testimony. You stated earlier that you had been laid off from your job before the robbery occurred. Where had you been working?”

  “West Coast Construction Company in Tampa,” Bobby Ray answered.

  “You and Ms. Holbrook were both employed there. Am I right?”

  “That’s correct.”

  “I have pay statements here, for the entire time that you were employed there.” Connor held them up at shoulder level. “I have Ms. Holbrook’s pay statements as well. They show that you clocked in and out every day until the day you were arrested. The two of you together were making a considerable amount of money.”

  “There must be some mistake with the dates on those papers. Our expenses were high. We were dead broke.”

  “What are the chances that your bank would make the same mistake in the dates? Let’s have a look at your bank statements for that year.” Connor removed the mentioned statements from the folder. “They show your balance at the time of your arrest. It looks like you had a nice little nest egg put away. You must have a good head for finances, Mr. Butler.”

  “No, there must be some mistake,” Bobby Ray insisted. “I don’t know where you got those papers.”


  “They were obtained from the bank by the joint account holder, Ms. Holbrook. I’m sure they’re in order. I’ll hand them over to the court to look at. We’ll see what they think.” He handed the stack of papers to the bailiff. “You have your finances in order now though, isn’t that what you said? You have a job to help support Lizzy?”

  “That’s what I said,” Bobby Ray groused.

  “What is the name of your new employer and how much money have they offered you?”

  “I’ll start next week with Reynolds Construction.”

  “So you haven’t had any income so far. How much money have they offered to pay you?”

  “We haven’t discussed money yet, but I know it won’t be as much as I made in Tampa. Things are tougher, now that I’m an ex-convict.”

  “We don’t have any way of getting documentation from Reynolds then, do we?”

  “No,” Bobby Ray sneered.

  “Do you see the man sitting directly behind my brother, Mr. Butler?”

  “Yes.”

  “That man is Mr. Adkins. He’s the human resource manager for Reynolds Construction, the only road construction company in town. He brought your application with him today. He says he has an appointment to interview you next week. You haven’t been offered a job yet.”

  “I have a lot of experience. I know they’ll hire me.”

  “Even though you’ve been convicted of a felony?” Connor asked. “You did include that on the application, didn’t you?”

  “I don’t remember. I may have missed that.”

  “It’s an honest mistake,” Connor smiled. “Sometimes those little boxes are hard to find. But now I’m wondering how you paid for a new apartment? The deposit, utilities and furnishings can be expensive.”

  “My fiancée has been helping me out.”

  “Oh yes, you mentioned before you’re getting married in two weeks. Congratulations. What is the lucky girl’s name?”

  “Juanita Granger.”

  “I know a man who lives nearby named Henry Granger. As a matter-of-fact, he’s here today to follow up on a police report. It seems someone stole his clothes, jewelry, and even cleaned out his bank account a couple of weeks ago. He thinks it was his wife. She disappeared the same day. You know, I think her name was Juanita, too. But it couldn’t be the same woman, could it? She wouldn’t be free to marry anyone when she’s still married to Mr. Granger. But, that’s beside the point now. The police got a tip on where she’s staying and they picked her up this morning. Still, it’s quite a coincidence. I’ll have to introduce him to you when we leave.”

  Bobby Ray turned as white as the shirt he wore…the shirt that belonged to the man outside the courtroom. Bennett jumped to his feet. “I object, your Honor!”

  Before the judge had a chance to reply, Connor turned to Bennett. “You’re absolutely right, I’ve gotten off track. Sorry, your Honor.” Connor walked back to the table to set the folder down. “Now, I’d like to know more about the convenience store robbery. I happen to have a copy of the video surveillance tape.”

  “I object, your Honor.” Bennett was once again on his feet. “None of this has anything to do with the child in question.”

  “I’m only going over the testimony that Mr. Bennett has already introduced, your Honor.” Connor shrugged.

  “That’s true Mr. Bennett. You’re overruled.”

  The room was abuzz when two deputies wheeled in a big screen TV. Connor made eye contact with Jordan as they hooked up a VCR. She nodded to him with a sullen expression. Cal put his arm around her. As the tape began, she buried her face in his shoulder. The section of tape was over in less than two minutes.

  “I have a few questions about that video,” Connor stated. “It appeared that Ms. Holbrook was screaming and struggling during the robbery.”

  “It was all a part of the plan,” Bobby Ray replied.

  “You pushed her in front of you on your way out of the store.”

  “She couldn’t keep up on her own.”

  “The video wasn’t very clear to me, so I had a few still shots made from it.” Connor retrieved eight-by-ten photos from his briefcase. He held one up. “Here’s one of you leaving the store. It appears that you still had the knife pointed at Ms. Holbrook, but now it’s down at waist level. Didn’t you say that she was only a few weeks from having a baby?”

  “Yes. I guess I was careless with her. It must have been all the adrenalin.”

  “Now here’s a close-up of Ms. Holbrook in front of the cash register during the robbery. She sure looks frightened to me. There are tears on her cheeks. By the way, what had happened to her eye and mouth?”

  “She’d walked into a door frame a few days before,” Bobby Ray answered.

  “She must have walked into it a couple of times to hit her left eye and the right side of her mouth. Isn’t it funny how the bruising is round and scattered. You would expect a doorframe to leave straight marks. These look like knuckle marks to me. Was she always so clumsy?”

  “She had a lot of accidents, yes.”

  “The nearest emergency room to your apartment was St. Joseph’s. We have a copy of her records from there.” Again, Connor reached inside his briefcase. “She was in the ER six times. Each time, they listed a variety of injuries. Abrasions, contusions, broken ribs, even a concussion where she’d lost consciousness. And this had all taken place during the time that she was pregnant. It’s a wonder that baby survived. You might even think someone didn’t want her to, maybe even hoped she wouldn’t.”

  Bobby Ray’s face was red and sweating profusely. He had just about reached his limit. Connor wanted to push him over the edge. “I sure hope she’s more careful while she’s having my baby. Did I forget to mention that we’re engaged?” He turned to Jordan. “Show him the ring, honey. She’s a beautiful woman, isn’t she?”

  Bennett leapt to his feet, pounding his fist on the table. “I object!”

  Bobby Ray dove over the rail in front of his chair and lunged past Connor and toward Jordan. “I’ll kill you, you cheating bitch. I’ll kill you and that fucking kid of yours. I should have taken you out before she was ever born.”

  Caleb held her behind him until the deputies had him handcuffed. Bobby Ray screamed obscenities and threats as they dragged him from the courtroom. The judge banged his gavel to silence the excited observers.

  “Mr. Bennett, I believe your client may need your assistance. Mr. McCrae, please approach the bench.”

  After Bennett had followed Bobby Ray out of the room, Judge Bender and Connor spoke in lowered voices. “Connor, you know you goaded him into that outburst.”

  “Yes sir, I did, and you enjoyed every minute of it.”

  “Yeah, it was pretty cool,” the judge admitted.

  “How long can you hold him?”

  “Not very long, I’m afraid. Bennett will claim that he was under undue stress. But, I can get you some restraining orders.” He began writing in a notebook. “I guess Butler is lucky in a way.”

  “How’s that, sir?” Connor asked.

  “He doesn’t have to face Mr. Granger today.”

  “Can we do anything with that situation?”

  “I’m afraid not,” the judge replied. “It sounds like the wife initiated the whole thing.

  You know I’m going to rule against him, but I have to appear to think it over. You’ll get my ruling by the end of the day.”

  “Thanks, your Honor. I’m going to take Jordan home as soon as you call this thing over.”

  “You got it.”

  As they left the courthouse, Connor told Jordan the good news.

  “I can’t believe it,” she exclaimed. “He lost? I don’t have to worry about him anymore?”

  “I never said that. We’re going to have to watch our backs for as long as he’s still out there. A restraining order is only a piece of paper. Don’t lose sight of that fact. He’s pretty damn pissed off.”

  “So what do we do now?”

  “
I’d say it’s time Lizzy came home. We’ll have to watch her like a hawk, but she can’t stay at the Douglas’s forever. I don’t know about you, but I miss that little munchkin.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Lizzy chattered all the way home about the fun she’d had with Adam and Craig. She’d learned to tie her own shoes and make Kool-Aid. Miss Holly had said that Tom looked like dryer lint and Mr. Charlie gave her a piggyback ride every night on her way to bed. But, she also said she’d missed her room and her swing.

  As soon as the car stopped in front of the house, she jumped out and ran inside. She skidded to a stop and backed up a few steps, finding herself faced by three large strangers. Mr. Coleman came from the kitchen wiping his hands on a dishtowel. “I sure am glad to see you, Lizzy. It stinks being the only person in the house under six-feet tall.”

  Ted slid off the couch to kneel eye-to-eye with her. “Hi Lizzy, my name is Ted.” He motioned behind him with a thumb. “This guy, John, and I have been working for your mom and Connor. We sure are glad to meet you.”

  “How come all you guys are wearing suits like Connor?” she asked meekly. “Did you go to a funeral? When Gram died, all the men wore suits to her funeral.”

  “No, we had business to take care of. It was a good day. Your mommy must be so happy to have you back home.”

  Jordan entered with Lizzy’s little suitcase. Lizzy hugged her legs still looking at all the big men.

  John stood and walked toward the door. “Ted and I are going to get back to the hotel and change clothes. We want to start our surveillance shifts while we still know where Butler is. Where’s Connor?”

  “He’s right behind me. He wanted to park the car in the barn.” After the two men walked outside, Jordan looked down at Lizzy. “What would you like to have for dinner tonight, sweetheart? You can have anything you want. I’ll go to the store and get it.” Lizzy still clung to her legs staring at Caleb. “Did you hear me Lizzy? You can have anything you want for dinner.”

  “Shrimp, the crusty kind, and french fries with ketchup,” Lizzy finally answered.

  ****

  Connor came inside carrying Tom. Lizzy climbed up his body and circled her arms and legs around him. He almost lost his grip on the squirming cat. “What’s the problem, monkey girl?”