Is This Goodbye?: A Frank Moretti Thriller

by Frederick Wysocki

  They had also secured a statement from Ted Wetmore who they were paying to stay another day in Canada.

  “But, I need to get back to work.”

  “Just tell them you’re being questioned as one of the last people to see Ashley Kelly alive.”

  By Thursday Wayne said they had enough to have a meeting with a friend.

  Luca Testini was waiting with Wayne to meet the friend. “Who is this guy again?”

  “He’s the man who would decide whether Frank Moretti will be charged and held for trial in the death of Ashley Kelly.”

  The chairs they were sitting on were made from hard old oak trees and were probably over a hundred years old.

  Luca asked, “Why aren’t we meeting with Whitehall in his office instead of this dingy pub?”

  Wayne Murphy knew the chairs well. “Because, as you can see, at this time of the day this place is empty. Under our system of justice, the Crown Counsel acts as a safety valve. However, much like your District Attorneys, our Crown Counsels do not meet directly with a defendant’s lawyers. Although they do share all the evidence, both good and bad, it’s all done by email these days.”

  Luca sighed and glanced at his watch. “He’s late.”

  Wayne frowned at his colleague. “Be patient. The only reason he’s meeting with us is because of my friendship with him.”

  That’s why you cost so much.

  Murphy pointed towards the door. “Here he comes.”

  A well-dressed man with a shiny bald head and black leather briefcase approached the table and sat down.

  Wayne introduced both men to each other. “Douglas Whitehall, meet Luca Testini from San Francisco. Luca is Frank Moretti’s American legal representative. Douglas Whitehall is the Crown Counsel Prosecutor for Vancouver. It is the Crown Counsel who is responsible for laying charges here in British Columbia.”

  The men shook hands.

  “Douglas would you like a coffee?”

  “Thank you, no, I’m fine. Let’s skip the small talk and get down to business, shall we.” Douglas Whitehall turned to Luca and raised his eyebrows. “As Crown Counsel, my main job is to do the right thing once I’ve been given all the evidence. Now I understand you wish to discuss whether there is sufficient evidence for a preliminary inquiry to be held in Provincial Court in the case of the death of Ashley Kelly. Is that correct?”

  Wayne placed both hands on the table and intertwined his fingers. “That’s right, Douglas. Today we would like to go over the facts of the case and convince you that charging Frank Moretti will not result in a conviction and therefore a prosecution is not in the public’s interest.”

  Whitehall turned towards Luca and spoke softly. “Mister Testini, I need you to understand that this meeting never happened.”

  Luca smiled. “What meeting?”

  Whitehall nodded, then looked around to see if anyone could overhear them.

  Wayne said, “We won’t be bothered. I paid the waitress to make sure we’re left alone.”

  Luca put on his courtroom face. “I know your detectives have bungled this situation from the moment they illegally took my client’s blood and photographed his body. They have committed the classic cognitive error known as threshold diagnosis, which lead them to have tunnel vision. The moment they arrived at the scene of Miss Kelly’s suicide your detectives decided that my client was guilty and all they’ve done since is to look only for evidence that reinforces that mistake. All the items that exonerate him have been discounted.”

  Whitehall winced and sat back in his chair. “Wayne, will you please tell your American friend that berating me or the detectives won’t work in your favor.”

  Luca apologized immediately. “I’m sorry Douglas, but why do you think my client had anything to do with Ashley Kelly’s death?”

  Douglas Whitehall opened his briefcase and pulled out a folder “Let’s see… Moretti admits that he and the deceased were in his hotel room in his bed and that they had sex together. When he woke up she was dead.”

  Whitehall then placed a color photograph of the bruising around Ashley’s neck on the table facing Luca and Wayne. “There were fingerprint sized bruises around her throat indicating that Frank Moretti most likely choked her. It may also be evidence of his holding her by the throat to force Ashley to swallow the illicit drugs that caused her death.”

  Luca knew better than to interrupt.

  “Mister Moretti then admits that he repositioned Ashley’s body indicating he may have been covering up foul play. His cell phone records indicate that he called a law firm in San Francisco before calling the police or an ambulance.”

  Whitehall glanced at Luca who kept his poker face.

  “In addition, he has also admitted to having taken a shower before he called the police. That indicates that he tried to wash away any evidence from his body. If Moretti were innocent, he would have called an ambulance as soon as he found her. That way, she might have had her stomach pumped and been saved.” Whitehall raised his eyes to look at both men.

  Luca could already taste Whitehall’s presumption of guilt.

  “We then have a written statement from a Theodore Wetmore, Ashley’s lawyer friend that earlier that evening Miss Kelly told him that she thought Frank Moretti was going to kill her.”

  Whitehall made each statement sound as if it was a nail being driven into Frank’s coffin.

  “We have also obtained an FBI report where Frank Moretti was the number one suspect in a prior attempt on Miss Kelly’s life.”

  Whitehall looked up and grimaced. “I have to say that there is an abundance of evidence and testimony to arrest Frank Moretti for murder and to hold him for trial.”

  42

  Since Wayne had a history with Whitehall, Luca let Wayne start the rebuttal. “I’m afraid that all that evidence is circumstantial. In fact, Ashley Kelly is another victim who like hundreds of others over the last year have died from a drug overdose here in Vancouver.”

  Whitehall raised his eyes at Wayne who continued. “As you know, Vancouver is a port city and last year we had over 500 drug overdoses. My contact in the Coroners office told me that Ashley Kelly’s autopsy shows that Ashley died from another Fentanyl overdose. ”

  “You mean China White?”

  Wayne cracked a smile. “Its street name is China White. Fentanyl is attractive to drug traffickers because its so small to carry. The trouble for users is that it is deadly because a dose the size of a grain of sand can kill them. It’s a hundred times more potent than heroin. They take a chance with it because the high lasts a long time. The only good news is that Ashley Kelly was probably not even aware she was dying after she took it.”

  Luca looked at Whitehall’s face for a sign of a tell. Nothing. He’s poker faced.

  Whitehall finally gave some ground. “The investigators have discovered that Ashley Kelly was a disturbed young woman who had been seeing mental health professionals her entire teenage and adult life. If we were to go to trial, I am sure you would present her long history of prescription drug use for her mental condition. It is fair to state that Ashley was predisposed to seeking drugs.”

  Wayne saw the opening and ran with it. He pulled out a picture, which he placed on the table. “This is a still from a security tape from the nightclub where Ashley and her lawyer friend Ted Wetmore were drinking. This shot shows Ashley standing next to the man we believe sold her the drugs she took. Mister Wetmore has signed a statement that he believes this is where Ashley Kelly bought the drugs that killed her. So, Ashley Kelly brought the drugs that killed her to Moretti’s hotel room.”

  Wayne pulled out another photo. “This is a still from the Shangri-la’s security camera showing Ashley Kelly going to Frank’s room carrying a bottle of white wine and possessing the drugs.”

  Whitehall interrupted. “You are assuming she was in possession.”

  Luca jumped in. “That’s correct. Ashley Kelly was fixated on Frank Moretti. She had been for several years. We know that Ashley
went to great lengths to arrange for herself to be sent here to Vancouver by her aunt Regina Lofthouse, who is also with the American government. The express purpose of her visit was to allow her to be in the same location, at the same time, with Frank Moretti. Mister Moretti had no prior knowledge that Miss Kelly was going to be here, as Ashley Kelly had no reason to be here in Vancouver. Ashley and Frank Moretti were both sent to Vancouver by Miss Kelly’s aunt Regina Lofthouse of the CIA.”

  Wayne spoke next. “Ashley Kelly is the one who went to Frank Moretti’s hotel room without an invitation. Moretti had no idea she would show up at such a late hour. Moretti had no idea that Ashley had drugs on her person and no idea that illegal drugs were being brought into his hotel room.”

  Wayne sat up even straighter. “As I’ve already stated, we had our own expert go over your Coroner’s findings. He agrees with the Coroner that Ashley died sometime between midnight and one in the morning from an overdose of the street drug commonly known as China White. China White is commonly sold in conjunction with Ecstasy to buyers seeking an enhanced sexual experience. The time of death indicates to our expert that Ashley took the drugs while they were engaging in mutual sex. The drugs killed her, not our client having sex with her. Frank admits that he was tired and fell asleep right after he climaxed. Ashley Kelly had been dead for approximately eight hours when Mister Moretti woke to find her lying naked and exposed in his bed. He proceeded as any gentleman would do and covered her exposed body with a sheet. The only remaining question for a jury to consider would be whether Ashley took the drugs only for purposes of enhancing her sexual experience and overdosed by accident, or if she took them with the knowledge they would surely kill her.”

  Wayne raised his eyebrows at Whitehall who immediately asked, “What about the FBI report?”

  Luca said. “Let me answer… That report says he was a suspect but that he was never charged or arrested. He had a solid alibi at the time of the attempted foul play. I think if you read the report a little closer, you’ll find that the main suspect was actually one Anthony Rizzo, also of Chicago. Mister Rizzo is since deceased.”

  Whitehall surprised him. “You’re correct, Mister Testini. But there is still the open question of the drugs.”

  “Mister Moretti didn’t purchase the drugs, didn’t take any of them or give them to her.”

  “If your theory is correct, why is Ashley Kelly dead?”

  Wayne broke his silence. “As I said earlier, it was another overdose. Ashley suffered from emotional immaturity. If we go to trial, her psychologist will testify that Ashley was stuck in her past and that she was trying to reignite the prior relationship. The questions I would be asking would include; why was she here in Vancouver at the exact same time as Mister Moretti. Why did her aunt let an emotionally disturbed young woman travel here and arrange for Frank Moretti to be here at the same time? How did Ashley get the drugs that killed her? Did she know the risk of taking them? Did she understand the risk she was taking by swallowing them with alcohol? Why did she take a cab from the One Orange Street club to the Shangri-la where Frank was staying when there is no evidence that he invited her to do so? If Frank Moretti wanted to kill her, why would he do it in his own hotel room where he would be the first one considered guilty? He wouldn’t. The answers all point to a suicide. The only other explanation is that when Ashley had sex with Frank, it wasn’t what she was hoping and took the drugs to help her. Either way, it was an accidental overdose.”

  Wayne Murphy said, “Oh, and don’t forget that drinking alcohol will almost always amplify the effects of drugs causing accidental death. And Miss Kelly brought a bottle of Chardonnay which she drank to Moretti’s hotel room.”

  Whitehall looked up the ceiling and rubbed the top of his bald head. “Part of my job is to be impartial. I have to admit that our Major Crime Unit also searched Ashley’s motel room and found her iPad.”

  Both Wayne and Luca stopped talking and paid full attention to Whitehall. “She had been visiting a suicide Usenet group on the Internet for quite some time. Apparently, the site teaches you the most efficient and painless ways to kill yourself. You don't have to chat with anyone… It supports your theory of the events.”

  Luca leaned into the table. “In the United States, we ask if a client had the motive, means and opportunity to commit a crime. Mister Moretti clearly had no motive and didn’t supply the means or opportunity. Ashley Kelly and her aunt created the opportunity. In fact, one might argue that Frank Moretti was lead into a trap. Ashley Kelly purchased and transported the means.”

  Crown Counsel Douglas Whitehall sat and tapped his forehead as he processed all he’d heard. “Based on the evidence in this case it would appear that while Frank Moretti did not act the way he should have, there is insufficient evidence that he played a part in her death and that he would be convicted of such. Therefore, at this time I shall not be pursuing criminal charges relating to Ashley Kelly’s death… Are we done gentlemen?”

  Wayne and Luca looked at each other.

  Luca asked, “Is Frank free?”

  “At this time, yes, he is free to return to St Kitts. However, if further investigation presents new evidence he may still be charged.”

  Luca said, “I understand. Do you have Mister Moretti’s passport and driver’s license?”

  “As a matter of fact, I do.” Whitehall dug into his briefcase and handed them to Luca. “Anything else?”

  Wayne Murphy said, “I believe we are done. Thank you Mister Crown Counsel. May I assume you will notify the Jail NCO and have a detective sign the Jail Booking Sheet to release Mister Moretti today?”

  “You may, Mister Murphy.”

  Everyone stood.

  Wayne turned to Whitehall. “Will I see you on the golf course this weekend?”

  “Indeed you will.”

  43

  It was late on Friday afternoon when Luca Testini and Wayne Murphy met Frank as he exited the Vancouver Jail on Cordova Street.

  Luca offered his hand for Frank to shake. “How are you doing, Frank?”

  “Man, o, man, am I glad to be out of that place. That was two days and one night of pure Hell. Now that I’ve been in a cell, I’d rather be killed than have to go to jail or prison again. Thanks to both of you for getting me released. I’m cleared of all charges, right?”

  Luca responded with an expressionless face. “All criminal charges here in Canada have been dismissed. There is still the possibility that Ashley Kelly’s mother will sue you in an American Civil Court for damages.”

  “Spoken like the lawyer you are, Luca. Can I assume you will help me should that happen?”

  “Certainly, Frank.”

  “I’m starved. Let me buy you guys an early dinner while I figure out what I need to do next. You know this city, where do you recommend, Wayne?”

  Wayne Murphy asked, “What are you in the mood for?”

  “I feel like a thick steak and a bottle or two of Cabernet.”

  “Then I know the perfect steak house. I’ll drive.”

  It took less than two minutes to find Wayne’s car and drive away.

  In the back seat by himself, Frank pulled out his returned phone. “I need to make a few quick calls.”

  First, he called his hotel to ensure they had checked him out. They hadn’t. “Check me out and put it on my credit card that you have on file. Could you have someone grab my belongings and put them in my bag? I’ll drop by later this evening to pick it up.”

  I wonder if I should call Regina.

  No, she’s the one who arranged for Ashley to ambush me here.

  No, I’m through with her and the CIA.

  Luca turned towards Frank from the front passenger seat. He was passing Frank the ring box.

  Frank accepted it, then looked at it for a long moment before he spoke. “I sure hope I’m going to need this after all that just happened.”

  Luca felt sorry for his client. “Have you spoken to Naomi recently?”

  “Not si
nce all this shit happened, no.”

  Luca wasn’t sure what to say next. “I’m sorry but I haven’t had a chance to draft that prenuptial agreement for you.”

  “Once Naomi finds out that I slept with Ashley, I probably won’t need that prenup anymore anyway.”

  No one spoke until Murphy parked his car. “Okay guys here we are.”

  44

  After dinner, Frank asked Wayne and Luca to stop at the Shangri-La so he could pick up his bag. The Luggage Manager gave it to him without any comment or direct eye contact.

  Frank didn’t want any hotel staff looking at him sideways so he decided to check into another luxury downtown hotel.

  Once again, he took a large suite.

  He also paid for a smaller room for Luca.

  Luca Testini tossed his bag on his bed and went to Frank’s room.

  He joined Wayne Murphy sitting in the living area of Frank’s suite. Luca joined into commiserating with Frank.

  Luca was concerned for his client. “How are you coping with Ashley’s passing? Anything I can do for you on that front?”

  Frank cocked his head. “I don’t know how I feel. It’s not like I was still in love with her or anything. She showed up, stripped naked and threw herself at me. I’m a healthy male, what in hell was I supposed to do?”

  Feeling uncomfortable, Luca and Wayne glanced at each other without speaking.

  “She was however, someone I once cared for… On the other hand, I don’t know why she did what she did. Plus, I have no idea if her death was an accident or if it was a suicide… ‘Cause if it was suicide, then I don’t understand what I did to cause her to do it… Besides, in the end, all she accomplished was to cause me some emotional stress. I guess I’m really lucky that I didn’t marry her.”

  Grimacing and bobbing his head, Luca finally spoke. “Are you going to reach out to her family?”