A strange silence settled over the courtroom. Linese frowned, trying to figure out why it had suddenly turned so quiet, then she realized that the shooting and cannon fire outside of town had ceased.
For the first time, in more days than she could count, there was no sound of war outside Mainfield. It was eerie. Her stomach clenched into a fist-sized knot. The sound of the gavel hitting wood made her jump. She looked at the solitary man who had entered and sat down behind the table in the center of the courtroom.
“Court is now in session. Silence, please,” Mayor Kerney ordered.
Linese’s knees turned to water. Her hand shot out and she gripped the railing in front of her until her knuckles went white while she fought to keep from fainting dead away.
Now she knew who Chase’s judge was, and her last hope for Chase’s freedom evaporated like rain on a hot day.
“Colonel Homstock,” Kerney said. “Would you like to address the court?”
“Yes, Your Honor.” Homstock strode to the middle of the room and looked at Chase. The angle and distance made it impossible for Linese to read the expression in his eyes while he spoke. “Before we begin, I want this assembly to know this trial is not a military action. The murder of Alfred Homstock, a civilian, occurred in 1862, in Ferrin County and has remained unsolved.” He turned in Rancy’s direction. “Is that correct, Sheriff?”
“Yes, it is correct,” Rancy grumbled.
“Is it also true, the accused, Major Chase Cordell, has refused to give any testimony whatsoever on his own behalf?”
“That’s true.” Rancy’s voice was full of frustration. “Chase has refused to talk about it at all.”
“You have been investigating this case for some time, I understand, Sheriff Thompson.”
“Yes,” Rancy said. “Yes, Ferrin County has no sheriff, so I was in charge of the original investigation,” Rancy answered.
“Since the victim was my brother, and since I studied law before entering the Confederate army, I’d like to act as prosecutor in this case.” There was a collective murmur in the stuffy courtroom. “Is that acceptable to you, Judge?”
Linese’s heart was pounding rapidly in her chest. The air in the room was still, thick with tension and doom. It was like watching a staged play in some bizarre disjointed way. She found herself going numb from the neck down while she watched and listened.
“Your request is perfectly acceptable to the court,” Kerney told the Confederate colonel cheerfully.
“Then I will begin to lay out the evidence in the coldblooded murder of Alfred Homstock.”
Linese shuddered involuntarily. Hatred and a bitter desire for vengeance rang in Colonel Homstock’s voice. She clasped her hands together and prayed silently. Only a miracle could save Chase now.
Chase wanted to turn around and look for Linese, but he forced himself to concentrate on what Homstock was saying. He wanted to search the room, to see if Ira and his grandfather were there, but he held himself rigid and stared only at the Confederate officer. He told himself there was no other way, but a part of him grieved for himself and Linese. He loved her and his daughters, and he found himself praying for a way to escape his fate.
Rain started to fall. At first it was little more than a soft pattering, but soon the droplets were beating on the roof and against the windows of the courtroom like angry fists. Linese had to strain to hear what was being said below.
“First I offer into evidence this handwritten note.”
Mayor Kerney took the paper from Major Homstock. He scanned the page. “For the benefit of the spectators, the note says that a horse bearing the Cordell brand was seen tied where the body of Alfred Homstock was found.” Kerney looked up. “There is no signature.”
Again a ripple of hushed voices rushed through the crowded courtroom. Linese’s stomach roiled violently.
“I would like to call Dr. Lukins to testify,” Colonel Homstock said.
Linese watched while the crowd below shifted slightly. Suddenly Doc appeared, making his way to the single chair positioned by Kerney’s desk. She watched while the physician raised one hand and placed the other on a worn Bible. The rain prevented her from hearing his oath, but when his lips stopped moving he sat down.
“Dr. Lukins, did you examine the body of Alfred Homstock?”
Linese had no trouble hearing the colonel’s voice, it boomed across the courtroom louder than the intermittent thunder.
“Yes.”
“How did he die?”
“He had been shot in the shoulder, but the cause of death was a stab wound in the back.”
Linese gripped the baluster tighter while the murmur in the room changed pitch. To be killed from behind was the most cowardly and unforgivable thing a Texan could imagine.
“Can you determine what kind of weapon was used?” Homstock’s voice was oddly dispassionate while he asked the questions.
“A slender, long blade that pierced his heart. Death was almost instantaneous….”
A clap of thunder obliterated the rest of Doc’s statement. She watched while he left the stand.
Chase turned in his seat and scanned the crowd. She wanted to call out to him, but forced herself to remain silent.
“Samuel Green.” Colonel Homstock’s voice wrenched Linese’s thoughts back to the witness stand. She watched a small, balding man step up to the center of the room and take his oath.
“Mr. Green, what is your profession?” Homstock’s voice drowned out the sound of the storm.
“I am a goldsmith. I make and sell fine jewelry.”
“Did Chase Cordell purchase a piece of jewelry from you after his return from war?” Homstock clasped his hands behind his back and paused in front of Mr. Green.
“Yes, he bought a very fine cameo.”
“How did he pay for this cameo?”
The little man shifted in his seat. Even from her vantage point Linese could tell he was uncomfortable. “He paid with gold coins.”
Homstock continued to stand in front of him, with his hands clenched tightly behind his back. “Was there anything unusual about the coins?”
“What do you mean?”
“Were they common? Have you seen many of their kind?” Homstock’s tone made the small hairs on the back of her neck rise. Something about the way he spoke was sly, conniving and terribly frightening.
“They were just British coins.” Mr. Green fidgeted.
“British coins, you say?” Homstock turned and looked at Chase. His voice was sharp with interest. “They were British coins?”
“Yes, Chase Cordell paid with British gold.”
Linese’s head was swimming. It was common knowledge the British had been helping the Confederacy. Homstock turned to face Kerney. Linese saw Colonel Homstock’s fingers whitening with the pressure he was using to keep his hands clasped behind his back. It struck her as odd, but then everything about this day was out of joint and barely seemed real.
“Your Honor, I would like to dismiss this witness and offer some testimony of my own.”
Mayor Kerney leaned back in his chair. It was an expansive gesture that set Linese’s teeth on edge. “Of course, Colonel, by all means.”
Samuel Green hurried from the witness chair and Colonel Homstock took his place. His posture was stiff and unyielding while he stared in Chase’s direction.
“My brother, Alfred Homstock, had been sent to Mainfield on a secret mission involving the Underground Railroad. He was wearing a money belt, and carrying a quantity of British gold. That gold has never been found.”
The murmur rippled across the courtroom like rolling thunder. Linese shivered inwardly while the impact of Homstock’s words settled on her.
Chase had bought the cameo for her with gold that had come from Alfred Homstock.
The evidence was damning.
Mayor Kerney turned toward Chase. The rain lessened for a moment and the courtroom took on an unnatural silence.
“Chase Cordell, do you have an explanati
on for this?” Kerney’s voice was not as commanding as Colonel Homstock’s but Linese heard him clearly.
“I have nothing to say.” Chase’s deep baritone filled the courtroom and wrenched a sob from Linese. He turned in his chair and met her eyes. Longing, fear and regret arced between them across the crowded courtroom.
Homstock was still for a moment while he stared unblinkingly at Chase. Linese couldn’t be sure, but she thought his expression was unsatisfied. He took a watch from his pocket and snapped open the face. “Then I rest my case.”
Linese wanted to scream. She wanted to rush down the stairs and flail Chase with her fists. What was wrong with him? Why wasn’t he defending himself? Hot tears stung the backs of her eyes and she stumbled away from the railing in blind agony. She was going to be sick. She had to get outside for some air. Linese managed to get to the ground floor when both the front and side doors burst open with a wet mist.
“Ma’am?” A Union officer grasped her forearms. “Are you all right?”
She stared past the young soldier and found Hezikiah smiling at her.
“Hezikiah? What are you doing?”
“The war is over, Linese.” He waved a paper over his head. “The telegram reached Ferrin County a few hours ago.” A quantity of blue uniforms began to gather in the already overcrowded courtroom. “Lee has surrendered—the war is over. The Union has survived.”
The next few minutes were a blur of activity. Linese found herself swept along while the Union officer strode to the front of the courtroom. He stopped in front of Colonel Homstock and saluted smartly. “Sir, will you surrender your sword to me?” He asked in emotionless tones.
Homstock’s jaw muscle flinched once, but he pulled himself to stiff attention. “I will.”
Linese watched in silence while the men observed the proprieties of war. In a few moments it was over. The war was over. It seemed ridiculous that it could end just like that.
The impact of what it meant settled on her.
Chase would be free.
She turned to see him looking at her with love shining in his eyes. “May I address the court?” His deep voice boomed over the room. His chains clanked and rattled when he stood up.
Kerney shifted in his chair and his small eyes darted from Homstock to the Union officer who stepped forward.
“What is this proceeding?” The Union colonel drilled Kerney with a glance.
“This is a civil trial, Colonel, it is none of your concern,” Kerney snapped.
Linese watched while one tawny eyebrow shot up toward the blue flop-brimmed hat. “Until I have orders to the contrary, everything in this town is my concern, sir.”
“Who are you?” Kerney asked with a bit more respect in his voice.
“I am Colonel Thomas Baskins of the Massachusetts 57th.”
That information seemed to settle on Kerney like a blanket of ice. Linese slumped into a chair that one of the Union soldiers suddenly produced for her, while she waited to see if Chase’s request to speak would be honored.
“May I address the court?” Chase asked again.
“Go ahead,” Kerney grudgingly offered.
“Now that the war is over, and the Union forces have entered Mainfield, I am prepared to defend myself against the charge of murder.”
The still-crowded courtroom hissed with the collective intake of breath. Linese was grateful she was sitting down. If she hadn’t been, she was quite sure she would have fainted on the spot.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Only an hour had passed, but the change in the courtroom made it appear more like days to Linese. She was now seated behind Chase, who had been relieved of his chains and shackles. Captain Cordell was seated on one side of her, Ira Goten had taken a chair on her opposite side.
“Have faith, Mrs. Cordell,” he said.
Colonel Homstock and Colonel Baskins sat on the opposite side of the courtroom. The contrast in their uniforms seemed odd, positioned as they were, side by side.
“I call Rancy Thompson as my first witness.” Chase’s voice drew her attention back to him. She could see hope in his eyes where none had been before.
“Rancy, tell us why you arrested my grandfather.”
The sheriff shook his head in obvious disgust. “I had received a note, the note the mayor read.”
Chase picked up the paper that was lying on Kerney’s desk. “This note? But why my grandfather? Why not arrest me if all the witness saw was a horse bearing the Cordell brand?”
“I had been visited by members of the local businessman’s committee. They suggested I do it.”
“So you were pressured by Mayor Kerney, and others, to arrest my grandfather for the murder of Alfred Homstock?”
“Yes, I thought it was a stupid thing….” His words trailed off. Linese found herself casting uneasy glances toward Captain Cordell.
“At what point did you decide I was the Cordell you were looking for?”
“I never did decide. It was decided for me. When the Confederates came to town, Mayor Kerney just started telling Colonel Homstock what he been shoving down my throat for weeks.”
“Which was?”
“The fact that your alibi had been the old Captain, and if he was with Doralee, then that left you without an alibi.”
Chase nodded and Rancy left the witness chair.
“Do you have more witnesses?” Colonel Baskins asked.
“Yes, I do.”
“Then proceed.”
Linese glanced at Mayor Kerney. He appeared unusually pale, something odd give his florid complexion.
“I call Ira Goten.”
Ira smiled warmly at Linese before he strode to the witness box and placed his long slender hand on the Bible.
“Mr. Goten, would you tell the court what happened on May 30, 1862?” Chase’s voice was smooth and strong.
Ira glanced at the Union and Confederate officers. “I had been ordered to go to the woods and kill a Confederate spy who was going to assassinate men responsible for running the Underground Railroad in this area.”
The whisper of shocked voices rippled over the courtroom. Several loud remarks about Ira’s supposed Southern sympathies were heard. Linese realized that he had been playing a part, allowing himself to be beaten and maligned for a greater cause. Linese heard the steady raindrops pattering the roof overhead.
“Did you do that, Ira?” Chase stood straight and tall.
“I was waiting in the woods when I ran into you.” Ira grimaced. “I had just about made up my mind you were the spy, the man I was supposed to kill, when we ran into Alfred Homstock.”
“Then what took place?”
“He showed us a money belt, asked if it would be enough to buy passage on the Underground Railroad, then he tried to kill you. And you didn’t have any idea why.”
Linese saw Colonel Homstock stiffen with interest. She concentrated on his face while Ira kept talking.
“Homstock was shot in the shoulder with his own gun, but he managed to steal your horse and get away. I realized if you were not the man Alfred Homstock thought you were, then there was only one other person he could’ve been after. He had come to kill your grandfather.”
Linese snapped her head around and stared at Captain Cordell. He smiled uncomfortably under her gaze and a faint blush crept up his weathered cheeks.
“I’m sorry, honey, I did what I thought was best.” He patted her arm with his big, rough hand and the reality of what he was saying hit her like a cold wind.
“You are not crazy,” she whispered incredulously.
“No crazier than any other Texan,” he snorted proudly.
Linese leaned back in her chair. She was numb. How could she have lived with him and never had an inkling that he was sane?
Then she thought back to the day at Doralee’s house and the other times, when for a split second she had questioned the story. She shook her head in astonishment. She should have followed her own instincts.
“We got horses from
Cordellane and went after him.” Ira’s words snapped her out of her reverie.
The entire courtroom was so quiet you could have heard a mouse tread across the floor. She glanced over the assembly and found them all perched on the edges of their chairs, held in silence by the unfolding story.
“You made it to the Ferrin County church ahead of me,” Ira continued in a charged voice.
“And when you got there, Ira, what did you do?” Chase probed.
“I saw two Cordell horses tied out front, the one he stole and the one you were riding. Then I found Homstock’s body. So I took the horses and headed back to Cordellane,” Ira explained.
“Who did you think killed Alfred Homstock?”
Ira averted his eyes. “I thought you had. But now I know you didn’t.”
There was a loud murmuring in the courtroom. It mingled with the sound of pelting rain.
“When I returned from war, what did you give me?” Chase asked.
“A Colt and a handful of gold coins.”
Colonel Homstock’s hands were clenched into fists on the table before him. Linese saw his eyes narrow more with each new fact Ira revealed about the night Alfred Homstock died.
“Where did you get those items?”
“You loaned me the Colt when we went after Homstock, and the gold is what he dropped from his money belt. I picked it up.”
“What happened to the rest of it?”
“I don’t know. The money belt was not on his body,” Ira said with a frown.
“Why didn’t you speak of this before now?”
“For the same reason you were prepared to die—too many others were at risk. We made a pact that night to keep silent.”
“Thanks, Ira.” Chase shook Ira’s hand before he got up. “I’d like to call Linese Beaufort Cordell to the witness chair.”
Linese tried to blink back her surprise. She made her way to the witness chair on shaky legs. While she took her oath to tell the truth, her mind was racing ahead. What on earth was Chase going to ask her?
Linda Castle Page 27