“Then why’d you fight so hard?”
“My job is to fight for you, guilty or innocent.”
Ted made a clicking sound through his teeth. “Yeah, that was a great question about the IV. That prosecutor was sharp. I mean, she was wrong about why, but she was sharp. Tim’s never been the sharpest tack in the pack, but he’s the only brother I have.”
“They might come after him. But I’m guessing you’ll be testifying at his trial that it was you.”
He smiled. “Three million split two ways can buy a lot of loyalty.”
“Why lie about it? If you wanted her dead, you could’ve gone to Oregon.”
He shook his head. “Euthanasia negates the life insurance policy. So does murder. But if there’s no murder conviction, policy pays out.”
“Yeah, but the policy was taken out seven years… seven years ago.” Brigham’s heart dropped into his stomach. “You’ve been planning this for seven years?” he said quietly.
“Seven nothing. I was going to wait until the kids were older. Teenagers. The cancer was just a happy coincidence. When I did it, you know, she just had this look of shock on her face. Like how could I do something like that to her. Odd how you can share your life with someone for twenty years and still not really know who they are at all. But at least she got to say bye to the kids. She kept it together for them and didn’t mention it.”
“You could’ve divorced her.”
“Divorce doesn’t give me a three-million-dollar life insurance policy tax free, now, does it? The marriage was over, it was just a matter of what I could get out of it.”
“You brought your kids to watch her die.”
“They had to say bye to their mother. I figured it’d be good closure for them. Then they could focus on whoever I marry next. Truly accept her as their new mom.”
Brigham shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. “You waited almost a decade, knowing you were going to kill her. You slept with her, ate meals with her, celebrated birthdays and anniversaries, and you knew you were going to kill her? What kind of monster are you?”
He rose, and adjusted his tie, before winking. “A rich one. Oh, and I know you can’t reveal anything we just discussed, but if you do, I will have your Bar license, and we both know it can’t be used in court against me, anyway. So this’ll just be our little thing.”
“Why did you choose me?”
He shrugged. “You were just inexperienced enough to believe me.”
Brigham felt empty and cold, as if he were watching this from the outside. But there was nothing he could do but go back into the courtroom and hope that the jury saw Ted for what he was.
Brigham followed Ted and Rebecca into the courtroom, Molly behind him. Scotty was there, too, sitting in the audience. He mouthed the words “good luck” as Brigham walked back, and Brigham had to quickly look away.
He sat at the defense table as the judge came out and the jury shortly after. Ted was next to him, his hands on the table.
“Would the foreman please rise,” the judge said.
A large man in a gray sport coat stood up.
“It is my understanding that the jury has reached a verdict,” Judge Lawrence said.
“We have, Your Honor,” the man said.
“Please pass it to my bailiff.”
The bailiff took the verdict form and gave it to the judge. The judge read it passively and then handed it back to the bailiff.
“And what say you in this matter?” the judge asked.
“Your Honor, we find the defendant, Ted Montgomery, not guilty on the sole count of homicide in the first degree.”
Sounds of elation and relief came from the audience. Monica began to cry. Several reporters talked among themselves, and Scotty shouted something like, “Woo hoo.”
The judge ignored it and said, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I would like to thank you for your time. If you would like to remain after, sometimes the attorneys like to speak with you about the verdict. It’s optional, and you are free to leave now if you wish.”
Brigham stood up and hurried out of the courtroom without talking to anybody.
40
Brigham was on the roof of his office building. Night had fallen and the stars were out. The grayness of the day had faded away and there was nothing but a clear blackness around him. He pulled a note out from his pocket and read it again.
Dear Brigham, thank you for everything you did. I couldn’t have done it without you. Sincerely, T. Montgomery.
He ripped the note into pieces.
He had figured out that Ted was lying to him during Tim’s testimony but had thought he had no choice but to continue and fight as hard as he could. He was Ted’s lawyer, and clients lied to him all the time anyway. But he thought Ted was lying to get off and to protect Tim at the same time; that he really had wanted to give her peace but also wanted to be around for his kids. Brigham couldn’t have even guessed that money was the motivation for killing his wife. The real question was if Brigham had known that, would he still have continued with the trial?
Molly stepped out the door on the roof leading down to the offices and came over to him. She leaned against the edge and looked down.
“I figured you’d be up here again,” she said. “You should be out celebrating. Ted offered to take everyone at the firm out for the fanciest dinner we’ve ever had.”
“I’m not very hungry.”
She wrapped her arm around his. “You did a great job. You should be proud.”
“He did it, Molly. I can’t tell you why, but he did it.”
She nodded. “I knew that from the moment he got up on that stand. It doesn’t matter. It’s not your job to worry about that.”
“Isn’t it? This guy… I’ve never met anyone like him. He’s not human.”
She rested her head on his shoulder. “But you are. You have a kind heart, and you believed him. It’s not your fault. Even if he would’ve told you everything you know now when he signed up, would you have defended him just as hard?”
“Maybe…” She looked at him. “Yes,” he finally said, “yes, I would’ve defended him just as hard.”
“Then it doesn’t matter. You did your job.”
“He told me I was just inexperienced enough to believe him.”
“It’s not inexperience. You have a good heart. That’s not a bad thing.” She looked him in the eyes. “Let’s go out and eat. Just me and you.”
He nodded. “Just me and you.”
“Yup.”
He kissed her, and she led him off the roof.
The next morning, Brigham had court for Jessica Padilla in the Salt Lake City Justice Court. He was still in a foggy haze, and riding his bike to the court felt like a high-wire act in which he could fall over and break his neck at any moment.
Jen, his investigator, had found out why the chief prosecutor wasn’t giving deals on Jessica Padilla. It turned out that Jessica Padilla’s husband had gone to college with the chief prosecutor and they had been quite the item but broke up somewhere around junior year. Jessica had been blamed as the new love of his life. Brigham would use that information to get the chief prosecutor to back down. The last thing she probably wanted was her love life discussed in court or among defense attorneys.
He got to the court and an older bailiff saw him. He set his satchel down and prepared to go through the metal detectors and then get wanded. The bailiff smiled at him and waved him through.
“I recognize you, Counselor. Go ahead.”
Brigham slipped through without getting wanded. As he took the stairs heading up to his courtroom, despite the fatigue and haziness, a smile crept onto his lips.
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Mercy (A Neon Lawyer Novel Book 2) Page 20