As Candace was finishing up with the witness, Lauren’s phone vibrated again.
That red wine sure was delicious last night read the text message from Ryan. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, but he was looking straight ahead as if he were paying close attention to Candace’s skillful cross-examination.
What? You didn’t have any. She texted back, confused.
Lauren’s phone vibrated. She glanced discreetly down at the message in front of her. I know, but it tasted delicious on your tongue.
Lauren couldn’t suppress her smile while Ryan maintained a perfect poker face beside her.
After the demeanor witness was excused, Pratt leapt to his feet, “If it pleases the court, the Defense would like to call the defendant, Mr. Jacob Wakefield, Jr., to the stand at this time.”
Chapter Fifty-nine
(Friday Afternoon, September 29)
The courthouse buzzed with excitement. The most anticipated question of this entire trial aside from the verdict had finally been answered. Jake Wakefield would take the stand in his own Defense.
It was late in the afternoon. The Defense clearly hoped to adjourn for the weekend with Jake Wakefield’s convincing denials swimming in the jurors’ heads.
Jake looked handsome as he strode toward the stand. Lauren had recently read he used tanning beds to even out his baseball tan.
He was wearing his wedding ring. He had rarely worn it when Liz had been alive. He claimed it interfered with his grip on the baseball.
He had a fresh haircut and looked sharp in a dark blue suit and complementary tie, which showcased his eyes. He flashed a grin at the jury. Lauren remembered how intoxicating a smile from him could be and worried about his potential impact upon the jury.
Pratt greeted him like an old school chum, “Good afternoon.”
“Good afternoon,” Jake smiled again.
“Mr. Wakefield, the Prosecution has painted an ugly picture of you thus far, haven’t they?”
Candace sprang to her feet. “Objection, the State has been presenting evidence, not painting pictures.”
“Sustained. Please rephrase the question, Mr. Pratt.”
“Jake,…” Pratt slipped with the familiar use of the first name or perhaps he had done it intentionally, “…do you remember telling me a couple of weeks ago it was hard for you to believe the Prosecution was talking about you?”
“Yes.”
“Can you explain why that was so hard for you to believe?”
“The Prosecutor keeps accusing me of being a bad person, a horrible husband, a monster, and none of those things are true. It is shocking to me how many inaccuracies have been introduced into this trial as evidence. I know the jury doesn’t know exactly what the truth is, but I do. And I am not that person they have been making me out to be.”
“But it is true you’ve had some…” Pratt cleared his throat, “…marital indiscretions.”
“Yes, and I’m not proud of that fact, but at the risk of sounding like a jerk, that behavior is the norm among professional athletes. Most pro athletes, and I mean almost all of them, have extramarital sex. In fact, most of the wives accept that as one of the conditions of being married to an athlete. It’s not a good excuse. I broke a marital vow to my wife, but I was never involved emotionally with those women. I didn’t maintain contact with any of them.”
That was probably true. Of the women who told credible stories about sleeping with Jake while he was married, all of them described one-night flings. However, Lauren did not believe that Liz had been accepting of Jake’s infidelities.
“Would you consider yourself a good husband?”
“Again, I know this may sound strange…” Jake leaned forward in a gesture of sincerity, “…but yes. Aside from occasional indiscretions on the road, I was a very good husband to Liz. We attended church together and we socialized with friends a lot. We had a nice home to live in and money in the bank. We were active in the community. We had a happy marriage.”
“Did you have an argument with your wife on the evening of July twenty-third?”
“Not at all. I was packing to get ready for my trip and she was helping me find stuff around the house. She went off to the hospital to visit her sister. She knew that Lauren had been feeling jealous and Liz was trying to make things right.”
Candace jumped to her feet, “Objection, hearsay”
“Sustained. That last sentence will be stricken from the record.”
“And what happened when she returned from the hospital?” Pratt asked.
“We made love that afternoon. I kissed her good-bye before I left for my trip. I tried to call her when I got in that night, but she didn’t pick up. It was late, so I figured she was sleeping and I would catch up with her the next day…” Jake choked up, but no tears formed in his eyes.
“When you made love that afternoon, did your wife scratch you?”
“Yes, she did. You know, we weren’t going to see each other for a few days and…” he paused and smiled shyly, looking up at the jury from underneath his long eyelashes. “She scratched me in a moment of passion.”
“And you were notified the next day that she had been killed?”
“I couldn’t believe it. We had a great security system and the detectives told me there was no sign of forced entry. I knew it had to be somebody Liz knew.”
“And did you figure out who that somebody was?”
Candace was on her feet, “Objection, calls for speculation.”
“Your Honor,” Pratt protested. “The defendant has a right to assert his own theory of the crime.”
“Overruled,” came the ruling from the bench. Pratt nodded at Jake to continue.
“Not right away, but over time, Liz’s sister started acting weirder and weirder. At first, we were getting close with each other because we were both grieving for Liz. I was so lost and confused and Lauren kept coming over to the house. She reminded me so much of Liz. They look alike and their voices sound identical. Lauren even started using a lot of the same phrases as Liz.
“But later it seemed like Lauren wanted to become Liz. She asked if she could borrow Liz’s clothes. And she started wanting to come to all of my games and sit with the other wives. I didn’t see it at the time because I was grieving, but eventually I realized she was trying to replace Liz.
“That’s when I started to wonder if she might have killed Liz. I mean, it would explain so much, like why there was no sign of forced entry. Lauren has a key to our place and she knew our security alarm code. Or Liz would have let her in. When I saw Lauren wearing a ring that had been very special to Liz, a ring that had been stolen the night of the crime, that’s when I knew for sure she did it. I called the police right away. I told them all of my suspicions. Lauren kept calling me obsessively. I continued to take her calls because I wanted to keep her talking. I wanted to see what I could find out to help the police solve the case.”
Heat of fury and embarrassment flooded Lauren’s face. Her blood pressure spiked. She was very aware that several jurors were looking at her. She did her level best to appear calm. Despite what the detectives had been telling her about Jake, it had been difficult to accept. Now she could hear it with her own ears, his blatant lies told with the full intention of accusing her of the murder of her own sister. She fought to control her breathing.
Lauren looked directly at Jake. Throughout this entire trial, he had refused to make eye contact. But now, as he accused Lauren of unthinkable things, he looked directly at her and they locked eyes. Lauren felt as if they were engaged in a battle of wills, one she refused to lose. Eventually, Jake shifted his gaze back to Pratt.
“Mr. Wakefield, did you check your online bank account on the evening of July twenty-third?”
“No, I never looked at that stuff. Liz managed the finances. I didn’t even know our online passwords back
then.”
“Were you aware your wife had consulted with a family law attorney?”
“Absolutely. Liz and I figured we had a lot of blessings so we were considering adopting a special needs child. We hadn’t told anybody yet because we were worried people would offer unsolicited advice. Liz was especially worried that her sister would disapprove. But last July, we decided to do it. We wanted to provide a loving home to a child who needed one. Liz went in to consult Mr. Bourk about legal assistance for the adoption.”
Lauren was quite certain there was no truth to this, but Jake must have been desperate to explain why Liz would hire a family law attorney. Liz had wanted children, but Jake had not been ready; he kept telling Liz he wanted to enjoy his youth first. Now, Jake was laying it on thick.
Pratt glanced at his watch and strode across the courtroom floor to stand right in front of Jake and the jury box.
“Jake, did you ever strike your wife?”
“No, the notion that I ever would have hit Liz is repugnant to me. That is a pack of lies manufactured by people determined to frame me for this crime. I never hit my wife. Ever.”
“And did you have anything to do with her death?”
“Absolutely not. I kissed her good-bye on the evening of July twenty-third, fully expecting to see her again a few days later when I returned from D.C.” He started to choke up. Or at least he pretended to. “But I never saw her again. I still miss her every single day. I wish I could have been there to protect her.”
“Your Honor, I have no more questions for this witness.”
Pratt’s timing was perfect. It was 4:56 p.m. Predictably, Robles recessed for the weekend.
Lauren spoke briefly to the press, “I am disgusted by the vicious untruths Jake Wakefield has lobbed at me in his blatant attempt to get away with the murder he himself has committed. However, I have absolute faith and trust that this jury will see his statements for what they are; disgusting lies told by a despicable man.”
“Are you okay?” Ryan asked once they had navigated through the hoards of press to the relative quiet of Ryan’s vehicle.
Lauren sighed. “No, but I will be.”
Ryan said nothing more as he eased the car out of the parking spot and put the car into drive.
“Are we okay?” Lauren asked, wondering if Ryan might believe what Jake had said.
“No, but we will be.”
What the heck did that mean?
After taking a deep breath, Ryan continued, “I care about you a lot and I hate to see your name get dragged through the mud. As much as I wish I could just whisk you away to Jamaica, we have to get through this. I know we will. But you heard Candace today; we can’t see each other outside of professional capacity until this thing is over.”
“I hope it’s over soon.”
“It should be. When the defendant testifies, they are usually the last witness. It looks like this crazy mess is almost over.”
Lauren nodded again. Ryan added, “Candace was wrong about Jake not testifying.”
“Yeah, Candace owes me a Diet Coke. I always knew he would testify. He thinks he can charm anybody into believing anything. I hope he’s wrong this time.”
Chapter Sixty
(Monday, October 2)
On their way to court on Monday morning, Ryan said, “Hey, I forgot to tell you I was able to track down that incoming call on your cell phone on Friday at lunch. It traced back to a pay phone at the court house.”
“I didn’t even have to ask. I know it was Jake. He didn’t even attempt to disguise his voice.”
“He probably told his lawyers he was going to the restroom and called you instead. You know what I think?”
“What’s that?”
“I think it makes him crazy to see you and me together.”
“No, he never cared about me. He just needed to pump me for information.”
“Think about what he said on the phone. It kills him to see you with me. He’s hated me since day one. Even when he was trying to be cool with us at the beginning of the investigation.”
“He hates you because you’re better looking than he is.”
Ryan laughed as if Lauren were joking.
“I’m not kidding. The fact that he nicknamed you Pretty Boy says it all.”
“Candace got some satisfaction out of knowing he was the one that made that phone call, but she can’t introduce it in court. She can’t prove anything with it.”
Lauren nodded. “I guess not. Pratt would just make another show of calling a pay phone from the witness stand. I wish I had thought to turn the speaker phone on so you could have heard how cold and calculating he can be.”
“You don’t have to convince me, Lauren. I already know.”
They arrived early enough to chat with the prosecutors before court convened.
“Are you ready?” Ryan asked Candace.
“Are you kidding me? I have been fantasizing about this day. Pratt will regret his decision to let Jake testify.”
Jake looked more like a model than a defendant as he resumed the witness stand.
Candace launched a well-executed assault on Jake, but she wasn’t able to rattle him. Despite her relentless questions, he maintained his composure.
“Isn’t it true you gave that diamond ring to Lauren as a birthday gift?”
“No. That ring was stolen from my wife’s jewelry box on the night of her murder. The next time I saw it, Lauren was wearing it on her left ring finger. I believe she wanted to pretend it was a birthday gift from me. I think she was hoping she and I might even get married one day, but I did not give her that ring.”
“Isn’t it true you discovered on the evening of July twenty-third that your wife was planning on divorcing you?”
“I discovered no such thing. My wife consulted Mr. Bourk about an adoption, not a divorce. That’s one of many things that you misinterpreted.”
“You realized your wife planned to leave you and you snapped?”
“No, that never happened. Liz was never considering leaving.”
“Because nobody could ever leave you. After all, you’re the great Jake Wakefield?”
“No, that’s just another myth you have manufactured to try to make me look bad.”
Candace proceeded with carefully constructed questions, and Jake responded with reasonably worded retorts. He had been very well prepared for his testimony and showed no signs of caving.
Lauren got goose bumps. For the first time in this entire trial, she worried Jake could be acquitted. Perhaps Candace was beginning to have the same concerns. She was irritable over lunch in the war room. She and Kyle spoke in hurried conversations about how they might be able to get Jake to crack. They occasionally asked Lauren to chime in about how Jake thought or behaved. But they could not identify the chink in Jake’s armor.
Cross-examination continued for the rest of the afternoon. Candace was determined to keep him on the stand long enough to give the jurors something to think about that evening. She was hoping Jake would get testy or confused over time, but he didn’t. Jake looked comfortable throughout cross-examination. He even unbuttoned his suit jacket and relaxed his posture. If Lauren had not known with certainty he was lying, she herself might have believed him. Lauren realized that in the entire courtroom, indeed in the entire world, only one person other than her knew the truth. And, right now, that one person was convincingly accusing her of lying.
Chapter Sixty-one
(Monday evening, October 2)
That evening at work, Lauren was rummaging through the supply closet, looking for the four by four gauze bandages she needed to treat her patient. The thirty-four-year-old married father of three had attempted to impress his friends that night by juggling full bottles of liquor. The three-inch gash on his forehead revealed how that had turned out.
While she was sq
uatting down to check the lower shelves, Ritesh came in and began searching the higher shelving units for a nine-gauge needle. Shortly thereafter, one of the female interns opened the door, took one look at the two of them, murmured “Oops, sorry,” and slammed the door. When Lauren emerged a moment later with Ritesh steps behind her, the female intern was whispering to several other interns who were all looking at Lauren and Ritesh and giggling.
“What are you guys going on about?” Lauren said to them. “Don’t you have something to do? Because if you don’t, I have a stool sample that needs to be collected from the guy in Bay One.”
They tittered again and began to scatter, but one of the guys by the name of Cooper said, “Don’t worry about it, Dr. Rose. We think you and Dr. Patel make a lovely couple.”
“And I think you guys have been watching too much bad television. Sometimes, people go into the supply closet for actual supplies. Congratulations, Dr. Cooper, you just earned yourself the privilege of collecting that stool sample. Hope it comes out all right for you.”
Lauren could hear Ritesh guffawing behind her. “You know, Lauren, that gives me an idea, I haven’t been able to use all those condoms you guys gave me last year and…”
“Don’t even bother finishing that sentence,” Lauren retorted as she returned to her patient with the gaping head wound. She took extra care with the stitches since this guy was going to be sporting a visible scar. As she was finishing up, her cell phone vibrated in her pocket.
She checked her phone after wrapping up with the patient, including a notation to ‘Quit Juggling’ on his discharge instructions. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw she had a missed call from Ryan. He usually just texted if he needed to confirm a pick-up time or location.
She pushed the Call Back button. Her pulse quickened as the phone started to ring.
“Lauren?”
“Hey Ryan. I saw you tried to call, but I was with a patient. Is everything all right?”
The Perfect Game Page 24