Final Verdict

by William Bernhardt

  “You’re aware that SweeTech does not have the cash flow it once did.”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re aware of the porn operations discovered in the basements of the so-called Sweeney Shelters.”

  “Me and everyone else in the city. But he had nothing—”

  “Please just answer the question.”

  “Yes.”

  “Has this discovery affected my client’s income?”

  “Horribly. No one will do business with him, including people Sweeney raised up from nothing. He can’t even get people to take a meeting anymore.”

  “Except Christopher Andrus.”

  Prudence sighed.

  “You knew Andrus.”

  “I’ve been involved in many of the art deals. I help Dr. Sweeney with everything.”

  “And on some occasions, you’ve acted as his personal security guard.”

  “It has been my honor to keep him safe. I stay in shape, exercise regularly. I’m trained in several martial arts. I like extreme sports—as I know you do.”

  “You’re my client’s all-around all-purpose go-to, aren’t you? Were you present when Fabian Fuentes came by to kill him?”

  For the first time, she hesitated. “I...No. Wish I had been.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to protect him? Keep him safe? You seem more likely to defeat a cartel hitman than my client.”

  “As I said, I wish I had been there. My goal is to serve Dr. Sweeney in whatever way I can.”

  “Your loyalty seems to go...beyond the typical employer-employee relationship.”

  “We’re not lovers, if that’s what you’re hinting at. Our relationship is strictly professional.”

  “Yes,” Dan said quietly. “That I believe.”

  “Your honor,” Jazlyn said, “I’m trying to be patient, but how is this relevant?”

  “I will tie this up immediately,” Dan promised. He turned back to the witness. “You had access to my client’s office, didn’t you?”

  “I couldn’t get into his little art-cave, if that’s what you mean.”

  “We’ll get to that in a minute. I mean the building. The penthouse suite. You had keys, right?”

  “Of course. How else could I keep him safe?”

  “You had access to his desk?”

  She shrugged. “Sure.”

  “Which means you could access that paperweight. The one the medical examiner speculated could have been the murder weapon.”

  “I could. But I didn’t.”

  “I believe you. I don’t think that was the murder weapon. But the point is, you had access to virtually everything my client did.”

  “Except the hidden room. That required a fingerprint ID.”

  “But you know as well as I do that those scanners can be fooled. Prints can be lifted. Reproduced. Copied. You had access to his office, where his fingerprints were literally all over the place.”

  “I wouldn’t begin to know how—”

  “But I recall that you have been in the gallery during some of my previous trials. My teammate Garrett Wainwright found a guy who can take a latent fingerprint and transfer it to the tip of a specially designed glove. These are normally used to fool the fingerprint scanners on iPhones—but they could just as easily be used on the scanner in Sweeney’s office. To get inside the private office when my client wasn’t around.”

  Out the corner of his eye, he saw several jurors leaning forward. This was getting interesting.

  “I don’t know anything about that,” Prudence said.

  “I saw Colin Baxter, the glove man himself, in the courtroom a few days ago.”

  “Do you think I’m stupid enough to meet someone like that in a crowded courtroom?”

  “No. I think you probably met him someplace secluded nearby, and then he got curious and visited the courtroom. Till you shooed him away.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  “Did you have access to the woodworking shop on the garage level of my client’s office building?”

  “I hate that place. Can’t stand all that macho, ‘Look at me, I made a cabinet’ stuff. Give me Ikea any day.”

  “But you had access, right? Keys?”

  “I have master keys. I can open any door in the building.”

  “And your primary mission in life is to protect my client.”

  “Yesss...”

  “And you’ve said you would do anything for him.”

  “I wouldn’t murder for him, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

  “Even if you knew it would help him?”

  “No.”

  “Even if you knew he’d be...grateful?”

  “No.”

  Dan got right up in her face. “Even if he asked you to do it?”

  “He didn’t ask me to do it. He didn’t want Andrus killed. He needed Andrus.”

  “Did he need you?”

  That threw her for a moment. “He depended on me.”

  “Did he appreciate you?”

  Her jaw tightened. “I would like to think so. Especially after I—” She stopped short.

  Dan locked eyes with her. “Especially after you saved his life?”

  Prudence leaned back, as if trying to get away. Behind him, Dan saw Sweeney cover his face with his hand.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “I think you do. Something about this case has always bothered me. Well, more than one thing. My client keeps saying he overpowered Fuentes and I keep thinking...nah. He’d put up a decent fight. But beat a cartel assassin? I can’t see that happening.” Dan leaned in closer. “But I bet you could mop the floor with him.”

  Jazlyn rose. “Your honor, relevance. He’s talking about a completely different—”

  The judge waved her down. “Shush. Overruled.”

  “I’m right, aren’t I?” Dan continued. “Sweeney would’ve been the one who went out that window but for you, the physically fit, extreme-sports, martial arts expert. You saved his life.” He paused. “And even then, he wasn’t interested in you. Not in the way that you wanted.”

  Prudence glared back at him. Then she looked at Sweeney, sitting at the defense table, a sad expression in his eyes.

  “It’s going to come out, Prudence. Just tell the truth. You don’t just admire Dr. Sweeney. You love him. Right?”

  Several tense moments passed. And then she gave in to it. “I have loved that man since the first day I walked into his office. He’s always kept me around. By his side. But to use me. Not to love me.”

  “He paid you well. He made you his top assistant.”

  “Yes. Assistant.” Tears welled up in Prudence’s eyes. “I didn’t want to be an assistant. I wanted to be his partner. I don’t care about the ring. Marriage is meaningless. I wanted him to value me. To understand that I had been with him all along, at every critical juncture. SweeTech was as much my success as his. But no. He kept me around—like a faithful puppy dog. A favorite pet.” Her voice choked. “Not like someone he loved.”

  Dan glanced behind him. Maria’s lips were parted, gaping. Sweeney pressed his hand against his forehead. And Jazlyn looked like she’d been struck by a bolt of lightning.

  “You wanted him to love you?”

  “We could have been so happy. We didn’t need all the business deals and paintings and cartels. He still had enough money to lead a normal life. He has cash stashed in offshore bank accounts. We could’ve gone to Fiji and lived like royalty. Together. Forever.”

  “So,” Dan said quietly, “even after you saved his life, he still didn’t love you. You realized that all your devotion was for nothing, that you would never be appreciated. That he would never take you into his arms—”

  “You heard what he said on the witness stand. Idiot. One bad relationship and he decides to swear off women. I think he’s still pining for her, even after all this time. Still pining for his stupid Alice.”

  Dan’s head jerked up. Sweeney’s ex was named Alice?

 
; Just like Dan’s mother.

  “So when you finally realized it was never going to happen, he would never appreciate you, never love you...you plotted your revenge.”

  “No...” Prudence said, looking down, shaking her head. “No...”

  “You’re the only person who has access to everything. Fingerprints. The woodshop. Skin flecks all over Sweeney’s office. Andrus. The cartel found Tulip but they couldn’t find him. Because you’d already dealt with him. In a way that was certain to be blamed on the man who scorned you.”

  “No...” She continued shaking her head. “No...not...not...”

  “If there is anyone in this story who’s tough enough to dismember a human body, it’s you. You disposed of the rest but kept the hands and head so Andrus could be identified. You put them in that freezer, probably right before the police arrived. My client, having no idea what was in there, brazenly invited the cops in and Detective Kakazu opened the freezer. As you anticipated. Then you asked me to represent Sweeney, which you probably thought would make you the least likely suspect. And it did. For a while. I remember your exact words when you came to my office. ‘Dr. Sweeney did not commit this murder. I know that for a fact.’” He paused. “You weren’t kidding.”

  “I gave him everything...” Prudence was murmuring more than talking now. “But he doesn’t care...He doesn’t care about me...”

  “Doesn’t he though?” Dan turned slightly toward his client. “I think he’s suspected you were behind this for some time. But he never said anything. Even when it looked like he was going down. He did that for you, Prudence.”

  “You’re wrong.” She drew her head up, sniffing, wiping her eyes. “You’re wrong and you can’t prove anything. I should have left that man years ago. The biggest mistake I ever made—”

  “The biggest mistake you ever made,” Dan said, “was telling me, back when you visited our office, that you had one of those doorbell cameras installed at your home. That device automatically records everything on your front porch. My techie teammate, Garrett, has been hacking into your system. He’s got the footage from the day of the Beachcombers meeting. The cartel couldn’t find Andrus because he went to your house after the meeting. With you. And never left alive.” His voice grew louder. “How did you lure him over? Private art deal? Under-the-table cash? Sex? Doesn’t matter. You never had any intention of doing anything for him. Except killing him. Did he go down easily? Or did you have to bite him first? And then chop him up like butcher’s meat.”

  “That’s a lie!” Prudence screamed.

  “Is it? Garrett just texted the video footage to me.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “Let’s all take a look.”

  “Noooo!” Prudence leapt out of the witness stand. She flung herself at him, knocking Dan down. His phone skittered across the floor, glass smashed.

  All at once, the courtroom descended into chaos. People cried out and leapt from their seats. The jurors were closest to the action, but it was hard to get out of the box. They tripped over each other, adding to the chaos. The judge pounded his gavel furiously but no one was listening.

  And Prudence sunk her fingernails into Dan’s throat.

  He grabbed her arms, but she had a lock on him and he couldn’t break it. Those strong gym-girl arms were hard to dislodge.

  He saw Maria leap to her feet, Sweeney right behind her. The marshal in the courtroom followed.

  “Ma’am, step away!” the marshal cried.

  Prudence did not reply. Dan felt the life draining out of him, but thought it best not to struggle. Let the marshal handle it. That was his job.

  “Lady, last warning. Step away.”

  Prudence did not release her grip. The marshal flipped the safety strap on his holster and pulled out his gun. “Lady—”

  And at that moment, Prudence pounced. She sprang like a tiger, wrapping herself around the marshal’s waist and propelling him backward. He slammed into the judge’s bench. The judge ducked and disappeared from sight.

  The room filled with panicked screams. People pushed and shoved to get out of the seats.

  Dan scrambled to his feet. And when he did, he saw Prudence staring him down.

  With the marshal’s gun in her hand.

  “Get down on the floor! Now!” She waved the gun in the air, threatening everyone in the courtroom.

  In the rear, a few people made for the back door. “Touch that door and you’re dead!” Prudence shouted.

  They backed off.

  “Same for the back door, judge. No one’s going to chambers. No one’s going anywhere.”

  She strode across the courtroom, passing Maria but making a point of shoving Sweeney aside. “I’m not your little bitch anymore.”

  She spun around in circles, pointing the gun at everyone in sight. “I’m not anyone’s little bitch anymore!” She fired a bullet into the ceiling. The crowd screamed and cowered.

  “You think you’re so smart, Pike. Well, guess what? I am not going to prison for this. I’ve given up too much already. I’m not doing time for you, or Sweeney, or this screwed-up system. I don’t care if I have to shoot everyone in this courtroom. I’m getting out of here. And if anyone tries to stop me, I’ll kill you and rip you apart with my teeth. Just like I killed Andrus.”

  Chapter 46

  Garrett raced up the stairs to the second floor of the courthouse taking the steps three at a time. He sped round the corner and ran toward Judge Smulders’ courtroom.

  Jimmy was already outside. With four armed sheriffs.

  “How’d you get here so fast?” Garrett said, gasping for air.

  “Shawna called me when she heard the first shot. I was downstairs getting coffee.”

  “My phone alert said there was a hostage situation. What the hell is going on?”

  “We’re not sure. The sheriffs are still gathering information.”

  “But Dan is in there?”

  Jimmy nodded grimly. “And Maria. And Jazlyn.”

  One of the officers, a tall African American, nodded at Garrett. “You work with Pike, too?”

  “I sure do. What’s happening?”

  “All we know for sure is that the marshal was overpowered. And someone got his gun. A woman.”

  Garrett looked puzzled. “A woman overpowered—”

  Jimmy jumped in. “Prudence.”

  “Oh.” That was believable. “Why?”

  “Looks like she’s the one who murdered Andrus. And she isn’t eager for a lethal injection. So she’s holding the entire courtroom hostage—lawyers, spectators, judge, marshal. Everyone.”

  Garrett pressed his hand against his temple. He’d heard some crazy stuff since he joined this team, but this might be the most insane development yet. “I assume you’re assembling some kind of response. Like, an army.”

  The sheriff shook his head. “We could go in now, just the four of us. We could probably take her out. But not before she killed some of her hostages.”

  “There must be something you can do.”

  “Headquarters is assembling a hostage-response team. People trained to deal with situations like this.”

  “And till then?”

  “We wait and see what happens.”

  * * *

  Three hours later, Dan and Maria huddled in the jury box, the one place in a courtroom where he had never sat. Interesting view. But at the moment, his attention was focused on a woman who blamed him for her current desperate situation. And she was holding a loaded gun.

  What had happened? He’d never liked Prudence. She’d always seemed edgy and aggressive and dangerous. But not insane. It was as if something inside her head snapped in the blink of an eye. Like she’d been teetering on the brink for a long time—and now she’d gone over the edge.

  And he was the one who made it happen. He was responsible for everything, including this hostage scenario.

  Which couldn’t possibly end without someone dying.

  Prudence had barricaded both doors and herded every
one in the gallery against one wall, while Dan and the other lawyers and the judge—plus Sweeney—gathered in the jury box. She seemed to almost enjoy ordering people about, pointing the gun in their faces.

  She aimed at a middle-aged Latinx juror who appeared terrified. Bullying was unnecessary to keep her in line. Prudence was doing it anyway.

  “You didn’t believe me when I was on the stand, did you?” Prudence held the gun to the woman’s nose. “You thought I was lying.”

  The woman stuttered but said nothing coherent.

  “Answer me!” Prudence demanded.

  “I—I—I believed you. When you talked about...about...your boss. Never appreciated you. Wouldn’t love you. I’ve been in...in...something like that.” Her eyes lowered. “I know how much it hurts.”

  Prudence swung the gun around and clubbed the woman on the side of the face. People screamed. Dan rose to his feet, only to feel Maria clutching his hand, yanking at him.

  “You can’t help her,” Maria whispered. “Not now. No heroics.”

  “You know nothing about it,” Prudence spat back at the woman now lying on the ground. She swerved around and faced the jury box. “Do you want to be next, Pike?” She pointed the gun at him.

  Dan bit down on his lower lip. If she fired, the bullet could go anywhere. Maria. Jazlyn. Smulders.

  He lowered himself into his chair.

  “Good.” Prudence snarled. “You know this is all your fault, right, Pike?”

  “Yes. I know.”

  “Remember that when the blood starts to flow.”

  He wrapped an arm around Maria, hugging her tight.

  Prudence started pacing again. Her cell phone buzzed and she took it out and shouted some more.

  “Got a plan yet, Dan?” Maria whispered.

  “I think it’s best to leave this to the professionals.”

  “What professionals?”

  He nodded toward Prudence. “She’s been talking to someone. I’m betting that’s a hostage negotiator. Maybe an FBI tactical commander. They’re trying to get us out safely without anyone being harmed.”

  “Good luck with that,” Maria murmured. “Prudence looks like she’s about to completely flip out. And take the rest of us with her.”