Tug Of Law (Bernadette Mackenna Cases Book 4)

by D. R. Bailey

  “Yes.”

  He turned the pages albeit reluctantly until he found the right place.

  “Read the first text on that page if you please?”

  “Where are you? I’ve been texting you and you didn’t reply. Where have you been? Have you been out partying, I need to know! What the fuck, Cal, you didn’t call me last night,” Kevin said reading the text.

  “And the next text?”

  “I am fucked off with you, Cal, have you been fucking cheating on me? What the fuck were you doing?”

  “And the next one?”

  “Calm down, sweetie, I haven’t been screwing around on you, I’ve been driving, what’s wrong with you?”

  “And the next one.”

  “Fuck you, Cal, just text me next time, don’t be such a c—”

  “That’s enough, thank you,” said Bernadette stopping him.

  Kevin looked red in the face with embarrassment.

  “So, were you jealous of Mr Jenkins?”

  “Yes,” said Kevin realising there wasn’t any point in denying this either.

  “So, you were jealous, and you wanted to get back at him, isn’t that right?”

  “I was jealous of him, yes,” Kevin admitted.

  “And you wanted to get back at him, isn’t that correct?”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “We’ll come back to this, shortly,” Bernadette said, deciding to take another tack. She looked through her papers pausing for a moment. “The police arrested you for the trafficking after the raid, am I right?”

  “Yes, yes they did.” His voice was a little more confident now she had moved away from his relationship with Callum.

  “What have the police offered you for being a witness?”

  “I can’t say.”

  “You are under oath. They have offered you a plea bargain or immunity from prosecution, is that or is that not correct?”

  Kevin sighed, she had cornered him well and truly.

  “OK, yes.”

  “In exchange for naming other members of the gang?” She raised an eyebrow.

  “If I could name any other person involved in the trafficking,” he corrected her.

  “So, you could have named anyone, couldn’t you, but it was easier to target your lover, is that not so?”

  “I wasn’t targeting him.”

  “You named him as an accomplice. He was your lover, we’ve established that. You were intimate we’ve established that. So, I put it to you that rather than dig up the name of a person who was actually responsible you targeted him knowing he would not endanger your life, isn’t that right?”

  “No! He was involved, he knew about it.”

  “Do you have any evidence that the discussion about the trafficking you say took place, actually took place?” Bernadette said pursuing this.

  “Well, no but, neither does he showing it doesn’t.” Kevin also thought this was clever, but Bernadette was onto it.

  “If it didn’t take place there wouldn’t be any evidence would there, because there wouldn’t have a been a discussion would there?”

  “Well, I…” he hesitated.

  “Would there?”

  “Well, no, obviously if it hadn’t taken place then no.”

  “Were there any witnesses to this alleged conversation or any other conversations afterwards?” Bernadette said pushing her argument home.

  “No,” said Kevin looking peeved.

  “Were there any texts?”

  “No.” He shook his head.

  “So, in fact, there is nothing to corroborate your statement about any of it, am I correct?”

  “He drove the truck…” Kevin began.

  “There is nothing to directly corroborate your statement that Mr Clinton either knew about the trafficking or was involved in it, yes or no?”

  He was squirming under this scrutiny and her unwavering gaze. When she wanted to, Bernadette could be relentless, and she was being relentless today.

  “I…”

  “Yes or no, Mr Clinton?”

  “Jesus fucking Christ, you’re a fucking hard bitch, aren’t you?” he suddenly exclaimed in frustration.

  “Mr Clinton, please confine yourself to answering the questions, no matter what your personal opinion might be of the barristers,” said the judge somewhat dryly, though he looked slightly amused knowing how much Bernadette had pressed him.

  “Yes, Judge, sorry… I…”

  “Yes or no, Mr Clinton?” said Bernadette ignoring this remark.

  “No, I don’t have any fucking records, I don’t have any texts, I don’t have a fucking video, but I say he was there and we did discuss it and that’s the story I am sticking to,” Kevin said defiantly. He was certainly fired up and had primed himself for Bernadette to goad him further.

  “Is it true you think women are inferior?” she said suddenly.

  “What?” said Kevin a little startled by the question.

  “Do you think that women are inferior? Is it or isn’t it a true statement?” she said mildly.

  “And what if I do?” he shot back belligerently.

  “Well, if you do then in reality you probably think that sex trafficking serves them right, yes?”

  Shane was on his feet at once. “Objection, Judge, what can this possibly have to do with the evidence?”

  “I want to understand what he thinks about it,” said Bernadette sweetly, though she knew it was a contentious statement, “After all, his attitude to the crime is material to the evidence.”

  “My witness is not the one on trial here,” Shane said a little forcefully.

  “But he is making assertions about my client and as such, Judge, I should be allowed to understand the underlying attitudes which led to it, as should the court.” Bernadette was speaking in reasonable tones contrasting with the irritation Shane was evidently feeling.

  “I strongly submit this line of questioning should not be allowed,” Shane continued.

  “But he was involved. Apparently, he’s a prosecution witness and so then perhaps he disagrees with the trafficking or perhaps he doesn’t, I want to know his motivation and I submit it is relevant.”

  Justice Brannigan who had been listening to this exchange, held up his hand for silence while he considered it.

  “I’ll allow it, Mrs Mackenna, but try not to cross any lines if you would,” he said finally.

  “Thank you, Judge,” said Bernadette, while Shane made a face and sat down. “I will rephrase my question, Mr Clinton, do you or do you not agree with sex trafficking?”

  It was a milder form of the question with a less accusatory tone.

  Kevin shrugged. “It was just a job.”

  “It was just a job, women who have their lives stolen from them, abused or worse but you think it was just a job? That’s a callous attitude, don’t you agree?”

  “I guess, I never thought about it,” he said in an offhand way.

  “So, you didn’t really care about them, they were just cargo, a consignment, less than human really, is that what you’re saying?”

  “I wasn’t saying that, I just don’t think about it that way,” he said defensively.

  “So, if I understand you rightly, you don’t really care what happens to them one way or another, am I right?”

  “No, I guess not, no,” he admitted at length.

  “Rather like you don’t really care what happens to Mr Jenkins, if say he goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit, am I right?” her voice had softened a little.

  “I do care, but he was involved and that’s that,” he said with an air of finality.

  “I’m asking you in all honestly, since you seem to value human life quite cheaply, if it makes any difference to you whether he was innocent or not, because I put it to you that it doesn’t, and I say to you once more that he was an easy target without any consequences to you. The police get their man in prison and your life remai
ns safe, is that not how it is?”

  “He did know about it.”

  It seemed as if he had now taken refuge in simply repeating himself and digging in his heels. She was pondering whether to stop at this point, when Justice Brannigan came to her rescue.

  “I think this a good time for the afternoon break. If you have any further questions for this witness, Mrs Mackenna, you may continue them afterwards.”

  “Thank you, Judge,” said Bernadette furnishing him with one of her best smiles.

  The Tipster called for the court to rise and Justice Brannigan left presumably for another cup of tea.

  Before they could leave the courtroom, Mason came up to them.

  “You said it was with without prejudice, what we discussed, in other words, you wouldn’t use it,” he said to Bernadette.

  “Yes, but I did not say I wouldn’t ask your witness, that’s a different thing,” she replied smoothly.

  He gave a short laugh. “Oh, you’re good, you are very good, I’ll give you that.”

  He turned on his heel and left. Bernadette headed for a meeting room and Imogen to get some coffees. She spoke briefly to Rhys to say it was all going well so far, and they’d debrief at the end of the day, particularly before facing the press.

  ✽✽✽

  Imogen appeared shortly afterwards with two coffees. She handed one to Bernadette.

  “So, what do you think? Shall we leave it there?” Bernadette said taking the cup from her.

  “I’m not sure what else you can ask him,” Imogen said honestly, sipping her coffee.

  “He’s starting to dig his heels in and everything I say will get the same answer now, which perhaps isn’t helpful to us.”

  “No, you’re probably right.”

  “I might just try to summarise where we are at, give it one more shot, see if I can’t get him to let something slip.” Bernadette was reluctant to let things go without pushing harder on the element of doubt.

  “If anyone can do it, you can. You certainly had him on the ropes for a while.”

  “Yes, but he’s not going to change his story, more’s the pity.”

  Bernadette took another sip of her coffee.

  “Well, you were pretty much on fire in there, it was quite a turn on really.” Imogen smirked.

  “Oh stop! I’m a married woman now,” Bernadette laughed.

  “So, you’re off limits to my imagination?” Imogen teased.

  “You are such a minx.”

  “I know, I can’t help it. Don’t worry, I’m going to fuck D’Arcy’s brains out when I get home.”

  “Good, because I’m going to do the same to Eve,” Bernadette giggled.

  “So, courtroom action is now an aphrodisiac, who knew?”

  “Incorrigible is what you are, my darling, and no mistake.”

  “That’s why…”

  “I love you, I know, and I do… always…”

  They squeezed hands affectionately before getting on and finishing their coffee.

  ✽✽✽

  Court resumed after the break, and the Tipster having once more announced the arrival of the judge, the final session of the day began.

  “Mrs Mackenna,” said Justice Brannigan, “Do you have any further questions for this witness?”

  “Yes, Judge,” said Bernadette having decided to give it one further go.

  “Very well,” said the judge, “You may continue.”

  “Mr Clinton,” said Bernadette, “I asked you a question before the break and you did not really answer it. So, let me break it down for you. You agreed that you don’t value life particularly highly, am I right?”

  “I didn’t exactly put it that way,” Kevin replied.

  “How would you put it?”

  “Like I said, it was a job, I wasn’t thinking about their lives particularly or what would happen to them. I was being paid for my assistance in the process.”

  “And what was your assistance in the process?”

  “Objection, is this really relevant?” Shane was up at once.

  “Mrs Mackenna?” said the judge.

  “Judge, Mr Clinton has accused my client of a serious crime. I want to understand what his involvement in the crime was, in order to more fully understand how he is so certain my client was part of it.”

  “You may continue, Mrs Mackenna,” the judge said slightly wearily, Shane’s objections were perhaps beginning to irritate him.

  The object of his annoyance sat down heavily once more.

  “Mr Clinton, what was your part in the process?” Bernadette repeated.

  “It was my job to transport the women to their, erm… well, a holding warehouse until they were taken to various other places,” he said.

  “To illicit brothels, I presume you mean,” said Bernadette in acidic tones.

  “Yes, that is what I meant.”

  “So, Mr Jenkins was an easy target am I right? A target without fear of retaliation? Rather than your criminal colleagues. A sacrificial lamb to keep everyone happy. Yes or no?”

  “No.”

  “I think you’re lying, I put it to you that you have fabricated your testimony and without any shred of tangible evidence against Mr Clinton. Isn’t that the case?” Bernadette was upping the ante now fishing for a reaction as much as anything else.

  “I’m not lying,” Kevin shot back angrily.

  “You said you cared about him, but if you did then why would you name him as an accomplice?” she said picking up on something he had said earlier.

  “I don’t know,” Kevin said discomposed trying to push back at her without giving an answer. He was visibly annoyed and a little pink about the gills.

  “Because you don’t really care about him, isn’t that right, or you wanted revenge because he didn’t care about you? Which is it?” she said still digging at him, chipping away at his armour.

  Kevin seemed to control himself with an effort, but he declined to respond to the question. Bernadette wasn’t having it.

  “So, which is it, Mr Clinton? Did you care about him or didn’t you?” she asked him again more forcefully this time.

  At that moment Kevin who had been looking across at Callum appeared to finally lose his cool.

  “Yeah well, he didn’t fucking well care about me, little fucking tossing wanker, fucking arsehole, so I don’t fucking care, the bastard. He can fucking rot in the prison for all the fucks I give about it.” He stood up and pointed at Callum angrily. “He can get what he fucking deserves and take that, you fucking bastard, fuck you, Cal, just fuck you, you fucking little bitch, fucking wanking fucking…”

  “Order,” said Justice Brannigan bringing this tirade to a halt and unusually banging his gavel, “Order! Mr Clinton, please be seated and control yourself!”

  Kevin, subsided, realising he had possibly screwed up, and sat down morosely. Bernadette suppressed a smile at this outburst. She had been angling for something like it, but this had been far better than she’d hoped for.

  “Mr Clinton, I don’t want any further disruption to these proceedings from you, is that understood?” said the judge.

  “Yes, Judge, sorry,” said Kevin.

  “Good, well, see that it doesn’t happen again. Continue, Mrs Mackenna,” said the judge.

  Shane was sitting silently shaking his head at the breakdown of his key witness. Mason rolled his eyes and looked up at the ceiling in annoyance.

  Bernadette inclined her head to the judge and addressed herself to Kevin once more, “Mr Clinton, how much risk to you personally is there from naming Mr Jenkins?”

  “Not too much, I guess,” he conceded in a calmer voice.

  “Exactly as I thought, not too much. So, it would be easier to implicate him than someone else with more risk to you, hypothetically, is that not the case?”

  “Objection,” said Shane, “The witness has already answered this question more than once.”

  “Mrs Mac
kenna, you probably are labouring the point, don’t you think?” Justice Brannigan said with a slightly ironic smile.

  “I withdraw the question, Judge,” she said. She had made the point in any case, clearly enough for anyone to understand it. A glance at Imogen told her she probably had done enough, and she said to Justice Brannigan, “In fact, I’ve no further questions.”

  “Good, good, and Mr Wilson, how about you?”

  Shane shook his head. Bernadette reflected he was probably more than happy to get Kevin off the stand. Kevin had already done enough damage for one day, as far as Shane and Mason were concerned.

  “You may stand down, Mr Clinton,” said Justice Barry.

  When Kevin had been escorted out, the judge said, “I think we can adjourn for today, start afresh with your witnesses Mrs Mackenna, what say you?”

  “Certainly, Judge.”

  “Excellent, then court is adjourned.”

  After the Tipster had seen the judge out of the courtroom, the press scrambled for the door wanting to be sure to catch anyone they could coming out. Bernadette and Imogen waited, with Rhys and Callum for the media to disperse. Shane and Mason left almost immediately too.

  “Let’s find a meeting room,” said Bernadette.

  ✽✽✽

  “That went well, didn’t it?” asked Callum once they were all sitting together in the meeting room.

  “It was fucking brilliant,” Rhys chuckled, “You took him apart on the stand, I’m gobsmacked, you’re amazing, in fact, you’re much better than they even said you were.”

  “She’s the business, the fucking business,” said Imogen smiling at her.

  “Thanks for all your confidence. Yes, it did go well, better than I expected to be fair. However, it’s only half the battle. We’ve got to get through our witnesses intact and then we’ve got a fighting chance of winning it.”

  “You’re far too modest, girl,” said Rhys affectionately.

  “She is, she really is,” Imogen agreed.

  “Right now, let’s move on and talk about the press. They are going to want to ask questions, and I think we should give them something,” said Bernadette.

  “What are we allowed to say?” Rhys asked her.

  “Follow my lead. Stick to the facts, as in yes, you were his lover. No, you were not involved. He’s an Irish Citizen and Ireland needs to stand by him.”