Posted by Archer on May 21, 2003 at 23:24:39:
The Assistant Prosecutor had a smile on her face. "Your Honor,
the State rests," she replied.
"Very well then. We'll recess until tomorrow morning at 9:00 am.
The Defense may call its first witness at that time."
Assistant Prosecutor Lee Ann Morgan and Bailiff Eleanor McLawton were
both evening regulars at Mulligan's, and tonight, apart from Harry himself,
they were the only regulars. While waiting for Eleanor, Lee Ann had
talked to the fellow named Ben sitting at the bar. Ben was
on a layover, changing busses in Stanfield, on his way to Hartford.
When Eleanor arrived, Lee Ann had invited him to join them at their regular
table, but Ben had declined -- he wanted to do a little reading before
going back to the bus station.
"He's cute," Eleanor remarked.
"Yeah," Lee Ann blushed. "Pity he's not staying in town."
"You really are a slut," Eleanor smiled, taking care to lower her
voice so that Ben and Harry wouldn't hear..
"Oh really," Lee Ann grinned. "Tell me that you wouldn't..."
"Well..."
"Well what?"
"Okay, I admit it. I'm a slut too." Both women laughed carelessly,
attracting a moment's notice from both Ben and Harry. But Eleanor
wasn't really interested in this bus riding stranger. She was more
interested in what had happened in the courtoom earlier that day.
Of course both women knew that they shouldn't be discussing the case, but
they were sorority sisters. "So, Lee Ann, you had three more witnesses...
What gives?"
"The case is stronger without them."
"What about Whitfield and the DNA?" Whitfield was Elijah Whitfield,
Stanfield's 97 year old coroner.
"That old lisping fossil?" she asked, drawing a laugh from Eleanor.
"He can't even spit out the words 'deoxyribonucleic acid' -- and he's so
old that he doesn't even know what they mean."
But Eleanor sensed something else was afoot. She looked
around and noticed that Ben had left to catch his bus and that Harry was
in the back stocking the cooler. She lowered her voice anyway.
"Hey, Lee Ann, don't feed me bullshit. I know when you're holding
out on me..."
Lee Ann leaned forward, close to Eleanor. "Okay, okay, but we're
sisters, you gotta swear..."
"Of course! You know me."
They both knew that Eleanor wouldn't tell, and Lee Ann was dying to
tell someone. "I switched a couple of files... The doddering
fool might notice if he got a close look."
"You mean..."
"Yeah. Harris didn't do it. But he did a robbery that I
know I can't make stick. But murder! I can make that stick."
Eleanor looked worried for her friend. "What about Diggleston?" Robert
Lewis Diggleston was attorney to Joseph Harris, the defendant.
"That's the best part. Me just a rookie and I'm about to beat
the pants off one of the best criminal lawyers in Brown County. Diggleston
thinks the DNA data is legit. There's no way he's going to call Mr.
Deadfield -- he thinks that would only make it worse. I'm guessing
that when I get to the Court at 8:30, Mr. Bobby Sniggles will be
begging for a deal for his client..."
"And?"
"Of course, I give him his deal. Do you think I want to chance
those files getting out?"
"Your Honor, I didn't do it, but dammitall, I ain't going to the Chair
for something I ain't done. Look, I don't understand all this evidence
stuff against me, but I can tell that the jury believes it. I'd rather
take the deal than fry."
"Very well then. Let's head back into the courtroom so I can make
the announcement and pass sentence.
"I know my job," Logan replied, her tone very defensive.
Had Sharpe known about Logan's safety record, she would have double
checked the locks, but she didn't want to antagonize the Sergeant.
As Sharpe turned onto Highway 17, she heard Harris' chains crash to
the floor of the truck. She turned her head to look and was staring
into the barrel of Logan's gun. "Take the next exit," Harris
said calmly.
Logan started to get up from the floor of the truck. "Stay right
there," Harris warned her.
"Please don't hurt us," Sharpe said softly as she turned off Highway
17 onto Old Dirt Road, now a busy fully paved four lane street that harbored
two huge shopping malls. "Right or left?"
"Right. And right on Danbury Avenue, " he added.
Two blocks later, the Lieutenant made another right turn. "Left
up ahead.... Here." He pointed to the park.
"Please don't hurt us," Sharpe pleaded.
"Shut up and park," Harris answered. And as the truck
came to a stop, "now out!" He looked at the truck's controls.
"Shit! Stickshift. Can't drive stickshift."
He followed both women out of the truck.
"Strip," he ordered.
When Sergeant Logan hesitated, Lieutenant Sharpe gave her an order.
"For God's sake, do as he says, Mary."
"Bra and panties too."
The underwear came off quickly -- and just as soon as it did, Joseph
Harris fired two shots. He hadn't killed Emily Chan, but since
he had just been convicted of murder, he decided he may as well make the
most of it.
The Sergeant fell -- her wound was fatal. Lieutenant Sharpe
was still standing, but in grave pain. "Please! I have a daughter..."
"Well I guess there's one more orphan in Stanfield," he answered, firing
a second shot. The Police Lieutenant arched and fell backward.
She was dead before she hit the ground.
Sergeant Logan was dying, but not yet dead. Harris felt his prick
harden as he watched her naked body writhe in pain. He thought about
taking this woman, but remembered he had more to do. He put the barrel
of the gun in her mouth. She offered no resistance. He fired
one more time...
He hadn't counted on the bra snapping into two. "Shit!"
She tried to get away, but he now had her neck in an armlock.
The doorbell rang. He let go in surprise. Elain slipped
on the wet surface of the tub and hell, cracking her head on the edge of
the sink. It wasn't quite how he'd planned to kill her when he'd
entered the bacthroom, but it was just as effective.
The doorbell rang again.
He picked up the gun and went to the door. He checked and saw
the gun was empty even though he'd only fired four shots. As
he opened the door, a woman said "Pizza Casa Home Delivery. One medium
pizza with olives, pepperoni and anch..." Her voice trailed off when
she noticed the gun pointing at her.
"Come in," he said.
She came in.
"You look too hot. Ain't you gonna take off some of those things?"
She took off everything. "Please don't hurt me. It's my
first day on the job and I'm sorry I'm late."
"Sorry lady, but you're a victim of bad timing. You're in the
wrong place at the wrong time."
"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" she said, hoping against all
hope that he would say no.
He nodded, yes.
"Can I at least get a last wish."
"Maybe."
"Don't let me die a virgin."
"Okay," he replied. As he unzipped his pants, he looked at the
clock. 6:22 pm.
...
After some great sex, she stood up, ready to face the inevitable.
In the excitement, he had forgotten about the empty gun. He squeezed
the trigger. The firing pin clicked.
The pizza delivery girl went into cardiac arrest.
He zipped up his pants and looked at the clock. 6:48 pm.
(It was a surprise. He would have guessed much later.)
...
The telephone rang. It rang again three times before the answering
machine took control. "Leave a message for Bob, Elaine or Lee
Ann. Wait for the beep." (Beep) "Hey El, it's Lee.
Ellie Mac and I are at Mulligan's having a brew. She thought it'd
be great if you could join us. We'll be there 'til ten so come on
by."
Mulligan's Irish Tavern. Harris knew the place. Downtown
near the Courthouse. How appropriate!
Both Lee Ann and Eleanor were too drunk to recognize the cab driver,
and they been drinking since early afternoon, completely missing the news
that Joseph Harris had escape, killing and possibly raping the police officers
who were transporting him to the State Pen. They got in the
back of the cab.
"Pity that sexy slut you room with didn't show," Eleanor said flirtaciously.
"You think she's... Nah! Not a chance."
"What, too pretty? Hey I know some pretty gay gals. But
no. She's not a dyke, she's just a slut like you and me."
"But you want to..." Lee Ann looked worried as she made some
drunken gestures vaguely suggesting two people having sex.
"'Course I want to." He words were slightly slurred.
"But just as an eggs... perry... moment..." She knew as soon as she
said it that the words hadn't come out right. She concentrated: "experiment,"
she repeated, this time successfully. Then she laughed.
"Just an eggs.. an eggs... oh shit! You know what I mean. Mr.
cabbie would you mind if we eggs... perried..." Lee Ann asked, her expression
becoming troubled as she found herself stumbling over the words.
She had a momentary image of Coroner Elijah Whitfield and started giggling.
"Experimented," Eleanor added helpfully.
"In the back seat?" Lee Ann finished.
"Go ahead," the cab driver answered.
As Lee Ann and Eleanor helped ech other out of clothes, they didn't
notice that the cab driver was headed in the wrong direction.
A tear formed in Whitfield's sharp eye as he looked over the body.
He'd never really gotten used to this. "What a waste. Barely
twenty-one." He looked puzzled. "Looks like Cee Oh poisoning.
Carbon monoxide."
"She was in the truck of the cab. Evidently he hadn't intended
to kill her. Harry said he was wearing the Backgammon cabbie hat.
Maybe that's all he wanted from her. But he raped the pizza chick..."
"No evidence of rape, just sex with the pizza girl," Whitfield
corrected him.
The assistant went back to the refrigerator truck and rolled out the
second victim. "Bailiff Eleanor McLawton," Whitfield announced.
He looked at the marks on the neck. "Asphyxiation, from hanging."
The assistant brought back the third body. Whitfield's mood improved
almost immediately. "Assistant Prosecutor Lee Ann Morgan.," he said.
The assistant was a bit shocked. "You actually sound pleased."
"I am. This bitch never treated me with any respect, and our dislike
is mutual." He noticed that the press was beginning to arrive
in hopes of a statement. He let the sheet that covered Lee Ann's
body fall to the ground. A photographer snapped a picture, afraid
that the sheet might be replaced. But when the assistant reached
for the sheet, the elderly but very healthy coroner simply stepped onto
the sheet and refused to budge.
One of the reporters shouted, "Any information for us?"
"Yes, Ben," Whitfield replied. "We've identified three more
victims. This last one is most interesting," he said pointing to
the completely uncovered body of the Assistant Prosecutor. "I guess
you might say that the prosecution rests."