I Know What You Did

by N L Hinkens

  Without a second's hesitation, Jo snatched her into her arms and held her close, burying her face in her soft curls. Liam wrapped his arms around them both, choking back a sob.

  “Ma’am, sir,” the medic said quietly. “We’ll need to take your daughters inside and have them checked out.”

  Jo blinked through her tears as a second medic stepped out of the ambulance carrying a whimpering Olivia. Jo gave Liam a subtle shake of her head, warning him not to correct the misconception. Olivia needed them to be her advocate. Right now, they were all she had.

  Once inside, a swarm of medical staff took over. Jo’s fears were soon put to rest when both girls turned out to be uninjured and, to all appearances, none the worse after their ordeal. Jo explained to the ER doctor on duty who Olivia was, and after consulting with Officer Bowman, she got Robbie’s permission to take Olivia home for the night.

  Before they left, they paid Bethany a quick visit. To Jo’s relief, she was sitting up in bed and conversing animatedly with a nurse. Bethany’s mother was seated next to her and smiled tentatively when she saw them.

  Jo let go of Claire’s hand and wrapped her arms around Bethany. “I'm so sorry she hurt you. I shouldn’t have asked you to go next door. I never dreamt she’d be violent toward you.”

  “It’s not your fault,” Bethany said. “I just wish I could have stopped her from taking the girls.”

  “You delayed her," Liam replied. “If you hadn’t, she might have had enough time to disappear. You went above and beyond the call of any babysitter.”

  Bethany smiled at the girls. “I’d do anything for those two precious peanuts.”

  Jo’s phone beeped with a text notification. She pulled it out of her pocket and read the message out loud. “It's from Officer Bowman. Tory in custody. Willing to testify against Mia if you drop kidnapping charges.”

  31

  Things moved rapidly after Tory's arrest. In return for immunity, she signed a statement saying that Mia had convinced her to take the girls and flee to San Francisco with them. Chuck Allen was brought in for questioning and a search warrant issued for his house, where enough incriminating evidence regarding Barb’s estate was pulled from his computer to arrest him on suspicion of conspiracy to murder. To secure a plea deal, he confessed at his hearing, and Robbie was subsequently cleared of all charges relating to Sarah’s and Noah’s deaths. However, as Jo had feared, his attorney advised him he would likely serve time for soliciting sex with a minor.

  Jo and Liam took off work to attend court for Mia’s trial. She entered a plea of not guilty, doggedly sticking to her story that she had done nothing more than drive Noah to the garage. The only amendment to her original testimony was that she was now pinning the blame for the murders squarely on her father.

  Chuck Allen’s testimony painted a very different picture. According to his version of events, Mia had come to him with a plan that went one step further than his failed attempt to write himself into an elderly resident's will at Brookdale Meadows. Together, the two plotted to divest Sarah’s mother, Barb, of her considerable inheritance. Knowing the estate had been willed to her only child, they came up with a plan to get rid of Sarah, paving the way for Mia to marry Robbie. They even cooked up a scheme to lay a trail of incriminating text messages between two burner phones over a five-month period, during which time Mia got to work seducing Robbie.

  Despite Chuck’s compelling testimony, during which the spectators sat spellbound, and the media scribbled frantically, the prosecutor had his work cut out for him to prove that Mia had been a willing accomplice in the double murder plot. The evidence against her was all circumstantial, including the browser history on the laptop which, the prosecution argued, belonged to Robbie.

  The prosecutor paced in front of Mia, glancing from time to time at the jury to make sure they were tracking. “You testified that your only role in the crime was to drive a drugged and inebriated Noah Tomaselli on the evening of April 02 to the garage at 427 Lennondale where your father was waiting. However, your father testifies that earlier in the evening you also drove Sarah Gleeson to the same garage.”

  “That’s a lie,” Mia retorted, jutting out her chin. “He abducted her and brought her there himself.”

  The prosecutor splayed his palms. “And yet there’s no evidence of a struggle. Sarah Gleeson had no DNA under her fingernails. There was no bruising on her body, no contusions to indicate she’d been hit over the head and knocked out. In fact, the only evidence is the contents of her stomach—coffee and an anti-anxiety drug, Lorazepam, the same prescription found in your bathroom cabinet. Furthermore, we have CCTV footage of a woman exiting a coffee house next to Target earlier that day with two paper cups of coffee and walking over to Sarah's car. Did you or did you not meet with Sarah Gleeson that afternoon during which time you gave her a drugged coffee before driving her to the garage where your father was waiting?”

  “Absolutely not,” Mia scoffed. “I often pick up a coffee for my sister after school and take it around to her work.”

  Jo glanced across to where Tory was sitting, head bowed. Despite everything Tory had done, Jo couldn’t help feeling sorry for her. She was still being used by her conniving sister. Jo’s assessment of her had been accurate—she was weak and easily influenced.

  The prosecutor reviewed his files and cleared his throat. “In your original statement you said that you drove Noah to the garage so that Robbie Gleeson could scare him into not reporting your illicit relationship to the authorities. Robbie Gleeson, you asserted, was afraid of losing his job. Now you’re claiming you drove Noah to the garage and left him with your father. What did you think your father was going to do to him?”

  “Objection!” the defense lawyer shouted.

  “Overruled," the judge replied. “Let the defendant answer the question.”

  Mia shrugged. “I asked him to rough Noah up a little so he’d tell me who he was seeing.”

  “And by rough him up a little, did you mean poison him with carbon monoxide?”

  Mia narrowed her eyes, her face flushing. “I had nothing to do with that.”

  “Objection!” Her defense lawyer shouted.

  “Sustained,” the judge rejoined.

  “No further questions, Your Honor,” the prosecutor said, returning to his seat.

  "Do you wish to cross-examine the witness?” the judge asked, looking pointedly at Mia’s defense lawyer.

  Jo held her breath as the defense took the floor.

  “I realize this is a difficult subject for you, Mia,” the defense lawyer began, “But can you please describe to the court your relationship with your father growing up?”

  Mia cocked her head to one side, her blonde hair falling over her shoulder. She lifted a hand and brushed away what Jo strongly suspected was a crocodile tear. “It was extremely abusive. He was an alcoholic and very controlling. If we didn't do what he wanted, he would punish us, beat us and stuff." She gulped back a sob. "He was a … a big man. I was scared of him.”

  “And what about your relationship with Noah Tomaselli?”

  "We were high school sweethearts.” Mia’s face crumpled. “He was the love of my life until Sarah Gleeson seduced him.”

  “Objection!" the prosecutor called out.

  “Sustained.”

  The defense lawyer softened his voice. “How did your relationship with Robbie Gleeson, your chemistry teacher, begin?”

  “I went to him privately to tell him about the anonymous note I got. He was very sympathetic at first—he said he'd received one too. He kept pursuing me after that, asking me if I was okay, which of course I wasn't. I was devastated. It started with Robbie putting an arm around my shoulders. I … I thought he was just trying to comfort me." Mia burst into tears. “Now I realize he was grooming me. And then later on, when I tried to get out of the relationship, he threatened me and my baby.” She sniffed hard and looked piteously in Jo's direction. “He’s a violent man just like my father. That's the reason I wan
ted to give my baby up for adoption.”

  Jo sat frozen in her seat hanging on every word as the defense continued to question Mia. Her performance was brilliant, evocative, powerful, masterful, but at the end of the day it was a performance. Jo knew that now, but would the jury recognize it?

  When the defense lawyer finally resumed his seat, the prosecutor stood.

  “I would now like to call Tory Allen to the witness stand.”

  Tory stood unsteadily and made her way to the stand. Her hand shook as she held it up in front of the court and swore to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

  “Miss Allen, can you please tell the court where you work.”

  Tory squeezed her hands nervously in her lap. “I clean offices at a variety of locations.”

  “And one of those locations is 2160 Bellfield, is it not?”

  Tory nodded. “Yes.”

  “Can you tell us what type of business operates at that address?”

  “It’s … it’s a fertility clinic.”

  Jo glanced up sharply, the address suddenly registering in her head. She and Liam had used that clinic.

  “Did you at any time access confidential patient information?”

  Tory’s shoulders heaved. “Mia wanted me to photocopy Jo and Liam Murphy's file for her.”

  “I see. And how did you access the information?”

  Tory shrugged. “It's not hard to open a locked file drawer. My father showed me how.”

  The prosecutor raised a brow. "Quite the criminal mastermind family.”

  “Objection! Your Honor, this is speculative and leading the jury.”

  “Quite," the judge agreed. “Please refrain from leading commentary going forward.”

  “Did Mia tell you why she wanted the information?” the prosecutor continued.

  “She said … “ Tory cast a hesitant glance around the courtroom.

  “Miss Allen?" the prosecutor prompted.

  “She said she’d found a way to make sure Robbie's best friends would support him when he told them about her. She said Jo was a crazy cow who would do anything for a baby.”

  Jo pressed a hand to her mouth. No! The courtroom began to spin around her. Was it possible? Had the adoption been Mia’s idea all along?

  “So, your sister premeditated giving up her baby for adoption to the Murphys,” the prosecutor said, hanging on the word premeditated for maximum effect.

  “You could say that,” Tory agreed. “She wanted to make them think it was their idea.”

  "Did your sister also premeditate the murders of Sarah Gleeson and Noah Tomaselli?”

  “Objection! The witness is being asked to speculate again.”

  "Your Honor, I believe what Miss. Allen has to say is relevant.”

  "Very well, answer the question, Miss. Allen.”

  "I overheard Mia and my father talking about one of the residents at Brookdale Meadows—Barb Anderson. Mia said she had a plan to get rid of her daughter, Sarah, and seduce Robbie.” Tory brushed a lock of hair from her face. “She said she’d cut our father into the deal if he helped her.”

  The prosecutor nodded thoughtfully. “Which he did, as he has already testified to. Miss Allen, can you please tell us why your parents divorced?”

  Her eyes darted nervously around the room before settling on the prosecutor. “My mother had a small settlement from a car accident that she kept in an account for our education. When Mia was born, she checked the account and discovered it had been drained down to practically nothing.” Tory drew in a hard breath before continuing. “Our father denied touching the money, but she knew it was him. Not long after, she learned he’d run up gambling debts. The final straw was when he was fired from his job at Brookdale Meadows for forging a signature on a resident’s will.”

  “Was he ever prosecuted for that?”

  “No, the board of directors wanted to keep it quiet. It would have been bad for business if it had come out that their accountant had attempted to alter one of the resident’s wills.”

  The prosecutor nodded thoughtfully. “Miss. Allen, would you say your father is a pathological liar?”

  “Yes.” Her voice was wistful, and her expression theatrically pitiful.

  Jo grimaced, trying not to feel sorry for her.

  The prosecutor shuffled a couple of papers in front of him and then turned back to Tory. “And what about your sister, Mia Allen? Would you say she’s also a pathological liar?”

  Tory’s eyes drifted over the gallery seated in front of her, coming to rest on Mia. She held her sister's gaze for a long moment.

  After pulling out a tissue, she dabbed at her eyes before returning her attention to the prosecutor. “She’s a far better one than our father.”

  The prosecutor raised his brows. “Can you give us an example of that, Miss. Allen?”

  Tory pulled back her shoulders and looked straight at the jury. “She pushed our mother down the stairs and convinced everyone it was an accident. Then she told me she’d kill me in my sleep if I didn’t back up her story.”

  Shocked gasps rippled around the courtroom.

  “Objection!” the defense lawyer yelled, his face reddening as he jumped to his feet.

  The judge frowned but before he could respond the prosecutor said, “No further questions, Your Honor.”

  “Very well. The objection is sustained. At this time, we’ll hear the closing arguments, after which the jury will retire to deliberate,” the judge announced.

  Jo slipped her hand into Liam’s and squeezed it as they sat through the closing arguments from both sides. Other than Chuck Allen’s testimony, the evidence against Mia was still mostly circumstantial. It remained to be seen if the jurors would believe her or her father. Chuck Allen was already going down for double murder. But was his testimony enough to convince a jury that his daughter had masterminded the plot, and been a willing and able accomplice in carrying out the gruesome deed?

  After the judge charged the jury, they deliberated for less than three hours before returning to the courtroom.

  The judge seated himself at the bench, rustling his robes and shuffling some papers before turning to the jury foreman. “Has the jury reached a verdict?”

  “Yes, Your Honor. In the case of Noah Tomaselli, we the jury find the accused, Mia Allen, guilty of murder in the first degree. In the case of Sarah Gleeson, we the jury find the accused, Mia Allen, guilty of murder in the first degree.”

  Jo dropped her head into her shaking hands. The relief that swept through her was all-consuming. It was over at last. Justice had been served. Liam rubbed her back gently. “The jury saw straight through her,” he whispered.

  Jo nodded gratefully, not trusting herself to speak. Mia and her father had conducted a perfectly choreographed waltz of evil. They’d murdered two beautiful people, mown them down like developers clearing the land for their materialistic purposes. Chuck had evaded the death penalty by way of a plea deal, and Mia by way of being two weeks short of her eighteenth birthday when the murders had been carried out, but they would rot in jail for the better part of their lives.

  After Mia was escorted out of the courtroom, Jo and Liam joined the other people filing out. Jo caught sight of Tory hurrying toward the steps leading out of the courthouse. “I’ll be right back,” she said to Liam, breaking into a jog to catch up with her.

  She laid a hand on Tory’s shoulder. “Wait! Do you have a minute?”

  She swung around and stared at Jo, a wary glint in her eyes.

  “I know Mia's been controlling you for a long time,” Jo said. “I can’t quite forgive you yet for abducting the girls, but I just wanted you to know you did a brave thing testifying against her.”

  Tory pressed her lips together. “I did it for my sister. She needs help. If she isn’t stopped now, she'll only hurt more people.” Before Jo could respond, she turned and slipped away. Her immunity deal meant she was a free woman. Jo wasn’t sorry to see her go. Hopefully, she’d never set eyes on her
again. She’d risked the girls’ lives by fleeing with them. Jo had no idea what her intentions, or Mia’s, were beyond that, but it could have involved blackmail, or worse—it didn't bear thinking about.

  The day of the sentencing, Jo got a call from Officer Bowman. “I wanted to reach out and thank you personally for everything you did to help us get to the bottom of this case. Without your help, justice might never have been served.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate you moving swiftly on the new evidence,” Jo replied.

  “Part of the reason I’m calling you is that Mia has requested to see you with her lawyer.”

  “Mia wants to see me?” Jo blurted out. Her pulse picked up pace. What on earth did Mia want to see her for at this juncture? Surely she wasn’t going to bring a suit against her. She had no legal right to get Claire back, but that wouldn’t stop someone as low as Mia from putting Jo and Liam through the process just to watch the pain of it chip away at them. She enjoyed tormenting people. And she’d already tried kidnapping Claire by enlisting her sister’s help. “What does she want?” Jo asked tentatively.

  “Her lawyer will explain everything,” Officer Bowman said. “She’s been granted visitation at the jail this afternoon at four o’clock if you can make it.”

  “I … yes, I suppose so.”

  “Good.” Officer Bowman graced her with a tight smile. “I’ll let her lawyer know to expect you.”

  By the time Jo pulled up in the parking lot outside the jail, her throat was like sandpaper and her heart was drumming so loudly she was half afraid she might set off the security alarm when they scanned her through. She hadn’t texted Liam to tell him where she was going. She didn’t want to burden him with bad news until she’d confirmed it. He’d stand by her regardless—they were both committed to fighting to keep Claire at all costs.

  She went through the security in a daze, placing her purse and shoes and overcoat in a tray on the conveyer belt and then walking through the scanner. With increasing trepidation, she followed a corrections officer to the visitor waiting room and sat down, feeling like a criminal herself. Maybe she deserved this. She’d tempted fate by her willingness to do almost anything to become a mother, even going as far as to keep quiet about the identity of Claire’s biological father. She’d been willing to deprive Lydia and Sérgio of their rights as grandparents when she’d still believed Noah was Claire’s father. She was hardly an innocent party. Her own questionable behavior had contributed to this tangled mess no matter how she sliced it.