Body of Evidence

by Joan Elliott Pickart

  Before it seemed possible Evan found himself entering the courtroom for the first day of the trial of Lyle Gardner, having shoved his way through the maze of reporters in the hallway, his stormy glare taking the place of anything he might have said.

  Evan had managed to go over the remainder of the jury applications, acutely aware of how much he missed having Jennifer’s assistance in the chore as well as simply missing Jennifer herself to the point that he ached to see, hold and kiss her.

  He placed his briefcase on the table designated to be his during the trial, removed some files, pens and a legal pad, then glanced up to meet the gaze of Lyle Gardner who sat at the table across the courtroom with his attorney.

  Lyle had straight, slicked-back black hair, blue eyes, and the puffy, heavy-set physique of someone who had indulged in too many lavish meals and very little exercise. Lyle smirked and shook his head as he looked at Evan with blatant disdain.

  Oh, what he wouldn’t give, Evan thought, as he settled onto his chair, to walk across that room and punch that smug expression off Lyle’s face.

  Evan forced himself to tear his gaze from Lyle’s and look at the packed rows of spectators, immediately seeing Cecelia sitting in the first row directly behind her son. The remainder of the crowd was a sea of faces that did not include Jennifer’s. He knew she wouldn’t be there during the selection of the jury, but…

  He’d telephoned her late last night but had obviously wakened her, resulting in a rather short, foggy conversation that did nothing more than emphasize how exhausted they both were.

  Get a grip, Stone, Evan ordered himself. He was as prepared as he was going to get for this trial, and it was going to require his total concentration and expertise to win a conviction. His case was still built on circumstantial evidence and he knew it. Detectives Waters and Wilson and their assigned team of uniformed officers had made no progress in finding the incriminating signet ring.

  “All rise,” a man bellowed.

  Here we go, Evan thought, getting to his feet as the judge entered the courtroom. And heaven help me.

  Despite Evan’s attempts to slow things down to give the detectives and uniformed officers every possible minute to find the missing ring, the jury and alternates were selected by the end of the second day in court. The judge announced that the trial would begin the following morning with the opening statement from the district attorney.

  Evan waited until the courtroom was empty with the hope that he could avoid another confrontation with the reporters, then moved around the table just as one of the double doors opened and Jennifer entered, wearing jeans and a pretty red sweater.

  “Hi, stranger,” she said, hurrying toward Evan.

  Evan left his briefcase on the table and rushed to meet her, immediately pulling her into his arms and kissing her deeply.

  “My goodness,” Jennifer said, when Evan finally ended the searing kiss, “that was quite a greeting from a stranger.”

  “Indeed, it was,” Evan said, not releasing his hold on her. “Think what I might have done if I knew who you were, ma’am.”

  “It boggles the mind.” She smiled. “I’m glad I caught you because I have something of extreme importance to tell you.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes.” Jennifer laughed. “I’ve missed you. How’s that for a bulletin?”

  “It warms the cockles of my heart, and I’ve missed you, too. How are you feeling? How is our son? How is the editing of the film going?”

  “Fine, fine, and slow, per usual. My boss is pushing us to finish editing what we have, then keeping up with it when we start filming again, which I understand from the clerk will be tomorrow because the trial is starting. My boss wants to air the documentary very soon after the trial ends and it’s still fresh in the public’s mind.”

  “Whew.” Evan stepped away from Jennifer and began to wander around the area in front of the judge’s bench. “Talk about putting the pressure on. What if…” He stopped and looked at Jennifer who was now about three feet away from him. “Jennifer, has it occurred to your boss that I might not win this case for you?”

  Jennifer slid onto the edge of the table where Evan’s briefcase still sat, allowing her feet to dangle above the floor. She cocked her head slightly to one side, a confused expression on her face.

  “Win this case for me?”

  Evan dragged a restless hand through his hair. “Yes. You’ve worked so damn hard on this documentary, given it everything you have.

  “If I lose this battle and Lyle walks, won’t your boss reconsider even airing the film? I get a knot in my gut just thinking about the possibility that all your hours will have been for nothing, Jenny. I can’t stand the thought of…of letting you down like that. And I can’t bear the thought of having to tell our son that I didn’t come through for his mother when she really needed me to.”

  Never, Jennifer thought, as tears misted her eyes, never in her entire life had she felt so…so loved, so cherished and special. Evan wasn’t even considering the damage that might be done to his own reputation if he lost the case against Lyle Gardner. Fuel would be added to the fire of the smoldering idea the public had that the rich got a break in the Chicago justice system.

  Evan was focused on what losing would mean to her, and later to their son.

  Oh, Evan, she thought, dashing away a tear that spilled onto her cheek. He loved her. He did. What he had just said was like a precious gift he was giving her, a declaration of his love she would cherish forever.

  Should she gather her courage and declare her love for him? Oh, how she yearned to tell him what was in her heart.

  Jennifer glanced quickly around the courtroom.

  But no, not now. The majority of his concentration and mental energies must be centered on the trial.

  It wasn’t fair to him to ask him to envision a future with her…and their baby…when he had to stay in the present and the enormous challenge he was facing.

  “You look upset,” Evan said, bringing Jennifer from her racing thoughts. “I guess you haven’t considered the possibility that you would suffer from my defeat in this room. There’s more at stake here than whether or not a guilty man goes free. Your career could be dealt a devastating blow if I don’t get a conviction against Lyle Gardner.”

  “No, no, Evan. It’s not like that. I’ve talked at length with my boss about this. We’re prepared for whatever the outcome of the trial is. If Lyle Gardner is found guilty we take the approach that your detectives combined with your expertise in the courtroom made it possible for justice to be served.

  “If Lyle gets off? We’ll show that even the best efforts don’t always bring the proper results, whether the defendant is rich or poor, but that you have to move on to the next case, continue to believe in the system, refuse to allow a defeat to diminish your dedication.”

  Evan nodded.

  “But, Evan?” she said, a sob catching in her throat. “The fact that you were worried about me, about my career, what it might do to me if you lost this case, means more to me than I can ever begin to tell you. Thank you. Oh, that’s too small, too insignificant to express…” Tears closed her throat and she stopped speaking as she shook her head.

  Evan closed the distance between them and planted his hands on either side of her bottom where she sat on the table, trapping her in place.

  “You’ve got it covered? You’ll be all right no matter what the outcome of this trial is?”

  Jennifer nodded.

  “Oh, thank God for that. You have no idea how I’ve worried about you and… Well, that’s one less thing to keep me awake at night.” He smiled. “But I have plenty left to guarantee the tossing and turning routine. I am so glad, though, that we had this conversation.”

  “I believe Belinda would call it communication,” Jennifer said, managing to produce a wobbly smile.

  “Yeah, I think you’re right. Belinda is very big on communication. When this trial is over, Jenny, you and I are going to have a very serio
us session of communication about…things.”

  “I…” Jennifer started, then stopped for a moment. “Yes, we need to do that. Communicate, discuss in depth some very important…things.”

  Evan nodded, then straightened and swept his gaze over the courtroom.

  “Do you realize,” he said quietly, “how many lives are changed forever in rooms just like this one every day across this country? What an awesome responsibility it is for those of us who play a part in that. It’s big. It’s heavy. It can consume a person if they’re not aware that it’s happening.”

  Jennifer was hardly breathing as she listened intently to what Evan was saying.

  “It consumed me,” he said, turning to face her again. “But I’m going to change that, get a healthier balance in my life. Delegate, delegate, delegate. I think that somewhere along the line I started to have a godlike complex of believing that I had to do it if it was going to be done right. That’s crazy. My staff is the cream of the crop. I intend to make room in my life for more, much more than just my career, sweet Jenny.”

  Will that more include me, Evan? Jennifer thought. Loving me? Wanting me to become your wife, not just the mother of your son? Oh, Jennifer, don’t do this to yourself. Keep the daydreams separate from what might still be pipe dreams.

  “That’s…good. I’m thinking along those lines myself. Once I have the baby I don’t intend to travel so much. And I’m certainly entitled to some time off between assignments, too, and… Well, I want a healthier balance, to quote you, in my life, too. I…What’s that noise?”

  “I don’t hear… Oh, cripe, it’s my cell phone. I put it in my briefcase.”

  Evan hurried to the table, flipped the catches on the briefcase and retrieved the ringing phone, pushing the appropriate button.

  “Stone,” he said.

  Jennifer watched with building concern as Evan stiffened as he listened to what was being said, then the color drained from his face.

  “Evan?” she whispered, sliding off the table. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  He held up one hand to silence her and she pressed her lips together as she continued to stare at him, her heart racing.

  “The statement is signed?” Evan said. “And he’ll testify?… You did? You took it to Maggie and she’s positive that it’s… Do you realize what this means? What you’ve done…? Yes… Yes…”

  “Yes, yes…what?” Jennifer whispered, clutching her hands beneath her chin.

  “I don’t know what to say,” Evan continued, shaking his head. “You two deserve a raise? Steak dinners? Letters of commendation from the mayor? The governor? Hell, the president of the United States. Name it, it’s yours… A vacation, huh? Sold… Yeah, fine. I’ll connect with you back at my office.” He laughed. “Do you like my office? Hell, I’ll give you my office if you want it… No?… Okay. Later.”

  Evan pressed the button on the small phone, then set it in the briefcase with exacting care. The color began to return slowly to his face as he snapped the latches on the briefcase in seemingly slow motion.

  “Evan Stone,” Jennifer said, her voice trembling, “if you don’t tell me what just happened I swear I’m going to… Oh!”

  Jennifer gasped in shock as Evan turned, grabbed her waist and twirled her around and around until she yelled for mercy. He set her on her feet, steadied her as she staggered slightly, then framed her face in his hands.

  “That call,” he said, his voice choked with emotion, “was from Detective Extraordinaire Colin Waters, who had Detective Extraordinaire Darien Wilson standing at his elbow as he spoke to me.”

  “And?”

  “Ah, Jenny, they did it. Those two found the signet ring.”

  “Oh, my God,” Jennifer whispered.

  “Lyle pawned it. I guess he figured it was tucked safely away in a seedy side of town across the state line in Michigan where no one would ever think to go looking. The ring is worth a bunch of bucks, and he was too greedy to just toss the thing in a Dumpster.

  “Maggie has examined the ring, will testify that it’s the one that made the marks on Franklin’s face, and the pawnshop owner has positively identified Lyle from a picture as the man who brought in the ring, having signed a statement to that fact. We’ve got him, Jennifer. Lyle Gardner is going down.”

  “You’re going to win,” Jennifer said, awe ringing in her voice. “Oh, Evan, I’m so thrilled, so… I don’t know what to say.”

  “I do,” he said, suddenly very serious. “This trial is over except for the shouting. Lyle has no defense left. It’s over.”

  “Well, yes, I guess it is, isn’t it? You’ll tell the judge and Lyle’s attorney that… Oh, my.”

  “So, yes, sweet Jenny,” Evan said, dropping his hands from her face, and running a trembling hand down his tie in a nervous gesture, “I do know what to say now. It’s time. It’s time to…communicate.”

  “It is?” she said, looking up at him with wide eyes.

  “Yes, it is.” Evan drew a steadying breath. “Jennifer Anderson, I, Evan Stone, am deeply and forever and a day in love with you.”

  “I…I beg your pardon?”

  “I love you, Jenny. I swear I do. You’re my life, my other half, my soul mate, my…I love you. I love you, I love our baby. Please, oh, please, say that you love me, too. Say that you’ll marry me and stay by my side as my partner until death parts us. Say that we’ll raise our son together, be a family, and that you’ll help me pick out a name for our dog and cat, create a home out of a house we’ll buy and…I’ll cut way back on my work hours and… Oh, God, Jennifer, do you love me as much as I love you?”

  Tears filled Jennifer’s eyes. “Yes. Oh, Evan, yes. I love you beyond measure. You make me complete, so glad that I’m a woman who can be a counterpart to you, my magnificent man, and…I hoped, I prayed, that you loved me in return and…”

  “Will you marry me? Please?”

  “Yes! Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes…”

  Evan pulled her close and kissed her until they were both trembling with desire and emotions too deep and complex to give name to. When he broke the kiss, he made no attempt to hide the tears glistening in his eyes that matched those shimmering in Jennifer’s.

  “Thank you,” he said, his voice husky. “Thank you for agreeing to be my wife, for making me the happiest man on this planet, for just being you. And, Jenny? Thank you for the greatest gift a woman can give a man. Our baby. Our miracle. I’m going to be a father. I love you and our son so very much.”

  “And I love you and our son so very much,” she said, smiling through her tears.

  “I don’t want to leave you right now for anything, but I have to get things rolling about the ring being found. I have a feeling that Lyle, who will be not so smug, will be more than ready to plea bargain.”

  “I understand. I’ll go to my apartment and wait for you there. Sticks and I will film the press conference later when you announce the wonderful news.”

  “This could take a while. I might be very late.”

  “Evan, I’ve waited a lifetime for you. A few more hours are fine. I’ll be there…waiting for you to come home.”

  Evan smiled, brushed his lips over Jennifer’s, then picked up his briefcase.

  “I’ll get there as soon as I possibly can,” he said. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “Yes, I… No, wait a minute,” Jennifer said, pointing one finger in the air. “I have one teeny-tiny question first.”

  “Whip it on me.”

  “What dog and cat?”

  Their mingled laughter echoed through the big, empty room as Evan encircled Jennifer’s shoulders with one arm and they walked through the double doors, taking the first steps toward their future, their forever…together.

  “I’ll see you as soon as I can.”

  “Yes,” Jennifer said, then watched her future husband stride out of view down the corridor.

  It was nearly nine o’clock when Evan knocked on the door of Jennifer’s apartment. She rushed
to greet him, frowning when she saw the exhaustion etched on his rugged features.

  “You’re so tired,” she said, as Evan sank onto the sofa.

  “You should have called and told me you were going home to get some sleep.”

  “Not a chance,” he said, tugging on her hand so she’d settle next to him, which Jennifer did willingly. “Today the woman I love agreed to marry me, spend the rest of her life with me. Sleep can wait. Seeing you tonight definitely could not.”

  “That’s sweet.” She smiled at him warmly. “Now, tell me what happened.”

  “His lawyer wasted a lot of time with bluster and blow,” Evan said, yanking the knot of his tie down and undoing the two top buttons of his shirt. “You know, what does a ring prove? Anyone could have been wearing it the night Franklin Gardner was killed to frame Lyle and blah, blah, blah. But anyone didn’t pawn it, Lyle did, and he finally confessed to the whole thing.

  “To make a long story short, my Jenny, they copped a plea for manslaughter in the second degree due to the fact that Franklin actually died from whacking his head on the table, not from being beat up by Lyle, or stabbed with the ice pick.”

  “Well, it’s better than having the creep walking the streets.”

  “True. Oh, Cecelia was there during the negotiations, which was interesting.”

  “Why? What did she say?”

  “Nothing. She… I don’t know how to explain it…but she seemed to shrink, turn old before my eyes. I think it finally hit her that all the money in the world couldn’t solve this problem. When we reached an agreement of fifteen years with no parole, she got up and walked out of the room. Lyle called to her, but she didn’t even look at him. Lyle just put his head down on the table and started to cry.”

  “My goodness.”

  “Chalk up one for the good guys. We won. Justice has been served. But, Jenny? That isn’t why this day will always be very special to me, why I’ll see this date on the calendar in years to come and smile, remembering. Remembering that the classy lady who stole my heart, the wonderful woman, the mother of my son, agreed to be my wife on this day.”