“Just Harold being an asshole,” Aidan said.
“Oh, so nothing new, then,” Richard joked.
*
“Spell your full name for the record,” the clerk requested.
Aidan spelled out her name slowly, then she sat down in the witness chair and waited on Meghan to ask her questions.
“State your occupation please.”
“Special Agent with Homeland Security,” Aidan replied.
Meghan walked up to Aidan. “And as an agent, do you carry a weapon?”
Nodding, Aidan said, “Yes, on and off duty, although I am not wearing it now because of the trial.” Aidan realized that Meghan was putting it on record why there was a gun on the floor of their hotel room. It gave credence to Samantha’s testimony.
“You are the legal daughter of Harold Cassidy, is that correct?” Meghan asked.
“On paper only. He is not my biological father,” Aidan stated. Thank God.
Meghan paused for a moment, an idea came to mind that she would explore later. “What was it like, growing up with him as your father?”
“Objection,” George interrupted. “Relevance?”
Williamson looked at Meghan.
“Recapitulation, Your Honor,” Meghan responded. “I’m attempting to establish the defendant’s repeated history of violence.”
The judge accepted that reasoning. “Overruled.”
Meghan nodded for Aidan to continue.
“From as far back as I can remember, he beat me for no reason at all. Just walked up and started slapping me across the face because I was enjoying myself, playing with a toy. And when he was drunk, which was often, he’d get creative and use belts, or flyswatters, whatever he could grab, and beat me until I had welts on my back.”
Vicky cringed. She wasn’t aware of that when they were children because Aidan kept it hidden from her. But as she listened to Aidan tell the story, memories of sudden jerks and gasps came back to mind. Sometimes Aidan would gasp loudly when Vicky smacked her on the back in tag, you’re it games, or other roughhousing games. Aidan would explain that it was part of the game to distract her, and Vicky believed her. It hurt her heart now, to know that Aidan was covering up such pain back then.
“And what did you do to provoke him?” Meghan asked bluntly.
Aidan was shocked, and quickly angered. But then she looked at Meghan, and see in her eyes that she was leading up to something, so she answered the question calmly. “When I was little, five or six years old, I did nothing to provoke his rage. But as I grew older, eleven or twelve, I knew what would trigger an attack. I knew how to provoke them and to avoid them.”
Meghan shook her head. “What was your reasoning for provoking him, if you knew the punishment would be so harsh?”
“When Harold couldn’t get what he wanted, he drank. If I really got him angry and was clever enough to evade him, I knew that he would end up passed out in his recliner, and I would have a few hours of peace.”
“And what did you do with that time?”
“Went next door to play with my best friend,” Aidan replied, smiling at Vicky, whose eyes glistened with tears.
“No further questions at this time, Your Honor,” Meghan said abruptly, surprising everyone.
I barely sat down and she’s finished already? What’s she up to?
Williamson looked at George. “Does the defense wish to question the witness?”
“Yes, Judge,” Harold said, and stood up. He walked over to Aidan with a smile on his face.
Okay, here we go. Aidan thought, sitting up straight as if bracing for impact. Don’t let him provoke you, just play it cool.
“It’s good to see you again, Aidan,” Harold said.
“Wish I could say the same,” Aidan replied.
“Now is that any way to greet your father?”
“Mr. Cassidy, do you have questions for this witness or not?” the Judge asked.
“Of course, Judge,” Harold replied quickly and looked back at Aidan. “Aren’t you a bonafide hero, Aidan? Didn’t you save the lives of your Army buddies in Iraq? Didn’t you save President Trenton’s life? Weren’t you awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, along with the Presidential Medal of Freedom?”
“Yeah, so, what’s your point?” Aidan asked briskly.
“Your Honor, I object to her tone of disrespect,” Harold whined.
“Sustained,” she ordered, then leaned toward Aidan. “Ms. Montgomery-Cassidy, please answer the questions that are directed to you, don’t ask them.”
Aidan was completely compliant when she replied, “Yes, Your Honor.” But inside, she was raging.
Satisfied that he had won that one, Harold walked over and stood by the bar, a rail separating the gallery from the prosecutor’s table. It was the closest he could get to Vicky. Aidan tensed and leaned forward, as Vicky, feeling suddenly claustrophobic, clinched her jaw against the urge to run, and looked stoically at Aidan instead.
“Aidan, if I was such a bad parent, how did I raise you up to be such a big hero?” As quickly as Harold asked the question, he waved his hand and said, “No need to answer.”
“You can’t seriously be trying to take credit for that?” Aidan asked angrily, forgetting the Judges edict.
“No further questions, Judge,” Harold said with a smile on his face, and sat down.
Meghan stood up quickly. “Redirect, Your Honor.”
“Proceed,” Williamson replied.
“Aidan, who taught you how to dance when you were little?” Meghan asked.
Aidan looked at her. “To dance?” As soon as she let go of her anger, she understood the reason for Meghan’s question. Wow, she really did her homework. “Mr. Montgomery taught me,” Aidan said proudly, looking at Leonard. “And he taught me about baseball, and sports, and helped me with my math homework. And Mrs. Montgomery taught me what a good home-cook meal is supposed to taste like, and—”
“Yeah, yeah. We get it,” Harold protested snidely.
“Did Mr. Montgomery ever punish you physically?” Meghan continued.
Aidan shifted her anger to the side, and replied, “No, ma’am. Not once. Not even verbally.”
“We get it, he’s a damn saint,” Harold chastised.
Stay calm. Let it go, he’s not worth it. Aidan took a breath and looked at Harold. “Everyone is a saint, compared to you, old man,” she said calmly. “And whether you walk out of here a free man, or they throw your worthless ass in jail for the rest of your miserable life, after today, I won’t remember you. No one will remember you. But my children’s children, and their children, will know and respect the name, Leonard Montgomery.”
Leonard sat up straighter and tried not to blush, even as his heart swelled with pride. Vicky wrapped her arm around his and squeezed his hand.
“He is a real man, and—” Suddenly, something caught Aidan’s eye, and all the blood drained from her face. She gasped loudly, her mouth dropping open.
Vicky turned to see what Aidan was staring at, and clapped her hand to her mouth to suppress her own gasp.
Brigid O’Malley stood just inside the door, nerves wound as tight as a rubber band. Beside her was her sister, Senator Peg O’Malley, and Yvonne. First, she looked for Aidan, relieved when her daughter smiled back at her. Brigid hadn’t been sure how Aidan would react to her being there, but knew she had done the right thing when she saw Aidan’s huge smile. Then she saw Harold.
Harold turned to see what everyone was looking at and when he recognized Brigid, he lost all control.
“You bitch!” he screamed. “Get out! Get out!” Harold screamed obscenity after obscenity at Brigid, and then at Aidan and Vicky.
“Order! Order! Bailiff, remove the defendant and hold him in contempt!” Judge Williamson demanded.
Harold was so out of control that he flipped the table over and charged at Brigid.
Aidan jumped up to intercede, but the three officers brought him down and wrestled handcuffs and shackles on his hands
and feet. Finally, they jerked him up and forced him toward the main courtroom doors. Brigid stood to the side as he was dragged past her and spat on him, hitting him square in the face.
“Dea aidhm, Bríd.” Peg said, patting her sister’s back. Good aim, Brigid.
Peg was the oldest of four siblings, and Brigid was the youngest. Both had auburn haired, and cream colored skin, but Peg’s eyes were emerald green, and Brigid’s were hazel. Aidan inherited her Aunt Peg’s eyes.
Aidan was still applauding as the doors closed behind Harold and two of the officers. They would take him back to the city jail down the street.
The Bailiff returned to his position by the judge.
Judge Williamson continued to pound her mallet against the sound block, as people slowly realized that court was still in session. Aidan sat back down in the witness chair, though what she really wanted to do was hug her mother.
“Miss, what is your name?” the Judge asked once everyone quieted down.
Brigid took a step closer “Brigid O’Malley, Your Honour Judge,” she replied in her thick, Irish accent.
“And how are you connected to this case, Ms. O’Malley?”
Brigid looked at her daughter, and inhaled enough courage to say, “This woman is my daughter, Your Honour Judge.”
“Please be seated, Ms. O’Malley. Counselors, sidebar,” the Judge insisted roughly.
The three of them gathered at the far end of the judge’s desk, opposite of the witness chair.
Vicky waved for Brigid and Peg to sit with her, and everyone scooted down to make room for them.
Aidan watched from the witness stand as her family huddled together, welcoming her mother and aunt in whispered tones. She wanted so badly to be down there with them that she fidgeted in her seat and craned her neck to see them better.
Finally, the sidebar ended, and the Judge called for order. She looked at Aidan and said, “The witness may step down.”
Aidan wasted no time in returning to her place in the gallery. This time though, she would be sitting between Vicky and Brigid, and that was an almost surreal feeling for her at first. She realized what it must have taken for her mother to come back and face the monster she had feared almost all of her adult life.
Judge Williamson cleared her throat, drawing everyone’s attention to her. “It is this court’s opinion that the defendant will remain in custody until such time as he is able to conduct himself properly. However, the trial will proceed without him. Court will adjourn until 9 a.m. tomorrow morning.” The Judge hit the mallet and stood up.
“All rise,” the Bailiff called.
Everyone stood up and remained quiet until the judge left the room. Then everyone talked at once. They were almost immediately interrupted by Meghan, who walked up to Brigid.
“Ms. O’Malley, my name is Meghan Tisdale, prosecuting attorney. Would you be willing to testify for the prosecution?”
“No. You can’t put Brigid on the stand in front of that bastard,” Aidan insisted.
Meghan shook her head. “If she’s willing, I will call her tomorrow while the defendant is cooling off in his jail cell. I expect that he will apologize to the judge and return to court on Friday. I believe that with Brigid’s testimony, I can rest my case and call for a verdict by then.”
Aidan looked at her mother, still not sure she liked the idea of her testifying, and not because of Harold now, but because of what she didn’t want to hear. The reason her mother went on with her life, without her.
“Yes, I would like to help,” Brigid answered. “That’s why my sister and I are here, so that I can make amends to my daughter.”
“Don’t do this for me, Brigid,” Aidan said. “Your willingness to testify is enough for me.”
“I’m so glad, but I must do this, Aidan,” Brigid replied, “to ensure that justice is done, for you, for Vicky, and for me.”
“Very good,” Meghan interrupted again. “Then if I could have a few minutes of your time to acquaint you with what will happen tomorrow, and to ask you a few questions.”
Brigid looked at Aidan. “Will you wait for me?”
“Yes, of course,” Aidan assured her. “Take all the time you need.”
Brigid nodded and then followed Meghan to the prosecutor’s table, where they sat down and began talking.
Aidan watched her walk away and then turned around, and saw her aunt for the first time. “Aunt Peg, when did you get here?”
Peg laughed, and gave her niece a hug. While Meghan talked with Brigid, Peg talked with Aidan.
“Brigid was terribly upset with the way things were left between you two in Ireland. She tried to follow you onto that plane, but they stopped her at the gate. I insisted that Brigid not travel here alone, so I convinced her to wait until I could get my office in order. We just had elections in February, where I won my seat in the Seanad Éireann, so as you might imagine, I had a million things to do before we could leave.”
“I’m glad you could find the time,” Aidan said with a twinge of contempt, which she regretted almost immediately. “How did you know where to find me?”
“We knew where Vicky worked so as soon as we landed we took a taxi straight to the hospital, and this very nice woman drove us here, and escorted us to this room,” Peg said, holding out her hand to Yvonne.
Vicky patted Yvonne’s back. “Thanks.”
“No problem. And just think what I would have missed,” Yvonne replied with a laugh.
“Listen, we’re done for the day, why don’t you all go home?” Aidan suggested. “And thank you all for supporting us, it means everything.”
“Yvonne, would you mind driving Joyce and Ellen back to their hotel?” Vicky asked.
“I’d be happy too,” Yvonne said.
“No need, Vicky. I rented a car,” Joyce said.
“Oh, Joyce. Let’s go shopping,” Ellen suggested.
“Shopping…” Joyce rolled her eyes. “I love to go shopping.”
Ellen swatted her on the arm. “Come on, I’ll treat you to dinner.”
“Corndogs and onion rings?” Joyce asked excitedly.
This time Ellen rolled her eyes.
As everyone filed out, Meghan and Brigid finally finished and joined Aidan and Vicky again.
“I’ll type up your deposition and make sure that the defense gets a copy of it so there will be no obstruction to your testifying in the morning,” Meghan explained.
“All right, thank you,” Brigid said.
Meghan shook her hand, “Welcome back to America, Brigid. This time I hope things will be a lot nicer for you.”
Brigid looked at Aidan. “Leis an ádh na nGael,” then she looked at Meghan and translated. “With the luck of the Irish, I think it will be.”
Before they had even left the building, Aidan and Vicky were vigorously discussing logistics. Vicky wanted Aidan to have time alone with her mother. There were things that needed to be said between them and she didn’t want to in the middle again. Aidan wouldn’t hear of it. Yes, she wanted to talk with her mother, but not without Vicky there, because her mother needed to know that Vicky was first in her life. It was Aunt Peg who settled the argument for them.
“We need to check into our hotel, so why don’t you come with us, and Brigid and Aidan can chat in her room, while you and I get caught up in my room? And of course, your friends are welcome to join us.”
“That’s an excellent idea, Senator,” Vicky agreed. “But I won’t hear of you two staying in a hotel. I couldn’t convince Joyce and Ellen to stay with us, so we have a spare bedroom available with a king size bed. If you don’t mind sharing with Brigid?”
“Growing up I shared a room with my three sisters, so no, I’m used to it, and I think it would be easier on Brigid to be close to Aidan.”
“It’s settled then,” Vicky said with a smile. “Oh, wait. You’re not allergic to cats, are you? We have a kitten that we adopted after the tornado blew away his home. We named him Twister.”
Brigid lau
ghed. “Fitting name, and no, we’re not allergic to any animals.”
“Excellent, then our home is your home,” Vicky stated, and then turned to Joyce. “Joyce, Ellen, please join us. It will be supper soon, and we can cook or order in.”
Joyce was about to accept when Ellen spoke up. “Thank you, but I have a, um, slight case of indigestion. I think we’ll go back to our hotel room and rest.”
“Oh, no,” Vicky exclaimed. She felt Ellen’s forehead for a temperature, and then lifted her wrist to take her pulse.
Ellen looked at Joyce, nodding toward Vicky.
“What? Oh, uh, Vicky, stop fondling my wife. I’m a doctor, I’ll take care of her.”
Peg’s green eyes twinkled as she hid her amusement. She could tell that Ellen was trying to give them some bonding time.
Vicky laughed. “All right, if you insist.”
“Well, if she doesn’t than I sure as hell do,” Aidan said mischievously.
Chapter Eleven
“So, how is Daideó doing?” Aidan asked, as she piled coleslaw onto her plate.
“Your granddad is his old, cranky self. He sends his love,” Brigid replied, slicing her knife into her fried catfish.
Vicky wanted to treat them to an authentic southern meal, so they stopped by the local catfish house and got all the fixings. Catfish, fried to a crispy brown, corn on the cob, coleslaw, fried okra, and hushpuppies. They gathered around the table and chatted as they passed the cartons of food around.
Aidan grabbed the ketchup bottle and lathered her fish with it. “Do you think he’d mind if I called him?”
“He’d love it. He told me about your meeting when you were there, and he already thinks the world of you. He asked me to tell the lassie to bring her arse back for a longer visit.”
“I would very much love to do that,” Aidan replied.
“Would you?” Brigid looked down at her plate. “I mean, would you really?”
“Yes, I would,” Aidan responded, not ready to take it a step farther.
I Won't Remember You (Aidan & Vicky Book 6) Page 12
