The Life Of Robert Peterson

by Paul Kelly

  When Freya did eventually arrive at the hearing, she was hardly questioned at all until the session was nearly over and then Inspector Ray stood up and asked her to go into the witness box.

  “Miss Ford?” asked the large, bald solicitor as an introduction to what he was about to say and Freya was surprised that he even knew her surname as she had never mentioned that to him before. “Miss Ford ... we understand that you were married to the defendant for some time. Would you tell us please how you found this gentleman to be as your husband?”

  Freya picked at her finger nails before she spoke and she knew she was appearing nervous.

  “I was only married to him for a short while, Sir,” she replied, “and in that time, I would say that we were never suited in any way. I fell in love with him because I thought then he was the most handsome man I had ever met and soon .. very soon, I found that I was pregnant.” she looked across the courtroom to where Sammy Boyle was sitting, but he ignored her stare and kept his head down. It was Jenny who stared at Freya with wondering eyes.

  “You had his baby?” asked the solicitor, but Freya told him that the pregnancy had never materialized and that she had a miscarriage after about six weeks.

  “I am sorry about that Miss Ford. I know that can be a very traumatic time in any woman’s life, but may I ask ... was everything else alright in the marriage apart from this unfortunate disaster?”

  Freya stared across the courtroom to where Jenny was sitting, but the latter did not return the eye contact.

  “No, the marriage was certainly not alright,” she snapped as she stared at the floor. “Sammy Boyle is nothing more than a predator to women and I am sorry that I discovered that too late. He never treated me like a woman ... and any prostitute could have served his purpose.”

  The Magistrate raised his eyes with concern as Freya was speaking, but the solicitor continued with his questions.

  “Would you say that there was any love at all in this marriage, Miss Ford?”

  Again Freya stared across at Jenny, but her friend continued to look down.

  “LOVE,” she barked ... that man doesn’t know the meaning of the word. He beat me and he raped me several times, but there was never any love.”

  The solicitor bowed gently to the magistrate announcing that he had no more questions for the witness, but another solicitor demanded that she stay in the witness box as he had something to say to her and the magistrate waved his approval with a yawn.

  “Miss Ford ...it is all very well for you to tell the court now, how it was in your marriage to my client, but I put it to you that you weren’t exactly the perfect wife.”

  Freya glared at this new speaker and Jenny gasped.

  “I don’t know what you mean by that?” she said and the solicitor drew his robes around his waist as he swung round to make his next accusation.

  Did you refuse him his conjugal rights when you went to bed with him?”

  Freya could not believe what she was hearing and Jenny started to cry.

  “I was a perfect wife to him,” Freya replied in a firm voice,” until I found out that all he wanted me for was sex. Conjugal rights to him was sex on tap, whether you were ready or not. I told you I loved this man when I first married him. It was he who destroyed the marriage. He destroyed the love, not I.”

  “But you were his wife and he had demands on you that were his by right, regardless of what you might think.”

  “Yes, the right to rape me at lib ... to force me to have sex with him at any time of the day or night and even then, his idea of sex was perverted. Do you want me to describe his mind and his actions at that time?” she asked, but the solicitor waved his hand in the air.

  “I have no further questions for the witness, your Honour,” was his conclusion and the jury was dismissed to form a verdict.

  Jenny met Freya outside on the courtroom steps.

  “I didn’t know you were pregnant,” she said, but her voice was hardly audible.”

  “What?”

  “PREGNANT,” screamed Jenny into Freya’s ear, “You never told me that, did you?” Freya fidgeted where she stood and regretted having admitted her pregnancy in the witness box. She knew it had nothing to do with the case, but she regarded it might sway more heavily against Boyle and to show what a bastard he really was. She looked at Jenny who had tears in her eyes,

  “Jenny, it meant nothing to me and I didn’t think it worthwhile mentioning that to you at the time when you were pregnant. My pregnancy was such a messy affair and you seemed so happy at that time, with a glow in your eyes when you spoke about Sammy. How could I have disillusioned you at that time? I had no right to spoil what I thought was your happiness.”

  “But you knew I was unhappy when Sammy suggested I should have an abortion, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, I knew then what you were going through and I could relate to that state from my own experience, but there was a time, as there was with me, when you thought that Sammy was the ‘bees knees’ and better than sliced bread.”

  Jenny broke down and Freya put her arms around her.

  “Freya,” she sobbed, “You have been such a good friend to me and I should never have distrusted you. I only wish you and Robert could have a relationship as I know that is what you want more than anything else in the world.”

  Freya was about to tell Jenny that all that was in the past, but Jenny insisted in telling her more.

  “I knew Sammy had beaten Sarah,” she said and Freya raised her eyebrows in surprise.

  “You knew ... but how? I didn’t think you ever saw Sarah for any length of time.”

  Jenny dried her eyes and threw back her shoulders,

  “I went to see her when I knew that she and Sammy were together, because like a fool, I telephoned Sammy one evening not so long ago and Sarah answered the phone.”

  Freya threw her head back in despair,

  “My God ... whatever came over you, woman?” she snapped. “You must have known what Sammy would be like with ANY woman and he had dozens of them who could have told you what he was like in bed and out of it.”

  Jenny looked sad as she continued to speak.

  “I realized how Robert and you were such lovely people. I wanted you both to be happy and I knew what a swine Sammy could be, but I wanted to ask him to leave you both alone and I went to his flat to bargain with him, regardless of what that would mean.”

  “Even if you had to sleep with him again, Jenny?”

  “Yes, even that, Freya. I wanted you to be happy at all costs, but I didn’t realize that Sarah would be at the flat when I phoned.”

  Freya knew how tender she felt towards Jenny when she told her how much she cared for her.

  “I don’t think there could be any ‘relationship’ for me with Robert Peterson,” she sighed, ”Sarah had ruined his life and it will take a long time for him to get over that, if he ever does.” she said and Jenny gripped her hand tightly.

  “I know that, Freya ... and when I went to the flat, I had all that confirmed to me when Sarah told me that she would do everything in her power to ruin Robert and to fleece him for every penny he had.”

  Freya gasped when Jenny told her that.

  “She was a wicked woman and although it is wrong ... I am glad she is dead.” she said and Jenny nodded.

  “She had been beaten rather badly when I saw her that evening Freya and I thought as I looked at her that any love or feelings she had for Sammy would have gone out of the window, but I was wrong. Sarah told me that Sammy was the only man in her life who could satisfy her. She loved the pain he caused her. She was mad with appraisal for him and yet when I looked at her, I could not believe it. Both her eyes were black and blue and she could hardly see me. Her nose looked as though it could have been broken, but when I sympathized with her, she pushed me aw
ay from her. “This is nothing,” she screamed and then she showed me her neck which looked as if someone had strangled her with some thick rope and then her side was heavily bruised below her bra. I could have been sorry for her, but when she spoke about the other men in her life, I felt nothing but pity.

  “They were no use to me,” she snorted, “They might satisfy some women,“ she snapped and her eyes were wild as she spoke. “They might be alright for some poor old bird, but not for me. I need a man like Sammy Boyle. I need a man who can master me; tame me and make me squirm .. and then I am happy.”

  Freya gasped as she heard Jenny speaking, but Jenny had even more to say.

  “I just could not understand how she could speak in that way,” she went on, “when all she could say about Robert at the divorce court was how he used to beat her savagely and even raped her ... my God, I knew then that this woman was mad and that all she said about Robert was a pack of lies.”

  “Well, she’s had her just reward now, hasn’t she,” Freya snarled “and Boyle has his reward coming to him as I am sure the jury will find him guilty and I hope he goes to prison for a very long time ... and never comes out. He can burn in hell for all I care.”

  Jenny smiled gently and Freya could not understand why she seemed so calm.

  “He won’t go to prison Freya,” she said.

  “What? What are you saying Jenny? You know how cruel he was. You know if you saw the marks on Sarah’s body as you say you did and we now understand that her neck wasn‘t just marked by strangulation ... her neck was broken ... don‘t you realize that?”

  “Yes, I saw the marks, Freya, but I felt no sorrow for her. In that moment when she was telling me about Robert, I realized what an evil woman she was ... and I threw her down the stairs ...

  FINIS

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