The Accused (Modern Plays)

by Jeffrey Archer

  Mitchell (triumphantly) Yes, I can. Patrick has a small burn on his right arm (Touches her right forearm.) which you can only see when he takes his shirt off.

  Barrington ‘A small burn on his right arm … Only when he takes his shirt off.’ (He writes down as a quote.) Anything else?

  Mitchell (considers this) Yes, whenever he took me out on a date, he would remove his wedding ring and when we made love he would always insist on putting out the light. And, oh yes, his great passion is sailing. He keeps a small boat at Burnham, which he takes out most weekends.

  Barrington One could hardly call this list of mundane trivia intimate knowledge. You know, Ms Mitchell, this is beginning to sound less and less like an affair and more and more like wishful thinking.

  Mitchell I can assure you it was real.

  Barrington I have no doubt you wanted it to be real.

  Mitchell What do you mean by that?

  Barrington Simply that no one was better placed than you to take advantage of a man who was nursing a dying wife. But he rejected your advances, which made you bitter and resentful. And then, after his wife died, you come up with this cock-and-bull story about Wellingborough, only too aware of how hard it would be for Mr Sherwood to prove his innocence.

  Kersley My Lord, I think I must have fallen asleep, because the last thing I remember was my learned friend cross-examining this witness, and I seem to have woken up in the middle of his closing speech. Can your Lordship advise me, have I missed any significant questions?

  Judge No, but you have improperly interrupted defence counsel, just as - I suspect - he was about to ask one. Please continue, Sir James.

  Barrington If it is a question my learned friend demands, then a question he will get. My Lord, could Ms Mitchell be shown exhibit twenty-three?

  Judge Yes, Usher. (He nods the Usher to hold up the glove.)

  Barrington Ms Mitchell, do you know what this is?

  Mitchell Yes, of course I do, it’s a rubber glove.

  Barrington Used for hygienic purposes when administering an injection.

  Mitchell Or for washing the dishes.

  Barrington It was found on the floor of the Sherwoods’ kitchen the night his wife died.

  Mitchell So what does that prove?

  Barrington It’s a left-handed glove, Ms Mitchell - are you, by any chance, left-handed?

  Mitchell No, I’m right-handed.

  Barrington Strange, because when you signed your signature on the Usher’s pad only a few moments ago, you did so with your left hand. Would you care to try on the glove, Ms Mitchell?

  Kersley My Lord, this is outrageous, it’s not Ms Mitchell who is on trial here.

  Judge I agree, Mr Kersley. Sir James, your job is to defend Mr Sherwood, not to prosecute Ms Mitchell. Stick to your brief.

  Barrington As you wish, My Lord. But I do hope my learned friend will not object to me asking Ms Mitchell about the phone calls she claims Mr Sherwood made to her after she had left St George’s.

  Mitchell He did call me, again and again.

  Barrington Again and again. Then how is it that BT are unable to trace a single call to Wellingborough Cottage Hospital from either Mr Sherwood’s office, his home or his mobile?

  Mitchell He could have called me from a phone box.

  Barrington Oh, I see, so several times a day he just popped out of the operating theatre to phone boxes all over London to plead with you to keep quiet about your affair.

  Mitchell Yes, he did.

  Barrington You know, Ms Mitchell, these calls are beginning to sound like the presents, the flowers, the restaurants and the theatre, absolutely no proof of anything actually taking place - which brings me on to the statement that you made to the police following Mrs Sherwood’s death.

  Mitchell Yes, I made a voluntary statement to Chief Inspector Payne.

  Barrington You did indeed, Ms Mitchell, but what I want to know is what you mean by the word voluntary? Was it an unsolicited statement? Did you, for example, visit a police station and offer to assist them with their enquiries?

  Mitchell It wasn’t quite like that.

  Barrington It wasn’t anything like that, was it, Ms Mitchell? The only reason you volunteered a statement was because your father, Councillor Mitchell, had warned you that if you didn’t, you might well be implicated yourself. And correct me if I’m wrong, you didn’t make that statement until after Chief Inspector Payne had contacted you some weeks later?

  Mitchell I volunteered a statement immediately he contacted me.

  Barrington Yes, but why didn’t you contact the police immediately following Mrs Sherwood’s death? Why leave it until Inspector Payne had got in touch with you?

  Mitchell (voice rising) Because I didn’t have any proof. It would only have been my word against his.

  Barrington At last we come down to the reality of this case - you didn’t have any proof. It’s simply your word against his. The truth is, Ms Mitchell, that your word isn’t worth the Usher’s pad it’s written on because there never was any relationship between you and the defendant.

  Mitchell (breaking down sobbing) Yes, there was. We were lovers and he even asked me to be his wife.

  Barrington Did you accept his proposal?

  Mitchell Yes, I did.

  Barrington So you must have been in love with him at the time?

  Mitchell Yes, I was at the time.

  Barrington So how do you feel about him now, Ms Mitchell?

  Mitchell I loathe him.

  Barrington You loathe him?

  Mitchell (voice rising) Yes, I loathe him. When he needed me, nothing was too much trouble for him, but once I’d served my purpose he dumped me as if I had never existed.

  Barrington Try not to raise your voice too much, Ms Mitchell. Otherwise the jury might begin to suspect that…

  Mitchell (still sobbing) I don’t care what they …

  Kersley My Lord, I must object. Do these attacks on Ms Mitchell have any real purpose other than to intimidate?

  Judge Do they, Sir James?

  Barrington They most certainly do, My Lord, their purpose is to ensure that an innocent man doesn’t have to spend the rest of his life in gaol on the evidence of a jealous, vindictive woman who couldn’t get her own way. Ms Mitchell, if you are going to persist in claiming that Mr Sherwood seduced you, I must remind you, before you answer my next question, that you are still under oath. (He pauses.) Was Mr Sherwood the first person you had an affair with at St George’s? (Jarvis hands him blank sheet of paper that the audience can see is blank.)

  Mitchell (hesitates) There may have been one other.

  Barrington (stares down at blank sheet) Only one other, Ms Mitchell?

  Mitchell Well, over a period of five years, perhaps two.

  Barrington (continues to stare at sheet) Two?

  Mitchell (she hesitates) Possibly three.

  Barrington (slowly) Or four, or five, or …

  Mitchell No - three.

  Barrington And were any or all three of these paramours also doctors or surgeons, by any chance?

  Mitchell Yes, but the first one was years ago and didn’t last that long.

  Barrington Are you certain, of that Ms Mitchell?

  Mitchell Yes, I am, but then I feel sure even you can remember when you lost your virginity, Sir James.

  Barrington (continues to stare at the blank sheet of paper) But your second and third affairs lasted a considerably longer time, didn’t they?

  Mitchell Yes, but they were over long before Patrick began courting me.

  Barrington (voice rising) But isn’t it the truth, Ms Mitchell, that having failed to snare one doctor, you were willing to go to any lengths to catch another?

  Mitchell No, that is not the truth. The truth is that Patrick told me that he loved me and asked me to be his wife, and I can prove it.

  Barrington Like you can prove he gave you prescriptions only on a Friday evening, like you can prove that he showered you with presents that no lon
ger exist, like you can prove which restaurants he took you to, but you can’t remember their names, like you can prove which theatres you attended, but can’t recall the titles of the plays, like you can prove he telephoned you again and again, but there’s no trace of any calls, like you can prove …

  Mitchell That he made me pregnant. (Barrington is stopped in his tracks.) And when I told him I was going to have his baby, he begged me to have an abortion. (She looks defiantly at Sherwood.) And I only agreed to his demands because I wasn’t willing to give birth to the bastard of a murderer.

  CURTAIN

  Act Three

  Scene One

  The following day.

  The Jury Bailiff walks through the door and addresses the audience. Clock shows 9.45.

  Jury Bailiff Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury. Today it is the turn of Sir James Barrington to take up the cudgels on behalf of the Defence. I am unable to give you any guidance as to the witnesses he intends to call (He glances at his clipboard.) as no names appear on the list. This, of course, may be a ruse by Sir James to keep the Prosecution guessing. Or it may simply be that following Ms Mitchell’s evidence yesterday, Sir James has not yet decided whether to put Mr Sherwood, in the witness box, where he would have to face cross-examination by Mr Kersley. It is, of course, not compulsory under English law for a defendant to take the stand. However, if he does not, inferences of guilt may be drawn. Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, if you are ready, we will return to Court Number One.

  He steps through the door; when the lights come up, we are back in Court Number One, Everyone is in place awaiting the Judge and jury.

  Ashton Do you think he’ll put Sherwood in the box?

  Kersley I wouldn’t. Always quit while you’re ahead.

  Ashton You think he’s ahead, after all you achieved yesterday?

  Kersley Yes, I do. A trial can be going your way and then suddenly one piece of evidence will derail you. Did you see the faces of the jury when they discovered that Ms Mitchell was left-handed. Doubt must have crept into their minds. No, we must hope that he puts Sherwood in the witness box. And if he does, I’ll need those two theatre programmes.

  Ashton Ms Mitchell dropped them off in chambers this morning. They’re both in the envelope.

  Kersley Good.

  Barrington Have you had a chance to speak to our client this morning?

  Jarvis He was consuming gallons of black coffee, wondering if you had come to a decision about putting him in the witness box.

  Barrington I haven’t been left with a lot of choice after Mitchell’s revelation yesterday. It was a bad mistake on my part, Andrew. What did you learn from it?

  Jarvis Not to ask one question too many.

  Barrington A barrister’s worst nightmare. If I had stopped the moment she admitted to having affairs with three other doctors, the jury would not have been quite so sure about the rest of her evidence. Why in heaven’s name didn’t Sherwood tell us about the abortion in the first place?

  Jarvis Perhaps he didn’t know himself and I have a feeling that Kersley was as surprised as we were.

  Barrington Don’t you believe it. Kersley rehearsed her down to the last syllable.

  Jarvis All the same, I thought he was impressive yesterday …

  Barrington (He looks across at Kersley who is talking to Ashton) Yes he was, damn the man - but that was yesterday. We still have one piece of evidence that Kersley doesn’t know about. If he did, Mitchell would have revealed it, and that would have ended any chance of us winning this case.

  Three knocks to announce the arrival of the Judge.

  Usher Be upstanding in the court. All persons having anything to do before my Lords, the Queen’s Justices, draw near and give your attendance. God save the Queen.

  The Judge enters and takes his place. All bow to the Judge who returns the bow.

  Usher Bring up the prisoner.

  Judge Sir James, are you ready to open the Defence case?

  Barrington Yes, My Lord, I am. May it please your Lordship, Members of the Jury, I rose this morning with a heavy heart, only too aware of the responsibility that rests upon my shoulders. For it has been left for me to convince the Jury that Mr Sherwood, far from being consumed with murderous intent as Ms Mitchell would have us all believe, is in fact a simple decent man who has devoted his life to the service of others.

  But Members of the Jury, for you to be convinced that this man is capable of murder, you have to ask yourself what was the motive, because all crimes must, in the end, have a motive. And, perhaps even more important, where is the evidence to convict Mr Sherwood? Because the evidence in this case has been at best circumstantial, and at worst, prejudicial.

  Members of the Jury, English law does not demand that a defendant should appear in the witness box and it is right that it does not do so, but so determined is Mr Sherwood to clear his good name, that he is willing to face cross-examination and be judged by his peers.

  My Lord, I call Mr Patrick Sherwood.

  Usher Mr Sherwood

  Kersley smiles as Sherwood leaves the dock, walks across the courtroom and enters the witness box.

  Usher Please take the testament in your right hand and read from the card.

  Sherwood I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

  Barrington Your name is Patrick Hugh Sherwood and you reside at twenty-two Cadogan Villas in the county of London?

  Sherwood Yes, I do.

  Barrington You are presently a senior consultant, head of the Cardio Thoracic Unit at St George’s, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons?

  Sherwood That is correct.

  Barrington Your life-long hobby has been sailing and until the age of forty-five you were a surgeon captain in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve?

  Sherwood Yes, and I still keep a small boat at Burnham, which my wife … my late wife and I used to sail at weekends.

  Barrington In 1982 you were called up as a reservist to serve in the Falklands, where you performed over a hundred operations in twenty-nine days.

  Sherwood I have no idea how many operations I performed.

  Barrington My Lord, over a hundred were the words mentioned in dispatches by the fleet commander. Now I’d like to begin, Mr Sherwood, with your relationship with your wife. How long were you married?

  Sherwood Just over seventeen years.

  Barrington And was your marriage a happy one?

  Sherwood I adored Elizabeth; no one will ever be able to replace her.

  Barrington When was it that you first discovered your wife had a heart problem?

  Sherwood The first hint came in 1997, when Elizabeth complained of loss of breath, and of feeling pains in her chest, and left arm. These are the classic signs of a minor heart attack, so I took her into St George’s and carried out some routine tests.

  Barrington And what did those tests reveal?

  Sherwood That her heartbeat was irregular and she was suffering from an arrhythmia.

  Barrington Did you consider this curable at the time?

  Sherwood Oh, yes, I deal with this sort of problem every day, and as long as a patient is willing to be disciplined with their diet, sensible about taking exercise and, if it applies, give up smoking, then there’s no reason why they shouldn’t live to an old age.

  Barrington So what did you do next?

  Sherwood I put her on a programme of medication that was approved by her GP and confirmed by the brightest young specialist on my staff.

  Barrington And once she had begun that programme, did her health start to improve?

  Sherwood No, she continued to complain about loss of breath and feeling tired, which caused me to doubt my own diagnosis.

  Barrington So what did you do about it?

  Sherwood I got in touch with Sir Magdi Yacoub at the Brompton Hospital. He’s the leading authority in my field and I was keen to seek a second opinion.

  Barring
ton And what was his judgement?

  Sherwood He was puzzled. He could find no fault with my diagnosis and suggested that Elizabeth be put on a special fat-free diet.

  Barrington And did you at last see some improvement?

  Sherwood No, her health continued to deteriorate and during the last few months I couldn’t get her to leave the flat, even to go for a short walk.

  Barrington And she finally collapsed on the evening of March the twenty-first 1999, and was taken into hospital, where she died of cardiac arrest a few hours later.

  Sherwood (bows his head) Yes and I’ll never forgive myself for not being by her side.

  Barrington Looking back over that last year, do you think you could have done any more?

  Sherwood I ask myself the same question a hundred times every day, and I think I can honestly say that I did everything in my power to prolong Elizabeth’s life.

  Barrington But the Crown would have us believe that over a period of three months, you instructed Ms Mitchell to pick up several ampoules of Potassium Chloride from a chemist in Wellingborough for the sole purpose of poisoning your wife.

  Sherwood The Crown only has Ms Mitchell’s word for that.

  Barrington But your signature is on all the prescriptions.

  Sherwood And hundreds of others like it. Sir James, but it’s the first time I’ve been arrested and charged with murder.

  Barrington Then why did you ask her to have them made up in Wellingborough?

  Sherwood I didn’t - she could have collected those prescriptions from the hospital pharmacy whenever it suited her.

  Barrington And now I would like to address the Crown’s suggestion that after your wife died, it was you who gave the instruction to have her body cremated. Is that true, Mr Sherwood?

  Sherwood No. I’d been against the idea right from the start. If it hadn’t been for a codicil in Elizabeth’s will, she would have been buried in the family plot at Highgate cemetery. And if only she had been, I wouldn’t be standing in front of you today.

  Barrington Quite so. Which brings me on to Ms Mitchell, and the one question on which this whole case rests. Whether you did, or did not, have an affair with this lady - for the purpose of using her as part of a well-thought-out plan to poison your wife. So let me ask you straight away, Mr Sherwood, what was your relationship with Ms Mitchell?