Miranda Takes a Stand

by Jordan Bollinger

  "Yes. Because, after we discovered the second girl, I immediately regretted several things. The first was that I had not performed an autopsy on the first child, because she, too, might have been pregnant; and that I had not thought to keep the dress she'd been wearing."

  "And why did you think this was important?"

  "Because I believed that the dresses they were both wearing were similar, if not matching."

  "And, was that particularly important?"

  "As it turned out, yes."

  "Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Just continue telling us what you witnessed in the correct order."

  "Yes, sir. So, I suppose the next thing was that the sheriff passed the crate of evidence to the judge, so he could examine the contents. And, then he came to meet with us at Meg's and we discussed everything over dinner."

  "I believe I'll wait and ask Judge Preston directly, what he said about everything you all told him. But, is there anything else you want to testify to concerning this second young woman?"

  "No, nothing I remember right now."

  "Mr. Lynchburg, are you planning on keeping Dr. Thorne on the stand much longer?"

  "Yes, Your Honor. In fact, since the doctor was the one who actually captured Mr. Harding, I'll be questioning her for some time."

  "Then I think we'll stop here for today."

  Chapter Seventeen

  Dr. Thorne was recalled to the stand when court resumed the next morning.

  "Yesterday we ended with you sharing your evidence with Judge Preston. What would you say would be the next thing you have direct evidence of?"

  "I suppose it was the aftermath of the scarlet fever epidemic.

  "You see, once it was clear that we were going to have lots of people ill, I knew we needed to set up a makeshift hospital somewhere."

  "And where did you set up this hospital?"

  “Mr. Gunderson and the sheriff went to Mr. Harding and asked to use the first floor of his building. After all, he received no printing equipment, so it was entirely empty.”

  "And, do you know what happened?"

  "Yes—"

  "I object. Surely Mr. Gunderson or Sheriff Dunkirk would be better choices to ascertain this."

  "Please, Your Honor," Lynchburg said. "Just this once, if it please the court, I'd like to ask what happened when they did this."

  "I object, again."

  "Of course you do, Mr. Clarence. But, perhaps, instead of arbitrarily objecting, you could ask yourself, exactly why Mr. Lynchburg not only requested the witness testify to something she did not actually witness, but told us he was doing it."

  "Yes, sir."

  "Both Mr. Gunderson and the sheriff described Harding's behavior as bordering on irrational. He insisted he was terrified of illnesses. In fact, he told them that under no circumstance did he want any sick people anywhere near his building."

  "And what did they do then?"

  "It is my understanding they were about to leave, when Mr. Gunderson asked if they could instead, store furniture in his building. This, Harding did agree to. Although, he announced he was going upstairs and would have nothing to do with any of it or them."

  "So, they stored things in Mr. Harding's building?"

  "Yes."

  "And, where did this furniture come from?"

  "The workshop. It is just across the street from Harding's building. They emptied both sides of the workshop and carried things to his building.

  "All in all, in hindsight, it was a better site. Harding's downstairs is divided into several rooms and has no bathroom or kitchen downstairs."

  "Your Honor..."

  "Yes, Mr. Clarence. Mr. Lynchburg, I allowed you some latitude, however, is this line of questioning leading us anywhere?"

  "I believe so, sir."

  "Well, then let's get on with it, shall we?"

  "Yes, of course. Doctor, did you inform the sheriff and Mr. Gunderson about requiring any other facility?"

  "Yes. I told them we would also need a place to store the bodies until the crisis was over."

  "Did you expect many to die?"

  "No, not really. The most vulnerable were the very young and the very old. So, while I knew we would have some fatalities, I didn't expect there would be many."

  "How did you deal with those that did succumb? What arrangement was made for the dead?"

  "We used a corner stall in the livery stable. Kit would wrap each body in a clean sheet, and tuck a card with all of their information in a fold near their feet."

  "And was she the only one who did this?"

  "Yes. She was the only one that dealt with those that died. We felt that would avoid duplications or other mistakes."

  "So, young Kit was solely responsible for this task?"

  "Absolutely."

  "Can you tell us what happened?"

  "Once things slowed down, and we weren't getting any new patients, Kit went to compile a list of the dead to take to the undertaker."

  "Yes..."

  "There was an extra body."

  "I beg your pardon?"

  "There was a body that hadn't been a patient, and Kit hadn't wrapped it or made out an information card for it."

  "Couldn't she have been mistaken?"

  "No. Whoever had wrapped the body did a sloppy job of it. All of us could clearly see that. Besides, as I said, there was no information card with it."

  "What did you do?"

  "Several of us went to see. It was the body of a young girl, about fifteen or so."

  "And, she had not been a patient?"

  "No. Absolutely not."

  "What did you do?"

  "I had the body brought to the surgery after dark and examined it thoroughly."

  "And, what did you find?"

  "She hadn't died of any illness. She had been strangled or smothered."

  "How can you be so sure?"

  "Because the blood vessels in the eyes burst when someone is smothered or strangled, leaving tiny blood spots in the eyeball, and sometimes the eyelids."

  "Was there anything else you found?"

  "Yes. She was also exhibiting the first visible symptoms of syphilis."

  "Then what happened?"

  "I was reminded that one of Gus' ranch hands died in the epidemic."

  "And, this is significant because..."

  "A couple of things. The first is it was very unusual for a middle-aged person, used to physical labor and in reasonable health to die of scarlet fever."

  "Surely, such deaths are not unknown?"

  "Of course, no one can state positively such a death couldn't occur, however, if the person was in good health before coming down with the illness, it would be most irregular."

  "But surely, Dr. Thorne, some middle-aged people, in seemingly good health, can die, can't they?"

  "Certainly, except the hand wasn't in 'good-health', exactly. He was suffering from syphilis, quite an advanced case, in fact. He would probably not have been able to work for very much longer. And, he would definitely need to seek medical help very soon."

  "I see..."

  "Well, I don't," Mr. Clarence said, in an unpleasant voice. "Please, Your Honor, can't we get on with this. At this rate, we'll be here until next New Year's."

  "Quiet, Mr. Clarence."

  Harding's lawyer looked as if he was about to say something else, but instead, remained silent and sat down.

  "Please pick up where you were before you were interrupted."

  "Never mind, Mr. Lynchburg," Judge Hilton said, sharply.

  "Of course, Your Honor. Why was his death especially noteworthy?"

  "You mean aside from the fact that our 'mystery body' was also suffering from syphilis?"

  "Yes, I suppose I do."

  "Because of the way the man died. He'd come into the hospital at the height of the crisis, when we were at our busiest. And, although some patients, usually children, will have some cramping, vomiting, or diarrhea, it isn't particularly common. And, when it is present, it
isn't uncontrollable.

  "But, I recalled that Gus' ranch hand had been extremely ill. In fact, he had such severe diarrhea and vomiting, I had been forced to give him laudanum, just to allow him to get any rest."

  "So, what did you do?"

  "Once again, I had the body brought to the surgery and did a more thorough examination. His stomach lining and intestines were highly inflamed. So, I performed a Marsh test on some of his remaining stomach contents."

  "A Marsh test?" Mr. Lynchburg repeated. "What is that a test for?"

  "It detects the presence of arsenic."

  "I'm not sure I understand why you performed this particular test?"

  "I used it to test for arsenic poisoning."

  "Why?"

  "Because the man exhibited classic symptoms of arsenic poisoning. And, as it turned out, the man did die from it. Arsenic poisoning, I mean."

  "What, if anything, did this signify to you?"

  "That whoever was running this invisible brothel had killed both the young girl and the ranch hand and hoped to hide their deaths with the causalities of the scarlet fever epidemic."

  "Yes, I see. Now, did you witness anything else?

  Victoria lowered her head, as if she was thinking, and then looking back up said, "Yes. A few minor occurrences.

  "After we discovered the extra body of the murdered girl, and that the man had been poisoned, we contacted Judge Preston. He and his clerk rearranged their schedule so they would pass through Manchester, so we could speak to him. He felt we needed to go to the mayor and town council."

  "But you all disagreed with that idea?"

  "As a matter of fact, we all were very undecided. Except, that is, for Mr. Gunderson. He was adamant that we not tell anyone."

  "And why was that?"

  "He said that—"

  Once again, Harding's attorney was on his feet and objecting. "Your Honor..."

  "Yes. I have to agree with Mr. Clarence, Mr. Lynchburg. Why don't you wait and have Mr. Gunderson explain how he felt and why?"

  "Yes, sir. You heard the judge, Dr. Thorne. So, was there anything else you witnessed?"

  "Well, I was part of the conversation about telling the mayor and town council. There was a discussion of the pros and cons of that. While this might be my opinion, we were all frustrated by our complete and utter failure to learn anything.

  "In the end, we decided since we hadn't discovered anything in months, and the body count continued to rise, we needed professional help. We agreed Judge Preston would contact the Pinkerton Agency in Chicago."

  "Why Judge Preston?"

  "Because he would be able to contact the agency from another town, so the information about detectives remained confidential. So, he arranged for several operatives to come to town... no... that's not quite right." She considered for a moment, and then amended her answer, "Perhaps, infiltrate would be a better description of what they were to do."

  "Infiltrate?"

  "Yes. They were to come in different... ah... personas."

  "And, did you know what these different... personas would be?"

  "No, sir. Although, as they arrived in town, they each found a way to inform one of us they were from Pinkerton's. Secretly, I mean. They didn't come up to any of us and announce who they were."

  "Then perhaps you could explain to the court exactly how they let you know who they were."

  "All right, I'll try. Let's see... I think that it was Jake Kennedy who arrived in town first. He rode in, stopped at the new surgery site and spoke to Mr. Stratton about ranch hand work. And, Neil directed him to the Gunderson place."

  "Now, were you witness to this?"

  "No. Neil told me later. The next man called himself Will. He appeared down and out and wandered into town leading two straggly mules pulling a small covered wagon.

  "And before you even ask me, no. I didn't personally speak to him. In truth, I'm not at all sure I ever saw him. But, my assistant, Kit, was in communication with him. You see, she takes our horse little treats—you know, carrots or apples—each evening. And, Will had bartered with the livery stable owner for room and board for his mules if he mucked out stalls and ran errands. So, she saw him nearly every night, since he stayed in the stables.

  "The next one—"

  "Dr. Thorne, just how many people did you all hire?"

  "Initially, four. But then later, we required another."

  "A fifth person? Why?"

  "The third detective came to town acting as... I suppose you would call him an entrepreneur. He claimed he was looking for property to buy and develop. And, since he stayed at the hotel, I did see him regularly.

  "I also saw the fourth man each day, until he was run out of town."

  "Wait? What?"

  "The fourth man presented himself as someone... someone shadier than an entrepreneur. Someone of a more questionable nature. He claimed he was looking to open a saloon and card parlor. But, the inference was clear, he was more than willing to open an establishment which... ah... would provide a full range of... ah... entertainments. However, he wasn't in town long before he received a note at the hotel threatening him if he didn't leave town. And, after the ranch hand's death—"

  "The Pinkerton agent acting as a ranch hand was murdered?"

  "No. I suppose I should have mentioned that murder first. Jake Kennedy, the Pinkerton man who arrived first and got a job at the Gunderson ranch... he actually found another hand who claimed to be able to arrange for him to... ah... receive some feminine attention and companionship," she answered, flushing.

  Then, still blushing, she continued, "They arranged to meet in town at a certain time and place. However, when Mr. Kennedy arrived, he found the man ill, practically in a blind stupor. So, he brought him to the surgery. Mr. Stratton stays above it and came to fetch me at the hotel. But, by the time I arrived, the man had died of a morphine overdose.

  "So, after they had killed someone else, we all took the threat to the man we knew as Mr. Raveneau very seriously."

  "All right. And, then what happened?"

  "Well, Jake, that is Mr. Kennedy, decided he wasn't going to get any more information from anyone working at the Gunderson place, so he moved into town and began working construction with Mr. Stratton. He hoped that he might meet someone in town who could tell him something—"

  "Objection, Your Honor!"

  "Yes... I suppose you're—"

  "Please, Your Honor, allow the doctor to finish. This isn't conjecture."

  "Are you claiming that she spoke to this man, Kennedy?" the judge asked suspiciously.

  "Dr. Thorne?" Mr. Lynchburg asked.

  "Yes, I spoke to Mr. Kennedy about it. I often spoke to Mr. Kennedy, since he and Mr. Stratton were building my new surgery, and I frequently stopped by to see how things were going. I even brought them lunch a few times."

  "Overruled, Mr. Clarence," the judge said with a bang of his gavel.

  "And, how did you find out about the note threatening Mr. Raveneau?"

  "He passed me a note in the dining room, the evening before he left."

  "Who replaced him?"

  "Miss Colleen Murphy."

  "A woman?"

  "Yes, sir. We had discussions about putting a woman in danger, but in the end, everyone conceded to my point of view."

  "Which was?"

  "That I had fought to become a doctor most of my life, and because of that I didn't think I had the right to say something was inappropriate for another woman to do."

  "I see. But, did you speak to her?"

  "Ah... no... not exactly—"

  "Your Honor..." Clarence began.

  But the judge raised his hand and said, "Why don't you wait for her to say something before you object, Mr. Clarence?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "What were you about to say, doctor?"

  "Well, since I was the one who had insisted that a woman had every right to become a detective, I wanted her to know who I was. I suppose so she would know whom she could t
rust. So, late one afternoon, I went into the saloon, when I knew Miss Murphy was there, ostensibly to talk to Mr. Brumbell about possibly renting the building Brent Harding was occupying, since he'd previously told me he was thinking of leaving town.

  "But, I really went in to see Miss Murphy and, more importantly, to make sure she saw me. So, while I didn't speak to her, we both knew who the other was."

  "All right, so Miss Murphy, who will testify later, was now... ah... on job, so to speak. So, can you jump to what you next, personally, observed?"

  "Yes, but first I think I need to mention that Miss Murphy disappeared from the saloon where she was working dealing cards. Brumbell told anyone who asked she'd had an argument with someone and left suddenly. Which, of course, we knew was a blatant lie."

  "I object," Mr. Clarence said.

  "Yes." Judge Hilton looked at the doctor and said, "Let's allow Miss Murphy tell us what happened, shall we?"

  "Anyway, a day or so after she disappeared, Mr. Stratton and I were having dinner with Meg and Gus. And, when we told them we'd decided to marry, Gus went into the pantry, and returned with an open bottle of brandy. He wanted to toast us. So, he poured out four glasses of the brandy, although, the ones he poured for Meg and me weren't full glasses, or even half measures.

  "The thing is, I don't like brandy. Perhaps, what I should say is I really dislike brandy. So, I only pretended to take a sip. After all, I didn't want to be rude, I mean they were toasting our engagement. The others drank although I don't believe Meg drank very much. However, she passed out. I mean, she sank to the floor. So the men got her onto her bed in the bedroom and left me to see what the problem was. It didn't take long for me to see she had been drugged since her pupils had become pinpricks. I rushed out to tell the men not to drink anymore, but I was too late. Now, they were unconscious and hunched over the table.

  "And that's when I figured it all out."

  "I beg your pardon?" Mr. Lynchburg said.

  "Everything just fell into place. A few minutes earlier, when Gus produced the brandy from Meg's pantry, she'd given him a look which clearly asked where it came from. He said the man who'd remained with the things that had been removed from the workshop had given it to him.

  "He went on to explain that the man told him Harding came downstairs one night near the end of the crisis, apologized for acting so uncivilly, and proposed they drink a toast. Gus' man, who's evidently not a drinker, obliged Harding, and admitted he passed out. But, both he and Gus thought this was because the man didn't regularly consume alcohol."