Counsel (Counsel #1)

by Shenda Paul

  "This is a document you were presented with yesterday. It is Exhibit One-B, the agreement to purchase stock in Fidelity Properties. Specifically, it is the page signed by the parties to the transaction. I ask that you note the date signed as being February first, two thousand thirteen, two weeks after the parties signed the agreement for Ms. Bain’s services. I also draw attention to the fact that the price listed in this agreement reflects exactly the amount contracted to secure Ms. Bain’s services."

  Leaving the information up onscreen, I move to retrieve a document Jodi’s holding out, and then hand it to the court officer to pass on to Carmen.

  "The witness has been handed the original of the documents you’ve just seen," I inform the court before turning to the witness stand.

  "Ms. Bonacci, would you verify that the signatures on both documents are yours?"

  She studies them closely. "They are," she says, raising her head.

  "Do you remember signing those documents?"

  "I do."

  "Do you recall the circumstances leading up to you witnessing the agreements?"

  "I remember it well. I'd never seen Senator Wade so angry."

  "The defendant was angry?"

  "Yes. He’d normally greet me, perhaps stop to ask how I was, but that day, he rushed straight into Joseph’s office."

  "The defendant and Mr. Cordi argued about the agreements?

  "Objection Your Honor; leading." Tom interjects.

  "Sustained."

  It was a leading question. Attorneys do that to try and get the emotion of an event across to the jury so they'll better remember, or they do it to infer something just as I had. More often, it’s done to break a witness or bring their testimony into question. The point is that both sides adopt the tactic. It comes down to choosing the occasion wisely; succumbing to the temptation too often risks alienating the judge.

  "Ms. Bonacci, would you describe events leading up to the signing please?"

  "Weeks before signing the first contract, Senator Wade rushed in, as I said. He slammed Joseph’s door shut, so I didn’t hear the first part of their conversation, but moments later, I heard the senator shout, 'you told me she wouldn't sleep with other men!'"

  "Did you know who they were talking about?"

  "Not at first."

  "How did Mr. Cordi respond?"

  "Joseph said he’d told him he wouldn’t introduce her to other members until after the senator spent time with her. 'You've done that, and now she's available to others,’ he said."

  "Was Mr. Cordi shouting too?"

  "Well, no," she replies sheepishly.

  "Then how did you hear what he said?"

  "I listened from the filing room…there's an air vent that let me hear."

  "Did you often listen to conversations in this way?"

  "I did."

  "How were you not discovered?"

  "I placed files in front of the vent and moved them when I wanted to hear what was going on. No one else knew about it, not even Joseph. He hardly ever went into the filing room, except to look for me, and I always locked it when I left the office," she confesses.

  "Go on please, what transpired next?"

  "The Senator accused Joseph of not being a man of his word. Joseph laughed and said he was a reasonable man. He asked how much the senator was prepared to pay to keep the delectable Angelique for himself because others were more than happy to meet the going rate."

  "How did the defendant respond?"

  "He said, 'I can get any woman I want, I'm not entering into a bidding war.' Joseph laughed again. ‘We'll see, Justin. I've never seen you this riled up, not even during your last election campaign,’ he said."

  "What happened then?"

  "The senator stormed out. Then, weeks later, Joseph asked me to type up two agreements for a meeting with Senator Wade."

  "What were the agreements?"

  "One was for Angelique’s exclusive services, and the other for the Senator to buy into Fidelity."

  "Did he say anything about them?"

  "He laughed when he handed me the drafts. He said he finally discovered the senator's price. When I asked what he meant, he said a good piece of tail could bring proud men to their knees."

  "What happened after that?"

  "The senator arrived for the meeting and shut Joseph’s door. I pretended to work in the filing room so I could hear. Joseph tried to make small talk, but Senator Wade told him to get to the point. He must have shown the senator the documents because I heard him say 'read this, it should make matters clear to you.'

  "Things were quiet, then Senator Wade said, ‘I'm prepared to pay your price for her, but I don't need to go into business with you.’ She pauses, looking at me questioningly.

  "Go on, Ms. Bonacci."

  "Joseph said something like, 'as a politician you should understand quid pro quo; well it works outside of politics too’. He told the senator he controlled something he wanted, and he expected something in return.

  ‘I’m offering you one-third of a company worth half a billion dollars, and I’m taking her off the market. All you have to do is lend your name to a thriving company. What better deal could you ask for?' he said.

  "The senator replied that nothing was stopping him from engaging Angelique directly. Joseph laughed out loud. 'You'd be prepared to enter into a long-term commitment directly with a call girl?’ Then he said perhaps he should sample the goods to see what all the fuss is about. There was a sound of something breaking. I think one of them threw something. I don’t think it was Joseph because he just laughed and told the senator to think about it. ‘As a sign of good faith, I’ll tell Angelique to take a short break. You have a week to decide,’ he said. I heard the door slam and the senator walk past the filing room."

  "You said Mr. Cordi told the defendant he only had to lend his name to the company, is that correct?"

  She considers for a moment before responding. "That's right, except for the bit about it being a thriving company."

  "So Mr. Cordi and the defendant didn't discuss any payment in exchange for ownership of Fidelity?"

  "No, only the price for Angelique."

  "So, Mr. Wade was not expected to actually pay for the equity in Fidelity, he was only to pay for the services of Ms. Bain?"

  "Objection Your Honor, calls for conclusion," Tom interjects.

  "Your Honor, not only was Ms. Bonacci drawn into discussions about the agreements between the defendant and Joseph Cordi, she was also privy to their conversations leading up to the signing. I think it's fair to assume that she would have a very good understanding of what was said and what was meant during both of those meetings."

  "I'll allow some latitude," he rules.

  "Ms. Bonacci, what happened after the defendant left?"

  "He returned a week later and signed the two copies of the agreement for Angelique. I heard him tell Joseph that he wanted to speak with her before signing the Fidelity contract. Joseph called me in to witness their signatures, and the senator left."

  "And what happened with the signing of the Fidelity contract?"

  "They didn't discuss it in the office, but the senator returned weeks later, and Joseph called me in to witness them sign the two copies."

  "Did they say anything at all during that meeting?"

  "No. The senator left while I was still in the office with Joseph."

  "Do you know Angelique Bain, Ms. Bonacci?"

  "I only met her a couple of times, but I learned quite a bit about her by listening to others."

  "Tell the court about the times you met her, please?"

  "The first time was when she came in to see Joseph about a dancing job. She was very polite, almost shy and very nervous. She’s beautiful, but I was still surprised when he gave her the chance to audition, especially in front of members. He’d never hired a girl only to dance before. I think he
did it because she was so unusual. He wanted to see how the members would respond to her."

  "What do you mean by unusual?"

  "The girls who normally came in were much more confident. It was clear they knew what they were getting into. I don't think she had a clue."

  "Are you saying Ms. Bain was unaware that she’d be expected to have sex with club members?"

  "That's what Joseph said."

  "Objection, Your Honor, hearsay," Tom interjects again.

  "Your Honor, given Ms. Bonacci’s personal knowledge of Mr. Cordi, his business, and interactions with other employees, we think it a fair assumption that she’d know whether Ms. Bain had been coerced or not."

  "I'll allow, Counsel, but get to the point."

  "Ms. Bonacci, when and how did Ms. Bain learn exactly what would be expected of her?

  "She auditioned, and the members loved her performance. Senator Wade was, apparently, very enthusiastic. I wasn't there, but I heard people talking about it. Joseph hired her after that."

  "What were her conditions of employment?"

  "To dance twice a week. He told me she asked for five nights."

  "Do you know why he refused to give her what she wanted?"

  "Joseph likes to hold things over people. He knew she wanted or needed the money, so he controlled how much she could earn."

  "So she started as a dancer; when did she discover what else was expected of her?"

  "A couple of weeks later; she refused point-blank. Joseph ordered Mike to fire her."

  "Let me clarify. You said Ms. Bain did not know she would be expected to have sex with members when first employed, is that correct?"

  "That’s right."

  "And Mr. Cordi ordered that she be fired because she refused to sleep with members."

  "Yes."

  "But she was working at the club when the agreement with the defendant was made?"

  "Yes."

  "How can that be when she’d been fired?"

  "Angelique came to see Joseph months after she was fired and agreed to escort."

  "Do you know why she changed her mind?"

  "Objection, Your Honor, calls for conclusion," Tom’s calls out.

  "Your Honor, I'm not asking the witness for an opinion, I'm asking if she knows why Ms. Bain had the change of heart. The witness has already stated that she'd overheard most of what transpired in Mr. Cordi’s office."

  "Sustained."

  "Ms. Bonacci, did you hear anything to indicate why Ms. Bain changed her mind?"

  "I heard her tell Joseph that she needed the money. He asked what for, but she wouldn't say."

  "Do you think Ms. Bain was coerced into accepting Mr. Cordi’s terms?"

  "I don't think so. He'd normally find something to hold over someone. He didn't say anything, and he didn’t really have anything other than that she needed the money."

  "Did you type up an employment contract for Ms. Bain?"

  "I did."

  "Was it the same as those for other escorts?"

  "There were some differences."

  "Like what?" I prompt.

  "All her liaisons had to be made through Joseph; the other girls could go through Mike. She was paid more, and she had restrictions on the number of liaisons she could have."

  "What about her salary?"

  "Angelique was paid five thousand dollars a month, and she had to have a minimum of four and no more than six services a month."

  "So, she was paid almost double what escorts like Ms.Sanders and Ms.Perkins were paid, yet expected to sleep with fewer men, is that correct?"

  "Yes."

  "And were the members who sought Ms. Bain’s company expected to pay more for her services?"

  "Yes. Her rate was five thousand dollars per liaison, five times more than the other girls. At first, I thought Joseph had made a mistake, but when I checked before typing it, he said it was correct. I told him no one would pay that amount. ‘They’ll be lining up,’ he said, and he was right."

  "So Ms. Bain proved to be a very profitable investment for Mr. Cordi. You are, in effect, telling the court that he earned twenty thousand dollars a month from her services and paid her five. He made a three hundred percent profit by selling her body?"

  "Objection, Your Honor. Compound question."

  "Your Honor, it is, in fact, the same question. I want to ensure the witness understands exactly what I'm asking."

  "Overruled, but restrict yourself to single questions, Mr. Thorne."

  "Ms. Bonacci?" I prompt.

  "That's exactly what I'm saying," Carmen says.

  Despite having known what her response would be, I still can't stop the sick feeling in my stomach. No matter how conflicted I feel about the choices she’d made, Joseph Cordi had exploited Angelique Bain, and Justin, in signing the contract, had been complicit.

  "Ms. Bonnaci, you obviously discovered, after meeting him, that Mr. Cordi was involved in illegal activities. Why did you continue your relationship with him?"

  "I loved him. I know it was wrong not to do or say anything, but I considered myself his wife…well, de facto wife, and I felt that a wife should stand by her husband. I felt like I was doing the best for my family."

  "If, as you've testified, you loved Mr. Cordi and he trusted you, why did you find it necessary to listen in on his private conversations?"

  "Joseph needs to control everyone and everything in his life. Love doesn't make you blind or stupid; it makes you overlook things you choose to. When I fell pregnant, I learned the hard way that Joseph doesn’t always keep his word. After that, I decided I needed insurance for my daughter and myself just in case he ever decided to go back on his word to support us."

  "Why did you decide to give evidence, which is clearly harmful to the father of your child?"

  "Joseph betrayed me. He said he couldn't leave his wife because she was necessary to his social position and his businesses. I believed him, and I believed he loved me, but I recently found out he had another mistress and two other children. I realized my loyalty was wasted. I now see our relationship in a different light."

  "So testifying is a way to gain revenge?"

  "No. It's doing what I should have done a long time ago. I let myself be charmed because Joseph can be charming when he wants to be. I should have had the courage to support my child on my own when he refused to publicly acknowledge her. I’ll have to explain myself to my daughter one day. When I do, I want to tell her I did wrong, but that I tried to fix my mistakes."

  I thank her, and Tom gets up to cross. He struggles to put a dent in Carmen’s testimony. It really isn't his fault; the documented evidence can’t be denied, and Carmen's recollection of the meetings between Joseph and Justin has proven difficult to challenge.

  "Ms. Bonacci, did you, at any time during their discussions, overhear Mr. Cordi tell my client that Fidelity Properties owned Liaison or any other nightclubs?" he asks.

  "He could have…"

  "Yes or no, Ms. Bonacci; did you, at any point, overhear Mr. Cordi disclose Fidelity's ownership of Liaison to my client?"

  "No."

  "Did you at any time, specifically, hear my client agree to purchase a share in Fidelity Properties in exchange for the Ms. Bain’s exclusive company?"

  "It was clear …"

  "Yes or no, Ms. Bonacci," he demands.

  "No," she concedes.

  "So, you did not hear Mr. Cordi disclose ownership of the nightclubs, and you did not hear my client agree to purchase a share in your lover's business in exchange for entering into an agreement for Ms. Bain?"

  "Objection, you honor. Asked and answered," I interject before she can respond. Judge Bolton upholds my appeal.

  "Ms. Bonacci," Tom continues, "I submit that you, as Mr. Cordi’s mistress and trusted confidante, know that he deliberately misled my client. Instead of having seen the error of your
ways, as you claim, you are here to gain whatever you can for yourself from your erstwhile lover. You have knowingly painted your alleged conversations in a bad light for my client, you have deliberately minimized Joseph Cordi’s cunning plan to entrap him…. "

  "Objection, Your Honor. Counsel is badgering the witness!" I put a stop to Tom’s last-ditch attempt.

  "Sustained." Judge Bolton rules.

  "Defense has no further questions for this witness, Your Honor," he announces, looking decidedly pleased with himself.

  "Ms. Bonacci, do you have anything to gain by lying," I then ask.

  "I have nothing to gain, and I have no plans to claim anything from Joseph or his family. I’m leaving the apartment after Joseph’s trial; I don't care what happens to it. I've already made arrangements to leave Boston. I’m here to do what’s right and to have something good to tell my daughter one day," she replies, effectively ending her testimony.

  Chapter Seventeen

  While Cait and Jodi chat animatedly about the morning’s session over lunch, I’m contemplative. In court, I'd managed to suppress my thoughts from straying from the task at hand, but here, with time and the mental space, I find my mind wandering to the parallels between Eleanor and Angelique Bain.

  "What do you think, Adam?" Jodi asks, pulling me from my reverie. "I agree," I say, feigning interest, but Cait sees through me as she always does. She gives me one of those 'we’ll be discussing this later' looks that she's perfected over the years, and I know she'll corner me at the first given opportunity.

  On our way back, the press gaggle spies us before we can make it to the side entrance. Not wanting to alert them to my alternative route, I lead us toward the main doors. Calls of ‘Mr. Thorne’ and ‘Adam’ ring out. Jodi’s accustomed to situations like this and knows what to expect; Cait isn’t, so I pull her close.

  "Adam, how do you think the trial’s going?" someone calls out. I keep us moving, glancing over to ensure that Jodi’s fine and keeping pace.

  "It's going well, thank you."

  "Do you think you'll gain a conviction?" another asks.

  "That's for the jury to decide," I say. Cait stumbles, and I tuck her more securely into the shelter of my arm.