Sins of Our Fathers

by A. Rose Mathieu

  Elizabeth swatted his arm, causing his elbow to slip off the armrest and his hand to lose its position under his chin, resulting in Michael’s head flopping forward. She giggled and was shushed by several annoyed patrons. Resigned that the theater was a bust, she pulled on his arm. “These people don’t know real slapstick comedy when they see it. Let’s go.” They rose and unsuccessfully tried to withhold their laughter until they exited the main theater.

  Chapter Nineteen

  On Monday morning, Elizabeth sat herself behind the defense counsel table. She pulled out Raymond’s crayons and a new coloring book that Raymond picked out while shopping with her mother. In addition to the new coloring book, their shopping excursion scored Raymond several new clothes, including the navy blue suit that he was currently yanking on. It was clear that the suit was a new experience. Her mother was in her customary seat behind Raymond.

  The judge entered the courtroom, and Elizabeth stood, pulling Raymond up with her. He clutched at the crayon in his hand, slightly annoyed at the interruption in his coloring.

  The judge looked to Elizabeth. “Is the defense ready?”

  “Yes, Your Honor, the defense calls Delores Miller.”

  Delores Miller stood up in the gallery, and Elizabeth held the swinging wooden gate open for her as she passed. She moved to the witness box with exaggerated effort, clearly hoping to garner some sympathy from the jury and spectators. After taking the oath, Ms. Miller stared straight ahead at Elizabeth with her hands resting on her lap. She wore a dark green dress that was pulled tight around the waist by a thin white belt. She appeared much better groomed than the last two times Elizabeth saw her.

  “Ms. Miller, what is your relationship to the defendant?”

  “I’m his mother,” she said.

  “Before Raymond was arrested, where did he live?”

  “With me.”

  “When you say with me, do you mean he lived and slept in the main house where you sleep?”

  “No, not exactly.”

  “Then where exactly?”

  “In a separate room behind the house, in the backyard.”

  “That separate room, is that the shed?”

  Ms. Miller muttered something inaudibly.

  “I’m sorry. I couldn’t hear that. Will you repeat that please?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Yes, it was like a shed.”

  “Thank you. This shed, did it have an air-conditioning or heating system?”

  “No.”

  “How about water?”

  “No.”

  “Wasn’t the shed meant to be a storage shed?”

  “Raymond liked it in there,” she responded defensively.

  “When Raymond lived in the shed, was the shed kept locked?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because then Raymond couldn’t get in. If I put a lock on it, he wouldn’t remember the combination. He’s not right in the head.”

  “Did you ever have a lock that needed a key on the shed?”

  “No, Raymond would only lose the key. And what’s the use? Who would want to go in there anyway, besides Raymond?”

  “Good question, Ms. Miller. Because there was no lock on the shed, couldn’t anyone go in the shed when Raymond wasn’t there?”

  “I suppose, but who would want to go in there? It’s just a bunch of crap, I mean junk, in there.”

  “Perhaps someone who wants to plant items in the shed to make your son look guilty would go in there.”

  “Objection!” the ADA shouted.

  “The jury will disregard the last statement. Ms. Campbell, please move on.”

  “Yes, Your Honor.” Elizabeth turned to Ms. Miller. “Do you remember about two months ago, I came to your home?”

  “Yes.”

  “During my visit, you told me about what it was like caring for Raymond. He has difficulty doing some simple tasks.”

  “Yes,” Ms. Miller responded with an exasperated breath. “He always needs help with something. He’s like a child, but worse.”

  Elizabeth cut her off because she knew that Ms. Miller was only getting started on her rant. “You mentioned something about Raymond having difficulty tying his shoes. Do you remember that?”

  “Yes, Raymond never learned to tie his shoes. It was difficult to find the Velcro strap shoes for his size, so I was always having to tie his shoes.”

  Elizabeth crossed the courtroom to the board where the photos were displayed and pointed to a photo of the victim tied to the gate. “Can you see these ropes?” She tapped the photo in each place where the victim was tied.

  “Yes.”

  “Could Raymond have tied these?” Ms. Miller’s face changed, as though a light had gone on in her head.

  “No, he couldn’t. Absolutely not,” she stated firmly, as her son’s innocence washed over her.

  “Thank you, Ms. Miller.”

  Elizabeth returned to her table and sat. The judge turned to the ADA, and he passed on questioning Ms. Miller.

  With the lunch hour approaching, the judge found it a good stopping point and called a recess.

  Elizabeth found Ms. Miller standing outside the courtroom, and she took Raymond’s hand and approached her. Ms. Miller looked at him. “Hi, Raymond.”

  Raymond offered a shy greeting in return.

  “Ms. Miller, we’re going to get some lunch across the street. Would you like to join us?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Well, I, uh, don’t think so. I need to get back.”

  “Okay then. Well, thank you for being here.”

  Ms. Miller offered a tight smile. “I’ll see you later.” She turned and walked away, but Raymond didn’t seem to notice.

  As they returned from lunch, Raymond sat contentedly. Elizabeth’s last witness, Dr. Janice Delaney, remained outside the courtroom. Dr. Delaney would echo her report that was filed in support of the motion to vacate hearing, challenging Raymond’s competency and thus his ability to carry out the murder. She hoped it would be enough to cast doubt in the minds of some of the jurors.

  More than thirty minutes had passed since the court should have been called to session, but there was no sign of the judge or jury. Elizabeth twirled her pen in her hands, anxiously waiting. Elizabeth’s mother leaned over the railing to her and whispered, “What’s taking so long?”

  “Not sure.”

  As if on cue, the judge entered the courtroom and stood behind her bench. “I need to see counsel in my chamber.” Elizabeth quickly rose and crossed the well of the courtroom, following the judge to her inner sanctum. She waited for the judge to take a seat behind her desk, then seated herself in a large high-back leather chair facing her, as ADA Burke settled in the chair next to Elizabeth.

  “Juror number three has been recused,” the judge said.

  ADA Burke spoke first. “Why?”

  “We received information that the juror had been communicating with outside sources regarding the case. The juror was questioned and admitted to being offered money for his vote in this case.”

  Elizabeth sat with her mouth open.

  “Where did this information come from?” Burke asked.

  “The court received an anonymous letter.” The judge handed over a copy of the letter to both of them. A typed letter detailed the name of the juror, the amount he was paid, and the task the juror was paid to complete, which was not only to vote to convict Raymond Miller, but to sway the other jurors to do the same, by bribe if necessary.

  “We’ve begun interviewing the remaining jurors to determine if anyone else is involved with or was even aware of juror three’s plan. I intend to continue this case to next Monday for a status conference, after a full investigation has been conducted.”

  “Yes, Your Honor,” Elizabeth and Burke responded in unison.

  *

  Elizabeth pulled into the parking lot down the street from the clinic, but she couldn’t remember how she even got there. The revelation of jury tampering left her dazed. She ga
thered her things and walked to the clinic, staring at the ground as she went. She resisted the urge to think aloud and talk to herself.

  Amy had the phone to her ear and gave Elizabeth a quick wave as she passed. Instead of settling into her office, she walked to Dan’s and knocked on the door, waiting until he acknowledged her. She realized that things had changed. Before, she wouldn’t have thought twice about walking into his office without an invitation, but things were different between them after the Miller case.

  Dan watched Elizabeth sit. “I didn’t expect to see you here. I thought you were in trial.”

  “I was, but it’s been continued until next week.”

  “Next week? Why?” Dan looked concerned.

  “Well, it seems that there’s been a little jury tampering, and the court needs to figure out how deep this goes.”

  Dan sat quietly staring at Elizabeth. She could see the movement of his knee as his leg bounced up and down below the desk.

  “How does the court know?” he asked.

  “There was an anonymous letter sent in. It spelled it out and named the juror.”

  “Did it say who was working with the juror?”

  She released an exhausted breath. “Nope. It just said that he was being paid to deliver a guilty verdict. It didn’t give names.”

  “Wow. That’s pretty incredible.”

  “Definitely a first for me. Everything about this case is unusual. So what did the police say on Saturday?”

  “What?” Dan looked confused.

  “The noose. I went screaming like a banshee out of here. I called you, hysterical.” She gestured with her hands as she spoke for emphasis.

  “Right. I came and removed the rope. It was just a Halloween prank.”

  “That’s what the police said?”

  “Well, no. I didn’t call them. I didn’t see the need. It was just a silly prank.”

  “Are you serious? Dan, I locked myself alone in this office, at least I thought I was alone. Someone left a noose outside my office door. With everything going on in the Miller case, you think that was a prank?” Elizabeth’s voice rose as she spoke.

  “Lower your voice, please. Look, no harm done. The clinic doesn’t need any negative publicity. That’s exactly what we’d get. Just be more careful.”

  “I don’t believe this.” She snatched up her things and stormed to her office, slamming the door behind her.

  Chapter Twenty

  On Tuesday, Elizabeth headed to the clinic early in hopes of catching up on cases that she neglected because of the Miller trial. She was buried in an unlawful eviction case when she was startled by her telephone.

  “This is Elizabeth Campbell.”

  “Hey, Elizabeth, it’s Rich.”

  “Hi, Rich. How’s it going?”

  After a minute of friendly banter, Rich gave her the information she had been waiting to hear—the school and the surrounding property were owned by the archdiocese. Although initially a Catholic prep school, the school shifted to boarding boys with troubled pasts. Many of the students that were sent there were school delinquents and one step away from the justice system. Other boys were referred over from the juvenile courts in an attempt to straighten them out before they spiraled down the felonious path.

  The school closed in 1982, but unlike the reports Elizabeth read about the closure, the school was operating at a profit up until the end. At the city’s request, the archdiocese demolished most of the neglected and decaying buildings in an attempt to thwart a vagrancy problem. The few remaining buildings were boarded and secured, to which she could attest.

  After promising a refill on his candy stash, she hung up and leaned back in BD. She remembered herself and sat forward and propped her hand under her chin on the desk. Although she didn’t find a smoking gun, she found the information curious. If the school was operating at a profit, why did it shut down and allege financial problems? She decided to answer her question with a return visit to the school.

  She kept herself in her office for the rest of the day, only emerging for bathroom and coffee breaks, and sustained herself on energy bars that she had stashed in her drawer. As the sun began to set, she packed up, not wanting to be in the clinic after dark. She successfully avoided Dan as she exited.

  *

  ADA Burke and Mayor Reynosa sat opposite each other across a fireplace in the mayor’s sitting room.

  “Who the hell sent the letter?”

  “I don’t know,” said Burke, as he clutched the armrests. “What I do know is that I’m out.”

  “The hell you are. You walk away and I’ll make sure you’re doing traffic court for the rest of your life.”

  “Fuck you,” Burke said. He stood and grabbed his coat. “I’d rather be in traffic court than prison, which is where you’ll be if the court traces this back to you.”

  “If I go down, I’m taking you with me,” the mayor spit out.

  Burke left without comment and passed Simon sitting outside the door without acknowledging his presence.

  *

  Elizabeth walked into the church and found it empty, not a surprise for a Tuesday evening. She continued to the side door that led to the office and rapped on the open door. Father Parker sat behind the desk immersed in his reading and jumped at her knock.

  “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. I should have called first.”

  He stood and motioned to the chair across his desk. “Not at all. Please come in and have a seat.” He waited until she seated. “Is everything all right?”

  “Yes and no. First, how are Rosa and Hector? I’m still waiting for a response from the court.”

  “They’re doing very well. Rosa has started venturing outside, and she and Hector accompanied Mary to the grocery store.”

  “That’s great. Thank you for taking such good care of them.”

  “It’s nothing. I enjoy having them around, and I know Mary does as well.” Father Parker paused and looked at her, as though sizing her up. “I don’t think you came here to check on Rosa and Hector.”

  “No, I came to talk to you about the Miller case. It seems you’re the only one I can really trust.”

  He settled back into his chair. “I see. I’m always here for you.”

  “Thank you. I really do appreciate that, more than you may know.”

  He smiled and gestured for her to continue, and she filled him in on everything that transpired since their last meeting in the diner, including the noose, the anonymous letter to the court, and the new information she learned from Rich.

  He blew out a breath. “Wow, that’s a lot. I’m not even sure what to say.”

  “Don’t worry. I wasn’t looking for answers. I wanted to see if you would go with me back to the school.”

  “When?”

  “Now.”

  “Now! It’s dark out. It’s dangerous.”

  “That’s okay. I understand. Don’t worry,” she said as she stood.

  “Wait. What are you doing?”

  “I’m going to the school,” she casually replied.

  “Now? Alone?”

  “Looks that way.”

  “Ugggghhh,” he said in an elevated tone, surprising her at his outburst. “You can’t go alone. That’s not right. Hold on, let me get my coat.”

  She smiled when his back was to her.

  After he scribbled a quick note for Mary, they approached Elizabeth’s car, and he said, “I just ate. You might want to take it slow,” and crossed himself before getting in.

  “Don’t I always?”

  When they passed through the iron gates of the school, Elizabeth turned to him. “You can open your eyes now.” She exited and moved to her trunk and pulled out a large black backpack and two heavy-duty flashlights.

  Father Parker watched on. “What is all of this?”

  “I did a little shopping after work.”

  “I see. Is this that Boy Scout thing?”

  “Yep, always be prepared.”

  She heft
ed the pack on her back and handed one of the flashlights to him and started toward the buildings. He called out after her, “Is there a reason that this has to be done at night?”

  “Because that’s when the rats come out.” She threw back her head and laughed.

  “I’m not going to like this,” he said.

  Elizabeth strolled to the three-story building that sat at the center of the grounds and stood at the door on the side of the structure, sizing up the padlock. She dropped the pack and pulled out a pair of bolt cutters.

  “Oh no,” cried Father Parker, as she snapped the lock with one try. “This is breaking and entering,” he reprimanded her.

  “Well, technically, it’s cutting and entering. Did you see that lock pop off?” She pulled open the door and crossed the threshold.

  “Is temporary insanity a defense?” he asked.

  “Don’t worry. I know a good lawyer.”

  “Is this the same lawyer that is well versed at committing felonies?”

  “Maybe.”

  She moved her light up and down the hallway and noted the series of doors that lined each wall. Gray carpeting covered the length of the corridor. “This looks like it was a dormitory.”

  She walked down the hall shining her light on the first door and pushed it open, finding the room nearly vacant but for two twin beds that stood opposite each other on both sides of the door. The mattresses were gone and only the wooden frames of the beds remained. The beds appeared to be bolted to the floor. It was probably the only reason why they still remained. She observed the rest of the room and took in the dusty hardwood floor and light blue painted walls with a few nails protruding. The father peeked his head into the room and took it in. She was alerted to his presence by the second beam of light in the room and instructed him to search the rooms on the right side of the hallway as she searched the left.