by Chris Hechtl
“But interfering with commerce?”
“We're looking into it. Not that finding a leg to stand on legally will help. He'll ignore us anyway,” The president stated. “All we'll do is look impotent, more impotent than we are now.”
“Lovely. What about his supporters? Will they stop him?”
“He's not listening to most of them. He's like a bull in a china shop,” Senator Atwater stated flatly. “He needs to go, but no one will remove him.”
“He's too well protected now. He's paranoid; he knows people are after him. And the more this goes on, the more paranoid he acts.”
“So, that's a warning we'll be seeing worse to come? Lovely,” Senator Hsiao said with a heavy sigh.
“Yeah,” the president echoed.
Chapter 38
Horatio's defensive team got a little subtle help from Commander Tisdail as well as Lieutenant Si. They occasionally passed on tidbits of information through various sources. When the commander found out that the brass was moving defense witnesses out of reach, she passed on an alert by grumbling about the extra work on social media.
The following day Mister Cosolon highlighted the issue when he informed the court they had a scheduling problem with their witness lineup not being available.
There was a small smirk from the prosecutor's table.
“You were supposed to have your witnesses lined up and ready to go, Counselor,” Admiral Thurgrad chided.
“They were, Your Honor,” Benny said, smoothing his jacket as he rose from his seat. “They were unexpectedly transferred to new posts across the solar system over the weekend. It is funny; some were transferred within an hour of our adding them to our witness list,” Benny said pointedly looking at the prosecution's table. “We've issued fresh subpoenas for them, but we're having problems there as well. Delivery is being denied. We have to hand deliver them and some of the personnel are in transit and we don't know where they are at this time. Some of their assignments have been labeled as classified as well.”
“All of them, Counselor?” Admiral Silvestri demanded.
“Every witness we had planned for the next week, Your Honor,” Benny replied solemnly.
“I'm finding that a very strange coincidence. One I do not like,” Admiral Silvestri said pointedly as he looked at the other members on the bench.
“Due to the delay, we'll have to recess until the witnesses can be located and returned to the court. And no,” Admiral Silvestri said, looking directly at Captain Rising Tide, “we will not accept affidavits or electronic testimony in any form. The witnesses will be present in this courtroom.”
“If the defense will give us a list, I'll help with the subpoenas, Your Honors,” Captain Rising Tide said in a subdued voice.
“Very well. Court is adjourned until further notice,” Admiral Thurgrad growled, impatiently tapping his hand gavel. It was clear he was not at all happy about the problems with the witnesses.
@
“Obviously someone got too cute. They had to have gotten a recording from us and acted fast, but why?” Benny demanded.
“They were hoping we'd just fold,” Doctor Bullettine said. “Without a case to present to counter the prosecution, we would lose all credibility in the eyes of the jury.”
“Well, thankfully that didn't happen.”
“Now what?”
“We line up our witnesses and come up with alternate strategies. We're going to have to have some fancy footwork to deal with any crap from the brass,” Benny said. “And we're going to have to get cagey about some of our surprise witnesses,” he said significantly, looking at the defense team. He put one finger to his lips.
“Okay. Well, let's work on that, shall we?” Commander Chedwiggen stated.
@
Captain Rising Tide groaned when he saw the list the defense gave and then the locations his assistants turned up. Apparently, Admiral N'r'm'll's people had gotten cute about shifting people out. Some were way out, as far away as the jump point or in the Oort cloud at out-of-the-way listening posts. Some of the sudden transfers were entirely too obvious too. He was surprised none of the personnel had resigned. “This is going to take weeks, hell, months to straighten out!”
“This wasn't our idea, sir. I thought the brass wanted this done and over with?” Lieutenant Nuniez asked.
“I know. But they keep making it worse by torpedoing us!” the high elf grumbled as he shook his head.
@
“Our strategy has been to prove we're telling the truth and that everything the prosecution has been saying has been a lie or mistake. I think we need to highlight the kangaroo court though, specifically showcasing you in cuffs to the members. Respect for an officer is paramount. That will go a long way to show them something is seriously wrong with the trial,” Commander Chedwiggen stated.
“Agreed,” Doctor Bullettine stated, making a note on his tablet. “What about mentioning his prison status?”
“No. If we find a way to work it in, fine.”
“There are two NCIS agents, junior agents or I should say former junior agents, who are in the government's employ now. Should we tap them? They quit NCIS for a reason,” Benny suggested.
“I'm not sure. Can you send someone to find out why they quit? If it isn't related to the case, then it is of no use to us.”
“Understood. What about attacking the electronic evidence?”
“That … is something I know you've been fighting. Are you suggesting taking their side?” the commander asked as he propped his feet up on a chair. He reached into the pizza box and pulled out a slice. “Admiral?” he asked, offering it to the admiral first.
“I'm good. Thanks for bringing it though,” Horatio said with a dismissive hand motion. His cuffs stopped the motion.
“Can we do something about the damn cuffs too?” Benny demanded. “They won't listen to me. What is the point of having the man in cuffs in our presence anyway? What, they think he'll go nuts or something?”
“I don't know. It's stupid I admit. Another thing we might be able to work into our narrative,” Doctor Bullettine murmured.
“Back to the electronic evidence, obviously we've seen a lot of signs of tampering. Any attempt to counter it is rejected. But, there is precedence in handling electronic evidence. For centuries, we haven't trusted it. We, being the court,” the commander stated.
Benny nodded in agreement.
“We always prefer a hard copy backup. Every electronic copy has to be certified. The originals have to be secured and locked down. Copies can be made, but enhancements are normally out.”
“So …?”
“So, we have no original data to go off of. Nothing to validate the data they are providing since Ilmarinen's computers were torn apart. That breaks the chain of custody.”
“I'll bet the dear captain will be pissed about his own attack being used against him,” Benny murmured with a grin.
“It will mean they'll have to provide the original hardware, and it will have to be examined. If there are any changes, we can compare it to what they are providing and even insist the raw files are provided to the jury for their own comparisons,” the commander said, looking directly at Horatio. “Another thing I thought of. They have been throwing out your personal recordings, but that doesn't mean we can't use them in another way,” he said.
“How so?” Benny asked.
“We can scour them for possible witnesses and then call them in to testify to verify the account,” the commander replied.
“If they don't get threatened into perjuring themselves, it might work,” Doctor Bullettine said with a nod as he made a note. “I'll talk to Danny about it. She's out and about now checking on our primary witness list.”
“She'll love the additional workload I bet,” Benny muttered.
@
“Admiral, you have a visitor,” Zek's yeoman said.
“Show them in. But I've got to make it quick,” Zek said as he finished his p
aperwork. He looked up to find a woman in a trench coat being escorted in by his yeoman. He frowned thoughtfully as he rose and extended his hand. They shook hands.
“Rear Admiral Zekowitz, but I believe you already know that. And you are?” he asked pointedly.
“You know, you are a hard man to find Admiral Zekowitz. Admiral Logan told us where you were, but I got the runaround when I tried to get access,” Miss Kirchner said. “Danny Kirchner, I work for TAAP,” she said, showing him her ID and then touching the ID tag she had clipped to her coat lapel. She'd gotten it to gain access to the campus, something he was surprised at seeing. Security was damn tight with tensions that high. “We're a trial consulting firm. We've been hired to help with Admiral Logan's case.”
“I heard,” Zek said dryly, feeling on guard. “I can't help you,” he said firmly, making a brushing motion to dismiss his yeoman. The yeoman nodded and then retreated, closing the door behind him.
“Admiral, we could use your help,” the woman said, turning slightly to make sure the door is shut. “He's fighting for his life, for all of our lives.”
“No. Sorry. I warned Horatio to keep his mouth shut and his head down. He didn't listen.” Zek grimaced. “Now we're all in a hell of a mess.”
Danny shook her head. “We can and will subpoena you, Admiral. We need this to happen.”
“Please don't. I'm trying to help, but to do that I need to remain low key. Raise me to the awareness of others and it will sink my chances and Horatio's as well.”
Danny shot him a dubious look as she tried to puzzle that statement out. What was that supposed to mean hovered on her lips, but she refrained from asking it out loud when Admiral Zekowitz gave her a meaningful look and then touched his right ear and then eye. Suddenly she caught on and nodded slightly.
“Okay then. You are still going to testify about Pyrax though. There is no option there.”
“Do they seriously doubt we even went there?” Zek asked with a shake of his head.
“Exactly.”
“Damn it …,” he sighed. “Okay.”
“So yes, you will be receiving a subpoena, if not by us then by the prosecution. I'm honestly surprised you haven't already.”
“Joy,” Zek replied sourly.
“Now I get to find the others.”
“Well, Lieutenant V'l'r is here with me. He's teaching basic math and navigation here at the academy.”
“Thank you for that, sir,” Danny replied with a head bow.
“Don't mention it.
@
Commander Weaver Thistle was also conveniently in the star system. He was called in to testify. Weaver brought with him home movies from his life. “Objection, relevance,” the prosecution said wearily.
“You opened the door on whether Pyrax and the Federation exists and the veracity of the electronic data, Counselor,” Admiral Silvestri stated. He glanced at the colonel. The colonel nodded along with him. Admiral Thurgrad's lips tightened, but he made no comment. “Objection overruled. Proceed, Counselor,” Admiral Silvestri said to Benny.
Horatio shifted slightly and then raised his arms up in a stretch. His hands were shackled together. TAAP's fashion stylist Chuck had modified his coat jacket to have sleeves that were slightly shorter and a judicious change in the tailoring in his shoulders so his wrists and the handcuffs could be prominently shown. He rested his arms on the table outstretched in front of him, allowing his sleeves to be pulled back even further. He was aware all eyes were on him. He noted that a lot of eyes were on the handcuffs. More than one juror looked at them with distaste and barely concealed disgust.
Horatio kept his face impassive but he was glowing inside. He saw Benny turn back to him and then back to Weaver. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Captain Rising Tide also noting the cuffs. The high elf was nudged by his assistant prosecutor who quietly pointed out the members’ reaction to the cuffs.
Most likely the wheels were turning in the blue-skinned prosecutor's head. He could see the man playing with his stylus, but his eyes kept straying to the cuffs. Connections were going to be made in both the prosecutor and in the members of the jury as well as the judges. He noted a brief look of sympathy from the colonel. It was just for an instant, but it was enough to make him feel a little better about all the crap he'd put up with up until that point.
He just wished they'd done it sooner.
He wasn't at all surprised that the bailiff removed the cuffs during their next recess.
“Score one for the home team,” Commander Chedwiggen murmured.
@
Weaver's testimony took up the better part of a week before the prosecution finally conceded that Pyrax existed. When Lieutenant V'l'r stepped up with his own home movies, more than one person in the courtroom groaned in fatigue.
It had the intended effect, battering down the prosecution's argument. And, there had been a nice side effect that it had slowed the trial down even further.
@
“Why the hell were any of them allowed to testify?” Admiral Childress seethed. “I thought they were supposed to be unavailable! This is taking too long!”
“They were issued subpoenas. Some took leave to attend court,” Admiral N'r'm'll stated. He'd transferred a few of the personnel, but the others had been left in place. The court had come down on the personnel and ordered them back to testify, which had nixed the plan to destroy Admiral Logan's carefully-constructed defensive plan.
“Stop playing games with the defense. It doesn't look good with the jury. It tells them we're afraid and have plenty to hide,” Admiral Shren warned. He wasn't at all happy about the report of the handcuffs. Such a minor thing like disrespecting the accused like that could have far-reaching consequences no matter how many strings or levers Childress pulled.
“You think they'll acquit? You told me that they were in the bag,” Admiral Childress growled.
“I selected the pool of personnel, but it is a limited and shrinking pool. We had to detach some personnel from the fleet to serve. People we trust are becoming increasingly harder to find, Admiral.”
“Oh.”
“Right, oh. It only takes one person to hold out since this is a capital case.”
“So, you are telling me, if one person decides to acquit, we're screwed?”
“Pretty much,” the elf said. He saw the admiral's eyes flash. “And before you start leaning and threatening them, don't. Leave them alone. The defense is watching them. The media is watching all of us. You might push someone into acquitting or resigning in protest. Or, they could come out in open court and state you tried to influence them. We've had three jurors pulled for that reason already.”
“Damn it …,” the admiral silently pounded a fist into his open palm for a moment as he got control of his temper. “So, you are saying I can do nothing? Nothing but wait?”
“Wait and watch. Or better yet, focus on your own duties and let the trial work as it is supposed to,” the elf replied.
“With so much riding on the line, we can't leave anything up to chance. Find a way to remind the members whose side they are on. And remind those judges too while you are at it. Throw a carrot in there if you have to but get this done.”
@
“We're doing an effective job of picking the prosecution's case apart on many levels. But you don't think it is enough?” Commander Chedwiggen asked as he looked at Benny.
“Sorry?” Horatio asked, looking from one attorney to the other. “Am I missing something?”
“You aren't the only one Admiral,” Doctor Bullettine stated.
“I think we need a knockout punch to break the kangaroo court. We need to really shake them up. I bet the nanite bomb scare did something, but I can't get a good enough read … Bull, ideas?” Benny asked, turning to the doctor.
“I'm still wondering where you two are leading with this,” the doctor said, using his index finger to push his glasses back slightly. “I can't tell you how or what they thoug
ht because it hasn't been brought up in court.”
“Ah, I forgot that,” Benny muttered.
“Okay, GOTH planning time, just for the heck of it. If this does go badly as we expect, you are going to run through the appellate process. Years I take it. But eventually, it'll get to Admiral Childress.”
'He could even try to take the case right off,” Benny observed.
“We'd have to insist it go through every level if we're sticking to stalling. That will buy us plenty of time,” Commander Chedwiggen stated.
“Agreed. But that still leaves us a problem.”
“A problem? How so?”
“Childress.”
“We discussed this before. I'll file another appeal right over his head. That will put another stay on the sentence.”
“So, it will eventually work its way through the appellate course to Admiral Irons,” Benny said with a nod.
“You think it will get that far?” Commander Chedwiggen asked dubiously. “We're not exactly in good speaking terms with the Federation you know. Ilmarinen left but she hasn't gotten back.”
“Yet,” Doctor Bullettine interjected.
“You honestly don't think it won't make a difference?” the defense attorney asked musingly. “What gets me is, what is their end game? They are supposed to be strategists. Why piss him off? Why are they being this monumentally stupid about this?”
“Who, the admiral?” the commander asked neutrally, looking at Horatio.
“No, Irons. Why piss him off? It's going to get to him eventually, one way or another. So, why do it at all?”
The commander shook his head. “I don't know.”
“I wish I did,” Benny grumbled.
“Shortsighted thinking,” Theresa said. They turned to her. She had been quietly reading something on her tablet in the corner. She looked up to them. “Childress and his people have been looking at it with an eye to the local and short game. Keeping the status quo. That's why they've done what they've done. Childress has been after power. He has it now, but it is eroding. The tighter he tries to maintain his grip, the more slips through his fingers.”
