Dead on Demand (A DCI Morton Crime Novel)
Page 25
In a few short days, he would get back their verdict.
***
The jury took a long time. At the end of forty-eight hours of deliberation, His Honour Judge Milligan, QC, called them back into the courtroom.
'Have you reached a verdict upon which you are all agreed? Please answer, yes or no.'
'No.'
'Do you believe you could reach a unanimous verdict?'
'No, Your Honour.' The foreman shot a nasty look at juror number twelve.
'I am going to ask you to retire one more time to try and reach a unanimous verdict. If you are unable to do so, I will accept a majority verdict.'
The bailiff led them back out of the courtroom.
Kiaran's hands began to shake. It was a close call. That meant he wasn't way out of the ballpark with his arguments. He hoped the holdouts were of the not guilty kind, and would agree this time around to vote guilty.
He knew that the second time, juries were often much quicker. Both lawyers waited in open court, watching the clock on the wall tick in an infuriating manner. Two hours later, the bailiff was back.
'They are ready, Your Honour.'
'Bring them in.'
The jury came in, single file, and took their seats. They looked weary, but triumphant. Kiaran hoped it wasn't just the triumph of being home for the weekend.
'Have you reached a verdict upon which at least ten of you agree?'
'We have.'
'What is your verdict?'
'We find the defendant, Edwin Murphy, guilty.'
Kiaran exhaled in relief. He could breathe again. At the defence table both lawyer and client looked deflated.
'Is that the verdict of you all, or a majority?'
'Majority, Your Honour.'
'How many of you agreed to the verdict and how many dissented?'
'Ten and two respectively Your Honour.'
'Thank you for your service, you are dismissed.'
The bailiff led them from the courtroom while Judge Milligan waited.
'Mr Murphy, you have been found guilty of three counts of murder. You are hereby sentenced to life in prison.'
His lawyer leapt up.
'Permission to appeal, Your Honour?'
'Denied.'
The defence lawyer sank back into his seat. He had lost. He could still apply directly to the appellate court for permission to appeal, and he would, but he wasn't confident. There was nothing procedurally wrong with the verdict.
***
Edwin stared at the floor in his cell, trying to avoid making eye contact with his new cellmate. As he focussed on a spot of the cell floor between his feet his mind began to wander.
It had been lunchtime in Finnigan'sWake when Eleanor's brother Mark had joined him. He couldn't remember what the bar looked like, but the taste of the grease on the burger was fresh in his memory, making bile rise in his throat as he fought to keep the contents of his stomach down.
He'd had more than his share of the booze when Mark arrived, and his arrival didn't stop the flow of beer. It simply substituted it with whisky, Mark's poison of choice. He and Mark had known each other for a long time. It was through him Edwin had met Eleanor.
'So, my bitch sister wants a divorce then?'
Edwin nodded.
'What you gonna do?'
'What can I do?' Edwin slurred.
'Stop her.'
'She's entitled to half.'
'Mate, you earned that money. She doesn't need it anyway, she's a bloody lawyer. You know how much they get paid.'
'I can't do anything.'
'Hold that thought.' Mark stood.
Mark fetched another few rounds, returning to the table laden with an overloaded tray of assorted spirits.
'Cheers!'
'Cheers? I'm gonna be broke, and she'll get Chelsea.'
'So, you're a creative man. Find a solution.'
'Like what? Kill her?'
'That would do it,' he laughed.
Edwin nodded. If only she'd get hit by a bus tomorrow, his life would be perfect.
'Sometimes you have to make bad things happen to get what you want.'
'I can't!' Edwin protested.
'What was it you worked on during your undergrad?'
'Darknet research on private networks. How the fuck's that gonna help?' Edwin frowned.
' It's anonymous, right?'
'If you do it right, yeah.'
'So, there are criminals on the Internet, aren't there?'
'But they'll know who I wanted killed.'
'So, you could hire someone else to kill them. Then no one would you are involved.'
Edwin's lopsided smile returned.
'That might just work.'
'Yeah, it might, now let's go get pissed.'
Mark grabbed him by the armpit and lifted him up, before half carrying him to the street to hail a cab to the next bar. If the idiot went through with it, Mark's parents would have no choice but to put him back in their will. Without Eleanor, he was their only child, and would inherit the whole estate. Problem son or not, they'd love him again when his sister wasn't there to steal the limelight.
All he needed to do now was convince Edwin that the plan was all his idea. Enough alcohol should do the trick.
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHORS
Thank you for reading Dead on Demand. We appreciate how valuable your time is, and we're delighted you chose to spend it finishing our novel. If you have a spare moment, we'd really appreciate it if you could leave a review on the site you purchased this book on. Honest reviews help other readers find books they will enjoy, and let authors know what their readers want.
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Table of Contents
Dead on Demand
Chapter 1: Falling Apart
Chapter 2: Red Spot
Chapter 3: The Plan
Chapter 4: Working Girl
Chapter 5: Oh, Canada!
Chapter 6: Jogging is Murder
Chapter 7: Morton
Chapter 8: Where's Mummy?
Chapter 9: Not Here, Thank You!
Chapter 10: A Broken Man
Chapter 11: Confirmation
Chapter 12: Interrogation
Chapter 13: Too Far
Chapter 14: Unknown Territory
Chapter 15: Patsy
Chapter 16: Weak Links
Chapter 17: Data Trail
Chapter 18: DÉJÀ Death
Chapter 19: Worry
Chapter 20: Hope
Chapter 21: Suffering
Chapter 22: Done and Dusted?
Chapter 23: Officer Down
Chapter 24: One of Ours
Chapter 25: Incognito
Chapter 26: The Barrier
Chapter 27: Rosenburg
Chapter 28: Flow
Chapter 29: By Self-Defence
Chapter 30: No Luck
Chapter 31: Sunrise
Chapter 32: The Frenchman
Chapter 33: Paper Trail
Chapter 34: Hot Pursuit
Chapter 35: Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?
Chapter 36: Pain
Chapter 37: Guns
Chapter 38: Keys to the Castle
Chapter 39: Honey Trap
Chapter 40: To Sea
Chapter 41: France
Chapter 42: Like Old Times
Chapter 43: Schengen
Chapter 44: Dishonourable
Chapter 45: Repatriation
Chapter 46: Loose Links
Chapter 47: Snakes
Chapter 48: The Colonnade
Chapter 49: Panic
Chapter 50: Implications
Chapter 51: Marylebone
Chapter 52: Devastation
Chapt
er 53: Getting Ready
Chapter 54: Shotgun Reflexes
Chapter 55: Taped
Chapter 56: Darknet
Chapter 57: Right Place, Wrong Time
Chapter 58: Flight or Fight
Chapter 59: Lawyering Up
Chapter 60: First Blood
A Note from the Authors