by J J Miller
Morahan shakes his head.
“I’m not exactly…”
“No, they did not is the answer. Isn’t that right?”
Morahan shrugs, choosing not to answer. The cops didn’t test for them.
I hold up a piece of paper. It’s a blood test I had done on Bobby specifically to identify supplements.
“This is a blood that shows there were none in his system. Zero.”
Next, I switch on the courtroom monitor and bring up a clip.
I play the video. It’s footage Jack shot.
“Detective, is this Lindy Coleman’s apartment?”
The video starts outside the apartment and goes in, taking a tour of the interior. From the number on the door to what are by now familiar furnishings, there is no doubt this is Lindy’s apartment.
“Yes, it is,” Morahan says.
The camera returns to the front door. Jack’s hand reaches out, pulls the door wide open then releases it. The door swings to a close, but not fast enough to lock shut. Jack pulls the door handle without turning it. The door opens.
“Detective, do you see here that no matter how wide this door is opened, it will not shut properly?”
He doesn’t want to answer.
“What’s your point?” he finally says.
“I think you know exactly what my point is, Detective Morahan. After Bobby Timmons left, is it possible someone else could have entered Lindy Coleman’s apartment?”
“Right, so someone else waltzes in and strangles her after she has a violent confrontation with Bobby Timmins and calls him a creep?”
Morahan is fuming at me. I feel the cold glare of the jury now.
I don’t take him on. I deflect.
“Detective, do we know the exact time of Lindy Coleman’s murder?”
“We do… to within an hour or two.”
“Do you know absolutely for certain Lindy Coleman was killed between the time the video tape ends and the time Bobby appears at the pizzeria fifty minutes later?”
The detective shifts in his seat, furious he must give a truthful reply.
“No, I do not.”
“No further questions.”
The next witnesses are used by Lawrence to add layers of plausibility to the picture he painted in his opening statement.
The barman I spoke to testifies he threw Bobby out. On cross, he adds Bobby had been a model patron since.
An ex-girlfriend tells Lawrence she was scared by Bobby’s turns of anger and aggression. When I question her, it turns out they dated eighteen months ago and that she has made similar charges against other young men, none of which proved true.
When Judge Erica Gonzalez calls a break for lunch, I’m relieved. The case is evenly poised, but I don’t have definitive evidence to clear Bobby. On the plus side, Lawrence has not driven his case home. But that doesn’t mean he won’t.
As the crowd files out, Jack comes up to the defense desk and we run though where we stand.
He tells me Cameron finally returned to LA and was happy to give a saliva sample.
“When do you get the results back?”
“Tomorrow afternoon at the latest. I’m pushing hard to get it expedited.”
Jack says his chat with Cameron was very interesting. He says Cameron denied having remote access to Lindy’s computer. Either he’s lying, or Lindy’s warning to Bobby that Cameron might be watching them was just an elaborate story. Jack won’t know for sure until he can confirm the IP address of whoever was accessing Lindy’s laptop.
“But you want to know something interesting?”
“What’s that?”
“Well, this Cameron guy was doing his best to appear all at ease with me, but you know, he clearly wasn’t. Damn near forgot to breathe. So after we talked, I stuck around and watched his house. Forty minutes later, who should drop by?”
“Dunno, Jack. Domino’s?”
“Tina Olsen.”
“Okay. That is interesting. But they’re friends, right? Nothing too odd about that. Unless…”
Jack’s nodding.
“Unless their relationship is more than friendly. And their kiss hello? It was go-get-a-room friendly.”
My suspicions are confirmed. Tina told me Lindy broke up with Cameron because she thought he was cheating on her. But the way Tina danced around the subject, I thought there was more to the story. So Lindy loses out in a love triangle - that doesn’t make Cameron a murderer. The key question is, was he tapping Lindy’s computer?
“We’re running out of time, Jack. We need to know who was spying on Lindy, and we need to know yesterday.”
Jack says the IP’s owner has gone to some trouble to prevent being identified. They are hiding in a virtual private network but, lucky for Jack, they opted for a no-pay version that is easier to hack.
“Secluded IPs are very hard to trace,” he says. “But I'm getting there.”
I flick my eyes to the back of the court.
“Did you see the neighbor Cory is here?”
As Jack turns around, Cory is making his way to the aisle, the last to leave.
“That’s Lawrence’s trump card, right there.”
“We know what he’s going to say, right?” Jack asks.
“Maybe not everything — that’s my worry. I suspect the worse is yet to come.”
Jack springs up and joins the tail of the crowd heading for the door.
I have a few encouraging words with Bobby before he’s taken away.
Then, I grab a sandwich and head to the park to go over my notes and take another look at Lindy’s phone records. Next witness up is Tina, who I’m not feeling worried about.
✽✽✽
Within seconds of Tina taking the stand, any complacency I had about her testimony is gone.
Lawrence holds the floor with a gentle but commanding presence. He knows what’s coming, and he wants to lay it out neatly before the jury like polished silverware.
He establishes the depth of Tina’s friendship and their falling out.
“But even though you had not spoken to Lindy in months, she still reached out to you in her time in need, did she not?”
What’s this?!
“Yes, she did.”
Suddenly, I find myself dreading what I’m about to hear. I’m about to find out Tina lied to me. Or at least withheld vital parts of the truth.
“When did she last contact you?”
“The night of her murder.”
“Had she tried to contact you earlier?”
“Yes, she tried to reach out to me the day before.”
“Tina, I know this is extremely difficult for you, but did you reply to Lindy’s messages?”
“No,” Tina cries. “I was out of town. I left my phone at home. I didn’t see the messages until I got back.”
“That was on the night of her murder?”
“Yes. I saw the messages and then sent her one asking if she was okay.”
“And did you get a reply?”
“Yes. Lindy said, ‘I’m scared.’”
A buzz goes around the courtroom.
“I tried calling her straight away, but she didn’t answer.”
Tina breaks down, sobbing.
Right now, the whole courtroom, and especially the jury, wants to put their arms around Tina.
I need to nip that wave of sympathy in the bud.
In my cross-examination, I mention that her account today is markedly different from what she told me.
“Were you told by the prosecution to lie to me, Miss Olsen?”
“Objection!” Lawrence springs to his feet.
“Sustained,” Judge Fernandez says. “Tone it down, counsellor.”
“Miss Olsen, did the prosecution tell you not to speak with me?”
“That’s true, I was advised not to speak with you. But I didn’t want to be rude. I just didn’t tell you everything.”
“Miss Olsen, where were you when Lindy ‘reached out to you’, as you put it?”
/> “Objection!” Lawrence’s on his feet again. “This has no bearing on the case.”
Judge Fernandez looks at me.
“Your Honor, I am trying to establish just how close Miss Coleman and Miss Olsen were.”
“Well, get to it,” the judge snapped. “Overruled.”
She turns to Tina.
“Please answer the question.”
Tina hesitates before answering quietly.
“I was up in Lake Tahoe. There was a big party.”
“And was Lindy invited to this party?”
“Yes, but she decided not to come.”
“Why was that?”
Tina shakes her head slowly.
“I don’t know.”
“Tina, do you have a boyfriend?”
Tina’s head snaps up. She looks confused.
“Do I have a… ?”
“Objection, Your Honor! How is this relevant?”
Judge Fernandez is losing her patience.
“Your Honor, it will soon be apparent this is highly relevant.”
“It had better be. Overruled.”
“Miss Olsen, remember you are under oath. I’ll put it another way — are you seeing anyone at the moment?”
Tina looks bewildered, wondering how I could possibly know. She turns to Lawrence like she’s trapped. She lowers her eyes.
“Yes.”
“Can you tell me his name, please?”
“Cameron Degotardi.”
The courtroom stirs.
“Cameron Degotardi? You mean Lindy’s boyfriend. I mean, ex-boyfriend?”
“Yes.”
“Tina, isn’t it true that Lindy broke up with Cameron because she suspected he was sleeping with someone else?”
Tina nods rapidly, her eyes clamped with shame.
“And that person was you?”
“Objection! This is nothing but character assassination.”
“Sustained! Counsellor, you’re out of line!” Judge Fernandez slams the gavel down and glares at me.
But it’s too late.
“Yes! Yes!” Tina cries out before breaking down. Her sobs fill the room.
A wave of murmuring rises from the gallery.
“Silence!” Judge Fernandez claps the gavel down twice. The courtroom falls quiet once again, save for Tina’s sobbing.
“Just a few more questions, Your Honor.”
“Tread carefully, counsellor,” the judge warns.
“Tina, you have told the court Lindy reached out to you the day before she was killed.”
“That’s right.”
“And can you read those messages to the court?”
“No.”
“And why not?”
“Because I deleted them.”
“You deleted them. Was that because you didn’t like what they said?”
“Well, yes. She was asking me about Cameron.”
“I thought you said she was reaching out to you.”
“She was. She was doing both.”
I return to the table and pick up another sheet of paper.
“Tina, these records show Lindy Coleman was also sending messages to Cameron. Can you tell us why they would be about?”
Tina bows her head.
“She was trying to confirm that we were seeing each other.”
“And she was right, wasn’t she?”
“Yes.”
“The truth is you didn’t leave your phone at home, did you? You were simply ignoring your friend. The friend you deceived. Is that true?”
Tina’s shoulders heave, her head nodding.
“Is that a yes, Ms. Olsen?”
“Yes.”
“But then you finally felt guilty and sent her a message, didn’t you?”
“Yes. I wanted to know if she was okay.”
“And that’s when you received her message that said, ‘I’m scared.’ Is that right?”
“Yes.”
“The court should know that this last message from Lindy was sent thirty minutes after the video tape ends. Just twenty minutes before Bobby Timmins enters the pizzeria.”
I walk over to the jury.
“I put it to the court that this apparent cry for help was not sent by Lindy at all. Was it sent by Bobby Timmins? Of course not, why would he incriminate himself? No. This text was sent by Lindy Coleman’s killer.”
“Objection! Speculation!”
“Sustained. Members of the jury, I ask that you disregard that last…”
“Your Honor, Lindy Coleman only texted Ms. Olsen to confirm her suspicions that she was sleeping with Cameron Degotardi.”
“You better be making a good point, counsellor.”
“I believe I am, Your Honor. Lindy Coleman wanted to know if her best friend was still sleeping with the boyfriend she had just broken up with. For almost twenty-four hours, Ms. Olsen ignored every text Lindy sent her asking where she was and who she was with. Finally, Ms. Olsen sends a reply asking, ‘Are you okay?’
“Now, I’d argue the last thing Lindy would do is appeal to Tina for help.
“I’d argue that Lindy did not send that message at all. Her killer did. He wanted to make out Lindy was still alive and fearing imminent danger. And when Ms. Olsen rang in response to Lindy’s so-called cry for help, there was no answer.
“The only reasonable conclusion is that the last text sent from Lindy’s phone was an attempt to redirect blame elsewhere — at Bobby Timmins.”
I hear the courtroom stir behind me.
“No further questions, Your Honor.”
8
The day has finally come for Cory Simpson to take the stand. I make my usual sweep over the gallery. It’s packed yet again — the media have been having a field day with the story. And that’s when I see Claire walk in. Great. I’m banking on a strong cross-examination, but not a decisive one. And I’ve still got nothing definitive to prove Bobby’s innocence. The prosecution’s case to date may be a join-the-dots argument, but it’s a plausible story, and right now I lack the arsenal to shoot it down. So, in short, Claire has shown up when the prospect of getting Bobby released could appear slimmer than ever.
Lawrence has obviously prepped Simpson well. The jury hears how Cory befriended Lindy when she first moved in about six months ago. He says she was extremely nice to him, and he would help her out occasionally.
He says on the night of Lindy’s murder he heard arguing coming from next door. He says he heard Bobby and Lindy shouting so loud he could hear every word. And it was nasty, disturbing stuff.
At one point he heard loud thumps. That was when he went and knocked on Lindy’s door and called out to see if she was okay.
He says Lindy did not answer him, but he heard more terrible noises from inside the flat before everything went quiet.
“I thought that they’d calmed down and made up... but that must have been when he strangled her!”
Lawrence holds up his hands, indicating to Cory to cool it. A jury is quick to sense, and distrust, melodrama.
“And what happened next, Cory?”
“I went back to my flat and waited. About ten minutes later, I went to look out my peephole.”
“And what did you see?”
“I saw a man walk to the elevator and get in.”
“Is that man in this room?”
“Yes, he most certainly is. He’s sitting right there.”
Cory’s pointing straight at Bobby. Tears of hurt are welling in his eyes.
Just then I feel a tap on my shoulder. It’s Jack. He leans towards me and whispers.
“Call a recess.”
“How come?”
“I’ve found the murderer.”
Without hesitation I call for a recess and Judge Fernandez grants it. Jack and I step outside the courtroom. He leads me to a quiet corner and then proceeds to dazzle me with his investigative mastery.
Suddenly, my head is on another plane. Everything is crystal clear. I have a real chance to win this case.
&nb
sp; ✽✽✽
I button my jacket as I rise to address Cory Simpson.
I ask him about his friendship with Lindy. He qualifies his earlier statement, saying they were not exactly close, but she was very friendly towards him.
“You helped her out with technological matters, like sorting out any issues with her laptop. Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“And did that include installing spy software onto her computer?”
“Excuse me?”
“You set up the recording software on her laptop, did you not?”
“Um, yes. She wasn’t very good with that kind of stuff.”
“No, I guess not, Mr. Simpson. Did Lindy know that when you installed that software on her computer, you also installed a remote access program?”
He slouches, ever so slightly. A notch taken out in his confidence.
“What do you mean?”
“You know exactly what I mean, Mr. Simpson.”
“I’m afraid I don’t.”
I hand out papers to the judge and Lawrence.
“This is new evidence, Your Honor. These documents show quite clearly that Lindy’s recording software can be accessed from a remote device.”
I place one of the papers in front of Simpson.
“Is that your IP address, Mr. Simpson?”
The color has drained from his face. But then, all the rage I saw directed at Bobby rises again, and it’s is aimed at me.
“Yes, it is,” he says through gritted teeth.
“Mr. Simpson, under the guise of helping Lindy Coleman, you installed software that allowed you to monitor her and operate her computer. Is that right?”
“Objection!”
“Overruled.”
“Yes, of course. She knew that. She wanted me to have that access, so I could fix any problems on her laptop no matter where she was, so long as she had wi-fi.”
“To me that sounds like a very trusting, very intimate thing to let someone do. Were you two lovers, Mr. Simpson?”
His whole body twitches, as though volts are suddenly running through him.
“No! It wasn’t like that. I was just her tech support.”
“I see.”
I go back to my desk and pick up some more documents.
“Mr. Simpson, can you please tell the court what Dream Raiders is?”
He looks at me, stunned.
“It’s… It’s err… It’s a forum for fans of Tomb Raider.”
