Cruel Justice

55

CARLEE CRANE SAT IN bed chowing down a jumbo-size bag of powdered doughnuts. She was watching the ten o’clock news. She never used to. She never used to be interested. But now she was.

Dave didn’t want her to watch the news. He said it would upset her.

He was right.

The Leeman Hayes trial had begun. Without her. She had not volunteered her testimony. Dave had gotten his way on that dispute. And he had never mentioned it since. He knew better than to press his luck. Once the victory was won, the smart man kept his mouth shut about it.

The silver-haired anchorman summarized the day’s events. According to him, the prosecution was assembling a “seemingly airtight case.” The defense hadn’t had a chance to put on any evidence, but it was questionable whether anything could dislodge the clear inference of guilt the prosecution was establishing.

He cut to his female co-anchor, who was conducting an interview by live remote with the two attorneys handling the case. The man from the district attorney’s office opened by reassuring the audience that he would stop at nothing to ensure that the citizens of Tulsa could sleep safely at night, and that he would make every effort to see that justice was done.

While the prosecutor talked, Dave entered the bedroom. Must’ve finally gotten Ethan and Gavin to bed. He was frowning, and Carlee knew why. There she was, watching the news, just as he had asked her not to do. She didn’t mean to make him mad; she just couldn’t help herself. She had to know what was happening.

At last, the anchorwoman pried the DA away from the microphone and introduced the attorney representing the defendant. Carlee recognized him from the newspaper. He was much younger than Bullock—early thirties, tops. He seemed less assured and less accustomed to speaking on television; in fact, he stammered and looked downright nervous.

“Mr. Kincaid, do you agree with the statements Mr. Bullock has just made?” the woman asked.

“No, I don’t,” he said emphatically.

“Why not?”

“I’m not going to go into an argumentative evaluation of the facts. That’s for the courtroom, not the evening news.”

“He won’t talk,” Bullock interjected, “because he has nothing to say. He has no defense.”

“That’s about as true as most of what the prosecutor has said so far,” Kincaid replied.

“Well, if you won’t talk about the case, why are you here?” the interviewer asked.

“To make a plea.” The defense attorney turned and stared directly into the camera. Carlee had the eerie feeling he was looking at her. “My main difficulty in preparing this case has been that the crime occurred so long ago. I know there must be people out there with knowledge about this case, but how do you find them after so many years?”

“I can see where that would present a difficulty,” the reporter commented.

The attorney continued. “If there is anyone out there who knows anything about this crime, and I mean anything, please come forward. You can call me at my office; it’s listed in the phone book. If you know anything at all, please contact me. An innocent man’s life depends on you.”

The anchorwoman asked another question, but Carlee didn’t hear it. Dave had moved in front of the television. He was staring down at her.

“You’re going to testify, aren’t you?”

Carlee looked away. “Didn’t you hear what he said?”

“But, honey—people will laugh at you! Your story is incredible. It’s worse than incredible. It’s ridiculous.”

“I can’t hold back just because I’m afraid someone might laugh at me.”

“What about the kids?”

“They’re tough. They’ll survive.”

“What about my job?”

“I can’t believe you’d lose your job over this.”

“Why take the risk? Remember what happened when Craig Banner’s wife filed that sexual-harassment suit against her boss? She was splashed all over the news for weeks. People were calling her names, laughing at her. And two weeks later Craig lost his job.”

“I think that’s a risk we have to take.”

“Even if it tears our family apart?”

Carlee wrung her hands around the doughnut bag. “Even if it tears our family apart.”

Dave stared at her for a long time. Then, to Carlee’s surprise, he snuggled beside her and wrapped his arms around her. “You’re right, of course. Good for you.”

“What? You’re not upset?”

Dave smiled. “Well, I’m not happy about it. But I care more about you than my job, or my house, or anything else, for that matter. I know this has been tearing you up. I know you haven’t been sleeping at night, or functioning during the day. You’ve been eating junk food like it was going out of style.”

“I’m afraid I may have gained a few pounds. …”

“Forget it. You’ve been stressed out. I should never have tried to keep you from coming forward. I forgot one important fact.”

“What’s that?”

He squeezed her tightly. “I forgot what a good-hearted, good-natured, all-around good person you are. You can’t stand by quietly if there’s any chance you might be able to help an innocent man. You just can’t do it. It’s not in you. Whatever it costs, you’re going to do what you have to do.” He kissed her lightly on the neck. “That’s what I forgot.”

“I’ll go see that attorney tomorrow, then.” Carlee pressed closer to him, then rolled over onto the bed, tugging him down with her. “Dave, I love you so much.”

He grinned at her and began unfastening the buttons on her nightie. “Ditto.”