One Summer

61

Bonnie was sworn in and sat down in the witness box.

“You’re the children’s grandmother?” asked Paterson.

“Yes.”

“Can you lead us through the series of events leading up to your filing this legal action?”

Bonnie spoke about Jack’s illness, her daughter’s death, Jack being in hospice, the children living with relatives, and Jack’s recovery and his taking the children back. And, finally, she described her offer to have them all live with her because of her concerns, after consulting with doctors, that Jack’s illness would most assuredly come back with fatal results.

“And what was Mr. Armstrong’s response to your offer?”

“He categorically refused it.”

“And what specific event prompted you to have your son-in-law put under surveillance?”

“I saw Jack beating up two men on the street in Channing, South Carolina, in broad daylight while his children were with him. The youngest, Jackie, was bawling his eyes out. It was awful. It was like Jack had lost his mind. I don’t know if it was a symptom of the disease coming back or not, but I was terrified and I could tell the children were too.”

The lawyer finished with Bonnie, and Jenna rose.

“Mrs. O’Toole, do you love your grandchildren?”

“Of course I do.”

“And yet you seek to separate them from their father?”

“For their own good.”

“And not to punish Mr. Armstrong?”

“No, of course not.”

“So you’re not angry with your son-in-law? You don’t blame him for your daughter’s death?”

“I’ve never blamed him. I told him that I knew it was an accident.”

“But did you really believe that? Didn’t you tell Mr. Armstrong that you thought he should be dead and not your daughter?”

Bonnie pursed her lips and remained silent.

“Mrs. O’Toole?”

“I’ve tried to move past that.”

“But you still harbor resentment toward him?”

“I don’t think so, no.”

“And that is partly the reason you’re filing for custody, for revenge?”

“Objection,” said Paterson. “The witness has said she harbors no resentment.”

“Withdrawn,” said Jenna. “No more questions.”

“Next witness,” said Grubbs.

Jack and the others were surprised to see Sheriff Nathan Tammie amble into the courtroom, not looking too happy about being there. He was sworn in, and Paterson took him through his paces as a witness.

“So you warned Mr. Armstrong on the occasion of the first assault he was involved in?”

“Yes, although I warned the other guys too. Apparently Mr. Armstrong was provoked.”

“And there was a second, more recent, assault involving Mr. Armstrong, was there not?”

“Yes.”

“Can you tell us the circumstances?”

Tammie sighed, glanced at Jack, and explained the altercation in the alley.

“So, to sum up your testimony, Mr. Armstrong and Mr. Duvall were holding baseball bats in an alley, and three unconscious men were lying at their feet?” The lawyer glanced at the judge, presumably to gauge the man’s reaction. The judge was following the line of questioning very closely. “So you arrested Mr. Armstrong and his companion, Mr. Duvall?”

“Yes. But I arrested the other guys too.”

“But Mr. Armstrong will be going to court on these charges?”

“Yes.”

“Could he receive prison time?”

“I really doubt that—”

“Could he?”

“Well, yes.”

“No further questions.”

Jenna rose. “Sheriff Tammie, why didn’t you charge Mr. Armstrong on the first altercation?”

“Well, from the witness statements it was clear that he was provoked.”

Jenna glanced at Bonnie. “Provoked how?”

Tammie took out his notebook. “Three witnesses said that one of the guys Mr. Armstrong went after had yelled out something about him being the miracle man and they were willing to pay him five dollars to perform a miracle on him. And he said other stuff, trying to get Mr. Armstrong’s goat, I guess.”

“All directed at Mr. Armstrong personally?”

“Yes.”

“Did Mr. Armstrong attack at that point, when he was the subject of these statements?”

“No. He just kept walking along with his kids.”

“Go on.”

Tammie looked at his notes. “Then the same guy said, “Hey, Miracle, was it true your slutty wife was cheating on you? That why you came back from the dead?”

Jenna turned to look at Bonnie in time to see her glance sharply at Jack.

“And is that when Mr. Armstrong went after them? Because they insulted his deceased wife?”

“Yes.”

“So he exercised admirable restraint when the insults were only directed to him?”

“Probably more restraint than I would have exercised if it’d been me.”

“And the alleged second assault? Is it true that one of the men engaged in this assault was also the same man who was involved in the first altercation?”

“Yes.”

“So it could have been that these men attacked Mr. Armstrong in that alley and he was merely defending himself?”

“Objection,” said Paterson. “Calls for a conclusion that the witness is not qualified to give.”

“Sustained,” said Grubbs, but he looked curiously at Tammie and then over at Jack.

Jenna said, “No further questions.”

Paterson said, “I call Michelle Armstrong to the stand.”

As Mikki rose and moved forward, she stopped next to her dad. He gave her a reassuring smile and gripped her hand. “Just tell the truth, sweetie,” he said.