A Legal Affair

Chapter 3: A heated exchange

Judy Bowman, Elisabeth's third in the team, put in her young bobbed head, hair and eyes an exact match in light brown. 'Coffee?'

Robert smiled his thanks. His smile was one of his good features. Genuine and often used, Elisabeth had already noticed its effect - others broke into returning smiles and unconsciously wore them for long minutes after. It was their second day and already he was smiling less with her.

'Thank you,' she said. 'Milk, no sugar.'

'So,' he persisted, 'How are you going to find them?'

'I'll talk to your investigator. Someone has to know where they are.'

'Who's he going to question that he hasn't already?'

'He's going to have to talk to everyone again. And let's not fight over this, it's going to be tough enough.' It wasn't a plea or a request. His body expanded with the breath he drew. Judy received brief thanks from both for the coffee. When she left she did so closing the door carefully. Even so their muted voices came through the walls.

'I have no intention of fighting with you, but you've been here less than two days and already you're saying I haven't done my job properly.'

'You've seen him,' Elisabeth said. 'You've seen that scar. That friend of his nearly killed him. He opened up the whole side of Russell's face with that rifle butt. Beat him senseless and continued to beat and kick until stopped by the police. Jesus, Robert.'

'I'm sorry - have I missed something?'

'Missed something? Isn't that what this is all about; someone capable of violence.'

'They'd just found out he'd knifed a man to death. If Waite hadn't hit him he'd probably've ended up the same way.'

Elisabeth sat down and put finger pads to lips. She spoke between them. 'Is that what you think?'

Now she had both angered and embarrassed him. 'Does it matter what I think.'

'You're instructing. And if you can say it to me who else have you said it to? It won't help me and it certainly won't help Russell - talking of not doing your job properly.'

He blinked and went rigid. She watched him clamp his lips with his teeth to prevent words that shouldn't be said. He at least would stay the right side of the line. She realised just how far over it she had been. 'I apologise. Obviously that won't affect how you do your job.' She glanced at her watch. 'Do you do anything for lunch? Can I buy you a sandwich?'

'Thanks,' he said, 'but I'm going to the gym. Sometimes it's the only thing that keeps me sane.'

She watched his departing back, stiff with unforgiveness. Sanity was also high on her list.

After lunch they got back into it.

'The thing,' Robert said, 'about these automaton cases is that if they thought about it for a bit they'd realise just how much harder it makes their defence. They seem to think they can't be found guilty if they say they don't remember.'

'You enlightened him though.'

'He's adamant he can't remember. I explained the rules for introducing evidence and how much more difficult it will be if we can't proceed that way. I also tried drawing him out by telling him he'd probably have a better chance with the jury if his memory returned and he could show some remorse.'

'The problem with that, of course,' Elisabeth said, 'is that if he really can't remember anything, saying that he can now would leave him without a motive. If he really can't remember, what reason can he give for doing it?' He didn't answer. 'Can you see that?'

'Yes. And either way he's stuffed.' He waited, curious as to what she would say.

She sipped water from her coffee mug and sat holding it between both hands. 'Let's assume - and we are going to assume - that he's telling the truth. The medical evidence, Dr Westmore's, bears out that his injuries could well have induced that state. But he makes a point of saying that it's impossible to tell whether it's genuine or feigned. So neither side wins a point, except,' she lifted a finger from the mug 'except in as much as Russell did sustain injuries to the head, among others, that almost killed him. A jury might give him the benefit of the doubt with the amnesia.'

'But the crunch line is they have a witness, the wife. She saw Russell stab her husband. Believing or disbelieving the amnesia is irrelevant.'

Elisabeth persisted. 'If the jury is inclined to believe the amnesia they're halfway to being on Russell's side, halfway to wanting to believe him incapable of murdering someone.' She saw his doubt. 'They'll be feeling sorry for him. They'll be looking to us for help. People don't want to send someone to gaol, especially for a long time, unless they're very sure they're guilty.'

Robert leaned back, the morning forgotten, catching his hair in his fingers and running them over his scalp. Momentarily it stood in damp brown channels then flopped under its own weight to the right. 'Remember this was no accidental stabbing.' His hands fell to his thighs. 'The supposition is that Russell decided to rob the store, whether it was planned or spontaneous we don't know. According to the wife, when her husband refused to hand over the money he walked calmly around the counter, raised the knife and deliberately stabbed the man. She assumed he was just going to take the money and was totally unprepared for what happened.'

'And if Russell was so cool about it why did he leave his knife in the victim? Why didn't he take the money? Why didn't Stavros evade the knife? Surely he saw it coming.'

Robert snorted. 'Are you always so vigilant that you couldn't be taken by surprise? It's all there,' his arm swept the documents on her desk. 'He was slicing open a packet of chips at the counter before demanding the cash.'

'He walked around the counter with the knife in his hand and they weren't even a little apprehensive?'

'Things are rarely that neat.'

'Maybe.' She was thinking. 'And the wife is the only witness. No-one else was in the shop.'

'Except for Russell. And Greg Waite and Lisa Moody outside in the car.'

'And they didn't know what he was going to do?'

'So they say.'

She rubbed her fingertips back and forth across her mouth, then suddenly dropped her forehead to the heel of her palm. 'Maybe what we should be doing - instead of trying to prove Russell innocent - is trying to show that someone else could be guilty.' She grinned, more a grimace than anything reminiscent of humour. 'Just thinking aloud. But you have to admit the possibilities.'

'Yeah,' he said. 'The wife's a definite.'

'And then there's the mate who almost killed him.'

The thought sparked Robert, but only momentarily. 'Why would the wife say it was Russell if it wasn't?'

She sighed. 'Difficult, I agree.'

He stood to flex his shoulders. He wasn't going to hide how he felt. 'I think you're wrong.'