Manhunt (23 page)

“All right, fair enough. What happened when you arrived?”

“I saw Nikki in the front yard. She wasn’t moving. I didn’t even turn off the engine. I just jumped out of the car and ran to her, calling her name, but she didn’t respond. When I got closer, I realized that she was unconscious and badly bleeding. Her clothes were mostly torn off, hanging by threads. She was breathing, but it was raspy and weak. I picked her up and laid her in the backseat of my car, tossed a blanket I keep in the car on her and took off for the hospital.”

Wes turned serious. “Why didn’t you call 911? The police?”

Jeremy looked down, remorseful. “I don’t know. In retrospect, I know it’s what I should have done. I was just panicked and all I kept thinking was that I had to get her to my dad, that he was the only one who could save her.”

“Your father is Dr. Aaron Brennan, correct?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Very well. One more question, Jeremy. Where was Sebastian when you retrieved Nikki from the front yard?”

“I don’t know. I know he was there because his car was in the driveway, I had to park on the street, but I didn’t see him.”

Wes looked a little like he was going in for the kill. “He was still there, but despite the fact that Nikki was bleeding and unconscious on the front lawn, he wasn’t attempting to help her?”

“No, sir.”

“And he didn’t come outside to confront you for trying to take her?”

“No, sir.”

Wes pursed his lips into a thin line and nodded. “That’s a bit odd, don’t you think? Considering the conversation you overheard?”

The D.A. shot out of her seat. “Objection.”

“Sustained,” the judge agreed. “Mr. Brennan, you will not answer that question.” The judge gave Wes a pointed glance, and Wes tilted his head and nodded in response.

“No further questions, your honor.” Wes seemed to be intentionally avoiding eye contact with Michael as he returned to his seat.

District Attorney Singer stood and approached Jeremy. “Mr. Brennan, I know you already covered this, but I’m having a hard time understanding something. Why would you confess to a murder you didn’t commit to save your brother if you believe him to be innocent? If he’s truly innocent, then he had nothing to need saving from.”

“In an ideal world, that may be true,” Jeremy replied coolly. “But we all know that this isn’t an ideal world.”

“Do you have inside knowledge of Michael’s innocence? Did he ever tell you he was innocent?”

“Well, no, but...”

“Did you ever ask him if he did it?”

“Ummm... yes, I did.”

“So you doubted his innocence?”

“No! Of course not!”

“And what did he say when you asked him? Did he profess his innocence?”

“No, he didn’t. But he...”

“No, no,” Ms. Singer interrupted, “I understand. No one ever wants to believe someone they love could do something so heinous. Let’s talk about something else, shall we? The school records show that Michael and Sebastian got into a physical altercation in high school over something Sebastian did to you. Was this an example of Michael defending you?”

Jeremy relaxed a bit; he seemed relieved at the change in topic. “Yes, Sebastian intentionally dumped a tray of food on me because I was sitting next to Nikki and he wanted my seat.”

“It says in the records that he punched Sebastian and ended up with a three-day suspension and a month’s detention, is that true?”

“Yes.”

“Sounds like real dedication to me, suffering that kind of punishment for you.”

“Yes, it was.”

“He would do anything for you?”

“Yes, as I would for him.”

“Was he like that with anyone else?”

Wes was out of his seat immediately. “Objection, your honor. The prosecution is asking the witness to speculate, something which she just reprimanded him for not five minutes ago.”

“I assure you that I have a point to this line of questioning, your honor,” the district attorney replied.

“I’ll allow it for now,” Judge Stone replied after a moment’s consideration. District Attorney Singer repeated the question.

“He was like that with everyone in our group. We love each other and stick together.”

“I see. Was Nikki included in that group?”

“Of course.”

“So is it fair to say that Michael would do anything for Nikki, just as he would for you?”

“Yes, Michael loves Nikki. There is nothing he wouldn’t do for her.”

Michael cringed as a wicked smile took over the D.A.’s face. She was the spider calling to the fly, and Jeremy didn’t see it.

“Even killing a man to get her out of an abusive relationship?”

Jeremy’s face turned red and he started stammering. “Yes, I mean no, I mean... No! He wouldn’t do that?”

Even Michael could hear the doubt in Jeremy’s voice. One glance at the jurors confirmed they heard it too.

“But you just admitted to the court that Michael had resorted to violence in the past, punching Sebastian for such a small offense as spilling his pudding on you. Surely it’s not outside the realm of possibility, then, that Michael would escalate his violence to match the level of the perceived threat. Wouldn’t you agree, Mr. Brennan?”

Jeremy didn’t answer, he just looked down and started fidgeting with his hands.

“I will remind you that you are under oath, Mr. Brennan. Now please answer the question. Do you think that it is possible that if your brother thought Sebastian was trying to kill Nikki, that he would do anything to protect her, even if it meant killing him first?”

“Yes,” Jeremy whispered, defeated. “It is possible.”

The district attorney smiled in victory. “No more questions, your honor.”

Chapter 20

Aaron slowly approached the witness stand. Michael flinched when he saw how tired his dad looked. It was as if he’d aged 10 years in the past six months. Michael was nervous about what it was going to do to him, having to testify at his son’s murder trial. While there were many things Aaron could say which would help his son, they both knew there were many things which would only damage his case.

Wes approached him carefully. “Hello, Dr. Brennan. Are you sure you are up to this today?”

Aaron appeared to steel himself, straightening his back a bit. “Yes, I am.”

Wes seemed to relax a little. “Good. Let’s get started, then. First, I would like to ask you some questions of both a personal and professional nature, as you have been both a friend and attending physician to Ms. Wright. When answering medical questions, it would serve the court best if you answered as a medical expert, without prejudice based on your personal relationship with Ms. Wright. Can we agree on that?”

“Of course,” Aaron replied.

“Good. Thank you. Now, can you please tell me about the first time you saw Ms. Wright in your emergency room?”

“Yes, it was about a year ago. She was brought to the emergency room by a friend of hers. She had bruises on her arms and on the left side of her face. The inside of her mouth had a large gash from the force of a blow to the face and required stitches. The bruises on her arms were indicative of physical abuse, as were the marks on her face. I confronted Nikki about it and she admitted that the bruises were caused by Sebastian. She told me that he’d been abusing her for some time then, but that this was the first time he’d caused lasting physical damage. I contacted the hospital social worker, and following protocol, we contacted the police. Nikki filed a restraining order against Sebastian from her hospital bed.”

“I see. And how was Nikki’s mental state at that time?”

“Nikki appeared to be handling things well, all things considered. The social worker commented that she was a strong girl and believed if any woman had the strength to break the cycle of abuse, it was Nikki, and I agreed. Nikki expressed her anger, both at Sebastian and at herself for allowing herself to end up in that position, and vowed that she would never allow him or anyone else to hurt her ever again. We believed her.”

Michael heard a scratching sound, and looked over to see District Attorney Singer writing frantically on a legal pad.

“And as a friend, what did you do for her after that?”

“I held her hand while she cried, took her home and got her settled. I convinced her to call Michael, then arranged for a group of us to take turns staying with her for a couple of weeks to make sure Sebastian didn’t try and return since we’d been unsuccessful in getting the police to station a man at her house.”

“And did you and the others keep guard for the next couple of weeks?”

Aaron chuckled a little. “No. By the third day, Nikki had kicked us out, saying she was fine and didn’t need a babysitter, that she could take care of herself.”

“She sounds like a special lady,” Wes mused, as if he didn’t know her from a hole in the wall.

“Yes, she is,” Aaron agreed enthusiastically.

Michael, however, was not at all liking this line of questioning.

“A strong, independent woman. She’s sounds pretty tough,” Wes continued.

“Yes, she’s all those things.”

“Let me backtrack for a moment, if I may. You said you had to convince Nikki to call Michael. Could you please explain that comment?”

Aaron shifted a little in his seat. “Nikki and Michael have a very special bond. They had pushed each other away after their parents died, and even more so after Nikki got involved with Sebastian. But whenever something happened, they were always first in each other’s minds. Nikki wanted Michael to be there for her, even while she was telling us she didn’t need any help. I knew he could soothe her better than any of us, so I debated the issue with her until she finally gave in to her own needs.”

“Makes sense. All right, let’s flash forward to the night of Sebastian Cross’s death. You were working in the E.R. that night?”

“Yes, I was. I received a call from my other son, Jeremy, frantic, telling me he was bringing Nikki in. When they arrived, she was unconscious in the back of his car. She was in bad shape... head trauma, two cracked ribs, various contusions, bruising on her arms and face, lacerated knuckles. When she regained consciousness, she was suffering from amnesia.”

“So you treated Nikki for her injuries. Then what?”

“I called Michael. I know I shouldn’t have, but from what Jeremy told me, and what I observed on her body, it was obvious that Sebastian had hurt her again. I was going to have to call it in, and didn’t want her to have to talk to the police alone.”

“You mentioned her knuckles. Can you describe the injuries to me?”

Michael began grinding his teeth to keep from opening his mouth. How dare he?

“Yes, her injuries indicated a struggle of some sort, especially her knuckles.”

Wes picked a manila folder off of the table and handed it to Aaron. “Dr. Brennan, these are the photos taken of Sebastian Cross during the autopsy. Please note the bruising and scratches on his face and arms. Can you please tell me, in your expert opinion, is it possible that the injuries to Ms. Wright’s hand are related to the injuries Mr. Cross sustained?”

Aaron examined the photos for a moment before replying. “Are you asking me if it’s possible that Nikki inflicted these injuries on Sebastian, thus hurting her own hand? Yes, it is possible. The physical evidence seems to be consistent with that theory.”

“From what you know of Ms. Wright personally, do you believe that she was capable of inflicting bodily harm upon Mr. Cross?”

“In self-defense? Absolutely. She wouldn’t have gone down without a fight. Based on the physical evidence, I believe she got a few good punches of her own in before her injuries overtook her.”

“Yes, you mentioned earlier that she vowed to never let him hurt her again. How far do you think she was willing to go to keep that vow? Physical violence, perhaps?”

Michael had heard enough. He slammed both hands down on the table and stood up, yelling “Objection!”

Aaron looked at him reproachfully and commanded him to sit down. He ignored it. The judge repeated the order, and Michael hesitantly took his seat.