Russell was pointing a gun at him. Snub-nose six-shot. He cocked the hammer.
“As I was saying,” Gilchrist continued, “that’s why I’m having this conversation with you rather than through my intermediary. Out of respect for your service.”
“Go ahead and shoot me, pal.” Mitch squared his chest toward Russell. “Make sure you don’t miss, buddy boy, ’cause I’m gonna tear your throat out with my bare hands.”
Russell drew down, ready to do just that.
Gilchrist said, “Perhaps you should speak to your wife?”
Mitch swung around on Gilchrist. “What?”
Gilchrist said, “Holly’s an interesting woman, wouldn’t you say?”
This question was directed at Russell, who gave one of his crocodile grins.
Mitch made a strangled sound that fried the computer speakers. “What did you do to her?”
“You should ask yourself whatyou’redoing to her, Mr. Bellingham. Holly’s fate is completely in your hands.” Gilchrist stood up. “You might want to check on your son. A child should never be separated from his mother.”
Mitch didn’t lunge for Gilchrist again. He ran up the marble hallway. Yanked open the front door. Emmy saw an old Dodge truck parked in the driveway, then the video cut to black.
Jude shushed out a breath between her teeth.
Emmy sat back in the chair. She needed a moment to consider what she’d seen. A group of people connected to a trial. The husband of a murder victim. A cop who offered last-minute testimony. A juror who voted for guilty. Another juror who was forced to do the same.
She looked at Jude. “Bernadette and Reggie left the room, but Gilchrist was right there when Russell talked about the murder. I can build a conspiracy case off that.”
“It’s going to take time,” Jude said. “Gilchrist can argue that he had nothing to do with the murder. The camera isn’t on his face when Russell gives the details. He could say he felt intimidated into silence.”
“I’d need Russell to flip on Gilchrist. He’d have to testify against him.”
Jude said, “I know you can make it work.”
Emmy wasn’t so sure. “Russell would only flip for a deal.”
“Allison’s murder and the attempted murder of Mandy qualify for special circumstances. If you can take the death penalty off the table, Russell will do whatever you need.”
“Then I’d need to connect him to the shooting,” Emmy said. “Right now, all I’ve got is Talia’s word that Russell was abusing Mandy. If I’m being cross-examined on the stand, any defense attorney worth his salt is going to get me to admit that Talia has consistently lied to me about Russell. And there’s no way Pam Guthrie will let Skylar anywhere near a trial. I have no idea what information Mandy can or will give me. Even if she can’t remember that Russell’s the shooter, she’s been protecting him this whole time. If he’s her father and she’s still under his thumb, there’s no guarantee she won’t continue to protect him.”
“You’re talking about a trial. You need to think about what you can do right now to compel Russell to take a deal: you’ll take the death penalty off the table if he pleads guilty to the shooting and agrees to testify against Gilchrist.”
“Russell’s not new to this game. He’s a hardened criminal. That’s a big bluff to pull off.”
“Is it?” Jude asked. “You’ve got a pile of circumstantial evidencethat points to Russell as the killer. There’s the timing. Russell gets out of prison, Mandy starts being abused, Allison starts making plans to escape. Sherry documented the damage on Mandy’s body. The neurosurgeon told you he found signs of past abuse. Russell doesn’t know that Talia’s testimony is shaky. Tell him that you have two of Mandy’s close friends willing to testify about Mandy’s relationship with him. Then there’s the gift card and the money. That can likely be traced back to Russell. He must’ve been spending most of his salary from the hardware store to groom her. You’re familiar with love bombing, where the abuser begins a relationship with excessive attention and gifts?”
Emmy knew, but she wanted Jude’s interpretation. “Tell me.”
“The purpose of love bombing is to create an intense, dependent relationship that isolates the victim from her family and community. Then the cycle of abuse begins, the push and pull characterized by cycles of intense abuse followed by affection, followed by abuse. In this case, the affection came through money. Mandy is trauma-bonded to Russell. With time and intensive analysis, the cycle can be broken.”
“How much time?” Emmy asked. “Let’s say I can’t trick Russell into taking a deal. I can’t keep him locked up until Mandy has a breakthrough in therapy.”
“It could take years.”
Emmy let out a long sigh. She watched Jude grab the mouse and eject the CD. She was going to say something about leaving again. Emmy could feel her body starting to betray her. The fear and uncertainty, the inability to let Jude go. There was too much going on right now for Emmy to stare at her navel and figure out why she was so desperate to have Jude at her side.
She said, “Let’s go back to Allison’s house. I want to walk the scene with you.”
“Is that a good use of your time?” Jude’s question was loaded. She had saidyourtime, notourtime. “What else do you think you’re going to find at the house on the third go-round?”
