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"These kinds of nuances are lost on most people in t
he public. They don't know the difference between sadism and dominance or how one can be a Dominant without being a sadist."
"When is the video going to be shown? Do we get the chance to see it and deny that it's me?"
"You're not involved in this, Drake, except as the defense's theory of the case in contrast to the DA's. You and the tape are just evidence to create reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury. If they believe that you and Derek abused Lisa on a regular basis--"
"I was only with her on three occasions!"
"I know that and you know that, but the defense will claim it was many other occasions and as long as there are several real occasions that you were her sexual partner with Derek, that will be enough to support the theory that she was an abused woman whose new boyfriend tried to protect her from Derek when he became violent. The jury will be more inclined to give her the benefit of the doubt."
"But it's not true. Derek was not a sadist. He didn't abuse her. He watched her have sex with other men and then he had sex with her afterward."
"She claims he punished her afterward and that the sex with other men wasn't about voyeurism at all. It was about hurting her for being a whore -- which he forced her into being with other men."
"She signed contracts."
"You know those contracts are not enforceable. She claims she was threatened into signing."
I sat on the sofa and Kate sat beside me, realizing that the phone call was going to take longer than we imagined. Not to mention that the news killed any arousal either of us felt earlier.
I was silent for a moment, wondering for the first time if I had misjudged Richardson, but I never heard a whisper about him being a sadist. Some men enjoyed watching their lovers have sex with other men. It made them aroused to see their partner enjoying it, acting like a nymphomaniac. Then, they would have sex with the woman and enjoy the fact that their partner was so sexual.
I didn't feel that way. I was possessive and wanted Kate all to myself, although I knew that other men would be lucky to have someone as sexually responsive as her. I'd been a willing partner to the whole voyeurism scene because Derek and I were friends. Both of us were professional men, born into wealth, and having an interest in BDSM, albeit for different kinks.
"Will they show the video in open court?"
"I don't know. There's no reason, other than not wanting it to get on the news, so the judge may rule it can be shown in open court. If that's the case, it will be shown on every network around the world. I'll have to wait and see if there's any way we can refute that it's you, but that may not be until it's already public. By then, the damage will already have been done."
"Great," I said, a sick sensation in my gut. I turned to Kate and brushed her cheek, needing to reconnect with her at that moment. Her face had fallen, her eyes sad. She shook her head as she listened to Lara.
"Can't you argue that if the video can't be proven to be Drake that it shouldn't be allowed as evidence?" Kate asked, frowning. "It's defamatory to put a video out and claim it's Drake if it isn't. It can't help but hurt his professional and personal reputation. He's already paid such a high price for all of this."
"I know, Kate," Lara replied, sighing heavily on the other line. "You're right, of course, but that doesn't mean that the defense won't release the tape by accident anyway so they can discredit the state's argument that Lisa acted with premeditation and killed Derek so she could take his money and escape with Jones. They apparently had plane tickets and were getting ready to go to Mali. Lisa claims that they were trying to escape Derek and went to the cabin to retrieve some personal effects and that's when Derek attacked her and Jones killed him to protect Lisa."
"That's such bullshit," I said, unable to stop myself.
"It is, to anyone who knew Derek or Lisa in the lifestyle. Lisa was far from a shrinking violet. She was a switch who occasionally liked to top submissive men. She was in it for Derek's money. She became obsessed with Drake and began stalking him. That's the sole reason that she entered medical school -- to live out her fantasy life of you and her becoming lovers and marrying. Classic erotomania combined with sociopathy. A very scary combination. Anyway," Lara said and we heard papers rustling in the background. "I wanted to let you know because I'm afraid that the defense will leak the tape any time now. If it was me acting as Lisa's defense, I would. Anything to muddy the water and raise reasonable doubt."
"What can Drake do?" Kate asked, rubbing my shoulder. "What can you do to stop it? Don't the police have rules about evidence that you could use to stop its release?"
"I'm afraid I'm somewhat constrained in this, because Drake isn't a defendant and we have no standing in the case. Drake's going to be a witness, and testify for the state, and will have the opportunity to deny Lisa's claims. There isn't enough evidence to charge Drake with anything and so the police and DA aren't going down that road, but Lisa's defense can do a lot of damage to his reputation regardless."
"It's so unfair," Kate said, her voice wavering. "Lisa may be going to jail for the rest of her life, but she's ruining Drake's life in the process."
I sighed and rubbed my eyes, frustration with the whole issue overwhelming me. "Well, thanks for calling, Lara, and keeping me informed about what's happening. Not that I can do anything about it but wait for the fallout."
"I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it's better to know what's coming instead of being blindsided. You should come to my office tomorrow afternoon and we can talk more about our response."
"Okay. Good night."
"Good night and happy anniversary, I guess."
"Yeah, thanks," I said and ended the call. I turned to Kate who was frowning. "Happy anniversary," I said, sourly.
"She could have waited to call until tomorrow..."
"She did what she thought was best in case we wake up to the news that a video purporting to be me is plastered on the television and all over the internet."
