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“Liam, did the contents of this letter come as a surprise to you following your mother’s passing?” the attorney questions.
“Objection, lack of relevance, Your Honor,” Liam’s attorney chimes in.
“I don’t mind answering,” Liam says without giving the judge the opportunity to agree or disagree to the objection.
“Go on,” the judge replies.
“My sister, Elizabeth, or Libby, as we called her, died in a house fire thirteen years ago. I was supposed to be inside with her as she was left to keep an eye on me. She was lost in a book, reading the night away in her bedroom like she often did. I smelled smoke when I was in the kitchen grabbing a soda, so I went to investigate where it was coming from. I went into Larissa and Libby’s room, finding neither of them in there. I remembered Larissa said she would be back late, but Libby was home. She was in there somewhere. A pop of an explosion setoff, making my ears ring and when I ran back out into the hallway, I saw my bedroom and my parents’ bedroom engulfed in a thick wall of flames. Libby must have thought I was in my room when she smelled smoke. I could hear her screaming, but I couldn’t get to her. I took the blame for her death, though I had nothing to do with the fire. I suffered a lot of grief, following her loss, and needed therapy to cope. I didn’t get better in the timeframe my mother hoped I would and therefore she deemed me to be unstable when she became sick with cancer. I have since then recovered well with the help of therapy and though I still suffer with grief for the loss of my older sister, nothing hurts more than the neglect my surviving sister has shown me over the last five years. I have been nothing more than a nuisance to her and her husband, Corbin, while they live their lavish life as I?—”
“Objection, lack of relevance,” Lara and Corbin’s attorney says.
“Sustained,” the judge agrees.
His response is wholesome and believable. The jury is eating it up as some reach for tissues. His words have even pulled at my heart strings, but he’s leaving out part of the story—the part I was there for.
FIFTY-TWO
THURSDAY, JUNE 30TH 12:30 PM
There have been two short recesses and the attorneys are once again in a discussion with the judge. Madden is sitting up on the stand next to the judge, barely tall enough to see over the short wall in front of her. She’s fidgeting with her short hair, pulling the blonde ends toward her mouth.
When the silent meeting between the attorneys ends, Jared, Madden’s public defense attorney, approaches the wall in front of Madden and rests his elbows on the sill. “Madden, can you tell the jury what you told me, about why you were playing?—”
“Objection, leading…” Liam’s attorney pipes up.
“Sustained,” the judge says.
“Just go ahead and tell the jury what happened the day Fallon went missing,” Jared says to Madden.
He tilts the microphone in closer toward her mouth.
“It’s hard to remember everything,” Madden begins, “but I’m the one who asked for help with Fallon, my baby sister.” Madden looks up and stares over at Lara. “I heard Mommy say that Fallon was a mistake and making her life so hard that she wasn’t sure if she could continue taking care of all three of us. I felt bad for Fallon, and I didn’t know what to do.”
Jared nods his head. “So, what did you end up doing?”
Madden stares down at her lap for a moment. “Well, my uncle stopped by that same day. He and Mommy were having an argument in the kitchen, so Blakely and I took Fallon outside to play. When Uncle Liam left the house, he saw us outside and came over to talk to us.” The tips of Liam’s ears are red enough that I can see the color from here. “He asked me what was wrong, and I took him to the side to talk to him alone because I didn’t want Fallon or Blakely to hear what I had to tell him.”
“And what did you say to your Uncle Liam?” Jared presses.
“I told him what Mommy said about Fallon, that she was a mistake, and she couldn’t take care of her. Uncle Liam got mad and told me she should never have said anything like that to anyone. He also said she would feel much differently if Fallon disappeared someday and maybe she would start treating everyone a bit better if she learned a lesson.”
A symphony of grumbles and groans waves through the courtroom.
“Objection, this is hearsay, Your Honor,” Liam’s attorney interrupts.
“Overruled, this testimony was given under oath and documented previously to the trial,” the judge replies.
“You can continue,” Jared tells Madden.
“So… Uncle Liam said we could help each other, and he would help me keep Fallon safe if I brought her into the storm cellar of our shed. He said we could call it a game of hide-and-seek so I wouldn’t get into trouble. He told me he understood everything I was feeling, and he would make sure I never had to feel that way again, but I had to keep this plan a secret or it wouldn’t work. I did what he said to do. He told me he would take care of the rest and not to worry.”
“Why would you do that, William?” Lara shouts across the room.
“Order, order,” the judge speaks out, tapping his gavel several times.
Jared clears his throat and straightens his tie before stepping back in toward Madden. “Madden, when your mom and dad realized Fallon was missing and asked you if you had seen her, what did you tell them?” Jared says.
Madden takes a deep breath and tears fill her eyes. “I told them that she was playing hide-and-seek with the mermaids because they were always the most fun to play with.”
