Common Enemy (13 page)

“No need to get nasty. I know what I’m doing.” After another minute of watching Bobby Ray pace, he asked, “What do you plan to do with the kid? Take her and run?”

“Hell no,” Bobby Ray sneered. “I don’t want that brat around. I just want her as bait. I’ll have that bitch crawling on her knees back to me. Then, I’ll make her pay in every disgusting way imaginable.”

“That, I’d like to see.” Bennett laughed.

“First we have to get past those two lawyers standing guard over her. They look like a couple of serious contenders,” Bobby Ray said.

“They have a huge reputation in Tampa. It’s mostly the big money, playboy thing though. It doesn’t mean a damn thing to a judge down here.”

“They come from Tampa? No wonder I keep thinking they look a little familiar. Jordan must have started fucking that ugly one before she moved. Why else would they be all the way down here? She’s really moved up in the world. It’ll just make it that much sweeter when I knock her back down.” Bobby Ray smirked.

****

Judge Bender was announced and seated. He called the room to order.

Bobby Ray strutted to the witness chair wearing the same dark blue suit as he had the previous Thursday. His six-foot-two frame seemed bulkier than six years earlier. The set of his jaw was a little harder. There was a touch of gray in his hair, but the same cold, gray eyes bore into her from across the room. The heat of evil emanated from him. She looked down at the table to break his spell.

Connor pushed a note her way.
Don’t look down. Look over his head. He feeds on your fear.

After Bobby Ray was sworn in and seated he gave his full name and address.

“How long have you been at that address?” Bennett asked.

“Two weeks,” Bobby Ray answered.

“Where did you reside before the past two weeks?”

“I was an inmate at the Florida State Prison for five and a half years.”

The observers stirred as Bennett let the answer soak into their heads.

“What were the charges against you?”

“Armed robbery and assault.”

“Isn’t it true that you held you’re wife at knifepoint while you robbed a convenience store?”

Murmurs were heard all over the room. The judge banged his gavel once and the room fell quiet again.

“Why would you do such a thing, Mr. Butler?”

“We had a baby coming in a few weeks and we needed the money. I didn’t want to take the chance of hurting anyone, but my wife said she would make sure she was careful if I used her as a hostage. I was laid-off from my job and I didn’t know how I’d be able to pay the hospital bills. I was desperate and Jordan was insistent.”

“You loved your wife, didn’t you, Mr. Butler?” Bennett wore a smarmy smile.

“Yes, I would have done anything for her. I still think about her every day.”

“You agreed to a divorce only two months after you were incarcerated. Why is that?”

“It’s what she wanted. My lawyer at the time advised me that it would be best. I thought I was looking at a fifteen-year stretch. I knew she just wanted to be free to move on with her life. Like I said, I’d do anything for her. I’ve regretted that decision ever since. If she had ever come to see me, maybe I could have talked her out of it.”

“So, she never visited you in prison? Does that mean that you’ve never seen your daughter?”

“Not one time, sir. I’ve only dreamed about what she looks like and how it would feel to hold her. She’s the only child I have.”

“Do you honestly feel you could give her a good home, Mr. Butler?”

“Yes, I do. I already have a room made up for her in my new apartment. My fiancée has helped me decorate it for her. We plan to get married in two weeks. I hope my daughter will be there.”

“How do you plan to support your family, Mr. Butler?”

“I’ll be starting a job in road construction right here in town. It’s not the kind of work I’m used to, but it’s hard to find good jobs after prison. It makes enough money to pay the bills.”

“Thank you, Mr. Butler. I have no more questions.”

The judge looked to the defendant’s table. “Do you have any questions for the plaintiff, Mr. McCrae?” he asked.

The brothers rose and looked at each other, and then Caleb sat down to allow Connor to answer. “No thank you, your Honor. We’ll call him back to the stand later.”

“Would you like to call anyone else to the stand, Mr. Bennett?”

“Yes, your Honor. I’d like to call Ms. Jordan Holbrook.”

Jordan looked at Connor nervously. He gave her hand a squeeze before she stood. Her knees shook as she walked to the witness chair. She sat down and looked across the room. All eyes watched expectantly. She wondered if the pink chiffon blouse and black skirt had been a good choice. She looked back at Connor with doubt written all over her face. He smiled and winked. She wished she had as much confidence in herself as he seemed to have in her.

She was sworn in, and then gave her name and address with a shaky voice.

“No need to be nervous, Ms. Holbrook. We’re all just here to decide what’s best for your daughter. You want the best for her too, don’t you ma’am?”

“Of course I do.”

“Can you tell us where your daughter is now, Ms. Holbrook?”

“She’s staying with a friend.”

“How long has she been staying with this friend?” Bennett asked.

“For nine days.” Jordan nearly whispered her answer.

“Did you need a break from your daughter, Ms. Holbrook?”

“No. I just wanted her to be safe.”

“You didn’t feel that she was safe at your home, interesting. How many people are staying at your house right now?”

She looked at Connor. He patted his hand over his heart. He wanted her to know that he loved her.

“Both Mr. McCrea’s and Mr. Arnold Coleman,” she replied.

“And your daughter wouldn’t be safe with you and these three men in the house. That’s quite a crowd.” Before she could respond, he continued. “Why didn’t you ever visit your husband in prison, Ms. Holbrook?”

“I was afraid of him,” she said.

“Let me understand this correctly.” Bennett paused for dramatic effect. “You were frightened of him when he was behind bars. But while he was still living at home, you were not afraid to pick up a phone and turn him in for robbing a store, a robbery that you were involved in.”

“I wasn’t involved,” Jordan insisted.

“Did you walk into that store with him willingly?”

“Yes, but I didn’t know what he planned to do.”

“After the robbery had been committed, you left with him.”

She looked at Connor again. He looked down at the papers in front of him, but his hand rose slightly from the table. His second and third finger were curled under to make the sign for, I love you.

“Yes, I did.”

“What have you told your daughter about her father?”

“Nothing,” she admitted.

“Why not?”

“I didn’t want her to be ashamed of where she’d come from.”

“Did you think she might be ashamed of what you’d done to him, Ms. Holbrook?”

“No. It was the bravest thing I’ve ever done.”

“You didn’t grow up with your parents, did you, Ms. Holbrook? You’d been abandoned, left to be raised by elderly grandparents. You don’t know much about how families work.”

“That’s not true—”

Bennett cut her off before she could finish.

“Your mother left you when you were seven and died of a drug overdose when you were twelve. You hadn’t ever been told who your father was. I guess you were lucky to have grandparents to rely on. Your daughter doesn’t have grandparents, does she?”

“No,” she said in a dull voice.

“I think that’s enough, your Honor.”

The judge looked uncomfortable. “Do you have any questions, Mr. McCrae?”

Connor stood. “Yes I do, your Honor.” He approached Jordan and smiled. “Ms. Holbrook, please tell us who your father was.”

She sat up straighter. “My father was Sgt. Troy Jordan, of the United States Army.”

“Why hadn’t you ever met your father?”

“He was killed in action before I was born.”

“Why did your mother leave you in the care of your grandparents, Ms. Holbrook?”

“She was struggling with the pain of my father’s death. She didn’t want me to be affected by it.”

“And how did she die?”

“People who knew her believe that she committed suicide, because of her grief for my father.”

“It sounds like they must have been very much in love.”

“Yes, they were.”

“Your grandmother died recently. How old was she?”

“She was sixty-nine-years-old.”

“And you’ll soon be thirty-years-old?”

“Yes.”

“That makes her forty-six at the time you started living with her. That doesn’t seem elderly to me. I’ve heard of women having babies of their own at that age. Perhaps I’m wrong. What do you think, your Honor? Is forty-six considered elderly?”

Judge Bender gave a rare smile and shook his head. Connor went on. “I’ve listened to all the questions and answers given today with all my attention. I’ve made an interesting observation. Not once has your daughter been referred to by name. What is her name, Ms. Holbrook?”

Jordan’s whole face broke into a wide smile. “Her name is Elizabeth Holbrook.”

“That’s a big name for a little girl. She’s five years old?”

“That’s right. She was named after my grandmother. We call her Lizzy.”

“What would you like the court to know about Lizzy, Ms. Holbrook?”

“She’s beautiful, smart, and funny. She’s looking forward to starting kindergarten this fall, and she has a cat named Tom. She just learned to ride a bicycle. And she has a huge appetite.” A few of the female observers laughed.

“Describe the kind of home life you’ve provided for Lizzy.”

“I wouldn’t say it’s fancy, but we get by. I’ve worked hard to give her a safe, clean home. She has ample food, clothes, and toys. Even though I’ve always worked, we spend a lot of time together.” Jordan turned to face the judge. “We’ve only had each other until moving back to Mayville. Now, we both have plenty of friends.”

“Ms. Holbrook, can you please explain to the court why Lizzy is currently staying with friends.”

“In the last few weeks, we’ve had problems.” Jordan folded her hands tightly in her lap. “It started with anonymous phone calls from someone claiming to be watching us. After I received a summons for this hearing, Bobby Ray Butler called. He suggested I give him money to avoid this case. He even implied that I take money from the bank where I work. More recently, I encountered him in the grocery store. He said he’d get Lizzy, and if I wanted to keep her safe, I’d have to also stay with him too. I felt threatened when he told me he plans to punish me.” Jordan turned to the judge again. “I don’t want Lizzy to be hurt because of any of this.”

Bennett stood, but before he could speak Connor said, “I think I’ve heard enough, your Honor.”

“Do you have anyone else to call, Mr. Bennett?” the judge asked.

“No, your Honor,” Bennett grumbled.

“I have calls to return in my chambers. We’ll take a one-hour break before Mr. McCrae continues. I’ll expect everyone who wants to be admitted back into this courtroom to be on time.” Judge Bender tapped his gavel.

Chapter Fifteen

“What just happened in there?” Bobby Ray cornered Bennett in the restroom as he came out of a stall. “He just made Jordan look like
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
. Everybody in the room loved her when he was finished.”

“All that matters is what the judge thinks. He could see that dog and pony show for what it was.”

“You tore her down and he built her right back up. That’s what I saw. Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”

“Yeah, okay, the guy was pretty good, but so were you. I think he just shot his wad. He doesn’t have any more to go with. Your testimony was touching. They aren’t going to forget that. You’ll at least get visitation.”

“If I don’t, your wife will hear from me. When I tell her all I know, she’ll be history, along with her daddy’s money. Just remember that.”

****

In the courthouse cafeteria, Connor looked up to see Jordan watching him with a serious expression. He gave her a big smile and a wink. She brightened and smiled back.

“This has been hard on Jordan,” he told Caleb. “I wish she didn’t have to be here for the rest of it.”

“You know how these judges can be. He’d call this thing over if she didn’t show. Then, we wouldn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting rid of Butler.”

“We aren’t going to get rid of him anyway. Not until he’s put away or dead.”

“That’s why we’re still on this investigation, Con. John and Ted are looking as hard as they can to find some way to trip him up.”

“I can’t keep those guys here indefinitely. They have families to get back to.” Connor cocked his head curiously. “You know, I haven’t even asked if you have a family yet, Cal.”

“Close, but no cigar. That’s a story for another time, though.” He didn’t look up as he snapped his laptop closed. “We’d better get back inside.”

Connor walked over to Jordan and put his arms around her. He whispered in her ear as they walked back to the courtroom, “It’s going to get really nasty in there now. You know I’m going to do anything I have to, to tear him apart. Can you handle it?”

“I can handle anything that will save Lizzy, especially if you’re there.”

“I don’t know if you understand how bad this may get. Let me say now that I’m sorry if any of this hurts you. I’d give anything for you to be spared from all of this.”

“I love you, Connor. It’s going to be all right.”

“You’re an amazing woman, Jordan. I’m so lucky to have you.” He kissed her hard on the lips. “Let’s get this over with.”

Ted leaned over the railing to hand Connor another folder as they sat down.

“You understand that you’re still under oath, Mr. Butler?” Judge Bender asked as the proceedings resumed.

“Yes I do, your Honor.”

“You may proceed, Mr. McCrae.” He nodded to Connor.

“Mr. Butler, I would like to go over some of your previous testimony. You stated earlier that you had been laid off from your job before the robbery occurred. Where had you been working?”