WASHINGTON DC: The Sadir Affair (The Puppets of Washington Book 1) (22 page)

“What were those?”

“Well…, she spoke French for one thing, but the main reason was that the trip would take her to Florida, where Talya decided to chase the man whom she thought was at the origin of the drug trafficking in West Africa—Ben Slimane. Slimane, was told she was Jewish, and from that point on, as Mark Gilford surmised, he tried to protect her any which way he could. While doing that, he forgot that he himself had become a target.”

Darlene stopped to drink some water, which gave Lucien an opportunity to ask the next question. “Okay, that clarifies a lot, but that still doesn’t tell me why Talya didn’t tell anyone she knew Samuel when she, Mark and Dr Hendrix met him on the road.”

“Huh-huh... and I asked her the same thing.”

“And what did Talya say?”

“She said that since other things happened on that trip, beginning with Mark being shot after the episode on the Marianne…”

“Hold on... Are you saying Mark Gilford was shot
after
the Marianne incident? I don’t believe this! How come I wasn’t told about this? Was that in his statement, or am I becoming blind?”

“No, Lucien, you’re not becoming blind—just kept in the dark about most things that could hurt the case against Sadir.”

“You mean Gilford kept quiet because he’s in on this?”

“No, Lucien. Remember what I told you before dinner; look in the mirror and don’t accuse anyone before you know the whys and wherefores, okay?”

“Alright, alright, go on for heaven’s sakes... I’m getting a headache.”

“Okay…, Talya didn’t want to let Samuel know she had recognized him because he also pretended that he had never met her, for one thing, and since she had no idea why they were being chased…”

Lucien couldn’t hold his tongue. “Chased now? What the hell are you saying…?”

“Just settle down, we’ll get to all that in detail in the morning, but for now let me finish...”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.”

“They were being chased, as I said. That’s a verified fact. I have interviewed the three people who intervened at the time and who offered Mark, Talya and Dr Hendrix their assistance in Atlanta. So, given all of these factors, Talya didn’t want to let anyone know that she knew Samuel—she didn’t know if he had remained a friend or had become a foe in the interim she had not seen him. And since he didn’t acknowledge knowing her in the first instance, she kept her mouth shut.”

It was Lucien’s turn to drink a big gulp of water. “How long are you in town for?”

Although unexpected, the question brought a smile across Darlene’s lips. “As long as it will take to get to a trial with a winning hand.”

“And who’s paying your fees for this?”

“Let’s just call the person an interested party, shall we?”

Doctor Blaine Adelman, M.E. sat uneasily in the witness chair. He had taken the stand so often during his career that it had become a routine appointment in his calendar. He had learned from long experience to confine his answers to the simplest description of the victim, the time of death, and its cause. In his fifties now, he had developed a permanent scowl on his brow that made him look more sombre, even menacing, than he really was. His brown eyes, droopy eyelids and greying hair gave him the ominous look of a surly graveyard digger. Yet, the man was gentle, loving and kind. To anyone who knew him well enough, he was a joker at heart. He loved to entertain his staff with dry humour and wit while listening to opera as he was dissecting the victims of sometimes-atrocious crimes.

Once the doctor established his identity and function with the department of the Medical Examiner in Flint, MI, he was sworn in.

Lucien Billycan then got up from his seat and walked the few steps that separated the prosecution table from the witness stand. “Good afternoon, Doctor.” He smiled amiably.

“Good afternoon, sir.” The doctor shifted in his seat. Although cushioned to make it as comfortable as possible, the chair hadn’t been designed to have people sit in it for great lengths of time.

The courtroom was one of the oldest in the city. The atmosphere was nothing less than solemn, not to say stuffy. Some of the Old Bailey’s courtrooms in England had very little to envy from the décor of this room. The wood panelling and judge’s bench, the seating, reflective of another era, impressed the members of the jury and the public attending the proceedings with a feeling of sober grandeur.

“Now, Doctor, could you describe for the court the victim’s state of health and the injury or injuries that caused the death of Mr. Ishmael Assor, known to everyone as Ben Slimane, the first victim in this case?”

“Yes. The victim, a Caucasian man, 35 years’ of age, 6’1” in height, 176 lbs., in excellent health at the time of his death, died as a result of a gunshot wound to the head. The bullet pierced the frontal lobe just above the right temple, traversed the frontal lobe and lodged itself inside the skull of the victim, just above the left temporal lobe. Death was instantaneous.”

“Therefore, Doctor, your conclusion is that Mr. Assor, as you’ve just described it for the court, died instantly from a gunshot wound to the head, is that correct?”

“Yes, sir, he did. That is my conclusion.”

“Did you ascertain the size and calibre of the bullet upon its recovery?”

“No, sir. I recovered the bullet, and sent it to the forensic lab for examination.”

“Did you receive a report of their findings?”

“Yes, I did.”

Billycan moved back to his table and picked up a binder, which he brought to the witness. “Is that the report you received from forensic?”

“It looks like it, yes,” Adelman said, taking the slim binder from Billycan’s hand.

“Would you mind turning to page 3 of this report and read the highlighted portion?”

Adelman turned to the page in question and read; “The bullet recovered from the victim was shot from a Gamo Silent Cat .22 Air Rifle with 4x32 Scope.”

He closed the binder and handed it back to Billycan.

“Your Honour” —the US Attorney turned to the judge— “the Prosecution offers this forensics report, marked Exhibit 1 and tender to opposing counsel.”

“No objection, Your Honour,” Mr. David Simmons replied distractedly from the defence table.

Muhammad Sadir, sitting beside his attorney, appeared very indifferent to what was happening. In fact, he looked bored. Since his arraignment, he had had several sessions with his solicitor and had been biding his time in jail, and his ennui showed in his manner and in the way he tried to find a comfortable position in the seat that seemed definitely too tight for his ample girth.

“You may proceed, Mr. Billycan,” Judge Silverman said.

Silverman was a thin-faced man. Everything about him was thin and lanky. His long nose, elongated ear lobes, his sallow cheeks, his pointed chin, and his almost cadaveric-looking hands protruding from the sleeves of his robe, gave one the impression the man was not healthy. Yet, he was known to jog five miles every morning, to eat voluminous meals, and to indulge in the occasional drink or two.

“Now, Mr. Adelman,” Billycan said, “let’s return to your examination of the body of Mr. Assor. Did you find anything else on the body that may have indicated that he suffered trauma prior to his death.”

“Objection, Your Honour,” the defence attorney shouted, “He’s leading the witness.”

“Sustained. Watch your step, Mr. Billycan. You know better than that. Rephrase.”

Billycan bowed slightly and turned again to the M.E. “When you examined the body of Mr. Assor did you find anything apart from the gunshot wound?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Could you describe for the court what that was?”

“Yes. I found several contusions on the shins and knee caps of the victim’s legs.”

“Were those in some way indicative of trauma, in your opinion, Doctor?”

“Yes, those are consistent with slamming one’s legs and knees against a hard object.”

“I see. And were you able to determine what this hard object was?”

“Yes, I did. The victim died at the wheel of a vehicle as it struck a tree on the side of the road…”

“Your Honour!” Simmons was on his feet now. “Objection. Foundation?”

Judge Silverman turned to the witness. “Doctor, please confine your answers to the questions, nothing else.” He looked down at Billycan. “Let’s try to move a little faster, Counsel, it’s been a long day already.” He turned to Simmons. “Objection sustained.” Then to the US Attorney, “Go on, Mr. Billycan.”

“Do you want the court reporter to read the question back to you, Doctor?”

“Yes, if it’s not too much trouble.”

The young woman did and the doctor then nodded. “The contusions and bruising were consistent with the victim’s legs hitting the lower part of a dashboard in a vehicle.”

“And you determined the cause of the contusions and bruising to be the result of an impact against the lower part of the dashboard of a vehicle how?”

“The victim died at the wheel of a vehicle which he was driving at the time of his death as was determined later upon forensic examination.”

“And that was part of the same forensic report we just introduced as Exhibit 1 to the court?”

“No sir, that was part of another forensic report which described the victim’s vehicle in detail and the position of the body as it was found at the scene of the accident.”

Billycan bowed to the witness. “Thank you, Doctor.” Then he turned to the judge. “Your Honour, the prosecution intends to introduce the forensic report mentioned by the witness at a later time, when the forensic examiner will take the stand next.”

“Very well, Mr. Billycan. If Defence Counsel has no objection to the introduction of this particular forensic evidence at a later time, we will make a note for the record and move on.”

“No objection, Your Honour,” Simmons mumbled without looking up.

“Thank you, Your Honour.” Billycan nodded to Silverman and returned his attention to Dr. Adelman. “Thank you for your patience, Doctor.” He walked toward the jury. “Did you discover any other injuries on Mr. Assor’s body?”

“Yes, sir. Mr. Assor had a ruptured spleen, and several rib fractures.”

“Did you determine the cause of these particular injuries?”

“Those were consistent with the victim sustaining a sharp and extensive blow to the abdominal cavity and thorax.”

Still with his back turned to the doctor, Billycan went on, “Now, Dr Adelman, could you tell us if these injuries were caused prior to the victim being shot?” He swung on his heels to Adelman. The latter fidgeted in his chair.

“Some of the injuries were sustained prior to the gunshot wound, yes.”

“Let see if we understand what you are saying, Doctor. Are you telling us that only some of the injuries were sustained
prior
to Mr. Assor’s death, and some others were sustained
after
his death?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Now, Doctor, there is a detail that you haven’t broached during your description of these injuries. Did you discover any indication on Mr. Assor’s body that he had been wearing a seat belt at the time of the accident?”

“Ah, yes... Well, I mean no.” Billycan looked at the witness fixedly. “I mean there were no marks on the victim’s torso or left shoulder indicating he had been wearing his seat belt, no.”

“Thank you, Doctor. So, we could be fairly certain then the injuries—whether sustained before, during or after the accident—could have been the result of Mr. Assor being projected against the steering wheel and underside of the dashboard. Is that your testimony?”

“Yes, Mr. Billycan.”

“But you determined the cause of death to be the gunshot wound, didn’t you, Doctor?”

“Yes, I did. The gunshot wound was the primary cause of death, yes.”

“That’s all, Doctor, thank you,” Billycan said, walking back to his table. “Your Honour, I’d like to reserve the right to recall this witness later in the proceedings.”

“So noted, Mr. Billycan. Mr. Simmons, your witness.”

“Thank you, Your Honour,” Simmons replied, rising from the defence table and buttoning his suit jacket. “Good afternoon, Dr Adelman.” He, too, smiled affably to the witness. “Since my colleague has already covered some grounds with his examination, I don’t intend to take much of your time.” Adelman nodded. “So, let’s go back to the last answer you gave to Mr. Billycan; you said that the gunshot wound was the primary cause of death—could you explain to the court what you meant by that comment?”

“Yes. I meant that the victim died from the gunshot wound, but could have died from the injuries I described, which he sustained during the accident. Since the victim didn’t die as a result of these injuries, the primary cause of death is therefore the gunshot wound.”

“So, you are saying, and correct me if I am wrong, that the victim
could
have died from the injuries he sustained during the accident, if he had not been shot—is that what we are to conclude from your testimony, Doctor?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“But, when you said the victim
could have died
as a result of these injuries, did you imply there was a possibility he could have survived such injuries?”

“Yes, that was a possibility, in my opinion, but…”

“That’s all, Doctor. Thank you for answering my questions.” He turned and smiled at Billycan.

He’s playing right into my hands,
the US Attorney thought, returning the smile.

Simmons reverted to the witness. “All right, Doctor, just a couple more questions... When were you called to the scene of the accident?”

“It was rush-hour—about 6:00PM.”

“And you testified the victim died instantaneously, is that correct?”

“Yes, sir, Mr. Assor was already dead when I arrived on the scene.”

“Did you notice anything peculiar about the position of the body?”

“Nothing peculiar, no. He was slumped over the steering wheel, his head resting on it.”

“Was the vehicle a modern car…?”

Billycan literally jumped off his seat. “Objection! This witness is not an expert in this field...
Move to strike
.”

“Sustained,” Silverman exclaimed, banging his gavel. He was not happy. A menacing face to the defence lawyer, he pronounced his next sentence as if speaking to an inane individual. “Mr. Simmons, this witness cannot answer questions which are not part of his field of expertise.” Then more rapidly, “And please don’t try this little stunt on me again, Mr. Simmons—I’ll have your hide if you do.” His eyes travelled to the bewildered jurors. They seemed to have woken up from a peaceful tedium-filled trance. “The jury is instructed to disregard the question—it will be stricken from the record.” He then peered down at the deflated attorney, frowning. “As I said before, Mr. Simmons, this has been a long day for everyone, so let’s be brief, shall we?”

“Yes, Your Honour. I have no more questions for this witness at this time.”

“Very well then.” Silverman turned his head to the M.E. “You may step down, Dr Adelman—that’s all for today, thank you. But please remain available to the court...”

“Yes, thank you, Your Honour.”

When the doctor left the courtroom, Judge Silverman adjourned the proceedings to the next day at 9:00AM.

His Honour had been right when he had said that it had been a long day already. The morning had been dedicated to the opening statements, which, for the Prosecution, had been delivered most aptly by Marcel Fauchet.

Marcel had described the accident and shooting of Ishmael Assor (a.k.a. Ben Slimane) that had resulted in the man’s death in Flint, Michigan. He had given a detailed description of the events that had led to the victim’s death, and then moved on to the description of the attempted murder of Ms. Talya Kartz and the events that had preceded that particular shooting. Marcel then had attracted the jury’s attention to the fact that both victims were of Jewish descent and religious persuasion and that the accused was known to be of Islamic faith and a practicing Muslim. He had concluded his statement by pointing out that, although an Israeli government agent by the name of Samuel Meshullam had carried out the shooting of the two victims, no less than three United States national and international government agencies had purportedly been involved in these crimes. The two felonies had allegedly been elaborated, designed and subsequently ordered by the accused, with complete disregard for the consequences of his actions or assumption of his responsibilities as a CIA agent.