Special Needs

Chapter 74: The Trial, Part 7

One week later, we were back in the courtroom. Everything looked almost exactly the same inside, but outside was pandemonium with reporters and citizens practically rioting and law enforcement officials doing their absolute best to keep the peace.

One addition to the courtroom was Chief Waters, now wearing an orange prison jumpsuit. When Theodore came in with his lawyer, he didn't even acknowledge the chief although the rest of us knew he'd be dead in a second if Theodore could have his way with him.

When the judge entered and we'd gone through the formalities, he spoke to the jury. "Ladies and Gentlemen, as you know, there has been new evidence added to this case. The prosecution will be calling an additional witness after we hear from Anne Styles Blake. Theodore Blake now faces two additional charges: one count of murder in the first degree and one count of being an accessory to murder." He took a seat and said, "Prosecution, your witness."

Nathan stood and called Anne to the witness stand. "Anne, what is your relationship to the defendant?"

"He is my late husband's son, adopted through marriage," she answered.

"How old was Theodore when you first became involved with William?"

"He was sixteen when I first met William. We were just friends for a long time but as we became closer, I spent more time getting to know Theodore and Benjamin." Theodore looked like he wanted to spit venom at her.

"How would you describe your relationship with Theodore?" Nathan asked.

"It was cordial for a long time. We acknowledged each other and that was about it. I do have to say it was a bit awkward since I was the other woman. I...never intended for it to be like that," she said apologetically. Theodore's face was the color of a tomato. I wished he would just bust an artery and save us the hassle of going through this trial.

"How was it when you moved in with William?"

"It got worse, of course. I knew Theodore and I would never be close and that was fine. He was an adult and although he lived at home, he had his own life. He didn't make much effort to get to know me and vice versa."

"Can you tell me what happened the day of the accident?" Nathan asked and we could see that Anne was already getting emotional.

"He...William wanted to take a drive with just me and Harry. Harry was, oh, around twenty months old at the time. As Clive mentioned, I liked to sit in the back with Harry to keep him company. Anyway, William wanted to drive up the coast to enjoy the fall colors and then get a bite to eat at a quaint little restaurant he'd found." She swallowed thickly and continued in a voice that became progressively hoarse, "We never reached the restaurant. An oncoming truck swerved into our lane and clipped the front of the car. I can remember leaning over Harry to protect him and that's all I remember. The next thing I knew, I woke up in a hospital bed in Vancouver."

"You were in a coma, is that correct?" Nathan asked.

"Yes."

"For how long?"

"One hundred days exactly. Isn't that odd?" She said with a funny little smile. "When I woke up, Theodore was beside my bed. My first thought was that it was lovely of him to visit me in the hospital. I had some vague memory of the accident but I had no idea how long it had been." I felt awful for Anne in those moments, reliving the worst days of her life.

"What did Theodore say to you when you woke up?"

"He...well, first I asked him where William was. He just shook his head and I knew..." She choked on a sob. "I knew he was gone. But my baby, my poor baby Harry...." She stopped there and broke down into terrible heartbreaking wails. Nathan handed her some tissue and a guard brought her some water. She eventually found her voice again, although it was cracked and dismal. "When he told me that Harry had died, too, I wanted to die. I couldn't imagine going on without the two loves of my life."