Hellcat

Chapter Thirty-Five

My entire lack of sleep made it slightly less than unbearable to go to court the next morning. I was almost too tired to notice that strange pain in my chest every time I looked at Matt, or heard him speak. On the witness stand was the chief medical examiner, Dr. Tepper. He seemed nervous as he spoke, rapidly answering ADA Tower's questions. Then, Tower turned it over to Matt. "Your witness," he said before taking a seat. Matt stood then, unfolding his cane. "Cross your fingers," I heard Karen mutter to Foggy. "I'm crossing everything," was his reply. I was next to Frank again, Foggy and Karen stationed between me and Matt.

"Dr. Gregory Tepper, how long have you been medical examiner for the city of New York?" Matt started, stepping forward slowly, moving his cane around to make sure he didn't run into anything. "Uh, 14 years, give or take," Tepper replied, his words quivering slightly. "And how many death certificates would you estimate you've signed in that time?" Matt continued with his line of questioning. "Huh? Um, I don't, uh..." Tepper stammered. I could see the sweat on his brow from here. "It's probably in the tens of thousands," Matt offered to the nervous man. "Objection, Your Honor, leading the witness... I'm not sure where," Reyes called out. "Mr. Murdock –" Judge Batzer started before Tepper cut her off.

"I have something I need to say," he called out, fear obvious in his rushed words. "Doctor?" the judge asked in confusion. "Your Honor, I'm sorry, but... I have to, on the record. I need to say something about what I did." The entire courtroom erupted into shocked murmurs. "Clear the gallery," Judge Batzer ordered the bailiff and other members of the security team. "All jury members, please exit back to the deliberation room. Everyone in the gallery, please make your way out of the courtroom at this time," the bailiff called out as the people continued to murmur, shuffling their feet as they went. Everyone was too stunned to speak as the gallery emptied, the jurors left, and Frank was taken back to a holding cell.

"What's all this about?" Batzer finally asked, eyes locked on the doctor. "I... I know what the defense was gonna ask me about, and it's true. I altered the autopsy reports," Tepper admitted. Matt had returned to his seat but immediately stood again. "You're referring to the official findings on the murders of Frank Castle's family?" Matt asked him, voice level. "Not just them. You don't understand. I had to do it," Tepper admitted, shocking us all. I quickly scrambled for a pen and paper, ready to write down anything of importance that he said.

"Those animals came to my office," Tepper continued. "Who came to your office?" the judge asked. I was surprised how level her voice was. She didn't seem phased, but definitely curious. "After the defendant's family was murdered, two men I'd never seen before... they warned me, if I didn't fix the case reports, they'd come after my family next," Tepper admitted, no longer trying to hold back his fear. He was nearly rocking in his seat, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.

"You falsified the autopsy findings on the Castle family?" the judge asked him. "Them and one more," Tepper admitted with a nod. "Who?" Matt asked quickly before the judge signaled him to remain silent. "I don't know. Some John Doe killed the same day. Male, adult, multiple gunshot wounds. Look, you can fire me, arrest me... I don't care. I thought this was behind me, but after last night..." Tepper paused, biting at his nails in an attempt to quiet his nerves.

"Doctor, did something happen last night to impact your testimony?" the judge asked. I had been writing down notes about what he said, hoping there was something in his story to help Frank. The dead John Doe could be another piece to the puzzle. "She was in my house. She tied me up," Tepper exclaimed, flashing us his wrists. Sure enough, they were ringed in rope burns. "She said she didn't give a damn who got to me before. If I didn't tell the defense what really happened, she'd hunt me down and kill me," Tepper said before going back to his nails.

"Who told you this?" Judge Batzer asked. "I don't know. A woman. Her face was covered. Had some foreign accent," he said. Glancing over, I noticed how Matt's shocked expression changed slightly to one of understanding. He knew who did this. "Your Honor, I believe the defense intends to distract the jury and make this case about some impossible-to-prove conspiracy theories," Reyes spoke up.