Martha Takes the Case
Chapter 9

Copyright© 2014 by harry lime

Martha Goodpenny spent a moment looking at her reflection in the hallway mirror. She knew she should feel ashamed of her conduct but she felt far too gloriously good to sink into recriminations at her age. "What is done is done" was her thought as she descended down the spiral staircase.

She could not call her terrible behavior back even if she had the inclination to do so which she most certainly did not in her euphoric state of mind.

Mister Higgins was already downstairs in the breakfast room and the maid had informed her that both he and his daughter were waiting for her presence before the bacon cooled too much for consumption. Her attire was in good repair and her features were adequately addressed along with a good solid brushing of hair that ruthlessly refused to obey orders. She was ready for the family command performance.

When she entered the room, they broke off their conversation making her immediately suspect of the topic of their discussion. She had the momentary thought that she was sinking into paranoia in her senior years.

The young girl was her usual reserved but happy mood and told her,

"I hope you like both bacon and sausage because cook made up extra for you."

Martha smiled hoping it did not look false or contrived and replied,

"Let me at them, I can't resist either in the morning."

Higgins looked a bit embarrassed like he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar or the till.

They concentrated on the food for a few moments and she managed to go through a cup of coffee so quickly that she was pouring a second cup before she remembered to put in her sugar.

"Daddy tells me that now that you have caught that terrible Mister Han, you are organizing the evidence to be presented at the trial."

Martha was surprised that her bed partner of the night before was so loose-lipped because he didn't act the sort at all. Then again, it was his only daughter and he probably told her everything. She wondered if he told her how nice it was to bang her very own rump as hard as did the previous night. It was unlikely because he seemed the type to not discuss matters related to sex with a daughter with a sensitive past.

Actually, she was suddenly relaxed and at ease because they were both chatting about things of topical concerns and not her conduct or her lack of dignity. Later, sipping the delicious coffee that tasted suspiciously like the blend she favored at an expensive hotel near the theater district, Martha fell into natural conversation about their strategy for the trial. She was astonished that Linda the attractive and super intelligent daughter was so much up on the details of the case and she could tell that Higgins shared much of his daily routine with her just to keep her interested in the world around her and not fall into some spiral of self-pity that would be ultimately far more destructive than any immature conduct like so many young people are wont to do in modern times.

She ran back up the stairs to retrieve the folder with all of the pertinent details and they gleefully spread them out on the dining room table like some school project being taken over by adults. Only in this case, the details included some rather gruesome forensic photos of the crime scene and her murdered niece Rowena.

Linda was very good at organizing things.

She was far better than either Martha or her father and soon she had the entire package consolidated into three major areas of evidence that would bring the murderous Mister Han to his just reward. Martha didn't mention it at the time but she was certain that Higgins was well aware of the danger posed by the assassin's employers who would stop at nothing to derail the prosecution.

The first stack was all of the hard cold facts of the case including incriminating evidence that would impress the jury like the fingerprints, the DNA and the photos of the crime scene.

Then, there was the list of the prosecution witnesses who would set the time table, the location of the accused and the circumstances of his presence in the crime scene at the time of the crime.

Finally, she had assembled the circumstantial evidence alluding to the mysterious Mister Han's occupation, his previous criminal past and his connections to organized crime. His movements were detailed and many and would reveal him to be a nasty piece of work.

Martha knew they should be able to secure a conviction on the physical evidence alone but that some of the witnesses might easily be bought off or discouraged from participating out of fear or avarice. She knew full well that the case might rest on the weight of the circumstantial evidence and she remembered her departed husband, Chief Inspector Goodpenny telling her time and again that circumstantial evidence had convicted the majority of the fellows in prison for life.

Linda agreed to accompany Martha to the prosecutor's office to assist her in presenting the case but Higgins was understandably reluctant to enter the "Lion's Den" unless absolutely necessary. It was most amusing to Martha to watch him stammer out his excuses knowing that he had reasons of his own for avoiding proximity to the law. It went right over Linda's head and that was a good thing because she had enough worries to last her a lifetime.

 
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