Chapter 7: Momma Bear

It was Wednesday, and Melanie had to get ready for her testimony. She was the first witness of the day and she knew that the courtroom would be packed with spectators and the press. By 5 a.m. she was awake and prepping herself, changing her make-up at least twice before she just wiped everything off. A pale lipstick was all she applied afterwards. She then weaved her hair into a single braid and checked herself. Yes, the image that looked back at her was saying 'college student'. That was what she was after all. Melanie Renault, the actress, was her past.

To her surprise she found David wearing a suit when she emerged to have breakfast. Christina, the nurse, had clearly spruced him up. He smiled at her.

"No way you're going there alone."

"Really? Would you do that?"

He rolled his eyes. "Duh! No, I'm wearing a monkey suit to class."

"But, Uncle Josh will be with me."

"I called him and he said it's a good idea. I can even sit in my wheelchair and not need a seat. Plus, he thinks we get to use the wheelchair-accessible backdoor."

She took a deep breath. "Thanks, Davy. It means a lot to me."

The court house front steps were a madhouse. At least fifty reporters and photographers were lying in wait. They were out of luck. As Josh had hoped, David's wheelchair allowed them to use the handicapped access side entrance from where they took an elevator. They could exit right in front of the courtroom. No reporter could rattle Melanie with insensitive questions. She realized what David had done and why, and she gave him a grateful hug.

They were only ten minutes early. There was no time for Melanie to get nervous before a bailiff called her up. David followed them and parked his wheelchair at a designated space watching the proceedings.

Melanie was sworn in, and he thought it was a good sign that she spoke with a quiet, calm voice. The prosecutor then began his questioning, leading Melanie through the events of that fateful evening. She faltered only once, when she recalled the pain of the penetration. It was hard to gauge for David how the jurors felt about her testimony, but he thought he saw sympathy in more than one face. One tall guy with a crew cut and a deep tan even showed tears before casting an angry glance at Brentano.

Brentano. David had never seen the man in person, and what he saw now made him want to punch him. He had a disdainful sneer on his face and he seemed to make disparaging remarks to his lawyer who cautioned him with hand gestures. Arrogance!

The defense attorney was polite, but cold. In his cross-examination he grilled Melanie on each and every point, going over the physical details and obviously trying to rattle her. David felt pride watching as Melanie became stronger and calmer with each question. In David's perception, the defender was unable to put any of her testimony into question.

The redirect from the prosecutor took only a few minutes, and it was used to hammer the facts down the jurors' throats once again. Melanie was showing emotions, now that the pressure of the cross-examination was over, and when she was finally excused, she almost ran down the aisle to where David waited. It was time for the recess anyway, and they left the courthouse through the same side entrance.

The evening news reporting from the trial called Melanie's testimony "damning" for Brentano, with the observers noting that the defense had not been able to expose any inconsistencies. One commentator went so far as to declare that, "the emerging picture of a ruthless sadist preying on young women and girls raises many questions regarding a proper oversight over the myriad of casting shows."

Thursday then saw the closing arguments by prosecution and defense, but the pundits were already predicting a conviction. The jurors went into seclusion on Friday morning. They emerged by 4 p.m. and delivered guilty verdicts on the charges of quadruple rape, multiple aggravated assault, obstruction of justice and four cases of contributing to the delinquency of minors.

David and Melanie were still in classes when the news came. Most of their fellow students left them alone, but a few gave Melanie a thumbs-up. It was later, when they met at the limo pick-up that a dozen reporters ambushed them. Melanie kept her composure while pushing David towards the car. Campus security also showed on the scene and shielded the students against the intruding newspeople. Once David was safely inside the car, Melanie turned and stood on the door sill.

"So far I have not seen the details of the verdict, and I beg you to understand that I cannot give you specifics today. I gave testimony against Donald Brentano two days ago in which I recounted how he raped me when I was a fourteen year-old adolescent girl. Given that the jury returned guilty verdicts on all four rape charges, I have to conclude that my version of the events was accepted as the truth. I have to thank all those brave people who came forward with their testimonies and added credibility to my story."

"Let us hope that this verdict will deter others who are in similar positions of power within the movie and television industry from abusing their powers for their sexual gratification. Let me also say that Donald Brentano does not represent the movie and television business as I have come to know it. He is just one particularly rotten apple, so let's not toss over the whole apple cart. Thank you!"

Questions were shouted, but Melanie stepped down and climbed into the rear set closing the door. The photographers tried to shoot more pictures and clips as the limo left the curb, but they made a clean getaway. It was dark when they reached the Hartwell compound. As usual, the satchel bags were loaded onto David's lap and Melanie pushed him up the slight incline from the gate, past the pool and onto the patio of the garden house. To their surprise, the lights in the living room were on, and when they entered they found a smiling Judy Olsen waiting for them.

"Mom?" David queried, with a mixture of apprehension and happiness. No college student appreciates it when his mother pops in at his digs out of the blue.

"Hi, you two! I thought I'd come and see how my son can walk again."

David looked at Melanie who nodded. "Of course I told her! I had to!"

Judy gave her son a hug, but then she turned to Melanie. Holding her by the shoulders, she gave the surprised girl a kiss on her cheek. "Boy, am I glad that I ran after you!"

Melanie nodded soberly. "I'm glad that you ran after me. Did you hear the news?"

"Yeah. Guilty on all major points. Let's hope the sentencing goes just as well."

Melanie shrugged. "There is not much leeway. Most of the charges carry a mandatory minimum. He'll die in prison."

"Yes, you brave girl. He will. Now, how about David here shows his mom that he can walk?"

"Mom," David protested. "I can only walk in the pool."

Judy grinned. "I brought a bathing suit. What's your excuse?"

"The nurse! The nurse changes me into my swim trunks."

"Oh, pish! I changed your diapers, young man! I..."

"Mom!" David fairly squeaked causing Melanie to giggle.

"I'll do the diaper duty. David and I have discovered a way to change his trunks so that I see no more of him than he sees of me," she deadpanned.

"All right then, what are we waiting for? David, your old momma flew all the way from the frozen valley of your home to see her son..."

"Okay, okay! We'll do it," David surrendered.

Not ten minutes later, a flustered David was in the pool. Melanie had indeed managed to change him into his trunks without seeing more of him than he saw of her. They both got an eyeful. Now she stood the customary three steps away from him and beckoned him. Concentrating on the task, David made the required steps forward.

"Really? That's wonderful, David!" Judy enthused. "That trainer must be a miracle worker."

"It was Mel, Mom. It was just the two of us and she made me walk."

Judy cast an amused look at the blushing Melanie. "You didn't tell me that."

"It's not important. He can walk. That's all that counts."

"If you say so ... Enough of that. Show me more of your moves, Davy!"

Holding Melanie's hands, David then limped the length of the pool. It was something Arturo had practiced with him the day before. Now that Melanie played Arturo's support role it worked as well.

For the next twenty minutes, David walked either at Melanie's or Judy's hands until he was thoroughly exhausted. The women then lifted him out and wheeled him back to the house where once again, Melanie worked her magic to change him into the pair of leisure pants that he usually wore in the evenings.

Dinner was in the big house, and Mrs. Ling outdid herself. Josh and Judy were sitting opposite from David and Melanie, and suddenly realization hit David. His mother had other reasons to visit than seeing him walk up and down the pool. Melanie must have realized it too, for she gave David a wide-eyed look. He shrugged. His mother was a grown up and the most level headed person he knew. She could do much worse than hook up with Josh Hartwell.

Of course, the events of the day were rehashed during dinner, with Josh contributing some insider information. Brentano had been taken into custody in the courtroom, but was subsequently released on bail pending the sentencing. There would be an appeal of course and there was still a chance that he would not live long enough to see the inside of a cell given his financial resources.

After dinner, David and Melanie sat on the small sofa in the living room for a while. They talked, but they also held hands. The talk revolved mostly around Josh and Judy. By tacit agreement they avoided the topic of their own growing closeness. They also shut out any thoughts of Brentano. At one point, Melanie fell asleep with her head against David's chest, and he had to wake her at midnight so that she could help him to bed.

The media frenzy around Brentano's conviction reached higher levels on Saturday. His wife, Debbie Brentano, gave a press conference announcing her intention to divorce him, claiming that she feared for her own safety. Then the network officials announced the cancellation of Superstar!, his main breadwinner, and ruled out any future collaboration with Brentano TV, his production company. The hits just kept coming. Two former contestants announced civil suits against Brentano for unspecified wrongdoings. With all the legal trouble he had to be hemorrhaging money, with no fresh cash coming in anymore. It was quite clear that Brentano was done for.

The inhabitants of Josh's estate used the day to get some distance from the affair. David and Arturo went through two training sessions, and by the end, David was able to do seven unassisted steps in the pool. In the evening, they drove out to a quiet restaurant in Santa Monica and returned barely inside Melanie's curfew.

Sunday was Arturo's day off again. The nurse came by like every morning to help David, but he was getting increasingly self-sufficient in most aspects. By 8 o'clock, he was ready for a training session with Melanie. He was sitting in his wheelchair when a movement outside caught his attention. At first he thought it might be his mother trying to sneak into the pool with Josh, but the figure was shorter and way too corpulent to be either Judy or Josh. The recognition washed over him like ice water.

"Melanie!" he whispered sharply. "Call 911! Brentano's out there by the pool."

Melanie who had just come down the stairs froze for a second, but then she ran upstairs for her cell phone. David thought briefly. The big glass sliding doors of the garden house would not keep the man out. He had to intercept him, keep him away from the house and from Melanie. He was wearing his life jacket already and his swim trunks. He quickly wheeled himself out of the patio door and snapped it shut. Then he slowly wheeled himself towards the pool tent. Entering the tent he found himself face to face with Brentano. David forced a smile to his face.

"Hi! Are you Arturo's replacement?"

"What?" came the harsh answer.

"The physical therapist?"

Brentano seemed slow on the uptake. He took in David in his wheelchair.

"You're the boy she ran over, right?" he slurred.

Drunk or drugged, David's brain told him.

"Huh?" he asked to gain time.

"The boy on the motorshycle."

"Ah, yes?"

"Where is that little whore?"

"Who? What whore?"

"The Renault bitch. The lying cunt who ... Where is she?"

"I don't think you should..." David began and then he saw the gun in Brentano's hand.

"Where is she, you fuckin' cripple?" Brentano demanded.

"I ... I don't know. I was to meet my trainer here. M-Miss Renault must be asleep."

David was getting a bad feeling. What if Brentano had been through the big house before, where his mother was sleeping? But then he remembered the nurse, Christina. She had just left and Brentano must have rushed the gate when she let herself out. Christina had no key for the big house.

"Where is she?"

"I ... I don't really know. I'm not allowed in the big house," David temporized.

"How do I get in? Speak, you little shit, or I'll make sure you'll never walk again!"

The gun came up and David felt cold fear. His muscles were twitching already and soon he would be frozen.

"There's a code, but I don't know it, honest. They keep me in the garden house and the nurse comes twice..."

There was the sound of a door closing from the direction of the big house. Brentano heard it too and listened. David inhaled deeply.

"Run, Melanie! He's got a gun!" he shouted looking past Brentano.

It worked. Brentano turned, not paying attention to David and probably discounting him as a cripple anyway. David pushed his wheelchair forward with all his strength. He was even able to lift his right foot up to Brentano's knee on impact, causing Brentano to lose his balance. The gun went off with an earsplitting noise when it hit the concrete surface while the two men landed in the pool. David tried to reach the side of the pool, but the enraged Brentano came after him.

"You fuckin' shit! I'll teach you, you fuckin' cripple!" he screamed.

The shorter and corpulent Brentano could not move well in the water that reached his upper chest and encumbered by his street clothes as he was, while David in his life jacket could not sink. Still, being unable to get a solid stand and with no leg power to speak of, David took two swings from Brentano before he was able to catch the hands of his opponent. David was younger, taller and physically stronger, but he was unbalanced and Brentano pushed him under the water. They struggled against each other and David was being dunked for the second time when he felt Brentano going slack for a second or two.