Chapter 23: Evidence

Tuesday morning, two vans pulled up in from of the Coswell home along with a car from the sheriff’s department and another car from the district attorney’s office. The contingent of people walked up to the front door and knocked.

Brian Coswell, looked sleepy and haggard, opened the door wearing hastily put on blue jeans, loafers, and a t-shirt.

The district attorney stepped forward, “Mr. Coswell, I am assistant district attorney Brad James, and the purpose of this visit is for multiple reasons. I am here to search for evidence pertaining to a spousal abuse filing. Here is my search warrant, duly signed by Judge Helen Galwicki. The sheriff’s deputies and the others in this group are here so that Mrs. Coswell can collect some of her belongings. Further visits in that regard may be needed. Since you have a restraining order filed against you, we recommend you repair to a part of your home where you will not interact with her as she moves about your house. You may sit in your car if you wish.”

Brian was totally intimidated by the group and uniforms, and the apparent order. He’d opened the door and let everybody into the house. He then picked up his car keys and went outside to sit in his sedan.

Emily and Alice each carried in some wardrobe boxes, and went right to the master bedroom closet where they started to fill them with shoes and everything on the racks and hangers in Joan’s closet.

Joan, the ADA, and Dave immediately went to several places Joan thought Brian might hide evidence of his planned psychological warfare on his wife. The search didn’t take long. Brian had an office; in that office there was a bookcase; on that bookcase were three books on psychological warfare at the individual level. In each book several pages had been dog-eared and passages pencil marked.

Searching further, Dave discovered in the top drawer of Brian’s desk as the ADA looked over his shoulder, three pages that had been typed and printed detailing specific actions and phrases to use to intimidate, degrade, demean, humble, and dehumanize an individual. Several entries had been made in Brian’s handwriting. One of the comments on later pages referenced a series of phrases that could be used to encourage the suicide of the target person: ‘you’re not worthy of even being alive, let alone being someone’s wife’. Dave cringed.

The ADA took the pages, carefully put them in an evidence envelope, put the books in a bag, and the pair kept looking, but found nothing further of that ilk. The prosecutor did confiscate the computer, disconnecting the PC and carrying it out to his car with an evidence tag on it.

Dave drove the rented van back to the Circle. Several of the men were there and helped carry Joan’s boxes to the guest room and a store room she was using as a base of operations. After that, Joan headed off to her new job, Alice and Dave went to work, and Emily headed off to a volunteer job she routinely did.

Joan was more relaxed and at ease that evening, as everyone congregated for the usual pre-dinner meet up. At one point she said, “I have some news to report.”

The others gathered around. “Brad James, the ADA who went with us this morning, called me this afternoon. I’m glad I took the call. He suggested we put our civil case against Brian on hold, except for the divorce. I called my lawyer and he went on hold. The DA’s office went through the books and the computer, and, as he put it, found more than sufficient grounds for an arrest warrant.”

Joan looked at her watch, “About now, one Brian Coswell will be in custody under the laws of Florida for domestic violence, domestic abuse, and, get this, attempted premeditated murder. He’ll be kept overnight and arraigned in the morning. The man apparently kept a kind of journal or log and talked about what he was trying to make happen to me as he drove a bulldozer around inside my head. My God, I thought I knew the man. I can’t believe I ever married him. He was out to kill me.”

“Will any of that stick?”

“Apparently, so. That’s why ADA James suggested we wait with the civil law suit. If the criminal suit is concluded in favor of the state, that makes our suit a slam-dunk – those were his words. I know what it means. If they lose, we have a much lower standard of evidence and could still probably win, building on all the evidence and such laid out during the criminal case. He reminded me of the famous OJ trial, where the murder prosecution went in OJ’s favor, but he lost the civil case that did convict him of murder.”

“Joan, are you strong enough to do this?” Dave asked in a worried tone.

“Oh, yes. I need to show my soon-to-be-bastard-ex-husband that karma can be a bitch – and so can his ex-wife.” She smiled diabolically.

“His lawyers might beat you up pretty badly on the witness stand.”

Joan chuckled, “Bring ‘em on. I’m stronger every day. At the rate the courts get to things, it’ll be three to six months before this gets brought to trial. By then I’ll be fully healed. Brian probably forgets what a force I can be when I have all my wits.”

Dave rifled through Brian Coswell’s desk at work picking up the threads of what he’d left behind as he went on leave. Derek was helpful, and so were Kevin Theopolis, Sal Delorenzo, and Kate Huggins, the other people that were direct reports to Brian. Nancy had joined their ranks, and as each day passed it looked like the field promotions were going to stick, because it also looked less and less like Brian would ever return to the utility.

Dave did find some additional ‘abuse’ checklists Brian made for himself in a desk drawer. They were phone, email, and text messages that he could send to Joan during the day to further undermine her personality and consistently drive her crazy. He turned them over to the ADA working on the case.

Dave creatively brought Donna Klaubert down on temporary duty to be his assistant. Derek laughed but sent his aide with his blessings. In two weeks, the pair had restored a much better sense of order to Coswell’s Division than he had left it. The two were surprised at how much Brian had ignored in his post; there was a pile of dereliction of duty items that got distributed around the department. Donna returned ‘upstairs’ after that assignment.

Dave hosted a relatively small July fourth party at the Circle for the utility’s executives, his direct reports, a few special guests, and their partners. About sixty people came to the afternoon celebration. Donna had risen to the task again to ensure that the catering, bars, decorations, and arrangements were top notch and memorable.

Dave was glad to see that Joan attended, as most of the Circle did, helping to host the event and be sure there were no wallflowers. The Circle members wore professionally done embossed name tags, which signaled to the others attending that they could also be a source of information about the arrangements, rest rooms, and so forth.

Dave made it a point to enjoy this party. There were five obviously pregnant Circle women in attendance – Susan, Shelby, and Kat, plus Alice and Wendy had just started to ‘show’. Together with their model-quality bodies and faces, they appeared to be the envy of many of the women that came to the party. Holly’s pregnancy hadn’t been announced officially yet, so no one mentioned that.

Emily Wilson knew most of the executive’s wives, and acted as a special ‘concierge’ and hostess for them, as they arrived and mingled. She wore a Circle nametag and wasn’t at all subtle in letting others know that she was an insider at the Circle, as well as a full participant in all Circle activities. She also knew that the women and men all knew Derek had Abby as a girlfriend, so why not. The fact that Abby was also in attendance raised many eyebrows and worried a few, until it was clear that she and Emily appeared to be best friends and that Abby, too, was a Circle member.

The Circle had annexed Derek and Abby before Memorial Day, along with Paul, Megan, and Ashley. The latter three had taken over one of the units in the new townhouse building that had been completed.

The party was sedate, mostly inside in the large living and dining area. Some of the same cute waiters and waitresses that had worked the huge party Dave had given over a year earlier worked this party, being as flirty and sexy as they could without stepping over the line. They were superb, and seemed to enjoy the repartee with the guests.

One of the side celebrations at the party involved Joan Coswell. Her divorce had become final two days before the party. She had already changed her name back to what it had been before she got married. Dave kidded her that the party was her coming out celebration. Her nametag read ‘Joan Paige’.

Many of the executives knew through the grape vine (also including Donna Klaubert) and the open media (aided by Erin Steckler) about Brian’s arrest and upcoming trial. He was still living in the old Coswell house, but had to wear an ankle-bracelet transponder all the time to ensure he stayed in the county.

Seeing Joan and hearing her introduced as Joan Paige was a discontinuity for many who had known Brian, and then Joan instantly put them at ease with some witty comment about leaving a nasty past in the past with the old name, or something to that effect.

Led by Erin, the local news media did a number of specials on abusive behavior, and how emotional, sexual, and financial abuse were just as bad as physical abuse. She was also planning another blitz when the trial of Brian Coswell actually commenced, most likely in September.

Dave smiled as he watched Joan with several of the other wives of utility executives. She was so socially skilled and graceful, always managing to say just the right thing. She was smart, too, and had an innate beauty that he found hard to resist.

Dave had had the only physical interaction with Joan, and that was only one time just after she’d moved in with his family after returning from months of intense therapy at a facility outside of Austin, Texas. After she’d pleaded with him, he’d held her while she watched some of the others in the Circle having sex and jilled herself to a climax. He knew she’d watched since then, but no one had approached her for any sexual activity since she arrived.

Dave wondered whether she’d ever decide to fully join the Circle. After months of living in the Prentiss home and being around every day, she as well-known as anybody that had joined the Circle. She’d had deep and long-lasting discussions with everybody. She’d added herself to the roster of Circle members doing chores to help with meals, cleaning, and anything else of note. She contributed financially to the Circle as if she were an associate member. He had noted that she’d dressed more conservatively at the Circle get-togethers, but thought that might have been to discourage being hit on by anybody when she wasn’t ready. Of course, on the evenings when group sex was on offer, she vanished quickly after dinner unless he saw her creep back to peek at the events.

With the townhouses open, a number of moves had taken place. Christie, Holly, Ken, Donna, Erin, and Nancy had immediately moved into units, all the same week as soon as the certificates of occupancy had been issued. Dale and Susan completed their purchase of Christie’s house on the Circle. They also started to decorate the nursery.

Another unit had been purchased by Paul, Megan, and Ashley Steckler, so that they had a home on both coasts of Florida. That left one remaining unit in the eight-unit townhouse structure.

Dave had a feel about who would ultimately buy that unit, but in the meanwhile, the board of the Circle Cohousing Project took over ownership, and rented the place to members as guest quarters when they had visitors.

One Saturday, the late morning temperature on the patio of the Circle was eighty-five degrees. Dave thought the bikinis would be in full force on that unique day. Dave realized he’d mis-thought when he took stock as he sauntered out after serving breakfast. There were no bikinis. There were only monokinis and a couple of completely naked women, including two of the six to seven-month pregnant women: Susan and Shelby.

Dave then did a double take at one of the nearly nude women only a dozen feet from the table where he usually worked, almost as though she’d chosen that location with purpose.

Joan rolled over and sat us, displaying her beautiful breasts to Dave. He could feel his eyes flare in desire. She held out a plastic bottle of suntan lotion. “Would you, please. I hear you’re an expert.”

Dave set his books and iPad down. “With greater pleasure than you probably realize.” He took the lotion from her and started to rub some into her shoulders and back as she turned away from him.

Joan said, “Actually, I can kind of guess the pleasure you might be realizing. I haven’t intentionally teased you over the past months, but I know you’ve watched me watching the others have sex and taking care of myself, especially after that first time when you held me. I wanted to have you hold me every time, but decided that was too risky. I want you to know, it’s no longer a risk.”