Fugitive (34 page)

I think it's possible, but I' m open to suggestions. Besides Senior, can you think of someone else who might want you dead?

Charlie looked nervous. No. I mean there's Tuazama, but like I said I don't think he'd kill me until he got the diamonds.

So, you can't think of anyone else?

No.

Amanda opened her attachT case and took out a manila envelope. Inside the envelope was the photograph she'd stolen from Karl Burdett's file. She took it out and laid it on top of the blanket on Charlie's bed.

The Honorable Maria Gomez took the bench and the parties in the case of In re Kevin Pope stood until she was seated. Judge Gomez was in her mid-forties. The wiry six-foot jurist had played on the LPGA tour until she gave up golf for law school. Then she'd brought her competitive drive to the legal profession, where she'd been one of the top domestic-relations lawyers in Oregon before the current governor elevated her to the bench. She was a no-nonsense judge who liked to move cases along and she disliked lawyers who were unprepared or wasted her time.

Sitting at one counsel table next to Arnold Pope Sr. was Andrew Curry, a stoop-shouldered, balding attorney with a skeletal build. Curry was nicknamed the Vampire because of the ruthless way he practiced law and a bloodless complexion that was the result of long hours spent indoors working on ways to win divorce and custody battles for his clients. Curry wore the nickname with pride. Nobody liked him but everybody recommended him to a spouse who wanted an ex destroyed, destitute, and demoralized.

Frank Jaffe sat across the aisle from Pope and Curry, and Amanda sat next to her father so they could confer. Liam O' Connell was next to Amanda. Kevin was not present, because custody hearings were often wars of character assassination and the accusations of biased witnesses were best left unheard by the child who would have to live with one of the maligned parties.

Let me see if I understand the background of this case, Mr. Jaffe, Judge Gomez said. Sally Pope was Kevin Pope's mother and Arnold Pope Jr. was his father. Mr. Pope passed away twelve years ago and Mrs. Pope raised her son until her recent death. Mr. O' Connell lived with Mrs. Pope and Kevin for approximately five years before her death. In her will, Mrs. Pope named Mr. O' Connell as Kevin's guardian and Mr. O' Connell filed a petition requesting me to appoint him Kevin's guardian.

That's correct, Your Honor, Frank Jaffe said. I also want to make sure that you know that it was Mrs. Pope's specific wish which she spelled out in her will that Arnold Pope Sr. never be allowed to be Kevin's guardian. She was adamant while alive, and in her will, that Mr. Pope Sr. should never have contact with her son.

I' m aware of that and I will consider Mrs. Pope's wishes very seriously when I make my decision. But I' m not bound by them. My main concern is the best interests of the child, Kevin Pope.

The judge turned her attention to Senior and his attorney. Mr. Curry, your client filed objections to Mr. O' Connell's petition seeking guardianship and today I' m going to decide who will be appointed Kevin's temporary guardian until a full-fledged hearing can be held. Is that correct?

Yes, Your Honor.

Then it seems to me that Mr. Pope has the burden of proof, since the will asks the court to appoint Mr. O' Connell as Kevin's guardian.

Curry stood so rapidly that Judge Gomez had the impression that she had missed part of the transition from seat to feet. It was like watching a film from which several of the frames had been removed.

Your Honor, I respectfully disagree with your holding. We believe that Mr. O' Connell should bear the burden of convincing this court that he should be appointed Kevin's guardian. Oregon law recognizes that grandparents have substantial interests in their grandchildren. A sexual partner with no blood ties to the child should not be granted superior rights to a grandparent.

Furthermore, we take issue with Mr. Jaffe's position that Mrs. Pope's rabid and unjustified dislike of my client should play any part in the court's decision.

I appreciate your position, Mr. Curry. I may be wrong on the issue of who bears the burden. If I am, the appellate court will straighten me out. But you brought this petition challenging the will, so I' m holding that you have the burden of convincing me that Mr. O' Connell should not be appointed Kevin's temporary guardian. Are you ready with your first witness?

BEFORE THE NOON recess, a child psychiatrist, who had been hired by Senior, testified that he would make an excellent guardian for Kevin. Then Curry called several prominent Oregonians, including one of Oregon's United States senators, who testified to their belief that Arnold Pope Sr. loved his late son and his grandson and would make an excellent guardian for Kevin. During cross-examination, Frank Jaffe established that each witness was biased by a financial or personal relationship with Senior. He also got them to admit that they knew nothing about Liam O' Connell's fitness to raise the boy.

As soon as court reconvened after lunch, Judge Gomez told Curry to call his next witness. Tony Rose straightened the jacket of his charcoal black pinstripe suit, adjusted his maroon silk tie, and walked to the witness stand looking every bit the successful business executive.

Mr. Rose, what is your profession? Curry asked after the witness was sworn.

I' m the president of Mercury Enterprises. We manufacture sporting equipment.

Your company also sponsors the Mercury training program for our Olympic athletes, does it not?

Yes, sir. There are several American athletes who have earned Olympic medals after taking advantage of our training facilities.

Can you please tell the judge a little about the activities of Mercury worldwide?

That won't be necessary, Mr. Curry, Judge Gomez said. I' m well aware of who Mr. Rose is and what Mercury does. I doubt that there's a person in Oregon, or the United States for that matter, who can't identify the Mercury logo.

Very well, Your Honor. Mr. Rose, are you acquainted with Arnold Pope Sr.?

I am.

How long have you known him?

More than ten years.

What is Mr. Pope's reputation in the business community of this state?

Well, if I might, I think ' state' is too narrow. I would say that his reputation for integrity is something people across the nation are aware of.

Have you ever had occasion to discuss Arnold Pope Jr. with him?

Yes, sir. He was devastated by the loss of his son. He still is.

Has he ever discussed his grandson, Kevin Pope, with you?

Yes, sir. I am hard pressed to say what has affected him more, the death of his son or Sally Pope's decision to cut off all contact between Mr. Pope and his grandson.

Do you think Mr. Pope would make a suitable guardian for his grandson?

Unquestionably. He loves the boy very much and would be able to give him all the advantages of his name and position.

Your witness, Mr. Jaffe, Curry said.

Your Honor, my co-counsel will handle the cross-examination of this witness.

Very well, Miss Jaffe, Judge Gomez said.

Thank you, Your Honor, Amanda replied before turning her attention to Tony Rose.

Mr. Rose, your company's brochure, television commercials, and magazine and Internet ads portray you as a sportsman. Is that accurate?

Yes.

You were a top high school tennis player before you joined the army?

Yes.

And you were good enough to reach the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I championships as a senior at Ohio State?

That's true.

Then you played professionally for two years before becoming the club pro at the Westmont Country Club?

Also true.

There are television commercials for Mercury Enterprises that show you volleying with Wimbledon and U.S. Open champion Gary Posner.

Yes, but I don't do nearly as well when the cameras aren't rolling, Rose answered. Judge Gomez smiled and several spectators laughed.

Don't other commercials show you hunting and fishing in the forests of Oregon?

That's true.

Do you enjoy those sports?

Yes, I do.

Are tennis, hunting, and fishing types of activities that interest adolescent boys?

Some boys enjoy them, Rose answered cautiously, sensing a trap.

Mr. Pope isn't capable of playing tennis, is he?

Rose hesitated. Then he said, No.

He can't hunt or fish or engage in any type of strenuous activity because he's in his seventies and has a number of physical infirmities?

Objection, Curry shouted. Mr. Rose is not a doctor.

I' m asking Mr. Rose to testify about what he's seen, Amanda argued. A layman can tell if someone limps or is blind.

Overruled, the judge said. You can answer, Mr. Rose.

Mr. Pope is not as spry as he was when I first met him.

When was that? When did you first meet Mr. Pope?

Rose frowned. I' m not sure of the exact date.

It was after his son was murdered, wasn't it?

Yes, I think that's right.

And before you started Mercury?

Yes.

That's about twelve years ago, right after his son was murdered?

Yes.

Is it fair to say that twelve years ago Mr. Pope was a captain of industry and you were an unemployed tennis instructor?

That's fair, Rose agreed.

Then how did you meet? You didn't exactly run in the same social circles.

I It's been a while. I don't actually remember.

You must have hit it off pretty well, because Mr. Pope gave you the start-up money for Mercury.

I can't really discuss that. We' re a privately held corporation and our books are not open to the public.

They are now, Mr. Rose. You' re under oath in a court of law and I asked the question to show possible bias on your part in favor of the party who called you to the stand.

Objection, Curry started.

No, Mr. Curry, the judge ruled. Miss Jaffe is entitled to show bias on the part of the witness you called. Please answer the question, Mr. Rose.

Rose looked very uncomfortable. He shot a quick glance at Senior, but the old man looked right through him.

Mr. Pope did help me start Mercury.

Does he hold a controlling interest in the company?

Yes.

So you serve as its president at his will? He could fire you if he wanted to?

The company is doing very well and I' m its spokesman, so there would be no reason for him to do that.

But he could if he wanted to?

I guess he could.

Was Mr. Pope's initial investment in Mercury substantial? Amanda asked.

Yes.

Without giving a specific figure, would it be correct to say that Mr. Pope's initial investment was in the seven-figure range?

Yes. That sounds correct.

Why would Mr. Pope give you so much money?

He liked my idea for a sporting goods company. He was farsighted and was able to see the company's potential.

I didn't make myself clear, Mr. Rose. I meant, wasn't it strange, if he truly loved his son, that he would give so much money to the man who was sleeping with his son's wife?

Rose colored but kept his composure. I' m not proud of that and I told Mr. Pope I wasn' t. But I also told him that Mrs. Pope had asked me to kill his son and I refused. I believe Mr. Pope appreciated that.

We only have your word that Sally Pope asked you to kill her husband, don't we?

Objection, Your Honor, Curry said. The question has no relevance to a custody proceeding.

I'll tie it up, Your Honor, Amanda promised.

I'll let you go on a little more, the judge ruled.

Didn't Mr. Pope hate his daughter-in-law?

They didn't get along.

He wanted her executed for his son's murder, didn't he?

I don't know anything about that.

Your testimony was the strongest and most dramatic evidence directly tying Mrs. Pope to her husband's murder, wasn't it?

I' m not sure. I don't know all of the evidence the district attorney had.

Was the start-up money for Mercury a payoff for lying at Sally Pope's trial?

No! Absolutely not.

You would certainly have benefited if Sally Pope had been found guilty, wouldn't you?

I don't see how.

That would have closed the case, as far as the police were concerned. The authorities would peg Charlie Marsh as the shooter and Mrs. Pope as his coconspirator and they wouldn't look any further.

I' m not following you.

Permission to approach the witness, Amanda said.

You may, Judge Gomez said.

A good cross-examiner changes the direction of her questions frequently to keep the witness off balance. Amanda handed Rose the photograph of him and Karl Burdett holding their hunting rifles that she'd seen hanging in Burdett's office.

Do you recognize this photograph?

Yes. It shows me hunting with Karl Burdett.