First Class Justice (First Class Novels) (9 page)

“I’ve been through this before. I was all prepared, well, as
prepared as I was gonna be, to go into the courtroom and see him. You know, this
time, I just don’t want to do it. I don’t know that I
can
do it. “

“Of course you can,” Dr. LaVaughn said. “He does not control
your emotions. Don’t give him that much power. He can only hurt you now if you
let him. Just don’t
let
him.”

“You make it sound so simple,” Katy frowned.

“Oh, it’s not simple. But you can do it. You have made
massive strides in the past few months. I am incredibly proud of you, and I
have faith in you.”

“Shelby is going home with her grandmother today.”

“Yes, I know.”

“I think I’d like to stay in touch with her.”

“I know she would like that. She called you her angel.”

“I didn’t think you were allowed to talk about your other
patients,” Katy smiled.

“Special circumstances, indeed,” Dr. LaVaughn said as she
stood and walked to the window and stood next to Katy. “Are you agitated just
because of tomorrow? Or is there something else?”

Katy sighed. Her doctor was able to read every expression in
her face and every move her body made.

“Mark showed up on Friday night.”

“Showed up?”

“Yeah. I had called him after lunch when Shelby was asleep.
I guess I was having a moment and needed to hear a kind voice.”

“You didn’t call Janie.”

Katy squirmed a little. “That’s a bad sign huh?”

“Why do you think that?”

“Well Janie has been the person I have turned to since,
well, since forever. And she wasn’t who I called. I called Mark, the man who
can never be anything more to me than just a friend. I’ve picked somebody who’s
totally unavailable.”

“So you talked to him on the phone and then he arrived?”

“Yeah. Well, ten hours later.”

“He got on a plane in New York and flew to Portland because
you had a ‘moment’ on the phone?” Dr. LaVaughn was stunned.

“Yeah.”

“And you think he’s unavailable?”

“Well at Christmas he was dating this tall blonde.”

“And is he still dating her?”

“I don’t think so.”

“So why do you say he’s unavailable?”

“Because!” Katy said a little louder than she had intended
to. She stomped back to the chair and sat. “He looks at me like I’m some
wounded animal that he has taken pity on. He doesn’t think of me as anything
more than a charity case.”

“And you can tell all of that from the way he looks at you?”

“Yes!”

Dr. LaVaughn turned to Katy. “I think you look at
yourself
as a wounded animal. I think you can’t imagine anybody wanting you after what
you’ve been through. I think you feel like you don’t deserve somebody to care
for you. I think you need to reexamine the way you think of yourself.”

“Hmph!” Katy preferred it when she did the talking and Dr.
LaVaughn said nothing.

*****

Mark was a shrewd businessman. He and his older brother Matt
made excellent partners in their real estate investment company. Mark was able
to secure the best buildings in the best locations and negotiate the lowest
prices, and Matt had the vision to turn them into something almost magical and
extremely profitable. They had built an empire together, one they were both
extremely proud of.

Mark was an excellent son. He was devoted to his parents and
never wanted to cause them grief or pain. He had rebelled just a little in his
later teenage years, but it was short-lived and never involved police
intervention. He looked up to his father, Peter, as the man he should strive to
be. His mother adored all her boys and had sacrificed all for them. She had
almost died giving birth to Mark and the doctors had told her she shouldn’t
have more children, but she had delivered five more boys after him. She loved
them all unconditionally. And even though it was difficult for her when Andrew
told her he was gay, her love for him never wavered and neither did her
support. Mark tried hard to live up to his parents expectations of him as both
a son and as a man.

Mark was an excellent athlete. He excelled in every sport he
played in high school and received a full-ride scholarship to play basketball
at the University of Connecticut.  He set records for the most assists and
three pointers his junior year and then broke his own records his senior year. 
Since then, he had graduated to extreme sports like sky-diving, rock climbing
and snowboarding mountains, jumping from a helicopter. He loved the thrill and
he loved the rush of adrenaline.

But when it came to women, Mark did not excel at all, but
only because he really didn’t try. He didn’t have a lot of time and he didn’t
have any patience to ‘woo’ anyone. Oh, there had been women over the years, but
no one that captured his attention or make him rethink his priorities. But ever
since Matt had met Janie, he had begun to have stray thoughts creep into his head,
without warning, about the possibility of wanting what his brother had. Matt
had never been so happy and content as he was now, married to Janie, and as
Mark was nearing his fortieth birthday, he wondered if maybe he should at least
think
about finding someone special to settle down with. He really
didn’t want to be alone forever. He never saw himself as a father, but if he
was honest with himself, he would like to have a partner, an equal, to be with.

So when Mark would find himself staring at nothing and
thinking about Katy, it unnerved him just a bit. They had met under the most
difficult of circumstances and it really wasn’t an ideal way to begin a
relationship, although he had come to care about her a great deal and think of
her as a close friend. So he had to keep reminding himself that that’s all they
could ever be; just good friends. But who was he kidding? He was in love with
her and wanted to be more than just friends.

Mark looked in the mirror of the hotel bathroom and tied his
tie. His brother, Matt, not only looked great in a suit and tie, it was his
preferred wardrobe choice. Mark, on the other hand, was much more comfortable
in a pair of old jeans and a UConn sweatshirt, or a polo shirt if he was
required to dress up. But today was day one of the trial to put the asshole,
Danny Salvo, in prison, for hopefully a very long time. He would have to
testify, but probably not until tomorrow. Today would be Katy and Janie’s turn
to take the stand and tell the jury what a sick bastard he was. Today, he would
be there to support Katy.

He met Matt and Janie in the hotel lobby and they waited on
the sidewalk for their cab. Katy would meet them at the courthouse. The taxi
pulled up and they all slid in, out of the rain, and headed the few blocks
downtown. Matt was trying to calm his wife.

“You’ve been over it a hundred times. All you need to do is
answer the questions truthfully. Just tell the jury what happened.”

Janie nodded and chewed on the inside of her cheek. Matt
pulled her closer and kissed her temple. Mark looked away. He watched the
pedestrians trying to stay dry in the Portland winter. The rain was coming in
sideways and he wasn’t sure the umbrellas were helping at all. It didn’t take
very long for the cab to pull up in front of the big building and they all
scrambled out and ran for cover. Once inside, they made their way to the
elevator.

“I’ll wait down here for Katy,” Mark said.

“What if she’s already here?” Janie asked.

“Text me if she’s already up there.”

Matt and Janie stepped into the elevator and the doors
closed behind them. Mark walked back towards the front doors and waited. He
wasn’t sure what he was feeling, but he couldn’t stand still and so he paced
back and forth, watching for the woman who had invaded his dreams and his
heart.

Janie’s mouth dropped open and Matt’s fists clenched at his
side.

“This is SO wrong,” he said, his anger controlled but
obvious.

Sarah sighed, unable to say anything that would help them feel
better.

“Why don’t we wait for Katy in here,” she said and led them
into a meeting room.

Matt pulled the chair out for Janie and she sat, still in
shock over the news Sarah had just delivered.

“I don’t understand why you would agree to this,” Janie said
to Sarah.

Matt held his wife’s hand and wished he could do something
to help her accept the decision. He knew, however, that there was absolutely
nothing they could do to change it. It was completely out of their hands.

*****

Mark continued to pace in the lobby. Court was supposed to
start in just a few minutes. Finally he saw her running up the steps and
through the glass door.

“I bet that fucker took my umbrella too. I couldn’t find it
anywhere!”  Katy tried to brush the water off her.

Mark helped her out of her coat. He led her to the elevator
and pushed the up arrow. The doors opened quickly and they stepped inside.

“You ready?” he asked.

Katy frowned. “No. I’m not sure I will ever be ready.”

Mark took her hand and squeezed it. “I’m here for whatever
you need.”

Katy smiled.

They stepped out of the elevator and one of the many
paralegals Katy had talked to over the past few months greeted them and showed
them to the meeting room. As she led them inside, Matt and Janie were already
there looking grim.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Well, despite the obvious.”

“Katy, why don’t you have a seat and I will fill you in,”
Sarah said.

Mark pulled out a chair for Katy and she sat, uncertain of
what was going on. Mark took her hand again and they both looked at Sarah.

“It’s always a gamble taking a case before a jury. Even when
the case is as tight as this one and as well-prepared as we all are. You just
can’t determine the result. So in order to ensure an acceptable outcome, we
have agreed to a plea and assuming the judge accepts it, there will be no
trial.”

“And what is the plea?” Katy asked Sarah, but looked at
Mark, eyes wide.

“He will plead guilty to two counts of kidnapping, one for
each of you,” Sarah said, looking at Katy and then Janie. “And two counts of
assault, and one count of sexual assault.”

“And the attempted rape charge?” Katy asked.

“Dropped,” said Sarah.

“And the torture and inhumane treatment charge?” Katy asked
again.

“Dropped,” Sarah replied.

“And the breaking and entering charge and the burglary charge?”
Mark asked this time.

“Dropped,” said Sarah. “Look, you’ve got to understand that
he is still going to prison. For a long time. With his arrest in 2005 and the
subsequent restraining order granted against him by a former girlfriend, the
judge will see a pattern, and we are asking for fifteen years and I see no
reason why that won’t be enforced.”

Mark smashed his fist into the table and they all jumped.

“This is shit! After everything she went through,
they
went through, you just drop charges?” Mark was obviously livid.

Katy just sat there looking at Mark, appearing to be in
shock.

“Mark, I understand…”

“Fuck you!” he yelled. “You weren’t there. You don’t know!”

Katy grabbed at Mark’s arm. “Does this mean I don’t need to
testify?” she whispered.

“Yes,” Sarah said. “You don’t need to testify. But I will
recommend you giving a statement at the sentencing hearing. I am asking that
the judge postpone sentencing until the victims, you two, have had the chance
to make a statement.” Once again Sarah looked at Katy and then at Janie.

Janie nodded. “I can do that,” she said as Matt squeezed her
hand.

“Katy?” asked Sarah.

“When is it?”

“Probably Thursday.”

“Two days? Then it can all be over?” Katy asked.

“Yes,” replied Sarah. “In two days it can all be over.”

*****

Sarah was in the courtroom with the Public Defender and the
defendant, Danny Salvo. He was dressed in the standard issue orange prison garb
and his hands and feet were shackled. He only spoke when the judge asked him if
he agreed to the plea outlined by Sarah. He nodded and said he did.

“I would ask that Your Honor postpone imposing sentence
until the court has had an opportunity to hear statements from the two victims,
Katy Miles and Janie Lathem. I think that under the circumstances they have the
right to address the court.”

“Do you have any objection?” The Honorable Judge Maria
Glazer asked the Public Defender.

“No, Your Honor.”

“Very well,” Judge Glazer said. “We will reconvene here at
11:00am on Thursday.” She banged the gavel and left the courtroom.

Sarah heard Danny mutter something under his breath and the
only word she recognized was ‘bitch’. She wasn’t sure if he was referring to
her or to Katy. Either way he was going to prison for a long time and he could
call them all the names in the book and it wouldn’t make a difference.

She sat in the empty court room, alone with her thoughts. Mark
was wrong. He didn’t know anything about her. She
did
know what it was
like. She
did
know what Katy was going through. That’s why she had left
her lucrative private practice and joined the District Attorney’s office. She
understood that in the long run, this was a
win,
and somehow she had to
get Katy and Janie to understand that.

*****

Janie asked to have a minute alone with Katy so Mark and
Matt went to find some coffee. Janie moved closer to Katy and held her hands.

“Tell me what you’re feeling,” she asked.

Katy shrugged, not sure she could put anything into words.
She sat for a minute and then took a deep breath.

“Would it be bad if I said I was a little relieved?” she
looked up at Janie.

“Nothing is
bad.
What you feel is what you feel and
you don’t need to apologize or make excuses. Why are you relieved?”