Chapter 12

The hearing resumed at 9:00 a.m. in courtroom 9, Judge Carlton presiding.

Jack hoped the next witness would shift the focus away from Ava Bazzi and bring the hearing more in line with a traditional

Hague proceeding, where a petitioner like Farid would focus on his own rights to the return of his child. But Jack had no

more control over the strategy of his opposing counsel than the State Department had over his.

“The petitioner calls Nouri Asmoun,” Beech announced in the crowded courtroom.

It was another appearance by videoconference from Iran. As the witness came into focus on the LCD, Jack discreetly checked

with his client.

“No idea who he is,” Zahra whispered, but his opening testimony fleshed out the details. He was fluent in English, so there

was no translator.

Asmoun was a thirty-year-old banker who had lived in Tehran all his life. He was a handsome man who was mindful of his appearance.

His hair was neatly trimmed, as if he’d just come from the stylist, and his suit was worthy of a GQ magazine cover. His hands were folded and resting on the tabletop, fingers interlaced. Jack couldn’t be certain by video,

but it appeared that his nails were buffed and manicured.

“Mr. Asmoun, did you know Ava Bazzi while she was married to my client, Farid Bazzi?”

So much for Jack’s hope that the hearing would move past Ava.

“I did,” he said.

“Did you know Farid Bazzi?”

“No. I never met him.”

“How did you know Ava Bazzi?”

He hesitated, then answered, a hint of shame in his voice. “We were... romantically involved.”

The courtroom rumbled. Jack jumped to his feet and objected, but the judge was one step ahead of him.

“Ms. Beech, yesterday this court agreed with you that Mr. Swyteck’s client has no legal right to custody as an adoptive parent

if Ava Bazzi was still alive at the time of the adoption. My ruling was clear and narrow: evidence relating to Ava Bazzi is

relevant to this proceeding only if it shows that she is alive or dead.”

“Understood, Your Honor,” said Beech. “Ava Bazzi’s extramarital affair with Mr. Asmoun shows that, as the Iranian government

has said for the past two years, Ava had every reason to flee the country, did in fact flee, and is alive and well in hiding.”

Jack doubled down on his objection. “Judge, this is a smear tactic against a woman who is unable to defend herself because,

sadly, she is no longer on this earth.”

“I understand your position, Mr. Swyteck,” said the judge. “Ms. Beech, how does an extramarital affair tend to prove Ava Bazzi

is still alive?”

“Adultery is a criminal offense in Iran,” said Beech. “Technically, it’s a capital offense. Even though no woman has been

executed in quite some time, it is still a serious enough crime to cause a married woman like Ava to flee the country. As

this court ruled yesterday, if Ava Bazzi fled the country and is still alive, Zahra Bazzi’s adoption of Yasmin is a nullity,

and this court must order Yasmin’s immediate return to her father.”

It was obvious that Farid and his lawyer were pandering to the Iranian government, parroting the regime’s position on Ava

Bazzi’s disappearance. Jack was reluctant to inject the US-Iranian diplomatic crisis directly into the hearing, but he was

no less forceful in his objection.

“Judge, the only thing the petitioner proves by calling Mr. Asmoun as a witness is that, in death as in life, Ava Bazzi continues

to be an abused woman. This is malicious victim shaming.”

Beech laid her hand on Farid’s shoulder, responding with complete indignation. “Let’s be clear about who the victim is here, Your Honor. My client’s first wife cheated on him and fled the country, bringing shame to him and their daughter in their abandonment. Then his sister-in-law defrauded him into marriage and immediately ran off with his daughter.”

“Enough argument,” said the judge. “I will overrule the objection. However, there will be no lurid details. Ms. Beech, you

can establish how long the affair lasted, and that will be the end of the matter.”

Farid’s lawyer thanked the judge and addressed the witness. “Mr. Asmoun, when did your affair with Ava Bazzi end?”

“When she was arrested.”

“How long did it last?”

“Six months.”

“Did you see each other regularly during that six-month period?”

“At least once a week.”

The judge interjected. “Wrap it up, Ms. Beech.”

Beech was a smart enough lawyer to take her win without angering the judge. “No further questions,” she said, and she returned

to her seat at the table beside her client.

The judge invited cross-examination, and Jack rose. Since it was a videoconference, he could have asked his questions from

a seated position at the table beside his client. But he wanted a better view of Farid—the alleged “victim.”

“I have a brief cross-examination,” said Jack. He turned to face the witness on the LCD screen, but his gaze landed on Farid.

The “victim” of the Bazzi sisters was staring at the man who claimed to have had sex with his wife Ava every week for six

months. Yet Jack saw no sign that Farid was angry with Asmoun. Maybe Farid didn’t care. Or maybe he didn’t believe it.

“Good morning, Mr. Asmoun,” said Jack as he buttoned his suit jacket.

“Good afternoon,” said the witness, referencing the time difference.

Jack had one hand tied behind his back, knowing virtually nothing about this witness. For Andie’s sake, and the sake of his marriage, he would have preferred not to inject the Iranian government directly into the hearing. But seeing the witness on the screen triggered the research Jack had done in his office the night before—in particular, the video of Nika Shakarami’s uncle on state television to condemn the hijab protests after his sixteen-year-old niece was murdered by the morality police. The very idea of someone off camera, threatening Nika’s uncle, informed Jack’s first line of cross-examination.

“Mr. Asmoun, where are you right now?”

“I’m in a conference room. At my work.”

“Are you alone?”

“No.”

“Who is in the room with you?”

“The videographer.”

“Anyone else?”

“No.”

It wasn’t the answer Jack had wanted, but he forged ahead. “Have you had any conversations with anyone from the Iranian government

about your testimony today?”

“No.”

“Did anyone—including Farid Bazzi and his lawyer—tell you that your testimony here today would be looked on favorably by the

Iranian government?”

“No.”

Farid’s lawyer rose. “Your Honor, for the record, neither I nor my client has ever spoken to Mr. Asmoun outside of today’s testimony.”

Jack didn’t think Beech would lie in open court to a federal judge, which could only mean one thing. Someone had told her

to call Asmoun as witness with the promise that his testimony would be helpful to Farid’s case. It was no coincidence that

it was also helpful to the Iranian government’s position on Ava Bazzi. But he wouldn’t score points by arguing with the witness.

He moved on.

“Mr. Asmoun, you heard Ms. Beech tell the judge that adultery is a crime in Iran. Were you aware of that?”

“Yes.”

“So you are here, under oath, admitting that you committed the crime of adultery. Do I have that right?”

The question gave Asmoun pause. “I’m not proud of it.”

“Not proud. But you didn’t flee the country, did you?”

“I don’t understand your question.”

“Let me clarify,” said Jack. “Based on your testimony, Mr. Bazzi’s lawyer is arguing that Ava Bazzi fled the country because

she committed the crime of adultery. You’re every bit as much of a criminal, but you didn’t flee, did you, sir?”

Again, Asmoun seemed uncomfortable with the question. “Well, it’s different for a man.”

That drew a rumble of disapproval from the courtroom, and it was loud enough to be heard by videoconference. The witness immediately

backpedaled.

“I can explain,” said Asmoun. “Even under the strictest and oldest interpretations of Islamic law, the penalty of death applies

only to an adulterer who is married. Ava was married to Farid. I’m not married. The punishment for an unmarried adulterer

is far less severe.”

Jack was not letting him off the hook so easily. “But you said earlier that ‘it’s different for a man.’ Tell us how that makes

a difference.”

“That’s not what I meant. My English is not perfect.”

Zahra signaled for Jack to come over, and with the judge’s permission, they had a brief exchange of whispers. Jack then returned

to his place to question the witness, armed with a few useful pieces of ammunition Zahra had shared.

“Mr. Asmoun, when you said ‘It’s different for a man—’”

“My English not good,” he said, suddenly struggling with the language. “Not what I meant.”

“Please let Mr. Swyteck finish his question,” said the judge.

The witness apologized, and Jack continued.

“When you said that adultery ‘is different for a man,’ you were simply referring to historical reality, were you not, sir?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Dating back centuries, married and unmarried women were stoned to death or otherwise punished for adultery. Men, on the other hand, often went completely unpunished, whether they were married or unmarried. You’re aware of that fact, are you not?”

“Not really.”

The witness was losing credibility with every answer, which was Jack’s only objective.

“Let’s speak of more recent events. You are aware that Ava Bazzi disappeared at a turbulent time in Iran, correct?”

“Turbulent for some.”

“For some, and especially for women. Ava Bazzi disappeared at the height of a crackdown by the morality police against women who were openly violating Islamic modesty laws. Isn’t that a fact?”

“I don’t know that as a fact.”

Asmoun’s credibility was shot. Jack used it to make one final point. “Mr. Asmoun, you’re afraid to say anything in this courtroom

that will make the Iranian regime unhappy. Isn’t that true, sir?”

Farid’s counsel rose. “Objection.”

“Overruled. If there is some external influence on this witness’s testimony, this court wants to know about it. The witness

may answer.”

“That’s not true,” he said.

“Mr. Asmoun, you’re so afraid that you won’t even admit, as a matter of historical fact, that women of any faith, not just Islam, have faced more severe judgment for adultery than men.”

“I’m not a historian.”

“You’re so afraid, you won’t even admit that women were unjustly arrested, imprisoned, and even killed during the hijab protests.”

“Some men were executed too,” Asmoun said, then he quickly realized that he was helping Jack’s case, not his own. “But I don’t

know what for.”

Jack could have stopped, but this was his only opportunity to completely discredit Asmoun’s testimony.

“Mr. Asmoun, you said you were unmarried. But do you have other family in Iran?”

“Yes. My parents. And my younger sister.”

“Are you a close-knit family?”

“Yes, very much so.”

“Fair to say that you would do whatever you could to prevent any harm from coming to your family?”

Farid’s lawyer was on her feet. “Judge, I object. The insinuation that this witness is being strong-armed by the Iranian government

has gone on long enough.”

“Sustained. Mr. Swyteck, I believe you’ve made your point.”

“Yes. I believe I have. Thank you, Your Honor. No further questions.”