35. Nyssa

35

NYSSA

CRAZY IN LOVE REMIX - BEYONCé

TWO YEARS LATER...

Peaches meows at the knock on the door.

I'm by the bay window, perched on my stool as I work on my pottery wheel. I'm not even sure what I'm working on yet, except it'll likely be similar to my last few projects—a sculpture dripping with heartache and misery.

It seems to be the running theme of my artwork these days.

My ginger girl meows a second time when I don't move fast enough to answer the door.

"Okay, okay, Peaches," I say, grabbing a towel to wipe my hands. "Chill, alright? I'm going to get it."

She blinks at me from where she's lounging on the armrest of my sofa. I move toward the door, rising on tiptoe to check the peephole.

I should've known.

There aren't many people in Castlebury interested in visiting me. Even fewer who I'd want to. I draw the door open to the happy pants of a golden retriever that circles my legs and paws at my thighs.

A light laugh leaves me. "Hi, Atty! Long time no see. No wonder Peaches was nagging me to get the door."

"He got excited as soon as he saw where we pulled up to," Theo says, inviting herself inside. She's clutching two large lattes and a white paper bag of pastries.

I help her with what she has as Atticus races over to greet Peaches. The dog and cat somehow get along, though he's a burst of energy while Peaches is more low key.

"Sorry I'm late," Theo says, shrugging off her jacket. "I didn't want to come by empty handed."

"You coming by at all is appreciated."

Theo's mouth dips into a frown. "We'll get it all figured out. He always comes up with something. He's a genius like that."

"Yeah… I know. It's just…" I blink to fight off the sudden onslaught of tears.

Theo picks up on it right away and puts her arms around me. "You sure you don't want to go in person? Maybe the moral support from you would really help."

"Can't," I croak, wiping my eyes. "It wouldn't be a good idea."

"Right, it could open up a can of worms." Theo sighs, hands on her hips as she glances from the coffee cups on the counter to the small TV mounted on the wall. "Well, I guess that's one good thing about it being televised. Never mind all the national coverage and sensationalized headlines. At least we can watch from the comfort of our homes."

We settle down on the sofa and flick on the TV in time to see Channel Nine's field reporter speaking in front of the courthouse.

"Hello, Rob and Jessie, and viewers at home," says the svelte blonde in an emerald wrap dress. "I just arrived to the Castlebury courthouse today for what's day five of the Valentine Killer trial, where Criminal Law Professor Theron Adler is being tried on five counts of murder. In a few short moments, we'll be heading inside for the opening statements from the defense.

"As a reminder for some of the viewers just tuning in at home, Mr. Adler has made the controversial decision to represent himself during this trial. Once a defense attorney, he rejected all other legal counsel and seemed to think it was in his best interest to argue his own case. Legal experts have expressed concern about this, citing past cases where this has turned out to the defendant's detriment."

"Oh god…" I mutter, brushing a hand over my face. "I hope he knows what he's doing."

"Theron is sharp in the courtroom," Theo says. "He's always been. Even Dad was impressed. You don't know our father—it's damn near impossible to impress him."

I aim a small, sad smile at Theron's sister. "Thanks for trying to keep me from breaking down."

"We're pretty much all each other has at this point."

Theo's speaking facts.

Over the last two years that Theron has been arrested for the Valentine murders, the scandal consumed Castlebury. Accusations were thrown. Suspicions were raised. Past allegiances were severed. Many people in the circles I ran with turned on each other.

There were rumors. Lots of them.

Some of them involved me.

I heard it all. From a theory I was Theron's accomplice (somewhat accurate) to I was almost one of Theron's victims before he took mercy and let me go (not so accurate). But one thing emerged crystal clear out of the chaos—I had to keep my distance.

For my sake, but especially for Theron's.

If I was linked to the case in the eyes of the authorities, then that opened a whole new can of worms—and potential problems—for Theron.

Some digging and poking around would be done. My background would be discovered. Professor Vise's murder would come up. So would Mom's.

It was best that I stayed distant. That I watched and fretted from afar as Theron was put on trial for the Valentine murders.

But I wasn't the only social pariah in Castlebury.

As Theron's sister, Theodora was suffering a similar fate. Many rumors swirled about her as well, like she was his accomplice all along, or an even crazier rumor that theorized Theodora was actually Valentine and Theron was protecting her.

The two of us realized we were all the other had, gradually becoming close.

It wasn't difficult, considering Theo was the manager of my apartment building and she was the kind of friend girls like Heather had never been.

Theo, who visited Theron every other week—and spoke to him on the phone even more often—said she believed he appreciated that we were keeping each other company during his absence.

The two closest people in his life were now close themselves.

But that hasn't made it any easier staying apart from him. I haven't been able to so much as write him a letter without rousing suspicion of our past relationship.

I miss his voice. His presence and his touch .

Every last thing about him.

Life without him feels muted and joyless.

Selfishly, watching the televised trial has been the most contact I've had with him since he was taken away…

While the outcome worries me, I'm also reminded how brilliant Theron Adler is. I remember just why I'd admired him in the first place. Legal experts might claim it's a mistake that he represents himself, but they don't know Theron like I do.

On day five, when it's the defense's turn to cross examine Officer Brewster about his team's investigation, Theron's brilliance is on full display.

He's dressed in a simple suit and tie, his dark hair rumpled in the perfectly imperfect manner only he can pull off. Stubble frames his handsome face while his glasses accentuate how intense his gaze can be.

He approaches the witness stand with an intimidating sense of calm, looking refined yet authoritative all at once.

"Officer Brewster, you were on the case for the 2005 investigation into the Valentine murders, were you not?"

The stout police officer peers around the large courtroom as if vexed to be on the stand at all. "That's right. I've been on the force for damn near thirty years."

"Thank you for your service," Theron says. "The 2005 investigation went on for months with little headway made. Can you remind the court what ended up happening with that case?"

He folds his arms and mumbles, "It was deemed unsolvable."

"What was that?"

"It was deemed unsolvable!" he snaps.

"You'll have to clarify for the court, Officer. What do you mean by unsolvable? "

Huffing out a breath, he says, "We had little to no leads and no prime suspects. It wasn't going anywhere, so we had to leave the case unsolved."

"Interesting," Theron says, pacing back and forth in front of the stand. He nudges his glasses further up his nose and strokes his chin in thought. "Would you say that damaged the credibility of Castlebury PD?"

"We have some of the lowest crime rates in the country!"

"I believed I asked you about credibility. Would you say the Valentine case going unsolved damaged the Castlebury PD's credibility?"

"Objection, your honor!" cries out the lead prosecutor, popping to her feet. "Relevance?"

Presiding Judge Mary Quarles raises her brows at Theron. "Mr. Adler, care to explain?"

"The Castlebury PD's history on the original Valentine case provides necessary context as it pertains to today's trial."

The judge thinks on it a second. "I'll allow it."

Theron turns back to the potbellied officer. "Please answer the question, Officer Brewster."

"We will never have a credibility problem… no matter what you say, Adler!"

"But would you say that with resurrecting this case a second time, there was a pressure to finally solve it?"

He grits his teeth. "I seek to solve all crime, Adler. Don't be so smart."

"Of course you do. Except… this case is quite high profile. You said so yourself. I would go down for it no matter what."

"Well… all I meant was… I'd work as hard as I needed to…. "

"Would you say you have a bias against certain individuals in this town, officer? Individuals you perceive as part of the upper class?"

"What? I don't…"

"I would like to present some video recordings of the witness if I may, your honor. This footage has been obtained by request from the city police department themselves."

"Proceed."

Theron walks over to the defense table where he picks up a remote and presses play on the TV that's been wheeled into the courtroom.

The footage begins right away with Theron in handcuffs and Officer Brewster looking feverish.

"You know exactly what it's got to do with tonight, Adler! You're going down!" he grunts, grinning. "You and your family think you're above the law. You and all your rich as dirt friends think you can do no wrong! But I've got you dead to rights this time. You're going down no matter what. Everything Valentine's ever done. I'll make sure of it."

"From the body cam footage recorded by Castlebury PD yourselves, do you think it's fair to say you have an inherent bias, officer?"

"You son of a bitch!" Officer Brewster barks, going red in the face. He rises from his seat. "You really think you're going to weasel your way out of this? I told you I wouldn't let it happen!"

"Order, order in the court!" booms Judge Quarles, banging her gavel.

The prosecution's risen to try to control their witness, but Officer Brewster's temper can't be tamed. He proceeds to cuss Theron out 'til he's so bright red, he looks on the verge of passing out from his anger .

The bailiff eventually escorts him out.

Theron calmly watches him disappear through the double doors.

"As you can see, the Castlebury PD was very passionate about catching the Valentine Killer. Perhaps a little too passionate. I rest my case."

On day nine of the trial, Theron manages to trip up the medical examiner who did autopsies on Samson Wicker, among some of the other bodies found buried in the forest.

Theron exudes the same calm yet authoritative energy as he has every other day of the trial. He starts off simple, asking the medical examiner about his autopsy reports and what he believes each victim's cause of death was.

Theron rubs his jaw, walking back and forth at a casual pace. "Would you say the wound you noted on Samson Wicker's skull played a role in his demise?"

"Mr. Wicker suffered a severe concussion brought on by a heavy object I believe to be the boulder the police found in the bushes. The same boulder with your fingerprints on it."

"Right," he says, stopping in front of the witness stand. "But I'm afraid that doesn't answer my question. I asked you if the concussion Samson Wicker suffered played a role in his demise."

He purses his lips and narrows his eyes. "Samson Wicker's cause of death was a deep stab wound to his jugular. The concussion was several weeks prior and unlikely to have played a factor."

"Interesting. So the one piece of physical evidence with my DNA happens to not be the murder weapon. Would you say that assessment is true, ME?"

"It's not the murder weapon. However, Wicker's blood was on the boulder and so were your fingerprints. "

"Circumstantial at best."

"Objection!" the lead prosecutor says, rising out of her chair. "He's attempting to lead the witness."

"Mr. Adler, get to the point."

Theron smirks. "Of course. Can you clarify one last thing—were any of the victims, including Samson Wicker—found to have DNA evidence of the person who killed them?"

"No. No DNA evidence whatsoever."

"Excellent. Thank you, ME."

I breathe a sigh of relief on day eleven when each side makes their closing arguments and Theron knocks his out of the park. He's managed to cast doubt on several witnesses, most of all Officer Brewster, while also proving the evidence against him is flimsy at best.

"No murder weapon, that's good, right?" Theo asks, seated beside me on the sofa. Peaches is curled up in her lap dozing away.

"It's very good. They have no direct evidence tying him to these murders. The boulder doesn't prove he murdered Samson; it just proves he got into a past altercation. He's cast enough reasonable doubt that I'm not sure the jury can convict."

"Unless they're biased like Brewster."

Jury deliberation arrives in the coming days.

I'm a nervous wreck for every hour they're in deliberation. It lasts for over a day, where I can't eat, sleep, or do anything but frantically check my phone for any updates. Finally, a breaking news banner scrolls across the screen early in the morning, announcing the jury has reached a verdict.

Theo races over to the apartment so we can watch together.

"And how does the jury find the defendant? "

The older woman, who's stood up to announce the results, takes in a deep breath and then says, "We have found the defendant not guilty on all five counts of murder in the first degree."

The courtroom erupts in an array of different reactions. Families of the victims break out in hysterics, crying and screaming about the grave injustice. The prosecution looks floored, conferring among themselves about the verdict that's been delivered. The media in the room snap into reporting mode at once, rushing to update their audience.

And then there's Theron, who sits coolly where he is, as if he hasn't been delivered the best news of his life.

My pulse races watching him, so impressed and relieved I can barely remember to breathe.

"He's not guilty," I whisper. Then I beam at Theo, who's jumped up and whooped the air. "He's not guilty! That means…"

"He'll be coming home. Charges cleared!"

I cover my face with shaky hands and release a delirious-sounding laugh.

Thank God.

Because if he was found guilty, I'm not so sure I wouldn't resort to breaking him out of prison myself…