Devoted Friends by Sahar Abdulaziz

Author:Sahar Abdulaziz [Abdulaziz, Sahar]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Shaggy Dog Productions, LLC
Published: 2020-08-11T16:00:00+00:00

***

Christopher

“What do you think?” asked Christopher, once alone with Taylor in the lobby.

Taylor leaned against the hall wall. “If you’re asking me if I think your friend is sincere, then yes. I believe him.”

“That’s great.”

“Now we need to get the judge to believe him as well.” Taylor lowered her voice. “I won’t lie to you, Chris, this is an uphill battle, especially because of Darren’s priors. We need to either get the coroner’s report which will show that the cause of death was NOT murder to clear him, or a miracle happens, and the police find who really did it before we go to court.” She straightened. “His being on parole doesn’t help.”

Christopher stiffened, knowing Taylor was right.

“In any event, tomorrow’s all about bail. Frankly, I don’t think we have a chance in hell.”

“Why is that?”

“I know the prosecutor. A real hard ass who thinks everyone’s guilty until proven innocent. We’ve clashed before, and honestly, I don’t see today’s hearing going any differently. Bottom line, your friend’s chances of being released on bail for murder are less than zero.”

Christopher crossed his arms over his chest, none too happy with the news. “His family is going to be disappointed.”

“Temporarily.”

“Meaning?”

“It means, my friend, that I’m freakin’ exceptional at my job.”

“And?”

“And from where I stand, the police don’t have a shred of evidence except a fingerprint on a supposed weapon with a perfectly logical explanation. Also, Darren has umpteen witnesses to confirm his whereabouts prior to the attack. Additionally––the motive. What’s his motive? The reason? The history? But again, tomorrow’s hearing is only about bail––not any of this.”

Christopher nodded. “Darren did threaten Alastair on the sidewalk.”

“Did anybody hear him?”

“Only the entire block.”

“Yes, however, the fact that he threatened Alastair with a bear attack works in our favor. I’ll chalk it up to verbose male posturing.”

Christopher wasn’t so sure. “I don’t know. He’s done time for assault before. They’re bound to bring that up.”

“Oh, they most certainly will––I would.” Taylor switched her briefcase to her other side. “But I’ll be ready for them.”

“And in the meantime, as your ‘intern’––what do you need me to do?”

“Keep Darren calm. Make sure his family doesn’t do anything stupid. I’ll need to speak with each one of them, individually, but not today or tomorrow. Monday, the latest. Hopefully, by then, we’ll get the coroner’s report back so we can see precisely what we’re facing.”

“And when he doesn’t get bail?”

“It’ll either get carried over to a Preliminary Hearing where his case gets waived to the Court of Common Pleas by our defendant; or, after the hearing, if the charges are either dismissed or bound over to court by the Magistrate District Judge. Either way, we’ll know soon enough.”

“Got it.”

“Oh,” she snapped her fingers. “And his parole officer? I appreciate you getting this letter from him,” she tapped her briefcase, “but I’ll want to speak to him directly unless you want to handle the interview? It’ll save us both time if we team up on this.”

“Not a problem.”

“Good. I’ll meet you at the Magistrate’s.

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