The Mother: A Novel by Yvvette Edwards

Author:Yvvette Edwards [Edwards, Yvvette]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780062440778
Amazon: 0062440772
Publisher: Amistad
Published: 2016-05-09T18:30:00+00:00

6

WHEN SHE RETURNS TO THE gallery after lunch she has a young man with her who is dressed like he thinks he’s a rap star. They are late and have already missed the beginning of the agreed facts, which include the coroner’s report, and that at the time of his death, Ryan was carrying a knife. It was discovered at the base of his schoolbag covered in his fingerprints. It is unsheathed from the evidence bag, described as a flick knife with a ten-centimeter folding blade, and is paraded back and forth across the front of the jury box for a period of time which really isn’t that long, but is nonetheless excruciating. Then there’s the record of Tyson Manley’s previous convictions. The convictions the jury are informed of do not include the unrelated convictions I am familiar with, the handling of stolen goods, criminal damage, loitering with intent, nor does the list include charges of which he has been acquitted in the past; possession with intent to supply. Only those convictions deemed relevant to the charges in this case are made public; possession of a class B drug, and aggravated possession of a knife. Quigg works her way through these details, bringing the prosecution case to a close. The judge suggests a short break of fifteen minutes, and when we return, St. Clare stands to commence the defense’s case, calling Sweetie Nelson as his first witness.

She looks tiny in the witness box, the girl without a proper name and the brawling laugh, who gave my son the gift of a knife and her boyfriend not only the motive to kill him but the alibi also to cover his tracks. She is simply attired, in a white shirt and short office skirt, like an office temp or admin assistant, more conservatively dressed than I have ever seen her. Her kinky afro gives her an indomitable look, but her body language is defensive. She glances at Tyson Manley briefly. I can see no difference in his body language in response to her though I really cannot say how much I wish I could. Perhaps if I saw a flash of something, love, desire, possessiveness, feeling, the murder of my son might have some point. Instead it’s just more indifference, more and the same. He killed my son not because he was enraged or jealous or slighted; he killed him simply because he could.

I wrote a Victim Personal Statement about a month after Ryan died. It is a document that is read out to the court after the trial if the accused is found guilty, taken into account by the judge before sentencing. In it I wrote about the impact Ryan’s death has had on me, on all of us, the many people who loved my son. I struggled to find the words to explain, wanted so desperately to make his killer know the exact degree of devastation his death has had upon us. I talked about Ryan in it, wanted him

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