Page 68 of Two Kinds of Stranger (Eddie Flynn #9)

‘Objection, Your Honor,’ said Bernice. ‘Security footage is routinely only kept for around sixty days by Starbucks. I’ve had direct experience of this.

The defense has been holding on to this footage for some time and now wants to ambush the prosecution.

I haven’t seen whatever is on this video, but the defense has an obligation to comply with discovery. I object to its introduction.’

The judge looked at me.

‘Your Honor, this footage was retained by Starbucks human resources because it formed part of an internal investigation. This store is located in the same block as the defendant’s apartment, right outside the front door of her apartment building.

It seems there were ongoing cash discrepancies with the register.

As a result, management retained all security footage and even stopped taking cash payments for a while in order to find the member of staff suspected of stealing from the register.

I obtained this footage this morning, having contacted the human resources department last night.

If need be, I can have a Starbucks head of HR testify to—’

‘What is on this footage exactly?’ asked the judge.

‘It shows how James Parker and Harriet Rothschild were poisoned, Your Honor.’

Elly sat back and folded her arms, staring at Bill Sacks.

He chanced a quick glance at her, swallowed and quickly averted his gaze.

‘I would like to have a short adjournment to show this footage to Mrs. Mazur first, Your Honor. Perhaps we can agree to it being introduced into evidence . . . ’

‘Take a half hour,’ said the judge.

Ten minutes later, in a DA’s office on the ground floor, Bernice reached across the desk and closed the lid of my laptop.

‘Is that what I think it is?’ she asked.

We had just watched a man in a ball cap sitting at a table in the Starbucks, nursing a coffee.

As James Parker and Harriet Rothschild walked through the front door of the Starbucks, the man got up and walked quickly into the line for the cash register.

He had a messenger bag on this shoulder.

Without James or Harriet seeing him, he took two bottles of Ethos still water from his bag, and placed them on the refrigerator shelf in front of the other bottles there.

James picked up those two bottles, totally unaware that they had just been placed there a few seconds ago by the man in front of him in the line.

The man stayed in line, got a coffee, watched while James paid for the two bottles of water, and then both James and Harriet left, headed for the apartment upstairs.

The man in the cap left shortly after. His face was largely covered, but the scar on his chin was plain from a number of angles.

‘I have Elly Parker and Joe Novak who will testify that this is the same man who tricked Elly into that apartment the next day and poisoned her. My investigators will testify that this is the same man who tried to kill Joe Novak last night before he leapt to his death off the Williamsburg Bridge.’

‘Jesus,’ said Bernice. ‘And you really just found this last night?’

I got up from the desk, stood a little distance away from Bernice and studied her closely. Her reactions to the footage were real, and honest.

‘I got it last night, but Detective Bill Sacks took a copy of this footage two days after he arrested Elly Parker.’

‘He what?’

‘Didn’t you see his face when I mentioned it?

He was like me. He couldn’t figure out how the water bottles were poisoned.

Ethos Water is only sold in Starbucks, and he must’ve put two and two together a lot faster than me and checked the footage.

It’s luck, pure dumb luck, that they still had this footage.

They fired somebody a month later and they were afraid they might get sued, so they kept all the security footage for October and November.

But Sacks had exculpatory evidence that he never showed you.

And, more importantly, he never disclosed it to us.

I’m going to level with you – I didn’t think Sacks had it in him.

I thought he was playing this straight. Turns out, he thought he’d made the case that would crown his whole career, get him another promotion, so he could sit behind a desk in his Crocs.

He had his murderer in the shape of Elly Parker, and no way was he going to miss out on closing the biggest murder case in the city just so he could go chasing a mystery man that he would probably never find. ’

Bernice took off her glasses, stood, said, ‘Eddie, I swear I didn’t know anything about this . . . ’

‘I believe you. I know you’re a straight shooter, Bernice. Sacks had me convinced too.’

Here’s the thing about cops. Corruption is easy.

Playing it straight is hard. When you’ve got a solid case, it’s too easy to look the other way when you find evidence that doesn’t fit.

Sacks did what a lot of cops would do in the exact same situation.

It’s their job to make cases, make arrests and get convictions. The truth is somebody else’s problem.

‘Now you know about Sacks. The question is, Bernice, what are you going to do about it?’ I asked.

I sat at the defense table, and I did something I’d never done before.

I took my client’s hand in mine. Elly held on to me, and I could feel her heart racing as Bernice stood to address the judge.

‘Your Honor, the People have a motion before the court. We wish to dismiss all charges against Elly Parker with prejudice . . . ’

Her voice was drowned out by the cheering crowd.

‘I would also like to say something, Your Honor, as I know members of the press are here and I won’t be taking questions at this time.

I simply wish to apologize to Mrs. Parker, who should never have been on trial for these crimes.

The DA’s office is opening an investigation into a person unknown who we believe is responsible for multiple homicides.

We are also recommending an internal affairs investigation into Detective William Sacks. If it pleases the court, that is all.’

I liked Bernice. And I wouldn’t want to be Bill Sacks. She was going to crucify him. And I was going to be there, that day, to watch.

I stood with Elly, her hand in mine, and we turned to face the crowd.

I raised her hand in the air and listened while the cheers and applause filled the courtroom.

I let go of her hand, told her Denise would look after her, and I ran for the exit, fought my way through the crowd and found the stairs.

Christine’s case was still running . . .