The End of Evil Ch. 12

Junie had barely come to live with her new owners when ugly reality intruded on their idyllic world. Her search for a Master had caught the attention of a serial killer and she had barely escaped being his next victim. He was caught and facing trial; but now Junie had to testify. The whole idea of leaving her new home was more than she could bear to think about.

But she had to do it. Not only was there a subpoena, there was Monica. Her new friend, Monica, the only other woman to escape with her life, was a tiny fragile thing. Her body was barely healed from the horrific trauma of her assault and if Monica could be brave enough to face court and the man who had mutilated her, Junie knew she had to do it too, for Monica's sake.

Junie knew she was not going to have to do it alone. Her owners, Bob and Donna, were going to be there with her every step of the way. She knew she couldn't do it without them.

Chapter 12: Staring Through the Gates of Hell

Junie met her Mistress at the doorway leading into the garage and took the briefcase from her hands. After a soft hug, Junie asked, "What can you tell me about your day?"

"Not a whole lot beyond the fact that I am exhausted and I have the worst headache. I sat with Agent Durant, but it was crowded and there was this smelly guy practically squished against me all day. I swear I wish I had your vomiting talents. I would have loved to puke on him."

Junie clucked sympathetically and steered Donna into the bedroom. "Let me run you a bath and get you some aspirin." Bob came in and watched as Junie undressed her Mistress and hung up her outfit. Donna sighed as Junie gently massaged her feet while the bath was filling. Once Junie had gently urged Donna into the bathroom and eased her into the deep relaxing water she stood and murmured, "Just relax." Donna sighed and settled deeper into the bath.

Diplomatically, Junie made an excuse to leave her Master and Mistress alone, "I have some things I need to check on in the kitchen. Call me if you need me."

Bob caught her as she exited the bathroom and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. "You are such a good girl. You take such good care of us."

Junie smiled and answered softly, "Because I love you," and headed off to the kitchen.

Bob sat on the edge of the bathtub and trailed his fingers through the water, "How was it?"

"Awful. It was dirty, ugly, evil and awful. The defense is actually going to try and make it look like it was a consensual scene between amateurs and things accidentally got out of hand." Donna took a long shaky breath, "And the things he did to Monica. I am just now realizing what that girl went through and... and..." Her voice broke and then a flood of questions poured forth, "Do you ever worry that what we do is wrong? Like it somehow gives people like Sam Card license to indulge their monstrous side? We play our little rape games. Are we saying the rape is okay?"

Bob sat quietly and let her pour out her doubts, not answering until she ran out of steam. "What do you think? If Junie asked you the same questions, what would you tell her?"

Donna looked up at him, "I would ask her if it feels right. I would tell her to trust her feelings." Donna smiled, "I would ask her what the intention was. Was it love or hate? Giving or taking, as long as everyone feels right, feels love, nothing else matters."

Bob reached for the soap and began to wash her, "You see, my goddess, you know the answers." Rinsing her off, he took her hand and lifted her to stand, "Come, you have been dancing with evil far too much of late. Staring through the gates of hell into the face of the devil will make anyone doubt what they know is the truth."

Donna chuckled, "You don't believe in the devil."

Bob gave her a light swat, "Don't mess with my metaphors."

As Donna dressed, he told her that the prosecution had called and they wanted Junie at the courthouse the day after tomorrow. Leena had said she was not sure if Junie would be called to testify that day or the next, but things seemed to be moving along more quickly than they expected. Bob insisted that Donna plan on attending the trial, "I will go down with her and wait with her."

Donna nodded, "Yes, the defense is not doing a lot of cross examination. They are basically admitting he did it, so all the evidence that proves it was him, they aren't arguing with. Things seem to be moving along pretty fast."

Their dinner and evening together was quiet, and Donna seemed to need to touch both Bob and Junie frequently, needing contact and reassurance. After dinner, Junie stood behind Donna and rubbed her neck and shoulders for a long time. They took a long walk in the light misty rain and Junie noticed her Mistress snuggled close to their Master as they fell asleep.

Again Junie woke them with a nightmare, but they were getting used to it and were quickly asleep again.

The first witness of the day the state next called was the first police officer on the scene to take the stand; he identified himself and answered a long series of questions about his experience and the date, time and location of the call. "When I got on the scene the last witness, Cathy Wilson, was at the hotel door, knocking and calling the victim's name."

"What did you do then?"

"I had Cathy Wilson step away from the door and had the manager unlock it."

"When you entered the hotel room what did you see?"

"I saw the lower half of a nude female body. Her ankles were tied to the corners of the bed. There was a great deal of blood covering her legs and the sheets."

"Only the lower half?"

"Yes, sir, her upper torso and head were covered with blankets and pillows."

"When you uncovered her, what did you see?"

"Her arms were tied to the upper corners of the bed and she had a gag in her mouth, one of those ball gags. Her eyes were closed. Initially I thought she was dead, but when I checked her carotid pulse, it was there, faint but there. That was when I called for the ambulance."

"Did you perform any first aid?"

"Yes, sir, she had numerous superficial cuts on her body, but I could see some deep lacerations in her vaginal area. She was bleeding pretty badly there and I got some towels from the bathroom and applied direct pressure to try and keep her from bleeding out. It was about then that a second officer arrived and he cut the ropes and took off the gag. I kept up the pressure until the ambulance came."

"Did she say anything to you?"

"No, sir, she was unconscious the whole time."

"Did the Emergency Medical Technicians from the ambulance say anything to you?"

"They said she had lost a lot of blood and they did not know if she would make it."

"Didn't they say anything else?"

"Just, that he had never seen anything like that before." The police officer twisted in his chair and for an instant his face lost its professional neutrality. "The EMT was pretty upset; he vomited. I have never seen an EMT do that. That's when he said what he said."

Dan Cavalier stood and said, "I have no more questions for this witness."

During the testimony Donna had frequently looked to see how Sam Card was reacting to the evidence being presented. Each time she would glance over he would be staring down at a yellow legal pad and writing continually, almost obsessively. This time was the first time she observed any change in his demeanor. As he bent over his writing, he had a small, triumphant smile on his face and then it was gone. Shocked Donna looked toward the jury and saw at least one of the jurors, an older woman staring at him with a puzzled and slightly angry look on her face. Donna was sure that at least one juror had seen his smile and wondered how he hoped to get the jury's sympathy if he did not look remorseful.

The next few witnesses were from the crime lab, presenting evidence. There was a long list of items from the hotel crime scene; the gag, the ropes, fingerprint evidence, the tattered remains of Monica's clothing and photos of the crime scene.

The defense did not contest any of the evidence and did not cross examine any of the witnesses.

Next to testify was the emergency room physician that first dealt with Monica's injuries. He spoke about the number and extent of the knife wounds on Monica's body. He showed photographs of her injuries and spoke about how many stitches and units of blood Monica had needed. When Mark Freeden asked how imminent death had been, the doctor responded, "Miss Bond would have been dead in minutes if she had not received first aid and an immediate transfusion. She had lost almost half her blood volume." The photos were introduced into evidence and passed around the jury. Donna noticed that several of the jurors did not look at the pictures or glanced at them and then recoiled. Donna looked at Sam Card and noticed the secretive smile once again. It was like he enjoyed the emotional turmoil that others experienced when confronted with the facts of the case.

After that was a gynecological surgeon that spoke about the reconstructive surgeries that Monica had undergone and spoke of the permanent nerve damage and scarring. A second set of photos of the scars left behind by the attack were presented to the jury to peruse.

Again the defense declined to cross examine.

When they broke for lunch, Agent Durant muttered, "Monica is going to testify after lunch."

Donna nodded, "If I promise to mind my own business, would you let me buy you lunch?"

He shrugged and his voice was gruffly apologetic, "Ma'am, I realize you were just trying to help, but this is just something you need to stay out of."

Donna smiled and took his arm, for the first time noticing a lump on his hip that she knew had to be a gun, "Understood. Let's try that Vietnamese place again; there was something else I wanted to try on the menu." As they walked, Donna noticed the same little group of kids back on their corner. She wasn't positive, but it was possible that they did look a little cleaner than yesterday. The tattooed girl caught her looking at them and while she did not wave or speak to Donna, there was an instant of unspoken acknowledgement.

As they ate Donna debated asking who was with Monica and if he was going to be checking in with her before her court appearance, but she decided that it was too soon after her promise 'to mind her own business' and that any talk of Monica could be misinterpreted. She told herself to trust the people who cared for Monica to be there for her.

Donna asked David about the property in East Texas, what it was like, what kind of buildings were on the land and what improvements he hoped to make. She spoke of her and Bob's dreams of a home on the lake and how wonderful it was to make it come true. Agent Durant's eyes got distant, like he was looking at a place that was only in his mind, "There was a house years back, a big old farm house. It burnt down. There is just a foundation now and a beautiful old driveway of big pecan trees. I inherited it from my father's side of the family. I want to have horses. When I was a kid I grew up on a horse ranch in Louisiana."

"What kind of house are you going to build?" He laughed, "You know I have thought about the barn and the garage, but the house? I don't know, maybe I will move in a trailer." He laughed again when Donna cringed and asked if they get many tornadoes in that part of Texas.

He drawled in his strongest southern accent, "Ma'am, it is not that trailers attract tornadoes, it's all the folks are too broke and the hearts have gone out of them. They just didn't feel like rebuilding after the last big wind." He looked at his watch, "Ma'am, I want to get back early. I want to stop in and see Monica before the trial reconvenes." Donna marveled how he could turn his accent up and down.

Donna was standing alone in the place where the bailiff Billy had told her to wait. He came by a few minutes early and winked at her and subtly jerked his head for her to follow. When she got into the courtroom she saw that Agent Durant was there already. As she sat down she asked, "Did you see Monica?"

He grunted and nodded, "Yes, but I did not stay long. Her mother was there and I did not want to get into an argument. Monica does not need that kind of aggravation now. I told her I would be here in the courtroom."

Soon all the players were in their seats, the bailiff calling the courtroom to order. Donna noticed that Sam Card had a fresh writing pad and was already writing. When Monica came in the side door, she was wearing a blue dress with a peter pan collar. Her hair was pulled back into a pony tail. Donna thought they had gone a little too far to make her look like a child. Her face was pale and she scanned the courtroom, carefully avoiding looking at the defendant's table. When she found Agent Durant, she locked her eyes on him and hardly wavered from that regard after that. Donna noticed he stared back with the same desperate intensity.

Donna noticed that, for the first time, Sam Card looked up from the pad he was writing on. He was staring intently at Monica.

Mark Freeden stood and said in a soft, caring voice. "How are you doing, Monica?"

Monica took a deep breath and in a tense clear voice replied, "I am fine, thank you."

"Monica, your boyfriend, Harold Tinker, has told us that at first you said no when he suggested that you meet a man for the purposes of swapping. Is that true?"

"Yes, sir."

"Why did you say no?"

"Well, everyone knows you are not supposed to meet people off the internet. It is too dangerous."

"Why did you eventually agree?"

"Harry said he knew the guy. He said it would be safe and he told me I could leave anytime I wanted if I didn't like it."

"Did you set some rules? Did you say there were things you would not do?"

"Yes, sir, I said I would only have straight sex or oral. I said that I would not do anal or anything kinky."

"Why did you say that?"

"Because my boyfriend was always asking me for those kinds of things and I do not like those kinds of things."

"Yet you did set up a 'report in' phone call with your friend Cathy Wilson. Was this because you did not feel entirely safe?"

"Well, I had not met the guy before. I was a little afraid."

"So when you went to the hotel room what happened?"

"I called Cathy right before I went in and then I knocked on the door. When he opened the door he was older than I expected, but he seemed okay. He smiled at me and told me that he was glad that I was going through with this. He said he would make me feel really good."

"And the man that met you, is that man the defendant Sam Card?"

"Yes, sir."

"So you went into the room?"

"Yes, sir."

"What happened after that?"

"As soon as he closed the door, he turned and pushed me hard. I fell down onto the floor. He was on top of me before I knew what was going on. I started to scream and then he had a knife. He cut my face." Monica's fingers reached up and touched the scar that made the corner of her mouth turn down. "He said if I did not shut the fuck up he would cut me again."

"What did he do after that?"

"He made me get up on the bed. He tied me down, with my hands above my head, tied to the top corners of the bed and my feet to the bottom corners of the bed. After that he took the knife and cut off my clothes. It was really sharp and it cut me a couple times and I screamed again. After that, he got this ball thing and pushed it into my mouth."

"What did he do after that?"

Monica kept her eyes locked on David's face and continued, her voice the same tense clear monotone. "He began to run the edge of the knife along my skin. He would look at me and say things like, 'do you like this?' or 'feel this" and press down and it would cut in a little way. I would try to lie still because I was afraid if I moved it would just cut me more. I tried to beg him to stop, but I could not talk. I kept shaking my head."

Monica shuddered and then shook her head as if chasing away a thought or a vision, "He did that for a long time. Then he asked me if I wanted to fuck and I nodded yes. I just wanted him to stop cutting me."

She took another deep breath and fought down a tremor in her voice, "Then he took the knife and put it inside my vagina. He pushed in and out like he was using it to have intercourse with me. I could feel it cutting me. I was screaming so loud that even the gag was not keeping me quiet enough. I was fighting and twisting against the ropes. I think I was making enough noise to make him worried because he piled the pillows and blankets over my face. I was having trouble breathing and I was fading in and out of consciousness." Monica was speaking faster and faster like she was rushing to finish, "One time, when I woke up, I could hear my cell phone ringing. I heard him laugh; he said it was probably my stupid fucking Master. After that all I remember was pain. Then I woke up at the hospital a couple of days later. I remember being surprised. I was sure I was dying." When she stopped Monica was breathing hard, like she had run a long distance, and her face was flushed.

The courtroom was absolutely silent and then there was a soft bang from the defendant's table and Donna looked over to see Sam Card leaning over and picking up the writing pad from the floor like he had dropped it. When she looked back at Monica, she was staring at him, a look of complete horror on her face as he slowly smiled at her.

Judge Waldenback banged her gavel and asked if the prosecutor had any more questions for Monica. When Mark Freeden said he had no more questions, she announced that the court was adjourned for the day. "Defense can cross examine this witness when we reconvene in the morning."

Agent Durant stood and muttered quickly, "See you tomorrow." He slipped through the gate into the courtroom proper and followed Monica through the door she exited through.

As Donna walked to the parking garage, she saw the same girl and was surprised when the girl fell in beside her, walking along. Donna stopped while they were on the busy sidewalk, reluctant to enter the parking garage where she could be isolated. She looked warily at the girl, "How was the hotel room?"

"Nice, well it was a cheap dive hotel room, but it was nicer than sleeping under the bridge. It was warm and there was a shower."

"What is your name?"

"The family calls me Tat."

"Tat?"

"Yeah, short for tattoo."

"So, Tat, what do you want?"

The girl grinned, "Figured you might be a soft touch, might be a good shot to hit you up for some more cash. You are new around here." Her eyes turned hard, "Figured to milk you good before you got wise and tough."

"You don't think I am wise or tough?"

"You? You are not from the city. You look around. You see things. When you look at me, you don't instantly look away. You either are looking to hook up or are stupid."

Donna laughed, "You certainly have an odd way of milking a soft touch."

The girl smiled, but her face was tense, "Maybe I was hoping you wanted to hook up. It wouldn't cost you all that much, dinner, a hotel room, fifty bucks." Donna's eyes turned soft and sympathetic, "It's pretty rough out here, isn't it? Begging and selling your body to people to survive. Do you have anybody that you can turn to? Any family or programs that can help you get off the street?"

The girls dark eyes turned black with anger, "I don't fucking want off the street. This is my home." She turned back and pointed at the corner, "Those guys are my family. If you don't want to hook up, just say so. I don't have time to fuck around with some stupid social worker." She whirled and marched away.

Donna stood and watched her go. She wondered if the girl was calling her a social worker or if she was saying she did not want to get involved in a program. She figured the girl could not be more than sixteen.