1969 - Ch. 02

Day Three.

Harrington-Brown.

I'm sat here looking at a packed gallery, now it seems half the town wants to hear what sordid little antics the sexy Cinderella has gotten up to, and they won't be disappointed.

"Sir, I count 4 reporters in here today. This is getting bigger and bigger," Tom says excitedly.

"Mr Harrington-Brown, can we have your next witness please?"

We watch Ms Appleby enter the witness box. She's like someone's Maiden Aunt. She dresses like a woman from the 20's in a long dress. Her grey hair is worn tied back. She has one of those mouths which turn down at the corners. I suspect she hasn't smiled since she pulled the legs off a frog when she was 6 years old. She is old school, no makeup, and someone you might cross the street to avoid. Was there a wicked witch in Cinderella?

"Ms Appleby, how did you get on with Mrs Stone?"

"Are you asking me as her employer, or on a personal basis?"

"Both Ms Appleby, why don't you tell us about both, professional and personal," I say with a smile, knowing full well I won't get one back, and I don't.

"Mrs Stone was a good worker; I couldn't fault her work, after she had been there a week or two. As a person, well, she left a lot to be desired. She showed off her, assets far too much, a bit like some of the others."

"Did you have cause to speak to her about, as you say, showing off her assets."

"I would have done, but I've learnt over the years that finding hard working staff is difficult for the pay we offer. I did tell her what to expect though."

"And what was that Ms Appleby?"

"I told her to expect to get her backside touched and comments of a sexual nature if she insisted on wearing a short uniform. I told her I wouldn't listen to any complaints. I've got enough to do running my care home, without stupid young girls moaning about being touched up every day."

"What was her reaction?"

"I think she thought I was joking. I put her to work with Sandra Smith, they seemed the same type."

"In what way Ms Appleby, did they seem alike?"

"Showy, Sandra has big...she is heavy up top. She leaves the top poppers on her uniform undone, showing her cleavage off, but again she is a good worker. The men love her, and Mrs Stone. I think Miss Smith, liked the attention and saw it as a way to ease the boredom. Smith was always giggling; she is one of those types."

"Mr Harrington-Brown, are we going to get a run down on every worker employed by the Glory Care Home?"

"No Your Worship, Mrs Stone and Miss Smith were friends, and seemed to egg each other on at showing off their, assets."

The judge nods, probably dreaming of his face between Miss Smith's huge knockers.

"So when did you notice Mrs Stone had struck up a friendship with the now deceased Mr Taylor?"

"A little while after he came to stay with us, she would spend time in Mr Taylor's room at night. She would do her work, and then go to see him. On several occasions I heard them both giggling as I walked past his room on my rounds."

"You didn't mind her spending time with him?"

"Her work was done, and they both seemed happy in each others company. When I called her if I need to, she came and helped with whatever I needed her for. She went out of her way for Mr Taylor. She came in now and then on her days off, and would sit with him for an hour. She brought in his favourite fruit cake for him."

"When did you suspect there was something more than just a friendship going on between the two of them?"

"I went into Mr Taylor's bedroom one night. He was well laying there. He was naked on his bed, and he had an erection covered in a condom, and a pair of women's panties covering his eyes."

At last, something to wake the courtroom up.

"What happened then?"

"He said, climb aboard you sexy thing. I was just stood there in shock. He was saying, come on Pauline you've been teasing me all day with that hot body."

I was expecting a titter round the courtroom, but nothing. I look up to the gallery and it seems like they are all holding their breath.

"Please can you tell us what occurred next Ms Appleby?"

"I was about to say something when Pauline, Mrs Stone came in. She put her finger to her lips, and guided me out of the room. She said there was no need to embarrass Mr Taylor. She was very red faced and worried. She asked if I was going to sack her. I took her down to my office and she confessed to having sexual intercourse with him on other occasions."

This time there is murmur round the court. So here I go, as if directed by the great Alfred Hitchcock himself!

"Mrs Pauline Stone admitted to you that she," I say pointing at Mrs Stone, "a 24 year old married woman, had sexual intercourse with Mr Taylor, a 76 year old widower, at times in the past?"

"Yes, that's correct. She begged me not to tell anyone, she said she couldn't stop herself. I reminded her she was married, she well, just shrugged."

This time there is uproar round the court. The gavel banging starts but the court soon quietens down. I've got them. I've got the court, the judge, and the fucking jury in the palm of my hand. They are waiting on my next question; I'm running them through my head trying to think which question would best stoke the fires.

"Ms Appleby, what would you say was the attraction of Mrs Stone to Mr Taylor?"

Jimmy objects like I knew he would.

"Ms Appleby, when you were talking to Mrs Stone in your office, on that very night that Mr Taylor was laid out on his bed, naked, and waiting for Mrs Stone to enter the room, did she offer any clue as to why they had sexual intercourse in the past, and indeed was going to have again before your interruption?"

"She said she loved him."

Again uproar, and a quick look to the reports and I can see they are scribbling on their note pads. Mrs Stone sits there with a defiant look on her face, but tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Ms Appleby, you were a witness to the signing of a new will, in which Mr Taylor left all his money to Mrs Stone, is that correct?"

"Yes I was. It was about a month after I caught him waiting for Mrs Stone."

"Was Mrs Stone at work that day?"

"No, she was on holiday. She had booked it the week before. She told me she was taking her husband to Blackpool for a break."

"But that isn't true, is it?"

"No, she was seen walking towards the railway station, on another man's arm."

"Your Worship, I must protest, we can't rely on what Ms Appleby was told by some third party."

I turn to my number two and give him a little wink.

"Ms Appleby, who was it who saw Mrs Stone with her arm through another gentleman's arm?"

"It was me."

Poor Cinderella, her bottom lip is quivering, her eyes are welling up again, and in a couple of minutes I will reveal all!

"Ms Appleby, are you sure it was her."

"Yes all dolled up. She wore a dress that barely concealed her underwear, as usual, and she walked with her arm through his."

Jimmy has looked twice at his number two, which tells me he doesn't know what's going on. Cinderella has kept this to herself.

"Ms Appleby, are you sure it was not Mr Stone walking with his wife?"

"Her husband's legs were in plaster at that time, and the gentleman she was with is known to me."

"So Ms Appleby, a couple of weeks after Mrs Stone said she was in love with a man old enough to be her grandfather. She told you she was taking her husband on holiday, and yet there she was going to the train station in her tiny mini dress, on another gentleman's arm?"

"Yes, and I saw her climb aboard the train with him, the same day as I had signed as a witness to Mr Taylor's new will."

"Members of the jury, the very same day Mr Taylor was leaving his money to Mrs Stone, a man Ms Appleby said Mrs Stone loved...Mrs Stone was seen boarding a train with another gentlemen, all dolled up Ms Appleby said, is that really the actions of a woman in love, or more the actions of a woman who had secured a huge amount of money, in Mr Taylor's will?"

I watch the reporters run from the courtroom, desperately wanting to get to the one and only phone in the lobby, as the judge adjourns for lunch.

"Bravo Sir, I think Mr Spratt knows nothing of our mystery man."

"I'm convinced he doesn't young Tom. Poor Cinderella, she doesn't look too pleased either," I smile, "time for lunch."

After lunch I watch Cinderella for a while, she is talking to Jimmy, and his number two. She is more animated than before, shaking her head at some things, and nodding at others. It is clear to me Jimmy didn't know about her dirty weekend away. And they must have spent most of lunchtime talking about what she got up to.

There is nothing worse than a client who keeps secrets from her council; it is one of the first things I say. I don't give a toss about innocence or guilt. I just need the truth and all the facts from my client, so I can back them up, or distort them whichever way I need to, to win the case.

"Sir, Sir...they are outside," Tom says rushing to his seat next to me, "a television van from the BBC, somehow they got wind of it, and they are here."

"Did you see the reporter with the crew?"

"Yes that Adrian bloke, I can't remember his surname, he's out there as clear as day."

I wonder should I let Tom know who called the television company at lunchtime. No sometimes I have to keep a few things to myself.

The judge walks in and we all rise. His face is flushed, probably due to the consumption of a liquid lunch; with the 20 year old bimbo he introduced me to the other day. He goes off to his house in the country every other weekend. 15 sprawling acres and I know for a fact there is usually a young woman waiting with sprawling legs. His wife knows, but she doesn't complain. Rumour has it that she put the plug in years ago, and as long as she gets his money and a quiet life, she doesn't care.

Ms Appleby is back in the witness box. I just have a few more questions, and then it's over to Jimmy.

"Ms Appleby, please tell the court, who holds the key to the drugs cupboard?"

"I do, or my deputy. I give the drugs to the girls to dish out."

"Ms Appleby you are obviously a very busy woman and I see nothing wrong in you doing that. Tell the court would you please, who you entrusted with Mr Taylor's drugs, which are known as, MB451."

"Mrs Stone."

Murmuring goes round the courtroom.

"And one of these drugs, MB451, was found in the bed the night of Mr Taylor's death?"

"Yes, that's correct. Mr Taylor had the same drug in his system, only 5 times the maximum dosage, which is almost fatal. I can only assume the drugs were stockpiled, by Mrs Stone."

The judge is banging his gavel, Mrs Stone is shaking her head in a slow state of shock, and Jimmy is voicing his disapproval. I just stand here waiting, and I catch a glimpse of ugly sister number one, the dyke, with almost a grin on her face.

"Ms Appleby, what would assist the drugs to the outcome of a certain death?"

"Any excitement which would cause the heart to quicken would help the drug."

"The excitement caused by sexual stimulation, like an erection, and masturbation?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell the court in your own words, what you saw the night Mr Taylor died?"

"I saw Mrs Stone in the locker room. She had something orange in her hand. She went out of the locker room and up the stairs, and into Mr Taylor's room. I didn't think anymore of it, until I went up to Mr Taylor's room about 20 minutes later. I opened the door a fraction thinking Mrs Stone had left. I was checking on Mr Taylor on my rounds, and that's when I saw Mrs Stone. She was, well, masturbating Mr Taylor into the orange panties she had got from her locker."

The courtroom mumbles and I wait for a while, letting the last bit of juicy information sink in.

"These are the same orange panties which Mrs Stone had got from her locker?"

"Yes."

"Did either of them see you?"

"No Mrs Stone had her back to the door, and I didn't open it far enough to see Mr Taylor's face."

"What happened next Ms Appleby?"

"Well I closed the door. It was a shocking sight."

"You didn't think to challenge Mrs Stone?"

"No, well the pair of them had become close as I've already mentioned," she says with a shudder, "but I made a point to have a word with her when she came out. Then one of the alarms went off, and I raced down the stairs just as Mrs Stone was coming of the room. She was, doing up the top poppers of her uniform, and smiling, and looking pleased with herself, until she saw me looking up at her."

The court is murmuring again. The judge seems spell bound, which is good for me.

"She came to assist me in Mrs MacDonald's room. She is one of our long term residents. Mrs MacDonald had slipped from her bed and managed to push her buzzer. We took a few minutes assessing Mrs MacDonald, and then we got her back in bed. I told Mrs Stone to stay with Mrs MacDonald, who was crying and very upset. Mrs Stone said she wanted to go out for a moment, but I made her stay, she didn't like that very much, but she stayed there for about half an hour."

"Why do you think she didn't like that very much?"

"At the time I didn't know, but now it's obvious, she wanted to retrieve her panties from the deceased Mr Taylor."

Jimmy is objecting, I'm just stood here waiting to get my last question in, and then hopefully all hell will break loose, again.

"Could you tell us how you discovered Mr Taylor's dead body?"

"I went back on my rounds and looked in on Mr Taylor. He appeared to be sleeping but I knew he wasn't. When I moved closer I could see the bed covers weren't covering his left side, the door is on his right. I checked but he wasn't breathing, and his penis was still covered in Mrs Stone's orange panties."

I sit down watching the court reports scribble their notes, and at last the gallery is now on the verge of baying for blood.

A shout goes out from the gallery, "Hang the bitch!"

Others join in with a few comments directed at the shaking Mrs Stone, calls of "slut," and "money grabbing bitch," and "murdering whore," fill the room.

I look at Tom, he nods slightly, as the great unwashed in the gallery follow the example set by someone I don't know, although my number two does. It's amazing what you can get for 5 pounds these days.

Finally the court is silent as Jimmy questions Ms Appleby.

After a few minutes I've protested so much the judge is losing his patience's. The glass of water, sorry the glass of Gin, by the judge's side, is down to the final ½ inch.

Ms Appleby looks very uncomfortable. Jimmy has already made sure everyone knows she is a lesbian, and suggested she might have gone running to a former class mate, namely ugly sister number one Ms Taylor, and spilled the beans about Mrs Stone being named in Mr Taylor's will.

I watch Jimmy read his notes, and then he looks at Ms Appleby, and shakes his head.

"Ms Appleby, you say when the alarm went off Mrs Stone came running from the room, with a smile on her face?"

"Yes."

"You said she was close with Mr Taylor, even if she wanted the money, which she didn't even know was being left to her. Do you honestly think Mrs Stone would have had a smile on her face, after committing his murder?"

"Well, I...I don't know."

"Maybe Ms Appleby, someone else slipped into the room, someone who could get hold of a large amount of the drug, MB451 and force it down Mr Taylor's throat, and maybe finish masturbating Mr Taylor. Someone who saw Mrs Stone's orange panties wrapped around Mr Taylor's penis, knowing Mrs Stone would get the blame."

I have tried to shout Jimmy down long before he stopped talking. It seems my methods have become infectious. The judge calls both Mr Spratt and myself over and gives us another lecture.

"Gentlemen of the jury, after listening to the two councils trying to shift blame from Mrs Stone to Ms Appleby. I should remind you that the facts are these. We know Mr Taylor was given, or took, a near fatal dose of the drug MB451, but there is no evidence to say that Mr Taylor was dead when Mrs Stone left him to attend to Mrs MacDonald. Furthermore, at the risk of repeating my self yet again, this is about the money, and not about anyone murdering Mr Taylor."

"Ms Appleby, according to Mr Sibley, you witnessed him having sex with Mrs Stone for two minutes. Why did you wait until Mrs Stone saw you, before you acted and tried to get him off?" Jimmy asks.

"It wasn't that long, at first I was shocked, too shocked to move, and she wasn't struggling, not until she saw me. It was like she was just lying there, letting it happen."

The court is murmuring again.

"Your Worship there is a reason why Mrs Stone was not struggling, which we'll get to later."

"Mr Spratt, I'd like to hear that now, if you would?" the judge says picking up his empty glass and shaking it at one of the court workers.

"Very well, Mrs Stone did struggle initially, but because she couldn't possibly move Mr Sibley due to his size, she decided on lying still to stop herself getting injured, and also in the hope he would get it over with."

The judge nods, and I suppose I can see the logic in that, but just you wait until I get Mrs Stone in the witness box.

"Ms Appleby, I have explained to the judge the reason why Mrs Stone wasn't struggling, so would that seem to be correct?"

"Um, Yes, I suppose that could be right."

"Now back to the night of Mr Taylor's death. You were seen coming out of Mr Taylor's room on that night, past the time the coroner has stated that Mr Taylor died. Ms Appleby, why did you not raise the alarm straight away? Why did you phone someone, and then go out for a cigarette, and then calmly walk back to your office, and then place a call for the doctor?"

"I did phone the doctor, but his wife answered and said he was here already," Ms Appleby turns to judge and adds, "Your Worship, I don't want to get anyone in trouble."

"Ms Appleby, we are only interested in the facts, and you have sworn an oath."

"Well, I went for a cigarette, and that's when I remembered the doctor attends an AA meeting on that same night. He had told me sometime previously, he tells his wife he comes here. On the same nights he attends his meeting, to avoid having to tell her the truth."

"Thank you Ms Appleby, please carry on."

"Yes Your Worship. I went back to my office and searched for the number the doctor had given me. As luck would have it, in the 15 minutes since my first call, he must have returned home, and the phone rang while I was looking for the emergency number."

I watch Jimmy visibly shrink.

"Ms Appleby, the drugs you say you gave Mrs Stone to administer to Mr Taylor, have you any proof Mrs Stone was stockpiling them?"

"Well, I gave them to her, she must have done."

"That is not proof Ms Appleby."

"Well, no, but how would all those drugs get in his system on the night of his death?"

"I'll ask the questions if you don't mind Ms Appleby. Where do you keep the key to the drug cabinet?"

"The key is kept in my office, in the desk drawer."

Jimmy is pacing now and delaying questioning Ms Appleby. I know what he's doing and Ms Appleby is starting to get even more nervous again.

"Ms Appleby, you keep the key in your desk drawer, a desk drawer that has no lock, is that correct?"

She doesn't answers, her mouth opens but Jimmy Spratt has her now, and I can't stop this either.

After a few more minutes Ms Appleby finally agrees with Jimmy that anyone could have taken the key to the drug cabinet at any time.

"Damn it Sir, now it appears the whole of the care home could have got to the drugs cabinet, and forced him to swallow them.

"Tom, do I look worried?"

"Well...no Sir."

"Then relax, Jimmy has surprised us, but tomorrow we have a star witness which will have Mrs Stone squirming in her fucking seat until she finally breaks and wets herself."