Siblings with Benefits Ch. 30

As I turned away from the street and headed back towards the courthouse I saw Alex sitting on the far end of the steps also smoking. Alex was sitting with his head down and I noticed his foot was tapping rapidly on the stair below where he was sitting. I also couldn't help noticing that Warner was sitting on the filthy stairs in what had to be a $500 suit but didn't seem to care. Then again it's not like I had given my brand new skirt much thought as I had been sitting there either. Difference was of course I'm sure Alex hadn't had to have someone buy him his suit because he didn't own anything decent which was my case when Mom had to buy me the skirt and red blouse I was wearing last night.

At the moment mom was waiting inside the courthouse with dad. I had sat with them for the first few minutes but when it became apparent that it could be awhile my nerves got the better of me and I had to come outside and smoke and get some air. Besides it's not like I could do anything different whether I was inside or outside. At this point I had done everything I could do for my brother and his fate now rested in the hands of Judge Joseph Roberts. Taking a deep breath I forced myself to stop pacing and leaned against the railing at the foot of the stairs. I looked back over at Alex who, as I watched flicked his cigarette into the middle of the street and then putting his elbows on his knees rested his head in his hands.

I felt a surge of mixed emotions go through as I stood staring at Alex. The first was pity which is something that I never thought I would feel for a man I had always seen as a spoiled little bastard. But as I watched Alex sit alone on the stairs I couldn't help but feel both pity and more than a hint of guilt. If Mark managed to get through this it was mostly thanks to Alex. Alex had hired Murdock and had probably paid him a small fortune to take a case that he had initially wanted nothing to do with. Alex had also posted Mark's bail and let not only Mark but me as well stay in his apartment with him for the weeks leading up to the hearings. For his efforts Alex had been attacked by my brother the other night after the poly graph test and been made to feel terrible for accusing us of having sex in his house. Of course I knew that Mark and I had to defend our secret at all costs but Alex, like my father years ago, deserved better than to be lied to and manipulated to cover our forbidden need for each other.

To make me, and Mark as well I'm sure, feel even worse was that, despite that ugly scene the other night, Alex had shown up to testify on my brother's behalf. I hadn't expected him and he showed up at the last minute which was a great relief as Murdock had considered Alex key to convincing the judge of Mark's character. When Alex entered Mark was already seated at the table with Murdock and Mom dad and I were sitting in the first row. Alex nodded to my father and then sat behind us with Mark's professors, his karate instructor and Mitch whom Murdock had brought in case Alex didn't show. Murdock came over and I turned to see him speaking to Alex. Alex nodded at whatever Murdock was saying and when he stepped away Alex turned and our eyes briefly met. I winced at the huge bruise on Alex's cheek and his lip had stitches in it. Alex quickly looked away from me and my father whispered in my ear what the hell was going on. I shrugged and before Dad could press, the court room doors opened, and Max was wheeled in by his girlfriend with his attorney behind him.

I felt my stomach clench. I had only seen Max once before and that had been as he was lying in a bloody heap at my brother's feet. Max's right leg was in a cast and was supported by a sling attached to the top of the wheel chair. His right arm was also in a cast and despite the fact that the fight had been over three weeks ago his face was still bruised and swollen. There was a large white bandage taped to Max's right cheek just under his eye and there was a brace on his neck. Although I had been there that day I found myself horrified at the sheer amount of damage my brother had done. With a sinking feeling in my stomach I realized that if this ever went before a jury Mark would not have a chance. Tearing my gaze away from Max my eyes once again found Alex and was surprised by the look of disgust on Alex's face as he watched Max come in. Alex had no idea of what Mark had gone through until I had told him that day in his office. A muscle in Alex's jaw bunched and I saw him clench his fists before looking away from Max. My attention was drawn from Alex as I became aware of my father next to me. Dad was sitting with his hip against mine and I could feel him shaking. When I looked at him dad had a look of absolute hatred on his face the likes of which I had never seen. My father and Mark had more than their share of differences over the years but Dad was also aware of the horrible things Max had done to my brother and felt the same way about him that he had about Frank, the animal that had raped me, that any man that could beat a child should be killed on the spot. Mom glanced at Max quickly then put her head down unable to even look at him I saw her lips move and distinctly heard the word "animal'. Max's attorney was of course putting on a show of Max being in the wheelchair and taking great care to be careful with him as they wheeled him to the table at the front of the courtroom to the judge's right.

As we sat there I kept looking at Mark to see his reaction to Max, as was the judge and prosecutor I am sure. I was relieved to see that Mark seemed calm. As a matter of fact I knew him well enough to see that he had "gone away" a bit which was probably for the better. The hearing started and the prosecution went first leading with the social worker who had worked with Mark back when he was 15 in the group home. The woman testified that she had deemed Mark potentially dangerous back then and pointed to a history of fighting while in the group home including an incident where Mark had sent another boy to the hospital. She also mentioned Mark's erratic testing and said that he was probably mentally ill. Murdock had then asked her to show him where in any of her reports Mark had started any of the fights he was involved in. The woman could not all incidents had been started by the other boys.

The woman tried to bring up that Mark had reacted with excessive violence but Murdock quickly dismissed that by simply saying that in those homes when you fought you were fighting for what the rest of your time there would be like and Mark had fought to be left alone. Next she mentioned Mark's test results Murdock looked at them briefly and said they were done by her in her office where were the results taken by the real psychologist that had examined Mark. Those were produced and there were no abnormal results. Next up were two people from club baby head who both spoke of Mark's use of as the prosecutor deemed it 'unnecessary force.' Once again Murdock crossed them up asking if at any time Mark had swung first the answer was no but once again Mark's over reaction came into play. Murdock brushed it off with the fact that in clubs like that a one on one fight could escalate quickly into more than one person jumping in and Mark's job was to end fights quickly and decisively.

I sat there listening numbly hoping that the judge was buying Murdock's points. To me they seemed valid but then again I was also a bit biased so to speak. Finally Max was wheeled up to the stand where haltingly, through a wired jaw, he told the story of how he had met Mark at the Green bar and how they had started hanging out. Max claimed he had no idea who Mark was and then got to the point where he admitted that he used cocaine from time to time and Mark had offered to sell him some. Max spoke of going to Mark's apartment where Mark had given him coke then told him who he was. Max said at that point he did recognize Mark and was going to try to leave without a fight but then Mark attacked him. Max said that Mark had been calm and in full control of what he had been doing. When he was done the prosecutor stood up and ran down a list of Max's injuries. Mentioning the fact that his right knee may never completely heal and that he needed plastic surgery for the piece of his face Mark had bitten off. At that comment I heard my mother whisper 'oh my God' and dad looked down shaking his head.

Murdock's questions to Max revolved around how could Max have beaten Mark for close to five years, almost killed him, been jailed over him and not recognized him? Max's answer was that Mark was older and looked different. Murdock was skeptical and kept coming back to the fact that Max had to have kept thinking about him. Granted Mark was now an adult but still... At that point Murdock had produced a photo of Mark taken at age 16 at the group home and showed it to Max before showing it to the judge and saying that Mark was only five years older now and still had basically the same features. Murdock brought up Mark's eyes which he pointed out were extremely unique having more than one color and he would think that they would be hard to forget. Max shrugged and said he never really had paid attention to Mark's eyes and Mark had a beard when he was hanging with him.

Murdock had nodded and seemed as if he were done then, turning back to Max, he asked him once more if he was sticking to the story that he never recognized Mark, that right up until Mark identified himself he had no idea who he was. Max said that was the truth and Murdock nodded once more. Murdock then walked back over to the table and grabbing a folder brought it over to Max and the judge and removed a piece of paper. Murdock said the paper was a signed affidavit from Billy Jenks the bartender from the Green bar. Murdock said that in the statement Billy declared that on the last day that Mark had been at the Green Bar he had specifically heard Max ask Mark if he knew him and Mark had said no. Billy's statement went on to say that he then walked away and the next thing he knew Max was yelling at Mark and told him to go outside with him.

Murdock handed the document to the prosecutor to examine then turning back to Max asked if he wanted to change his story. Max began looking nervous and said he thought Mark might have been a narc. Murdock said that in that case the question would have been who are you? Not do I know you? Murdock left off with that and after telling the judge that if there were a trial Mr. Jenks had already agreed to testify to what was written in the statement. When he walked back to sit next to Mark I felt a surge of hope go through me. That had been a brilliant maneuver; Murdock had led Max into saying the same thing that Mark was saying that they did not recognize each other. Not only that, but Billy's statement made Max sound like he was lying.

The Judge now called for Murdock to bring his character witnesses up and I begin to feel myself get nervous once more knowing I would be up there soon. First Mark's teachers spoke briefly of his academic excellence and how dedicated he was to his studies. Mark's karate instructor was next speaking of how disciplined Mark was; how over the years martial arts had helped Mark learn how to control his temper and give him a competitive outlet to work out his issues. Mitch then was called upon and he spoke of how much he trusted my brother. Mark lived upstairs from the bar, had the keys to it as well as the combination to the safe and nothing had ever gone missing. Mitch also mentioned how Mark would stay at the bar even when he wasn't working so that Cynthia was never there alone.

Alex then took the stand and testified well for my brother. Alex spoke of how impressed he had been with where Mark had come from and what he had achieved. My brother was a true success story in every sense of the word and had made full use of the second chance life had given him. Alex even seemed to get a bit emotional at the end, his voice tightening up a bit as he closed with saying that my brother had already lost enough to his past and that it would be a travesty to see him lose more to the person that had already taken so much from him.

Mom went next and was in tears within minutes describing how lost Mark had been when he came to live with us. How he was afraid to even speak and always seemed to be afraid that she and dad were going to hurt him because it was all he knew. Mom testified about Mark's nightmares and how he would go days without sleeping because he was afraid to. Mom, like Alex, then spoke of how different my brother was now. How confident and dedicated he was to making a good life for himself. How excited he was for his future and how much he appreciated his new family. The prosecutor asked mom if Mark had ever described Max to her and she said no. Mark had not discussed Max much with her and she had never pushed him too. The prosecutor asked mom if Mark had ever told her about his nightmares and Mom answered that Mark didn't talk much about them and claimed upon waking up that he could not remember details just that he was scared.

Mom stepped down and Murdock called my name. I slowly approached the stand and as I reached the seat next to the judge found that I felt strangely calm. This was my chance to help my brother, to do something besides get him in trouble or cause him to worry about me. Once I had been sworn in Murdoch asked me if Mark had discussed some of the things that he had gone through with me. I answered yes and then Murdoch asked if I would share some of them with the judge. I took a deep breath and started, as mom had, with Mark's being afraid to speak and sleep, feeling bad for saying it, but knowing it would help paint the picture, I even brought up the fact that Mark was afraid of the dark from being locked in a closet for days at a time.

As I spoke I had managed to remain calm however while speaking I had turned my head and saw Max sitting there in his wheelchair behind the table. Even as I was speaking, telling of how Mark had never used his past as a crutch and worked hard at having a normal life, I was overwhelmed at the sheer size of Max. Even sitting in the chair he was tall and his shoulders were almost freakishly broad. Suddenly I had an image of Max hitting Mark. Not the Mark of today, who was one hundred and eighty pounds of pure muscle, but my brother as a small child. I stopped talking as the images continued, my poor brother being punched and thrown into a closet, of being hit every time he 'made noise'. I pictured Mark as a young child sobbing in a dark closet alone and in pain, unloved, with no friends, no hope. The one thing he had at one point was the thought that his big sister was out there and would someday find him.

As Murdock asked me if I was okay I imagined Max looking into my brother's battered face and telling him his sister was dead taking that last little bit of hope away from him and leaving him completely heartbroken. I started sobbing at that point. Granted I was capable of calling upon very convincing crocodile tears when necessary but these were real and the judge asked me if I would like to stop. I gathered myself somewhat and haltingly got out what I had been picturing telling the judge how my brother had been told I was dead. I choked out what kind of a sick cruel person could do that to someone? Murdock said he had no more questions and gave me a few minutes before the prosecutor asked me what he had asked mom; had Mark ever described Max to me. I looked him in the eye and lied to him; telling him that all Mark could recall was that Max was huge and loud all that he saw in his dreams was a shadowy figure that was always screaming 'are you making noise'.

As I spoke I could hear Mark telling me that every time he would work the punching bag that he could see Max's face, which he would never forget for as long as he lived. I knew Mark had deliberately led Max into his apartment with the sole intent of killing him. In the beginning I had been horrified by what my brother had done and at one point even wondered if he would be better off in a hospital for awhile. Now however staring at the vicious animal that had come within an inch of killing my brother seven years ago I found myself wishing Mark had killed him. The prosecutor proceeded to continue asking me the same question in different ways and I answered the same way every time; as far as I knew Mark had blocked Max out of his mind. Finally the judge told the prosecutor that if all he was going to do was keep rephrasing the same question over and over then as far as he was concerned I was done.

The prosecutor reluctantly nodded and said he had no further questions. As I walked back to sit down I looked over and saw that Mark was looking at me and appeared to be trying to hold back tears. Mom was crying and had switched places with dad so she could hug me as soon as I sat down. While hugging her I looked over her shoulder and saw Alex looking at me sadly once he saw I was looking he turned back to face the judge who had just called the attorney's up to the front and was talking about taking a recess while he considered what he had heard. The prosecutor said that he wanted to get Mark on the stand but the judge refused saying that the prosecution had been present at Mark's polygraph test and had been able to ask any question he had wanted to there was no need to go through it again.

The prosecutor began to argue that the defendant not taking the stand was unheard of. As the judge reminded the prosecutor who was running the hearing, I noticed that Murdock had turned and was staring at something behind me. I turned and saw Alex staring back at him. As I watched Alex nodded very slightly. I quickly turned around to see Murdock turn back to the judge and say that if it would help his cause Mark would be more than willing to take the stand again adding that Mark would do anything to help clear his name. The judge stared at Murdock for a moment then said that wouldn't be necessary as far as he was concerned this part of the hearing was over. I found myself hoping that was a good sign but then felt my heart skip a beat when the judge announced he wanted to talk to both Mark and Max alone in his chambers one at a time to get one final "impression' as he put it.

That was when the rest of us were told to wait outside while he spoke to the two parties and their attorneys and then took some time to make his decision. I glanced at my watch and shook my head; that had been over a half hour ago. After three separate court appearances what the hell was taking the judge so long? I stood there for a few more minutes driving myself crazy by wondering if the long delay meant good or bad results for Mark. Finally I walked away from the railing and went back to sit on the stairs.

I looked over and saw that Alex had gotten up and had walked over to the coffee truck that was parked in front of the courthouse. After buying a cup, Alex went back and once again sat on the stairs across from me. Part of me wanted to go sit and talk to him but I had no idea how to approach him and if he would even speak to me. Instead I lit another cigarette put my elbows on my knees and resting my chin in my left hand let my mind wander.

Unfortunately, as it had so many times in the last few days it wandered back to Thursday night at Murdock's office. We had gone there to try to prepare Mark for the polygraph test the next day. It had become apparent early on by Alex's questions that not only was Mark's future on the line but our secret as well. Both my brother and I had expected this and although I was nervous Mark had seemed oddly calm. That is until the end where I don't think anyone expected what had ended up happening

*****

The time I had been dreading had arrived, and as I watched Murdock wrap a blood pressure cuff around Mark's arm, I felt my stomach begin to start to turn nervously. I glanced over at Alex who was sitting at the table across from my brother and was reading the manual that went along with the polygraph machine on the table in between him and my brother. In front of Warner was a manila folder that he had brought with him. I had asked him twice on the way over to Murdock's office what was in there, and each time, Alex had flashed that smirk and said it was some pictures to ask Mark about during the test. I took a deep breath and wondered what I was more nervous about; whether or not Murdock could figure out a way for Mark to lie through the questions the prosecutor was bound to ask, or what Alex had up his sleeve.