“Yes.”
“Has Khalid Mobassar been discredited as a result of the charges against him?”
“That is not for me to say. That is for this court and jury to decide.”
“And under Sharia law, has the honor of your family been restored as a result of the death of Ja’dah Mahdi?”
The witness leaned forward and glared at Alex. “I would do anything to get my wife back. Your question is an insult to the memory of a woman I loved very much.”
“Is that right?” Alex asked. He walked back to his counsel table, and Shannon handed him a large pile of documents. Alex had been waiting the entire cross-examination for Mahdi to reiterate his love for his wife.
“May I approach the witness, Your Honor?”
Rosenthal nodded. Alex walked to the witness box and handed the documents to Mahdi. “These are transcripts from cell phone calls you had with your wife in the six months prior to her death. Why don’t you point out to me how many times in those calls you told your wife that you loved her.”
Mahdi didn’t even look at the documents. “It was something I told her in person. It was something I showed her by my actions.”
“I guess we’ll let the jury decide,” Alex said.
87
Alex’s team shared lunch at a nearby Mexican restaurant, and Alex had to use every ounce of restraint to keep it from becoming a premature celebration. Shannon and Ramona had been in court to see Alex’s masterful cross-examination of Fatih Mahdi. As a potential witness, Nara had been sequestered but was now getting the blow-by-blow.
Technically, Nara was still a potential witness and should not have been hearing about Mahdi’s testimony. But Alex wasn’t worried. He had already decided that it wouldn’t be necessary for Nara to take the stand now. Why take unnecessary chances? They had already created reasonable doubt.
So Alex half-smiled as Shannon and Ramona recounted the more interesting parts of Mahdi’s testimony and described the look on his face when Alex had plunked the transcripts of his telephone calls in front of him.
“Let’s not give him a big head,” Ramona said, referring to her grandson. “We’ve still got a long way to go.”
“Yeah, this case is far from over,” Alex said. In truth, he was enjoying the accolades. He was especially pleased that Nara was hearing all this.
After lunch, Alex invited Nara to ride back to the courthouse with him, while Shannon hitched a ride with Ramona. He wanted a few minutes alone with Nara so he could talk to her about not testifying.
“This isn’t about protecting you from Hezbollah,” Alex said. “Even if your safety weren’t a factor, I wouldn’t call you as a witness. Not after Mahdi’s testimony. You don’t take chances when you’re winning.”
Nara had a lot of questions, but she eventually seemed satisfied with Alex’s advice. “Does this mean I can watch the trial now?” she asked.
Alex had already considered this. He expected Taj Deegan to rest her case that same afternoon. He would then give his opening statement, and it would be better now than it would have been at the start of the case. He definitely wanted Nara there to hear it.
“I don’t see why not,” Alex said.
Nara reached over and put a hand on Alex’s forearm. “I’m glad you’re my father’s lawyer.”***
Rosenthal was noted for long lunch breaks, but on Friday he set a record. The lunch recess had begun at 12:30, and the judge didn’t appear on the bench until 2:15. He made no excuses for being late. But then again, he was the judge. Everyone knew that judges were never late.
“Ms. Deegan, your next witness,” Rosenthal said.
“The commonwealth would like to recall Fatih Mahdi.”
Alex felt a stab of anxiety. He liked the way Mahdi’s testimony had ended before lunch. Taj Deegan was up to something.
Mahdi walked into the well of the courtroom with downcast eyes. “Your prior affirmation still applies,” Judge Rosenthal reminded him, “under penalties of perjury.”
“Yes, Your Honor.” Mahdi climbed into the stand again and hunkered forward. He looked like he had been waterboarded over the break.
Taj Deegan positioned herself in the center of the courtroom and interlaced her fingers. She pondered the wall just above the judge and then looked at the witness. “Mr. Mahdi, you testified earlier as to why you stopped criticizing Mr. Mobassar’s reforms about six months before your wife died. Do you recall that testimony?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You said that you decided your friendship was more important than opposing Mr. Mobassar’s reforms. Do you recall that?”
Alex stood. “I object, Judge. She’s just rephrasing his testimony.”
“I’ll allow it,” Rosenthal said. The way he said it made Alex think that the judge knew something Alex didn’t.
“I think I said that I didn’t want to lose our friendship or my wife,” Mahdi said.
“You’re right; I stand corrected,” Taj said calmly. “But, Mr. Mahdi, are those the only reasons you stopped opposing Mr. Mobassar?”
The witness shifted in his seat and glanced at Taj Deegan. He looked back down and studied his hands. “No. Those were not the only reasons.”
“Please explain to the jury what happened six months before your wife died that caused you to stop criticizing Mr. Mobassar.”
Mahdi looked at the jury. He inhaled and blew out a breath. “I had a meeting with Mr. Mobassar. It was when the rift in the mosque was growing severe and our disagreement was very intense. Mr. Mobassar urged me to support him as my religious leader in the mosque. He said we were like brothers and that brothers should not treat each other this way.”
“Is that all he said?” Deegan prompted.
“No. He told me that we had been through a lot together and that he had protected me in the past in ways I did not know. He told me…” Mahdi paused and frowned. After a few seconds, he found the courage to continue. “When I was a young man, around twenty years old or so, Lebanon was in the middle of its civil war. I had nothing but contempt and hatred for the Christians. I was a warrior for Allah.
“During that war, Khalid Mobassar’s wife lost a brother. The Christian Phalange killed him and disemboweled him. I was furious and wanted revenge. Ghaniyah was in mourning and equally furious. But Khalid reacted differently. He wanted to work through diplomatic solutions and broker an end to the violence. He called it ‘pointless bloodshed.’ It put great strains on his marriage.”
Mahdi looked at Khalid Mobassar, and Alex felt his own heart in his throat. The same witness who had been despised by the jury this morning was now in some type of confessional mode. And the jury was hanging on his every word.
“Khalid’s wife turned to me in her pain and anger. I was young, not yet married. I slept with her.”
The revelation caused a few gasps and a buzz of excited murmuring in the courtroom. Judge Rosenthal rapped the gavel. “Silence!”
Out of the corner of his eye, Alex tried to gauge the impact on his client. Khalid looked stunned, staring at the witness, his gaze vacant. Then he looked down at the table.
“Did you think that Khalid Mobassar knew about this?” Taj Deegan asked.
“No, I didn’t. Not until that meeting six months before Ja’dah died. During that meeting, he told me that he had protected me in the past in ways I would never know. He said-”
“So the record is clear,” Taj interrupted, “tell us who you’re referring to when you say ‘he.’”
“Khalid Mobassar, the defendant.”
“Thank you. Please continue.”
Fatih hesitated for a second while he recaptured his train of thought. “Mr. Mobassar told me that he knew about my affair with Ghaniyah. He said that he had kept it to himself all these years out of his great respect for our friendship and his desire to stay married to his wife.”
“That’s a lie,” Khalid whispered to Alex. He had a hand on Alex’s elbow. “This whole thing is a lie. Ghaniyah would never do that.”
Alex held up a hand. He needed to hear the testimony.