A line of spectators was filing through a metal detector that had been set up outside Judge Velasco’s courtroom. A guard held up the line to let Ami, Vanessa, and the guards into the courtroom. Brendan Kirkpatrick and Howard Walsh turned in their seats at the prosecution table and watched the women walk down the aisle. Ami did not notice them. She was too busy scanning the crowded benches. Several reporters occupied a section reserved for the press at the front of the courtroom. Leroy Ganett, who was under subpoena by Ami and the DA, was seated in the rear of the courtroom. The doctor turned red and looked away when he spotted the women who had scammed him. Victor Hobson, the one man Ami and Vanessa hoped would be present, was missing.
One other man was not present in the courtroom. General Morris Wingate was waiting in the DA’s office guarded by a contingent from the Secret Service and his own security force. Kirkpatrick had brought the General into the building before court convened to avoid the mobs of protestors, supporters, and reporters who had converged on the courthouse when the General’s appearance as a witness was made public.
Just as they reached the low fence that separated the spectators from the area where the attorneys and the judge conducted business, Vanessa noticed a slender, bookish, nattily dressed man in his mid-fifties.
“See that guy in the seat by the window in the third row from the back?” Vanessa whispered to Ami. “That’s Bryce McDermott, my father’s chief political adviser. He’s probably going to report everything that happens in here.”
There was an undercurrent of whispers-some hostile, some sympathetic-when the guards unlocked Vanessa’s handcuffs. The women took their seats as soon as Vanessa’s hands were free. Ami tried to ignore the hum of conversation that drifted through the gallery by concentrating on the outlines of direct and cross-examination that she had made for each witness. She had managed to block out most of the noise when the rap of the bailiff’s gavel announced Judge Velasco’s entrance. Ami rose to her feet and signaled Vanessa to do the same as the judge took the bench.
“Good morning,” Velasco said to everyone in the courtroom. “You may be seated.”
The judge waited to address the spectators until his bailiff had read the name and number of the case into the record.
“Before we begin this bail hearing, I want to make it clear to the members of the public who have been granted the privilege of watching this court proceeding that I will not tolerate improper behavior in my court under any circumstances. Anyone who causes a disturbance will be taken from the court immediately and will face criminal sanctions, including contempt of this court.
“One reason why I have made this announcement is the possibility that General Morris Wingate, a candidate for his party’s presidential nomination, may be called as a witness. If that happens, there will be a heavy police and Secret Service presence in addition to the guards who would normally maintain order in this court. If anyone is contemplating any type of political protest during his testimony, I warn you that you will go to jail. I hope that is clear.”
The judge paused to let his message sink in.
“Now to business. Are the parties ready?”
“The state is ready, Your Honor,” Brendan Kirkpatrick said, standing to address the court.
Ami stood. “Ami Vergano for Miss Kohler. We’re prepared to proceed.”
“Very well. Mr. Kirkpatrick, what is your position on bail for Miss Kohler?”
“The state wishes bail to remain as it is. The defendant used a gun to help Carl Rice escape from the secure wing of the county hospital. She terrorized four people during the escape. Since his escape, Mr. Rice has murdered and assaulted a number of people. Miss Kohler may have aided and abetted some of these crimes. After she is prosecuted in Oregon, the defendant will be sent to California where she is facing charges of murder and assault growing out of the invasion of General Wingate’s home. Her actions prove that she is a danger to others and a flight risk.
“One more thing. Miss Kohler has a pathological hatred of her father, General Morris Wingate. If she were free, she would be a danger to a presidential candidate.”
Kirkpatrick sat down, and Ami stood. Inside, she cringed at the argument she was about to make, but she had a duty to present her client’s position even if she did not believe it. More important, Vanessa still held the power to destroy Ami’s life and Ryan’s by telling the authorities that Ami had helped her hide.
“First off, Your Honor, Miss Kohler has no criminal record. She is employed with a newspaper in Washington, D.C. I’m going to offer into evidence an affidavit from her employer stating that he will continue to employ Miss Kohler. She has also had the same residence in Washington for many years. Except for this incident, Miss Kohler has been a model citizen.
“More important, Miss Kohler did not help Mr. Rice for criminal reasons. Miss Kohler believes that her actions in rescuing Carl Rice from the hospital were justified by a theory of defense of another, as were Mr. Rice’s actions in California when he rescued Miss Kohler, who had been kidnapped and assaulted by her father and his agents.
“Carl Rice and General Morris Wingate have known each other since Miss Kohler and Mr. Rice attended high school together in California. Mr. Rice received a draft notice during his senior year in high school and went into the army instead of seeking a college deferment, even though he had earned a scholarship to Dartmouth. He eventually became a member of the Special Forces during Vietnam, and that is when his path and the General’s path crossed again.
“During Vietnam, General Wingate was the head of the Agency for Intelligence Data Coordination, which has a charter that does not permit it to have active intelligence agents. Despite this clear prohibition, General Wingate ran a small and highly select army unit out of this agency. The Unit was financed by money obtained from illegal activities, such as drug smuggling.”
There was a stirring in the audience, and Judge Velasco gaveled for silence. When the courtroom was quiet he turned his attention to Ami.
“I hope you have evidence to support these sensational claims, Mrs. Vergano.”
“I have subpoenaed witnesses who will testify about the Unit and the General’s connection to it.”
Velasco looked incredulous but told Ami to continue.
“Soon after Mr. Rice returned to the states after completing his first combat mission, General Wingate arranged a meeting during which he recruited Mr. Rice into the secret unit. From the early nineteen-seventies until 1985 Mr. Rice was a member of the Unit. Under orders, he completed several missions including assassinations in Europe and on American soil.
“In 1985, Vanessa Kohler was living in Washington, D.C., where she became reacquainted with Mr. Rice. One evening, he confessed to killing two people in Texas under orders. These individuals were supposed to be spying for the Chinese. He was very upset and told Miss Kohler that he wanted to get out of the Unit.
“Miss Kohler found evidence in a safe in the General’s house that proved the existence of the Unit. She presented it to Congressman Eric Glass at his summer home in Lost Lake, California, in hopes that the congressman would expose the activities of the Unit and her father’s involvement in this illegal activity. When he discovered that the files were missing, General Wingate sent Mr. Rice to kill the congressman and retrieve the papers. After Mr. Rice murdered Congressman Glass and recovered the documents, General Wingate arranged for the murder of Mr. Rice. He survived, without the General’s knowledge. Mr. Rice went underground for years, but his picture was on national television as a result of his arrest in the Little League assault case. When Miss Kohler recognized him, she knew that it was only a matter of time before her father learned that Carl Rice was alive.