“I think so,” Kevin said. “Right now, we can’t even use the list of Dragons you gave me without a witness who can identify it. By using the CIA evidence, not only can we prove that the men who committed war crimes weren’t under your command, but we can show that you tried to prevent war crimes.”
Draga started pacing around the room.
Kevin had never seen him this serious.
Suddenly, Draga stopped. “All right, I’ve made my decision. Screw Bradford Stone and the horse he rode in on. Let’s use everything we’ve got and play to win.”
“What about your family?”
“I’ll have some people look after them. I brought this on my family for what I chose to do. You didn’t bring anything on your daughter. You were just doing your job.”
Kevin’s eyes watered as he considered what Draga had just said. This alleged “war criminal” had more character than some of the prosecutors and judges at the Tribunal.
CHAPTER 28
Kevin remained obsessed with his quandary over the CIA evidence. Would he be trading Draga’s life for Ellen’s? There was no guarantee that it would work. The kidnappers might kill her anyway or the Tribunal might still find Draga guilty. But he had to do everything in his power to save Ellen. Draga was right. She didn’t deserve this.
On Sunday, Kevin made an appointment to see Detective Weber, who was working in a command post set up at the Utrecht Police Department.
“Any news?” he asked.
Detective Weber was wearing jeans and a plaid woolen shirt and looked as if she were ready to do some farm chores herself. She led Kevin into an interview room and closed the door.
“Golic is coming to The Netherlands,” she said when they had sat down. “He’s flying in from Belgrade on Tuesday morning. If we haven’t found Ellen by then, we hope he’ll lead us to her.”
“That’s great. Why do you think he’s coming?
Detective Weber looked away for a moment. “I guess this is the end game for the kidnapping. When the trial’s over, if you believe their demands, they will release Ellen if Draga is released.”
“And if Draga is not released?”
“I don’t know. They said to you on the phone that they would kill her.”
Kevin felt sweat forming on his forehead. “What are you doing in the meantime?”
“We’re looking for the van, Johan Oosten, the farm, the puppy, anything that will lead us to your daughter. The headmaster of the American School has been asking what they could do to help. Tomorrow they are closing the school for the day and bussing a few hundred high school students as well as parents and staff to Utrecht to knock on doors. We are providing them with pictures of Ellen and Oosten.”
Kevin was moved at how wonderful everyone had been since Ellen went missing.
He leaned forward, and lowered his voice. “On Tuesday, I have to start calling witnesses and producing evidence on Draga’s behalf. I may need to use the CIA reports and tapes that I gave you the first day we met.”
Detective Weber’s expression gave Kevin no clue as to how she was receiving this request. He forged ahead. “If the judges know that Draga was working for the CIA during the war and giving them advance information about the military targets of his Black Dragons, I think it would significantly increase his chance of winning. And that would increase our chances of getting Ellen back if she’s not found today or tomorrow.”
“So you want me to give the materials back to you?”
“Well, I may want you to bring them to court on Tuesday morning. I haven’t decided for sure yet. You see, it’s not that simple. It may well be in Draga’s best interests to lose the trial rather than use the CIA evidence.”
Detective Weber gave Kevin a puzzled look.
He wondered if he was making sense. “If we don’t reveal the CIA evidence, the CIA will probably keep their promise and Draga will be free in a year or two. But if we use it and, in the process, burn his bridges with the CIA, even if he wins he’ll be taken to Germany, Belgium, and Sweden to serve his old sentences there. He’ll end up serving more time than if he loses this case, and who knows what will happen to him and his family once his role with the CIA becomes known.”
The detective nodded and her face softened. “That’s a difficult problem for you then, isn’t it?”
“It sure is. For Draga, it’s better to lose the trial, but for Ellen I need to win.”
“What does your client say?”
“He says to use the evidence and try to win. He said something like he made his choices and he and his family have to live with the consequences.”
“That’s unusual. Most criminals I know only look out for themselves.”
“I’m not sure what I should do. But I want to know if you’ll bring the evidence to court in the event I need to use it.”
“Sure, I’ll bring it to court. I’ll need a subpoena to cover my behind with my superiors, but I’m not going to stand in the way of anything that might win your daughter’s freedom.”
“I brought a subpoena with me. I was hoping it would be okay with you.”
Kevin took out the subpoena from his briefcase and handed it to Detective Weber.
She scanned it and put it down on the table. “That’ll work.”
“Do you think I should try and postpone the trial and buy more time for you?”
“You know, I think finding Ellen would be great, but having the kidnappers release her would be a whole lot better. Who knows what would happen if we find Ellen and have a confrontation with the kidnappers? She could be killed. Police officers could be killed. And the longer she stays with them, the greater the danger. So I would say to go ahead and finish the trial.”
“Let me ask you – do you think I should use the CIA evidence?”
Detective Weber hesitated for an instant. “Yes, if it might make a difference between winning and losing the trial, I would. Your client is right. Ellen didn’t do anything to deserve this. I think it’s fair to use the evidence if it might save her life.”
Kevin shook the detective’s hand and walked from the station. The train and bus ride to his house were a blur as Kevin replayed his conversations with Draga and Detective Weber. He passed the American School and thought of the hundreds of people who would be lining up to be bussed to Utrecht tomorrow to help find Ellen. Everyone had been so unselfish. Would it be selfish of him if he sacrificed Draga for Ellen?
When Kevin and Diane walked into Courtroom 1 the next morning, there was energy in the air as everyone anticipated the closing of the prosecution’s case.
Bradford Stone strutted around the prosecution’s side of the courtroom like an artist getting ready to put the finishing touches on his masterpiece.
Judge Orozco’s legal officer came over and asked Kevin how many days he expected for the defense testimony, but Kevin was noncommittal.
“Check with me after the last witness.”
At last, the usher commanded everyone to their feet and the three judges strode briskly to their places. They too seemed fresh and ready to move on to the next phase of the trial.
“Are you ready to call your next witness, Mr. Stone?” Judge Orozco asked after the preliminaries had been taken care of.
“Yes, Madam President. And I am pleased to inform the Court that we have consolidated matters so that this will be our final witness. We call Allen Jacobson.”
A young, thin man with light brown hair came forward from the back of the courtroom. He read the oath and began answering questions on his background. Jacobson was from Israel, and had graduated from military college with honors. He had been an investigator with the Israeli Army for six years before being detailed to the United Nations to work as an investigator for the prosecution at the Tribunal. Three years ago he was assigned to the investigation of Draga, and had worked on the case ever since.