Wayne lit a cigarette and headed down the hall toward the ashtray while the deputy led the rest of us into a small room. A percolator of burnt-smelling coffee sat next to a plate of glazed donuts, but they didn’t whet anyone’s appetite. In less than half an hour the deputy came back, beckoning Uncle Tinsley to follow him. About twenty minutes later, the deputy came back again and this time he beckoned me. As I closed the door, I gave Liz a thumbs-up.
CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
The clerk swore me in, and I sat down in the witness chair. Maddox was leaning back with his arms crossed, as if challenging me to pull this off. In the gallery behind him, Uncle Tinsley had taken a seat next to Mom and was giving me encouraging nods. The jurors in the jury box were studying me like I was some sort of curiosity.
Sitting in the witness chair, all those people staring at me with cocked heads, made my mouth dry and my throat tight. When Dickey Bryson got up and asked me to state my name, my voice came out in a little squeak. Yikes, I thought, and glanced at the jury. The man in the plaid jacket grinned like he thought it was funny.
“Take your time,” Dickey Bryson said.
In answer to his questions, I explained how Liz and I had started working for the Maddoxes, how I mostly did stuff for Mrs. Maddox, how Liz was more like Mr. Maddox’s personal assistant, and how he had set up the passbook savings accounts. Dickey Bryson then asked what happened the night Liz came back with Wayne, and I told the jury everything I could remember. The more I talked, the more comfortable I felt, and by the time Dickey Bryson said “No further questions,” I thought I had done a fairly good job.
Leland Hayes stood up and buttoned his jacket. He had short graying hair and a long sunburned nose. When he smiled, crow’s-feet formed at the corners of his slate-colored eyes, which twinkled in a way that made you think he enjoyed doing what he did.
“Good morning, young lady,” he began. “How are you today?”
“Fine. Thank you.”
“Good. Glad to hear it.” He walked up to the witness box, carrying his legal pad. “I know it’s not easy, coming in here and testifying, and I admire you for doing it.”
“Thank you,” I said again.
“So you worked for Jerry Maddox here?” Leland Hayes pointed at him.
“Yes, sir.” Dickey Bryson had told me to keep my answers short.
“It was mighty generous of him to give you a job, wasn’t it?”
“I suppose. But we worked for our money. It wasn’t charity.”
“Did anyone else offer you a job?”
“No. But we worked hard.”
“Just answer yes or no. Now, why did you go to work for Mr. Maddox?”
“We needed the money.”
“Why did you girls need money? Didn’t your parents provide for you?”
“Lots of kids work,” I said.
“Answer the question, please. Do your parents provide for you?”
“I only have one. My mom. My dad died.”
“My sympathies. That must be tough, growing up without a dad. How did he die?”
Dickey Bryson stood up. “Objection,” he said. “Irrelevant.”
“Sustained,” the judge said.
I looked over at the jury. Tammy Elbert had a tiny smile. She knew how my dad had been killed. They all did. They also knew he wasn’t married to Mom.
“Now you’re living with your uncle, isn’t that correct?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Why is that? Is it because your momma can’t take care of you?”
“Objection,” Dickey Bryson said again. “Irrelevant.”
“I’ll proffer that it is relevant, Your Honor,” Leland Hayes said. “It goes to the question of motive and character. Which is the heart of our defense.”
“I’ll allow it,” the judge said.
“So why aren’t you living with your momma?”
I looked over at Mom. She was sitting very erect with her lips pressed together. “It’s sort of complicated,” I said.
“You strike me as a very smart young lady. I’m sure you can explain to the jury something that’s sort of complicated.”
“Mom had some stuff she needed to do, so we decided to visit Uncle Tinsley.”
“Stuff? What stuff?”
“Personal stuff.”
“Can you be more specific?”
I glanced at Mom again. She looked like she was about to explode. I turned to the judge. “Do I have to answer that?” I asked.
“I’m afraid so,” the judge said.
“But it’s personal.”
“Personal matters often come out in a court of law.”
“Well”—I took a deep breath—“Mom had sort of a meltdown, and she needed some time to herself to figure things out, so we decided to come visit Uncle Tinsley.”