PRESENT TENSE
Chapter Twenty-Three
Rose walked slowly toward the building housing
the jail. Despite her earlier words to Jack, she wasn’t at all certain that she
could manipulate things so that justice would be served. Cal was stubborn and
devious, as she well knew, and he might well be able to get off with a slap on
the wrist—or less. Still, she had to try. Cal’s lawyer, Spicer Lovejoy, was one
of the best, and Cal knew a great deal about how the legal system operated, but
she still wouldn’t let him get away with what he had done without a fight.
Rose touched the large, odd-looking bun on
the side of her head just above her left ear, touching the tiny plastic tape
recorder, one that she often used to tape lectures, that she had hidden inside.
She didn’t know whether she would be able to bring it in with her, but if she
could, she would try to tape their conversation. She had already called ahead, confirmed
that she could see Cal, and had ridden the bus up to Murrieta.
Rose slipped inside the front door and
approached the desk. The guard working there looked up.
“I’m here to see Caledon Hockley,” Rose told
him. He nodded, coming around the desk.
Using a metal detector, he checked her for
weapons. Soon, she was seated on the other side of a glass partition from Cal.
He looked surprised to see her, and a little
uncomfortable. Of course, the last time they had seen each other, he had been
trying to kill her. He probably hadn’t expected her to show up at the jail.
He sat back, trying to look nonchalant. Rose
looked at his prison uniform, the ugly orange color making him impossible to
miss.
Cal picked up the phone. “Why are you here?”
he asked abruptly.
“I need to talk to you.” Surreptitiously,
Rose reached into her hair and switched on the tape recorder. Cal didn’t notice
the gesture.
“I have nothing to say to you.”
“Well, I have something to say to you. And
you’d better listen, because it could affect the outcome of your trial.”
“I doubt that.”
Rose smiled coldly. She was in control now,
and she knew it. “You’re already being charged with embezzlement and attempted
murder.”
“What’s your point?”
Rose looked around quickly to make sure no
one was listening. “How would you like to have a rape charge added to that?”
He paled slightly, but kept the smirk on his
face. “Since I have never committed rape, I’m sure your charge would never
stand.”
“You have a very poor memory, then. Three
weeks ago today, you blew up at me, beat me within an inch of my life, threw me
on the floor, and raped me.”
Cal answered very calmly. “That never
happened.”
“It did, and I can prove it.”
“How?”
“DNA evidence. I kept the ruined clothes
after it happened. I didn’t wash them, either. I just threw them into a corner
of my closet. The evidence is still there.”
“That doesn’t prove anything. Many engaged
couples have sex.”
“Not so brutally that the woman bleeds from
it.”
“It’s not my problem if it was your time of
month...”
“It wasn’t. Trust me on that. And there is a
difference between that kind of bleeding, and bleeding from an injury. Someone
who knows what they’re doing could probably tell the difference.” Rose wasn’t
sure about that, but from Cal’s expression, she could tell that he hadn’t
considered that possibility and that he believed her.
He shrugged. “You were a virgin.”
Rose stared at him. “I was not. In case you
don’t recall, we took care of that last summer.” She put her hand up before he
could speak again. “And there are those who could testify to the truth of that.
Remember last September, the night before I went off to college, when that cop
caught us in the back seat of your car? Obviously, with what we were doing
then, I couldn’t have been a virgin seven months later, and you know it.” She
glared at him, her eyes cold.
Cal knew when he was beaten, though he still looked
at her defiantly, trying not to let her know that he knew she had the upper
hand. “What was your reason for coming here? To harangue me about something I
already know?”
“So you admit that you raped me, then?”
“You deserved it.”
Rose looked at him with contempt. “Now, as to
why I’m here...I want you to drop those charges against Jack.”
“No.”
“You framed him, and all three of us know it.”
“I didn’t—”
“You did. If that wall hadn’t broken in the
earthquake, he would have died in that jail.”
“That’s not my concern. Criminals deserve
exactly what they get.”
“I hope you remember that when you go on
trial.”
“What makes you think that I would drop the
charges against him?”
“If you drop those charges, I will keep my
mouth shut about you raping me.”
“Blackmail, Rose?”
“You’d know all about it.” She paused. “Think
about it, Cal. Right now, you’re only being charged with attempted murder and
embezzlement. Embezzlement is a white-collar crime. People who practice it
seldom get a harsh sentence. As to your attempt to murder Jack and me—it
appears impulsive, a crime of passion. If, however, the jury hears about how
you have treated me in the past...what you did to me...it might just convince
them that you planned to kill us. Premeditated crimes carries a much harsher
penalty than a crime of passion. You’re just lucky that you missed me, and that
Jack survived. Otherwise, you could be up on a murder charge.”
“Need I remind you that Spicer Lovejoy has a
reputation for being one of the best lawyers in southern California?”
“One of the best. There’s others.”
“Which neither of you can afford.”
“But Sun Titan Industries can, and they’re
the ones charging you with embezzlement. Don’t be so sure of your victory yet,
Cal. And don’t forget, you may have a good lawyer, but you have two serious
charges against you, and you’ll have at least one more if you don’t drop those
charges against Jack.” Rose’s eyes were implacable. “Besides that, Jack would
be well within his rights to press charges against you for framing him. Do you
really want more charges against you?”
Cal clenched and unclenched his hands
furiously. As at other times, he had a strong urge to hit her, but even if he
could break through the glass, the guards would be on him in a minute, and he’d
have yet another charge against him. He looked at Rose. Her expression was
unreadable.
Reluctantly, almost spitting each word, he
said, “All right. I will drop the charges. It should be interesting, seeing how
you fare with your gutter rat.”
“I’m sure I’ll fare very well,” Rose told
him, allowing no emotion in her voice, no trace of the worries she held. She started
to put down the phone, then put it back to her ear. “Oh, and Cal...”
“What?”
“I’d keep my word if I were you.” She pulled her
hair back just enough to show the tape recorder with its pressed down record
button.
Cal’s face flushed angrily. “That will never
stand up in court. You taped me without my knowledge or consent.”
Rose knew that he was probably right, but she
wasn’t going to give up easily. “Maybe. Maybe not. Would you like to find out?”
“You little—”
“And even if it doesn’t hold up in court,
there are other places…certain media outlets have been very interested in this
case—it isn’t every day the CEO of a growing company is arrested for attempted
murder, after all. And there’s the Internet—there’s places where it could be
uploaded, file-sharing sites I could place it on. You could be convicted in the
court of public opinion long before the court of law gets done with you. In
fact, I could even make some money with this, selling it to certain tabloids.
But if you keep your word, I will make sure this tape never reaches the public—or
the courts.”
Cal stared at her for a moment, his mouth
twitching slightly in a way she often seen just before he lost control and hit
her. Suddenly, he slammed the phone down, getting up and walking away before
his temper could get the better of him.
Though she knew he couldn’t hear her through
the glass, Rose responded quietly. “Good-bye, Cal.”
She turned and walked away, making sure the
tape recorder was well-secured in her hair. She had done what she could. She
could only hope that it would be enough.