Page 65 of The Better Sister

“Your Honor, the prosecutor tried to make it sound as if Ethan dropped the evidentiary equivalent of a nuclear bomb in the courtroom yesterday when he finally badgered this boy into disclosing his family’s deepest, most shameful secret. The jury deserves the right to understand his state of mind.”

Judge Rivera agreed.

“I was embarrassed, and I blamed myself. I was probably in denial about it, too, hoping it was temporary.He’s drunk, he’s stressed out, it won’t happen again.I was so in love with him. Against all the taboos—he was my sister’s ex, for goodness’ sake, my nephew’s father—I dated him and then married him, because I truly believed we were soul mates. I had absolutely no idea that Ethan was aware of the abuse, or I’d like to think I would have made different decisions. But now I understand why he wrote those internet posts. Just like he said, he was trying to get my attention. To wake me up and make me see the situation from the outside, even as he internalized my own shame.”

Nunzio rose again. “She can’t read the defendant’s mind, Your Honor.”

“I’m going to allow it.”

“Now, Mr. Nunzio here has suggested that Ethan was motivated to kill Adam because he was the stricter parent, while you were the more lenient. To be clear, did you adopt Ethan?”

“No.”

“Who are his legal parents?”

“Well, it was Adam and my sister, Nicole, with Adam having sole physical custody once they divorced almost fourteen years ago.”

“What is your understanding of who Ethan’s legal parent is now that Adam is deceased?”

“Adam’s will directed that Ethan remain with me, but he included that clause because, as a simple legal matter, his biological mother would become the presumptive guardian.”

“In fact, when the state has sent legal notifications during this trial to the parent of my client, they’ve sent those documents to your sister, Nicole, correct?”

“Yes.”

“And the detention center where he’s been held pending trial permits you to visit not on a parent’s schedule, but as an aunt?”

“Yes.”

“How many times would you estimate that Adam Macintosh physically assaulted you?”

Another objection came from Nunzio. “Relevance, Your Honor. The victim is not on trial here.”

Judge Rivera tapped her pen against a legal pad. “I’m inclined to agree. The bad acts of the victim are not relevant unless they were known to the defendant, and he testified to the extent of his knowledge yesterday.”

“Your Honor, the defense offers this evidence for another purpose. I promise to tie it in quickly.”

“A few questions, Ms. Randall, but be quick.”

While they wrangled over the law, I was trying to count how many times Adam had hurt me. “I didn’t keep a log or anything. My guess is more than eight, less than twelve. Maybe ten times?”

“Did he ever grab you?”

“Yes.”

“Push you?”

“Yes.”

“Slap you?”

“Yes.”

“Punch you, by which I mean, a closed fist?”

“Yes.”

“Choke you?”

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