Page 50 of Ashes of Us
Danica wondered why he didn't mention the theory that if the child was Jasper's, it was because Lucy sexually assaulted him and impregnated herself, then realized if he had, it would be on them to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt and this way, the evidence would tell the story and hopefully the Judge would make the connection himself. She shifted a little in her chair and watched as the Judge told Mathers to present his case. To her surprise, he called Amy to the stand immediately, but his reason's for it became clear as after she was sworn in, he immediately started asking about the text messages between her and her son and the discrepancies between the transcript she provided to him and the one David had pulled from Jasper's phone and submitted as evidence.
“Jasper asked me to delete our text messages.” Her voice was shaking slightly, and Danica could tell she was very nervous. “What I supplied was what I was able to recover, but I felt itcovered the important parts, that he woke up with Lucy on top of him, and if the baby were his, he would have raised it.”
“Why did Jasper ask you to delete your text messages with him?” Mathers asked, his voice very gentle, like he was talking to an emotionally fragile child, but Danica noticed he never questioned why she believed it was Jasper's baby when he kept denying it or if she thought there was a chance Lucy had done something sneaky in order to get pregnant.
“He came to me after everything happened, asking for advice about what to do.” Amy took a deep breath and glanced at Danica, her face full of resentment. “He was afraid Danica would leave him if she found out. I told him to get a paternity test quietly, and if it were his, he would have to deal with the consequences of his actions, but if he wasn't the father, then there was no need for her, or anyone else for that matter, to find out.”
“So, you encouraged him to hide it from his wife.” Mathers' tone of voice was grating on Danica's nerves. He was acting like Amy was a fragile old woman who was just acting in her son's best interests when she was a conniving bitch who only cared about her son and herself. “Can you tell the court why?”
“Their marriage was already in jeopardy due to poor reactions from both of them during a fight. They were trying to work things out, and no matter what happened that night...” Amy trailed off, clearly not wanting to finish her sentence, judging by the way her mouth looked like she was sucking on a lemon. She huffed and folded her arms, looking away from Danica like the sight of her was personally offensive. “No matter what happened that night, my son loved his wife and losing her would have devastated him. I didn't see the point in throwing another bomb on things. I wanted my son to be happy.”
Mathers asked her if she knew what the fight was about, and Amy shook her head. “All he told me was he started the fight, Danica tried to walk away to cool off, and he grabbed her arm to stop her, which resulted in her slapping him in the face to get away. He insisted he was in the wrong and never should have started the fight or grabbed her. He didn't blame her for slapping him and even said he deserved it.” She looked outraged by that and glared at Danica. “Although personally, I don't believe violence is ever the answer.”
“No further questions.” Mathers smiled at Amy and thanked her before sitting down. The Judge told David that Amy was now his witness, and David stood up, approaching Amy, who tried to hold his eyes and appear indifferent, but ended up coughing and looking away from him.
“Mrs. Preston.” He came to a stop in front of her and linked his hands behind his back as he studied her. “In the text messages recovered from your son's phone, he repeatedly insists the baby wasn't his, and you backed him up, telling him to get the paternity test to prove it wasn't his. What made you change your mind?”
Amy shifted, clearly uncomfortable with the question. “Lucy came to me the day after the accident and told me her side of the story. She said she approached Danica in the hospital and asked for my son's sperm so she could get pregnant again. I felt she wouldn't have done something so incredibly rude and insensitive if she were making things up.”
“So, you believe your son cheated on his wife, who you've admitted, on record, loved his wife so much that losing her would have devastated him, and got Ms. Gamache pregnant?” David raised his eyebrow.
Amy swallowed and shook her head. “No, not on purpose. He admitted to being high, and I figured he didn't remember everything.”
“I'm not an expert, although I do have one who is willing to testify about the effects of marijuana if needed, but it's my understanding that marijuana does not cause memory loss unless someone is a chronic user. According to my client and the statements of numerous family members and friends, Jasper didn't usually partake, only using it once or twice a year at most.” He tilted his head at her. “Do you have proof that he used it enough to affect his memory?”
“No.” Amy shook her head, looking weirdly proud and defeated.
“So, why wouldn't he remember having sex with someone who wasn't his wife?” David pressed. “Or do you think he was lying about his actions that night?”
“I don't know.” She admitted after a moment, and Danica could tell it killed her to realize that in order to continue saying it was Jasper's baby, she would have to acknowledge her son was at fault and had made a conscious decision to cheat on Danica that night.
“And yet, you were so sure that it was your son's child that you filed an injunction and brought his widow to court to demand that she allow his alleged affair partner to take his reproductive material and impregnate herself with his child again.” He paused, allowing the statement to sink in before he pressed forward. “I'll ask again, do you believe your son cheated on his wife and got Ms. Gamache pregnant?”
Amy glared at David for a long moment, and Danica ducked her head to hide her smile at how David had backed Amy into a corner. She now had to admit that she either thoughtJasper cheated or that she didn't actually believe Lucy was pregnant with Jasper's baby and only went through with all this to get Jasper's offspring. “Yes.” She snapped finally when the Judge cleared his throat and raised his eyebrow at her. “Yes, I think he cheated on Danica, and I think she deserved it.”
There was a collective gasp in the courtroom, and several of Jasper's cousins stood up, talking over one another as they all attempted to make it understood that Jasper wouldn't cheat on Danica. The Judge banged his gavel several times, demanding order and had to threaten to clear the courtroom before things died down. David, however, just smiled politely and returned to his seat. “No further questions.”
“What are you doing?” Danica whispered as Amy stepped down from the stand and returned to her seat, red-faced. “Why aren't you asking anything else?”
“Because I got her to admit she thinks you deserve all of this,” David murmured back soothingly. “She just pretty much admitted she's doing all this to get back at you, either for slapping Jasper or because you pulled Jasper out from under her thumb, whatever, her reasons don't really matter. I thought she would deny her precious boy cheated, and I would then point out that if she truly believed Jasper didn't cheat, then she either knew it wasn't Jasper's baby, or she didn't care that her son was sexually assaulted as long as she got a grandchild out of it.”
Danica furrowed her brow. She wasn't exactly sure how the fact that Amy was doing this to be vindictive was better than her admitting she was okay with all of this because it meant she would get a do-over baby, but she trusted David's judgement.
Chapter Forty: Limited Disclosure
Mathers called Jasper's therapist to the stand next, but his questioning didn't go as planned. Dr. Sabrina Lin refused to answer questions directly related to her conversations with Jasper, citing therapist-patient privilege. Mathers asked the Judge to intervene, but he declined, stating that under Massachusetts General Laws and Rules of Evidence, a therapist cannot disclose communications with a patient without the patients, or in this case, the next of kin's consent. Everyone turned to Danica and looked at her expectantly, but the Judge banged his gavel and stood up. “Counsel, this may involve privileged communications, let's step into chambers and address this before we proceed.” He turned and swept off to a door that was to one side, David stood up and motioned for Danica to follow while Mathers told Amy to sit tight and followed them through the door, down a short hall and into a large, elegant room with dark wood wainscotting about halfway up the mint green walls, a large desk with a chair on one side and a leather couch and chairs in front of it. Judge Perella gesturedfor them to have a seat, and Danica and David sat on the sofa while Mathers sat in the chair, looking visibly annoyed.
“For someone so quick to point out the law regarding his client's best interests, you seem to have minimal regard for it when it stands in the way of what you want.” Judge Perella glared at Mathers as he pulled a notebook toward him and picked up a pen. “Or are you only versed on the law regarding being recorded and not on the patient-therapist privilege?”
“I fully admit to not being aware that the privilege extended beyond the death of the client.” He admitted grudgingly. “However, I would like to point out that blocking the therapist from testifying reflects poorly on Mrs. Preston and makes it appear as though she wants things to be kept hidden.”
“Or maybe, just maybe, she wants to protect her husband's privacy regarding his sessions with his therapist,” David said dryly, looking like he was visibly stopping himself from rolling his eyes at the other lawyer.
“I'm afraid I agree with Mr. Niehaus.” The Judge nodded. “Jasper Preston's sessions with his therapist are no one's business but his, deceased or not.” He looked at Danica. “But it is your decision.”
Danica hesitated. She did want to protect Jasper's privacy, but she also wanted the therapist to testify, not about everything they had discussed in their sessions, but about Jasper's thought process regarding everything since the fight. She strongly doubted Jasper got in for an emergency session before he confronted Lucy, so he probably didn't discuss the potential pregnancy with her. “I don't think he would have had a chance to discuss the pregnancy with his therapist, considering he found out Lucy was pregnant in the afternoon, then confronted her and was in the accident that evening, so I'm not sure what you're looking for from her.”
Mathers rubbed his jaw and nodded, acknowledging Danica's point. “Obviously, we're trying to prove your husband cheated and had intercourse with Ms. Gamache, resulting in her pregnancy. I was hoping he spoke to his therapist about what happened at his cousin's apartment after his cousin and Miss Sheridan left them alone in the living room.”
