Read Online Cold Case in Cherokee Crossing by Rita Herron - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Rita Herron
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too long and it was too late?
* * *
A VERY ’ S FACE HAUNTED Jaxon all night. In less than a week, her brother would be executed.
He reminded himself not to let things get personal, but he couldn’t help sympathizing with her. Her eyes were like a sensual magnet drawing him to her.
He stepped onto the porch of his ranch house, pausing to listen to the creek rippling in back. He’d bought the land because he liked wide-open spaces, enjoyed riding on his days off and fishing.
Only tonight it felt quiet. Maybe too quiet. Lonely.
Hell, he liked to be alone.
But for some reason, he imagined Avery beside him, maybe sipping wine on the porch. The two of them talking in soft hushed voices. Her fingers roaming up his neck, her kisses feathering against his cheek.
Then he saw her on the ranch, riding across the pasture, her hair blowing wildly around her face. She was laughing, a musical sound that made him want to drag her off the horse and make love to her.
Dammit. He forced the images from his mind.
He had to work. Making love to Avery was not in his future.
He grabbed a beer when he went inside, dropped the take-out burger he’d picked up on his way home onto the table, then spread out the trial transcript.
The prosecuting attorney in the case was the assistant D.A. at the time, now the D.A.—Snyderman. Due to the viciousness of the attack and number of stab wounds, he’d pushed to have Hank tried as an adult. He displayed pictures of Wade Mulligan’s mutilated body, showing the brutality of the crime, no doubt shocking the jurors into convicting without hesitation.
Witnesses against Hank included Avery, age nine, Joleen Mulligan, and two other foster parents, Teresa and Carl Brooks, and Philip and Sally Cotton. Both had testified that Hank was an angry kid, that he exhibited episodes of lashing out, and that he hadn’t been a good fit in their homes, that the younger children were afraid of him.
Avery’s account of the events of that night read just as she’d told him. When asked if she’d been afraid of her brother, she’d said no, that he always protected her.
Neither the prosecutor nor the defense attorney had pushed her for more when they could easily have encouraged her to explain her comment. Why had Hank felt the need to protect her?
If they’d pursued that line of questioning, the truth about Wade Mulligan would at least have been exposed, garnering sympathy from the jury.
But the attorney had skimmed over the details and focused on Hank’s confession.
The public defender, a new graduate barely out of diapers, had argued against the death penalty, claiming Hank was emotionally disturbed.
The A.D.A. had agreed that Hank was disturbed, but because he exhibited no signs of remorse, argued that he was psychotic. He ended his closing arguments by reminding the jurors of the number of stab wounds he’d inflicted on Wade Mulligan, arguing that Hank was not only dangerous, but also had no rehabilitative qualities.
Jaxon heaved a breath of frustration. The public defender should have requested Hank undergo a psychological exam, should have had both Hank and Avery medically evaluated and should have introduced the abuse factor. He should have researched past foster children placed with the Mulligans to see if there was a history of problems with the family.
Jaxon had hoped Casey would call with the social worker’s name, but he found it in the transcripts—Delia Hanover.
According to Delia, Hank Tierney had anger issues related to his father, had trouble adapting and fitting in and he had hated Wade Mulligan. He’d asked her to move him and Avery from the home, and she was searching for another family to take them, but he killed Mulligan before she could find another placement.
Hank’s attorney should have pushed her for more details on the reason Hank had requested a change.
Jaxon scrubbed his hand over the back of his neck, then sipped his beer.
At the least, the public defender should
* * *
A VERY ’ S FACE HAUNTED Jaxon all night. In less than a week, her brother would be executed.
He reminded himself not to let things get personal, but he couldn’t help sympathizing with her. Her eyes were like a sensual magnet drawing him to her.
He stepped onto the porch of his ranch house, pausing to listen to the creek rippling in back. He’d bought the land because he liked wide-open spaces, enjoyed riding on his days off and fishing.
Only tonight it felt quiet. Maybe too quiet. Lonely.
Hell, he liked to be alone.
But for some reason, he imagined Avery beside him, maybe sipping wine on the porch. The two of them talking in soft hushed voices. Her fingers roaming up his neck, her kisses feathering against his cheek.
Then he saw her on the ranch, riding across the pasture, her hair blowing wildly around her face. She was laughing, a musical sound that made him want to drag her off the horse and make love to her.
Dammit. He forced the images from his mind.
He had to work. Making love to Avery was not in his future.
He grabbed a beer when he went inside, dropped the take-out burger he’d picked up on his way home onto the table, then spread out the trial transcript.
The prosecuting attorney in the case was the assistant D.A. at the time, now the D.A.—Snyderman. Due to the viciousness of the attack and number of stab wounds, he’d pushed to have Hank tried as an adult. He displayed pictures of Wade Mulligan’s mutilated body, showing the brutality of the crime, no doubt shocking the jurors into convicting without hesitation.
Witnesses against Hank included Avery, age nine, Joleen Mulligan, and two other foster parents, Teresa and Carl Brooks, and Philip and Sally Cotton. Both had testified that Hank was an angry kid, that he exhibited episodes of lashing out, and that he hadn’t been a good fit in their homes, that the younger children were afraid of him.
Avery’s account of the events of that night read just as she’d told him. When asked if she’d been afraid of her brother, she’d said no, that he always protected her.
Neither the prosecutor nor the defense attorney had pushed her for more when they could easily have encouraged her to explain her comment. Why had Hank felt the need to protect her?
If they’d pursued that line of questioning, the truth about Wade Mulligan would at least have been exposed, garnering sympathy from the jury.
But the attorney had skimmed over the details and focused on Hank’s confession.
The public defender, a new graduate barely out of diapers, had argued against the death penalty, claiming Hank was emotionally disturbed.
The A.D.A. had agreed that Hank was disturbed, but because he exhibited no signs of remorse, argued that he was psychotic. He ended his closing arguments by reminding the jurors of the number of stab wounds he’d inflicted on Wade Mulligan, arguing that Hank was not only dangerous, but also had no rehabilitative qualities.
Jaxon heaved a breath of frustration. The public defender should have requested Hank undergo a psychological exam, should have had both Hank and Avery medically evaluated and should have introduced the abuse factor. He should have researched past foster children placed with the Mulligans to see if there was a history of problems with the family.
Jaxon had hoped Casey would call with the social worker’s name, but he found it in the transcripts—Delia Hanover.
According to Delia, Hank Tierney had anger issues related to his father, had trouble adapting and fitting in and he had hated Wade Mulligan. He’d asked her to move him and Avery from the home, and she was searching for another family to take them, but he killed Mulligan before she could find another placement.
Hank’s attorney should have pushed her for more details on the reason Hank had requested a change.
Jaxon scrubbed his hand over the back of his neck, then sipped his beer.
At the least, the public defender should
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