Read Online Compulsion (Max Revere Novels Book 2) by Allison Brennan - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Allison Brennan
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“A cross section of age and race. Eight women and four men.”
“Any surprises this morning?”
“None. It was very routine.”
“But you had some good news. Adam Bachman has kept a low profile since his arrest, but he agreed to grant you an exclusive interview. What was that like?”
“I’ll be reporting more in depth on my interview with Mr. Bachman on the next Maximum Exposure, but two things struck me. First, his appearance is that of a young, neat, articulate man. People who know him have called him ‘fastidious.’ As you and I both know, Ace, killers often don’t look like they could commit violence. Mr. Bachman has that pleasant guy-next-door appearance, which will be something the prosecution is going to have to deal with.”
“Sort of like Ted Bundy?”
Though Max was tired of the Ted Bundy comparison, which seemed so outdated and clich é , she smiled and nodded. “Exactly. The second thing that struck me was his complete lack of fear for the process. He didn’t seem to be nervous about what faced him in court. He smiled at me, almost as if he was looking forward to the proceedings.”
“Because he’s innocent?”
“He made no claims of innocence or guilt to me,” Max said. “I asked him what he thought the outcome would be and he shrugged and said he had no idea what the jury was going to decide. He made a point of saying he wasn’t violent.”
“He’s accused of killing five people. He doesn’t consider that violent?”
That was a good segue back to the trial. “As the prosecutor revealed in her opening statement, the five victims were suffocated. A.D.A. Golden said she would prove that Mr. Bachman put a clear plastic bag over their heads and watched them suffocate. I would call that violent. But the jury will have to make the final decision as to whether Adam Bachman committed these murders.”
“Maxine, based on the opening statements, what do you think will happen?”
“Honestly, Ace, if the prosecution proves what they claim to be able to prove, I don’t see how the jury can come back with anything but a guilty verdict. However, that’s the key, right? The State has to prove the facts, and as you and I both know sometimes the State fails.”
Chapter Five
After eating a hot dog with Riley, Max sent her assistant on a quick errand and took the opportunity to call James Palazzolo, Jr. J. J. was the oldest of Jim and Sandy’s three children. Married with two kids of his own, he had resented his youngest sister contacting Max about their parents’ disappearance, but after Max flew to Ohio last fall to meet with the three Palazzolo children, all animosity disappeared. J. J., Rachel, and Cindy were grieving. They knew in their hearts that their parents were dead, but not knowing what happened was sucking the life out of them.
Max understood how they felt better than most people, and though she hadn’t particularly wanted to look into the case after Cindy contacted her, once she met the family she knew she had no choice. Max had written an article for a women’s magazine called “An American Family” that detailed the quiet middle-class life of Jim and Sandy and how they bought a home, raised their kids, and put them through college. Jim had been an electrician and Sandy was an elementary schoolteacher. The three kids were grown and creating their own middle-class families in a quiet community in an uncertain world.
For all of Max’s wealth, for all her property and family connections, she envied the Palazzolos. Love, affection, and respect flowed freely. J. J. told her about how every night the family had dinner together and talked, sometimes for hours after the meal. How they went to church on Sunday and had afternoon barbeques and went to Friday night high school football games even after J. J. graduated. There was so much history, so many memories in the family house that J. J. had decided they would never sell it.
But they needed to know what
“A cross section of age and race. Eight women and four men.”
“Any surprises this morning?”
“None. It was very routine.”
“But you had some good news. Adam Bachman has kept a low profile since his arrest, but he agreed to grant you an exclusive interview. What was that like?”
“I’ll be reporting more in depth on my interview with Mr. Bachman on the next Maximum Exposure, but two things struck me. First, his appearance is that of a young, neat, articulate man. People who know him have called him ‘fastidious.’ As you and I both know, Ace, killers often don’t look like they could commit violence. Mr. Bachman has that pleasant guy-next-door appearance, which will be something the prosecution is going to have to deal with.”
“Sort of like Ted Bundy?”
Though Max was tired of the Ted Bundy comparison, which seemed so outdated and clich é , she smiled and nodded. “Exactly. The second thing that struck me was his complete lack of fear for the process. He didn’t seem to be nervous about what faced him in court. He smiled at me, almost as if he was looking forward to the proceedings.”
“Because he’s innocent?”
“He made no claims of innocence or guilt to me,” Max said. “I asked him what he thought the outcome would be and he shrugged and said he had no idea what the jury was going to decide. He made a point of saying he wasn’t violent.”
“He’s accused of killing five people. He doesn’t consider that violent?”
That was a good segue back to the trial. “As the prosecutor revealed in her opening statement, the five victims were suffocated. A.D.A. Golden said she would prove that Mr. Bachman put a clear plastic bag over their heads and watched them suffocate. I would call that violent. But the jury will have to make the final decision as to whether Adam Bachman committed these murders.”
“Maxine, based on the opening statements, what do you think will happen?”
“Honestly, Ace, if the prosecution proves what they claim to be able to prove, I don’t see how the jury can come back with anything but a guilty verdict. However, that’s the key, right? The State has to prove the facts, and as you and I both know sometimes the State fails.”
Chapter Five
After eating a hot dog with Riley, Max sent her assistant on a quick errand and took the opportunity to call James Palazzolo, Jr. J. J. was the oldest of Jim and Sandy’s three children. Married with two kids of his own, he had resented his youngest sister contacting Max about their parents’ disappearance, but after Max flew to Ohio last fall to meet with the three Palazzolo children, all animosity disappeared. J. J., Rachel, and Cindy were grieving. They knew in their hearts that their parents were dead, but not knowing what happened was sucking the life out of them.
Max understood how they felt better than most people, and though she hadn’t particularly wanted to look into the case after Cindy contacted her, once she met the family she knew she had no choice. Max had written an article for a women’s magazine called “An American Family” that detailed the quiet middle-class life of Jim and Sandy and how they bought a home, raised their kids, and put them through college. Jim had been an electrician and Sandy was an elementary schoolteacher. The three kids were grown and creating their own middle-class families in a quiet community in an uncertain world.
For all of Max’s wealth, for all her property and family connections, she envied the Palazzolos. Love, affection, and respect flowed freely. J. J. told her about how every night the family had dinner together and talked, sometimes for hours after the meal. How they went to church on Sunday and had afternoon barbeques and went to Friday night high school football games even after J. J. graduated. There was so much history, so many memories in the family house that J. J. had decided they would never sell it.
But they needed to know what
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