Chapter 10

One month later-the trial:

State vs. Buckingham opened on a warm morning to a crowded, noisy courtroom. There were the usual supporters on each side of the room–though those for the victim had been sparse in contrast to those that turned out to support Ryan–along with the attorneys, court watchers, and the media.

TruTV was also covering the trial, something that had both warmed Helen Krenn and annoyed Brian. He had no interest in being a 'celebrity lawyer', but now that he was going to be on a national court network, he was unwittingly being thrust into the spotlight anyway.

It hadn't helped that Lori teased him mercilessly that morning. "Look at it like this, maybe you'll find a nice girl who spots you on TV."

"Then you can defend Ryan," he had replied, not amused. "If I wanted to find a date, there's better ways. And most women want tall, dark Adonis types, not short, small town blond men like me."

"I still say you'd be a fine catch for someone," Lori reassured him.

"Let's just concentrate on this trial," Brian sighed.

"Good luck," she said. "I'll be heading back to the office if you need me for anything."

Ryan had arrived slightly early, dressed in a somber dark suit and tie with a white shirt. Brian had nodded in approval, noting how both low key and approachable his client had appeared.

Arthur Anders had also greeted them outside the courtroom; the agent wouldn't be allowed in the gallery until he'd given his testimony as a witness for the defense.

"Just so you know," he informed Brian, "the prosecution may call me as a hostile witness."

"I'm well aware, Mr. Anders. Just do the best you can."

Soon, all parties were settled in as the baliff announced the judge presiding over the trial. To Brian's relief, he had been notified not long ago that it would be the same judge that had been at Ryan's arraignment. Judge Joseph Durkin was both tough and fair, favoring no one.

Helen had begun her opening argument, going over the evidence that the State held. When she had finished, it had been Brian's turn.

Ryan studied the activity before him, not failing to notice that even though the jurors and most of the gallery had appeared stoic during Helen's opening argument, they now seemed fascinated by the small, blond defense attorney with the big voice who spoke convincingly during his opening argument.

"I wonder if he's single," one young woman in the gallery whispered to another.

Shelly, who had been sitting in front of them, turned around and smiled. "As a matter of fact, he is."

Later that day:

The trial hadn't been earth-shattering thus far; it had been only a parade of the usual detectives and expert witnesses. By lunch, everyone had seemed somewhat relieved for the break from the long, tiresome drone.

Ryan had freshened up in the restroom before joining Brian and Shelly for lunch. Brian had checked back at the office for any calls, which there was, but they were either media requests or things that didn't have much priority. Brian would tend to all of them later.

"What's this about Helen having a surprise witness?" Shelly asked.

"Not much of surprise since I know about it," Brian said, munching on a burger. "The girl is actually both the daughter of the attorney who handled Ms. Schaad's business affairs and one of the cast members in the play. She'll probably not offer much more than the others had so far."

"When is Doc up?" Shelly wondered.

"Probably not until tomorrow," Brian replied.

They then spotted Cinder, who had just come into the door. Shelly motioned her over.

"Hey, all," Cinder said. "Sorry about this morning. I didn't want to say anything about you-know-what yet."

"Just doing your job," Brian grinned. "No more than you usually do at any trial."

"How exactly…is this thing going so far?" Ryan asked hesitantly.

"Hard to tell," Brian answered. "I'd say it is about fifty fifty right now, but this is just the first day. I'm sure things will get a little more interesting from here."

Day Two:

As scheduled, the trial resumed the following morning. Both jury and gallery members looked bored at expert testimonies wore on; this time, a parade of Lily's former employees testified, not painting a flattering picture of working for the late actress.

Finally, it was Arthur's turn. He testified about his years with Lily, up to the last day of her life. He also went over his history with Ryan, including the initial disagreement over the reality show offer (which Brian had gotten him to reveal, getting a jump start over Helen), and their interaction on that last day of play rehearsals. Amazingly, he had stood up blow by blow during cross examination by Helen.

It had been the afternoon session before Paul took the stand

Now in the gallery, Arthur was utterly fascinated as the Chief Medical Examiner testified, wondering why the hell this kid wasn't on television, when Paul revealed the coup de grace: the second knife theory.

"Doctor," Brian said, holding up the evidence bag containing the cast of Lily Schaad's wounds in question, "could you specify what kind of weapon could have made these?"

Paul nodded, going into exactly what type of knife made them, adding those had been the wounds that were fatal.

"Not the knife found at the crime scene that my client allegedly had in his possession at one point?"

"No," Paul said firmly. "That knife made antemortem wounds that wouldn't have been fatal at all, and some postmortem wounds after death."

"Thank you, Doctor," Brian nodded. "Nothing further."

The look on Ryan's face said it all, and it hadn't been lost on the jury. He had known nothing about a second knife.

How could he have committed such a heinous crime if he had no prior knowledge of this information? they wondered.