Part 3: The Court
When dealing with such a gut-wrenching case, I think it is important to take what joy you can, wherever you find it. Last night I told Oliver that Norman was going to love our new designation. I really did not know how much! He and Rita were both little kids in a toyshop over our special taskforce status. I was only half joking when I told Oliver he should draw the line at capes. If we gave Norman his head, I think there were potentially some lycra outfits in our future.
But now, back to the case. A little surveillance (digital from me, and once again binoculars up a tree from Norman) indicated that Michael Wheeler was planning to take the law into his own hands and deal with Carl Brachner personally, and permanently. We had to stop him, his freedom and his daughter's life depended on it. So did Brachner's come to that.
We followed Wheeler to the court, and watched as he slipped a gun into the courtroom without challenge. Michael Wheeler had really thought this through. He sat, composed and alone until he was joined by us, first Rita, who attempted to separate him from his briefcase and gun, then Norman and I who were supposed to be there as Rita's backup. We had to vary the plan slightly when I may have gone all debate prep on him (and the lawyer), giving a rebuttal my college debate champ self (undefeated three years in a row thank you very much) would have been quite please with. Rita too, was fabulous, being able to cite precedent and example. We certainly had his attention.
It was then that Oliver joined us, and made it clear to Michael that we knew what was on his mind and in his heart, but that we had information that he needed to know before he took such an irrevocable step. Really Oliver, put Brachner in a blender and hit frappe? You have been hanging out with Eleanor in passports too much my friend. That goodness it worked. Now on to the next, and possibly more important part of the mission.
After Brachner was sent back to prison, we returned to Michael Wheeler's office and sat around his conference table; first explaining how we became involved in the case, glossing over how we conducted some of our research, assuring Michael that we had the authority to gather the material we had, and concocting a plan forward. It was decided that Michael and Oliver would visit Brachner at the prison tomorrow. Previous experience told me that I might need to make some electronic adjustments to the visitor log, but that was no challenge. Oliver said that he would pray for Michael, Abby and Brachner. I kind of envied him his reliance on something bigger than himself. I wish I had that kind of certainty.
Part 4: The Visit
Oliver told me that he sat at the end of the room with the bible as Michael and Carl Brachner talked. So I guess that Michael would say this account is all hearsay, but I think that both sources are pretty trustworthy. Michael told Oliver that he did what we had discussed, and put it all out there on the line for Brachner. Michael told him of Melissa, and then of Abby, showing pictures of both. At one point, Brachner got up to leave, but he came back. Looking at Abby's picture was what convinced Brachner that there was a chance that Abby was his daughter, saying that Abby looked like his mother. Oliver told me that as Brachner was escorted back to the cells, he decided that the only other convincing he could offer was in his hands, and so Oliver gave the bible to one of the guards, asking for it to be given to Brachner.
It was done, now all we could do was wait until Carl Brachner made his decision.