Two Wrongs

Excerpt:
Prologue
February 12, 1996
“WHAT’S GOING ON down there?”
Danny Callaway heard the question, but couldn’t answer. His brain froze in the cold February air as he stared at the broken rag doll that had once been his sister, Mary Alice.
In his sixteen years, he’d never witnessed death first-hand. Until now.
Mary Alice’s still form lay sprawled against the alley’s cement. Her head stuck out at a crazy angle like the girl in the Exorcist movie.
Hoping against hope, he checked for a pulse at her neck. Nothing. He tried her wrist, but got the same result.
His mind was all jumbled. All he could think of were stupid things, like how he’d heard guys call Mary Alice a prude because she closed the top buttons on her blouse and never wore mini-skirts.
She’d sure be embarrassed not to have anything on at all. Someone had to cover her up and make her look presentable. Maybe Mom could help.
But how could he tell her? A sob tore through his throat. He clamped his mouth shut to keep the bile from rushing out.
Through the shock and pain, one thing remained clear. Kevin would pay for this.

Chapter One
Danny
THE TRIAL BEGAN, yet it couldn’t be happening. Mary Alice couldn’t be dead. It had been six months since Danny had discovered his sister’s still form on that cold February night, yet he still couldn’t believe he’d never see her again. She was family, a part of his life. It didn’t seem right being without her. If only she’d come back, but that was impossible.
Slamming home that fact was the prosecutor, Bill Rosenberg, who held up a photo. “With the court’s permission, may I present Exhibit One, a picture taken at the crime scene?”
No, Danny wanted to shout, knowing firsthand what the photo contained. His heart beat fast as the picture made its rounds. He clenched his fingers to keep from snatching it away. His sister’s memory was sacred, yet these people eyed her lying exposed and defenseless.
He watched helplessly. Finally, the photograph reached the end of the jury box, where a frail, bent-over lady cupped it in her palm. Her eyes filled with tears. Danny blinked rapidly, reminding himself that men don’t cry. He turned his attention to his parents. Mom had no such compunctions. Her shoulders shook. Tears streamed down her face. Dad leaned over to comfort her.
Watching their anguish made matters worse, but Danny wouldn’t cave in. He’d never break down in front of his sister’s killer. Stone-faced, he concentrated on what the prosecutor was saying. “I’d like to call Officer Dugan.”
The officer testified that he’d been first on the scene.
“Can you describe the position of the body?”
...the body. Danny swallowed hard at the image conjured up in his mind.
The prosecutor bore on relentlessly, digging for details, inquiring about the state of rigor mortis, the head wounds, the color of Mary Alice’s lips. The image deepened.
That’s my sister. She’s a person, not a thing, Danny wanted to shout.
The subject was exhaustively pursued. The officer answered each question matter-of-factly. Easy for him. It wasn’t his sister he was talking about. Each new detail drove a fresh spike into Danny’s heart.
It took forever for the line of questioning to change.
“Officer Dugan, I understand you exercised a search warrant. What was it you found at the defendant’s home?”
“Hair strands from the defendant’s brush, a book of matches, a pair of gym shoes...”
The list was long. Dear God, let it be in there somewhere—the necessary ingredient to convict Kevin.
“The items mentioned are State’s Exhibits One through Twenty. Thank you. That will be all.”
For some inane reason, Danny’s attention drifted to the bald spot on the prosecutor’s head. The fluorescent light gleamed on it, casting an eerie glow, reminding Danny of how Otto Meyer’s porch light had shone down and illuminated Mary Alice’s still body.
He shivered, lost in painful remembrance. He had to be strong. His sister counted on him. He would not break down. Staring straight ahead, he pretended not to understand the dreadful implications as the officer spoke about sexual assault.
The prosecutor called up a forensic pathologist who verified his written reports about semen, torn tissue, and bruises. Did everyone have to hear this? As the questioning resumed, Danny tried to zone the man out, but couldn’t.
A lab technician stepped up to the stand.
“We examined blood samples extracted from Kevin Green’s shoe and found them to be O-negative,” the man said.
“Is that Mr. Green’s blood type?” Rosenberg asked.
“No. His blood tested B-negative.”
“What about the victim’s?”
“Mary Alice Callaway’s was O-negative.”
“Thank you.”
Up to this point, slick-haired Eric Dominski, the public defender, hadn’t said much. Suddenly his slim body jerked into high gear. Gesturing wildly, with arms outstretched, Dominski debated about the blood, saying Kevin could have walked by, stepped on it and not have committed the crime.
“Wasn’t Mary Alice Callaway’s blood on her brother’s clothes? Didn’t he say he’d discovered her body? Could he be the one who killed her?” Dominski shot out.
Danny glared at him. Rosenberg had warned him not to get rattled by the public defender. The guy was a grandstander, who, due to a backlog of cases, tended to ignore his homework and make up for it by trying to manipulate the jury’s emotions.
Danny knew this, yet it was hard to keep calm when he was being accused of something so base.
The prosecutor ignored the theatrics and fired back, mentioning that cortex pigment granules were found on the victim’s body. Danny frowned. What was he talking about?
“Could you repeat that in layman’s terms?” Rosenberg asked.
The man explained that pieces of hair seemingly identical to Kevin Green’s were picked up off the body.
The public defender rolled his eyes, then asked if other hair types were found.
“Yes, that of Danny Callaway, as well as Larry Murphy, the boyfriend.”
With a smirk, Dominski pounced. “It could’ve been any of them. And since the DNA samples have conveniently disappeared out of the evidence room and the body has since been cremated, that leaves it all wide open, doesn’t it? No further questions.”
Dominski was a sicko. Danny’s neck grew hot. His stomach churned like a runaway washing machine. He was no pervert. Mary Alice was his sister. He’d only found her, that’s all.
Nosy Meyer had watched from the window when Danny had taken out the garbage. He knew. If only Meyer had been awake when the murder had taken place. Then Kevin wouldn’t look so smug.
And what about Larry? Danny had never cared for the guy, but that was beside the point. Mary Alice’s boyfriend didn’t deserve to be fingered. He had to be ready to explode.
As if to answer Danny’s questions, the prosecutor called up Larry Murphy. Larry’s face was pale and bathed in sweat as he approached the witness stand. When he got there, he sat at the edge of the chair, as if ready to bolt. He licked his lips and shifted his weight. Behind black-framed glasses, his eye movements darted back and forth between the prosecutor and the doorway. From the way he acted, anyone would think he was the one on trial.
“Lawrence, can you recall what you and the victim did the day of the murder?”
Choking out the words, Larry said that he and Mary Alice had discussed getting married after graduation. On the day in question they’d gotten carried away and ended up making love in the back seat of his car. Unfortunately, there would be no wedding.
As he testified, his eyes shifted, never quite meeting the prosecutor’s, almost as if he were ashamed.
The thought of his sister having sex with Larry, even though he was her boyfriend, was a little strange. Not long before her murder, Danny had overheard Mary Alice tell Mom she’d definitely walk down the aisle as a virgin. Had she loved Larry enough to give in? It was so unlike the stubborn, old-fashioned sister he knew.
Danny glanced at his father. The vein on his forehead had grown larger. Mary Alice had been his princess. He’d shielded her from everything, even taking out the garbage. The idea of his unwed daughter doing the dirty deed obviously didn’t sit well with him. Dad’s hands clenched and unclenched, like he wanted to strangle Larry.
Before that could happen, Larry was excused. Danny followed him with his eyes, still trying to understand what Mary Alice had seen in him. Larry was short. His hair was stringy. He was creepy and not at all special. How could he have convinced Mary Alice to do it? Was it because he was an underdog? His sister had always had a weakness for lost causes.
There was no time to dwell on it. Danny’s name was called next. It was his turn. He’d anticipated and dreaded this moment. As he brushed past his mother, she gave him a small smile of encouragement. He knew how much that gesture cost her.
Everyone’s eyes were on him. On suddenly weak legs, Danny wobbled up to the wooden chair. After he was sworn in, he sank down, but immediately straightened up and planted his feet. This was important. He dare not blow it.
Rosenberg began. “Danny, can you describe the relationship between your sister and the defendant?”
“Well, Mary Alice had been going out with Larry Murphy since they were freshmen. Then this year, when they were seniors, Kevin Green started hanging around her, too. She told me she didn’t want to hurt his feelings, since he was a new guy at school and all, and had this dyslexia problem.”
Danny stared straight at Kevin. His green eyes looked wounded. He didn’t want everyone to know about his disability. Too bad. He hadn’t spared Mary Alice. There was no reason to feel sorry for him.
The prosecutor continued. “Can you tell me, did you ever witness the defendant making threats to your sister?”
“Yes.”
“Please elaborate.”
“On the day she was killed, I came back from school and found them shouting at each other in front of our apartment. Kevin was ordering Mary Alice to go to the Snowflake Prom with him. She told him she was going with Larry. Kevin said he’d see her dead first.”
A loud gasp echoed through the courtroom. Danny hesitated.
Rosenberg prompted, “Go on.”
“I told him to lay off. She could go with whoever she wanted. He told me to butt out. Then old Otto Meyer from the first floor yelled that we were too loud and he’d call the cops. Kevin left.”
“Thank you, Danny. As the court can see, the defendant has displayed ample motive for committing the crimes of which he’s been accused. Unfortunately, due to his infirmities, the first floor neighbor, Otto Meyer, cannot be present today to testify. I am introducing as Exhibit Number Five, the transcript of his deposition. Mr. Meyer has stated he heard the entire conversation among the now deceased, the defendant and Danny Callaway. He corroborates Danny Callaway’s testimony.”
The district attorney paused. Danny knew what was coming next. They’d gone over it a million times. His heart lurched in anticipation.
Rosenberg proceeded. “Now, Danny, I know this is painful, but can you please describe what happened later that evening.”
Danny took a deep breath. He didn’t want to remember, but he had to. He must be brave. It was his duty. He began slowly, as if by delaying the process the outcome might be different.
“Dad was still driving on his bus route. Mom and I were the only ones home. We thought Mary Alice was at her friend Donna’s house. When it got late, we weren’t worried, figuring they were tied up talking about prom stuff. Anyway, it was during the ten o’clock news that Mom made me take out the garbage. I took the back stairs to the alley.”
The hard part was next. His throat closed up. He couldn’t talk about it. He just couldn’t.
Rosenberg handed him a glass of water. “When you’re ready, please continue.”
Danny swallowed hard. Dear God, he didn’t want to think about it. He forced himself. Pain ripped through his chest and head, making him want to bellow.
He described step-by-terrible-step exactly what had happened. In a different lifetime, he’d rushed downstairs to take out the garbage, afraid he’d miss the basketball highlights.
Once again he discovered his sister’s still form. He bent over to find her pulse, but there wasn’t one. His body trembled from shock and cold, just as before. He couldn’t think. To the accompaniment of Otto Meyer’s raving on about noise in the alley, he turned and ran up the stairs.
After he’d finished the account, Danny felt as if he’d run a marathon. He was out of breath. The room spun. Vaguely he heard a murmur swell through the courtroom.
“Thank you, Danny,” the prosecutor said, then sat down, abandoning Danny to the mercies of the public defender.
Danny had almost managed to pull himself together when Eric Dominski leaned over the stand.
“Danny, I sympathize with you. It had to have been devastating to find your sister like that.”
The compassion in the man’s voice brought a fresh spate of tears to Danny’s blue eyes. He swiped them away with his hand. He had to be strong. He had to watch for tricks.
The public defender continued. “Young man, it’s a terrible fact that your sister was brutally murdered. I agree that punishment must be meted to the wrongdoer. However, in achieving that end, we must exhibit caution. We must not inflict harm on an innocent party. Kevin Green is that innocent party.”
Danny raised his eyebrows. Kevin deserved what he got.
“You seem startled. Well, what I’m saying is, I don’t doubt that you witnessed an argument between Kevin Green and your sister. However, a spat over a prom date is no motive for raping and killing anyone. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“Objection, leading the witness.”
“Sustained.”
“Let me rephrase that. Danny, is an argument over a prom a valid reason for killing someone?”
“Maybe not for a normal person. Only for a monster like Kevin Green.”
“Please answer the question yes or no, Danny.”
If only he could wipe that smart-alecky look off of Dominski’s face.
“No,” Danny spat out.
Glancing past Dominski, Danny fastened his attention on the true object of his hatred. Kevin balefully returned his gaze. The evilness in the sea green eyes hovered like an obscene presence. Couldn’t the public defender sense it or didn’t he care?
Dominski’s next words showed how oblivious he was. “Danny, you’re under duress. It’s understandable that you’re not making sense. I wouldn’t think clearly either if it were my sister.
“Get to the point, counsel,” the judge broke in, frowning.
“Yes, Your Honor. Let me clarify things. The fight happening the same day as the murder was just a coincidence, nothing more. Someone with a far greater motive was at work here.”
Rosenberg jumped up. “Objection. Conjecture.”
“Your Honor, if I may exercise some leeway to prove my point?”
“If it’s germane.”
“Thank you.”
The prosecutor turned back to Danny. “You attribute Kevin’s dyslexia as the reason your sister was kind to him. Instead, could it be that she saw past his disability and knew he had more brains than anyone gave him credit for? Also, let me add, because Kevin is intelligent, wouldn’t he have known a rejection over a prom date is no reason to commit rape and murder?”
Danny couldn’t contain his rage. The words spilled out. “You’re wrong,” he shouted. “His mind’s twisted. He killed my sister.”
Judge Frederick banged the gavel. “I’ll have no outbursts in this court.”
“No further questions.”
Danny fumed in frustration.
“Counselor, would you like to redirect?” the judge asked the district attorney.
Rosenberg nodded. “Tell me, son, what’s it like being without your sister?”
Danny had no time to prepare himself. The pain rushed out, filling his being. “It’s hell,” he gasped, before breaking into giant sobs.
Rosenberg rested the State’s case.