The tirade had continued that morning. Jennifer’s hand had been jerked and pulled when she’d tried to make-up and dress her hair, so the effort was very much worse than at the beginning of the previous two days, although better than at their end, after Jane had made her drool. She’d chosen a dress today, dark blue again to minimize the inevitable staining and intended trying hard to remember to have more clothes brought up from Hampshire: both suits were too crumpled and sweat-and-saliva stained for a second wearing. She doubted if cleaning would help.
The threats had approached hysteria, on the way to court. There was: ‘ Find out what’s going on! If you don’t, I’m going to make you do things you can’t even begin to imagine! ’ And then: ‘ Forget the attack on Emily: Gerald even. You’ll go out with the biggest bang ever .’ Followed by: ‘ You find out or by tonight you’re in the funny farm, for life.’ And then that most familiar of alclass="underline" ‘ Don’t fool yourself, Jennifer. You know you can’t fight me – resist me – sufficiently.’ Before a return to the beginning: ‘I want to know what’s going on! ’
So did Jennifer. Desperately. From the fact that Keflin-Brown and his junior were involved, as well as the stone-faced Bentley and Rodgers and a lot of obvious specialists and experts it had to be important. Vital. Yet she’d been in court all the time, heard everything that was said. And there hadn’t been anything: nothing, that is, that had meant anything to her. So what was it?
‘ Find out: I keep telling you to find out! ’
Jennifer didn’t have to talk. Thinking was enough. Really knocked you off your perch, hasn’t it Jane? Really beating you this time. Said it would happen, didn’t I? Not as clever as you thought you were. Panicking. Don’t know what to do. Now you’re lost, not me. Will lose. How’s that feel? Lost and going to lose a lot more. Finished, Jane. Not just dead once. Dead twice.
‘ Dream on, bitch! Enjoy, as long as you can. Which won’t be long. That dock’s really going to be your bear pit today. You’re going to dance to every tune I want to play and I’m going to play the lot. Should have kissed sticky-fingered matron and your dyke friends goodbye. You won’t be going back to them. Got a special place for you in the looney tune chorus. Here’s a joke, just for you. A celebrity goes into an asylum, part of a compassion therapy experiment, and says to the first man he sees: “Hello. Do you know who I am?” and the man says: “No. But ask matron. She’ll tell you.” ’
Not good enough, Jane. Not even very funny. Panic. Not in control any more. Lost.
‘ We’ll see. ’
We will. Tough shit, Jane. You’re fucked.
There was almost a phosphorous whiteness from the intensity of the window-reflected camera flashes at their arrival. Jennifer descended confidently from the van but the moment she reached the ground all support left her legs. Only the quick reflexes of Ann Wardle kept her from collapsing on to the ground: as it was she went down heavily to her left, where the second wardress failed to catch her, and hit her knee with sickening hardness against a kerb edge. Her tights tore and her knee began to bleed, all strength and sensation gone from the leg. Jennifer was virtually carried into the building, arms around the necks of both wardresses who in turn linked their arms around Jennifer’s back to complete the bridge. The duty doctor was crouched in front of her, cleaning and dressing the darkly bruised cut, when Jeremy Hall entered the cell.
‘ Ask him! Demand to know! ’
Instead Jennifer said: ‘She made me fall. She’s screaming to know what’s happened.’
‘I’m sure she is.’
‘ What! ’
‘She says she’s going to make me do worse things than attack Emily. That I’ll be in a mental hospital by tonight.’ He was somehow different. Not frightened of her – he was one of the few who had never been frightened of her – but somehow holding back. He wasn’t even leaning over the table towards her like he’d usually done, since the trial had begun.
The hesitation was obvious, too, before he said, ‘I want her to do everything possible she can.’
Jennifer looked at the barrister, aghast. ‘What?’
‘The more ridiculous she makes you look – the more outrageous the actions or the words – the better it is for us. Don’t fight against any of it, however bad it is. Do it and say it.’
‘ WHAT? ’
‘She’s screaming! Hurting my head again.’
‘Who or whatever is in your head is my defence witness now,’ insisted Hall. ‘Whatever she does or says is going to prove your total innocence. Do you hear that, Jennifer? I can prove you’re not guilty! Not just that. Prove you’re not mad, either.’
‘ NOoooooooo! ’
The gossip of an impending although unidentified sensation inevitably came from the court officials and the anticipatory electricity was tangible when Jennifer entered the dock. The limp immediately became a cause for speculation, several journalists standing in the absence of the judge to crane over the dock rail in an effort to see the reason. Jennifer was tensed, nervous of an abrupt attack from Jane, but nothing came although she still had the tingling burn of Jane’s presence, more uncomfortable than usual. Her knee throbbed and had swollen tightly against the dressing. She was ready when the judge entered the court, grabbing out for the rail and glad of the wardresses close behind but there was no weakness in her legs. Despite what Hall had said in the cells below it was instinctive for her to grip the underside of the chair. Ann had the first handkerchief ready, in her lap. At Jennifer’s look the wardress shook her head, reassuringly.
Jarvis cleared his throat, staring fixedly at Jennifer for several moments before turning to his right. In his strangely sonorous voice he said, ‘Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, since the adjournment of this trial yesterday, certain matters have most forcibly been brought to my attention…’ He looked briefly down at Jeremy Hall, who was visibly hunched, like a runner eager to get off the blocks.
‘… In the light of what has emerged, overnight, it is necessary, in my view, to allow these matters to be fully and properly examined, in your presence. And for that examination to be conducted at this stage of the trial, instead of waiting for the prosecution to conclude its case and for the defence to present theirs, which would be the normal course of events…’
The judge paused, to clear his throat again, and Jennifer was startled to see Perry turn and smile encouragingly at her. She was too surprised to respond.
‘… To that end,’ resumed Jarvis, ‘certain witnesses who have already given evidence will today be recalled, for their evidence to be explored more fully than it was when they first appeared. I will do my best to ensure that this is done in a comprehensible manner, to prevent this extremely unusual course causing you any confusion…’
Briefly Jarvis’s attention switched to Hall, as if in warning. ‘… If, however, something emerges that any of you do not understand, I require you at once to advise me, through the court officials. At which time it will be clarified. Is that quite clear to all of you…?’
There were uncertain nods throughout the jury. The press beehive hummed.
‘… We will pick up, however, with the witness who was giving evidence at the conclusion of yesterday’s hearing,’ announced Jarvis. ‘Doctor Peter Lloyd…’
The hospital doctor re-entered the box, agreeing with a nod that he understood he was still bound by the oath he’d taken the previous day. Hall was already standing, waiting.
‘Doctor Lloyd,’ said Hall. ‘Your answer to my final question, yesterday, was that during the time she spent under your care a total of five separate blood tests were taken from the accused?’