Jimmy recognized the briefcase now as Cold’s own. Inside was an assortment of paperwork and Cold’s ledgers, the foundation of his criminal empire. Jimmy was surprised to see it with Christine, realizing that Cold must trust this woman very much for her to have them in her possession.
“It’s been heavily redacted, and there are at least a dozen areas that have been marked as unintelligible,” Christine went on, handing the folder to Jimmy. “Considering the original recording is marked as being twenty-six minutes long and there’s only about nine minutes of spoken word in that transcript, I’d say they’re hiding something.”
Jimmy flipped through the pages and was stunned when he realized he recognized the witness’ name.
Francis Von Valdemar III.
“Thirdsies?” Jimmy murmured.
“Yes,” Christine said, drumming her fingers on the edge of the table. “He was thirteen at the time, questioned without his grandfather’s presence, and I’m certain he was forced to give that statement. Both of the cops that questioned him have black marks on their records for abusing witnesses.”
“Okay, that’s good,” Jimmy said with a nod. “I mean, not that it’s good for Thirdsies for that to have happened, but good for the case.” He scanned over the rest of the transcript and frowned.
It was damning.
Thirdsies said that he saw Marco Luchesi, obviously wounded and beaten, leaving with Cold and Rufus Corman.
“Corman being deceased, our only option would be to find the original recording and get Thirdsies to recant his statement,” Jimmy said, rubbing his hands over his face. “Maybe we could settle it in deposition and get it thrown out?”
“You’re a quick study, Mr. Poe,” Christine said with a small smile. “That’s my goal. Thirdsies is safe from the feds for now, but he can be made available to us when we need him.”
“What else is there?” Jimmy asked.
“That’s it for now,” Christine replied curtly, “but there will be more. SSPD has been trying to put Roderick away for years. They thought they had him with Dickie White, but that didn’t exactly work out for them.
“It’s why they called in the feds to assist with the case. They’re determined to make these charges stick and put him away once and for all.”
“Do you think it’ll go to trial?” Jimmy asked anxiously.
“Hard to say,” Christine said, her lips drawn back into a thin line. “The DNA evidence is the cornerstone of their case right now, and it will be difficult to refute. Thirdsies’ statement can probably be dealt with, but then there are the other witnesses who are willing to testify against Roderick and the nature of his relationship with Marco.”
“That’s such bullshit,” Jimmy hissed. “Isn’t there anything we can do to show that Marco was a predator and not a victim?”
“All of the Gentlemen would certainly testify to the abuse, but what we really need are other victims to come forward. At this time, there are none living.”
“Shit.” Jimmy fidgeted, glancing up at Christine’s calm expression. “Aren’t you worried?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because Roderick isn’t worried,” she replied simply.
Jimmy didn’t like that answer, turning his head when he heard the door open. He jumped to his feet, and his pulse fluttered wildly as two guards brought Cold in. The very sight of his lover made his knees weak and his heart swell.
Cold seemed relaxed and somehow managed to make even a neon orange jumpsuit and shackles attractive. Jimmy swore that it was freshly pressed and had to resist the urge to leap right into Cold’s arms.
“Hello,” Cold said with a wink. “Fancy meeting you two here.”
The guards unlocked Cold’s restraints and left, shutting the door behind them.
The sound was like a gun firing at a race, and Jimmy took off the second he heard it to wrap himself around Cold as tightly as he could. “Rod! Oh, Rod! I’ve been so worried! Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Cold soothed, petting the back of Jimmy’s neck and holding him at the base of his spine. He kissed him firmly and smirked when Christine loudly cleared her throat. “Yes, counselor?”
“I’ve already gone over the known evidence that you got from Detective Duplin with Jimmy,” Christine said. “So, he’s all caught up.”
“You got all of this from Augustus?” Jimmy scoffed in surprise. “He’s the jerk who arrested you!”
