Rich Blood (Jason Rich #1)(78)

Shay spent the next twenty minutes going through the operative facts, starting with Waylon Pike’s confession and ending with the conversation between Jana and Jackson Burns where Jana said she’d kill Braxton for divorcing her and ruining her life. The presentation was well organized and effective. When she got to the end, she was short and sweet.

“When you hear all of the evidence, I’m confident that you will reach the only verdict that justice allows. Guilty.”



“Mr. Rich?” Judge Conrad asked, once Shay had taken her seat. “Are you ready to give your opening statement?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” Jason said. He stood and buttoned his jacket. “May it please the court,” he announced. “Your Honor . . .” He nodded at Judge Conrad, who returned the gesture. “Counsel . . .” He gestured at Shay. Then, as he reached the railing, he made eye contact with as many of the jurors as he could. “Members of the jury.”

Jason stopped and saw the rapt attention from the twelve decision makers who would render a verdict in this case. He’d gone to see Knox Rogers last week and asked for more advice, and the sage lawyer had said that most attorneys made poor use of their first few moments with the jury. “Don’t do that, son. They’ll never be more ready to hear what you have to say than in those first seconds. Make what you have to say important. Something you want them to remember.”

“As I was listening to the prosecutor’s opening remarks, it struck me that it is undisputed that Waylon Pike killed Dr. Braxton Waters. So why isn’t Pike sitting over at this table where my sister is?” Jason walked over to the defense table and put his hand on Jana’s shoulder. “He’s not. Instead, my sister, Jana, is here. She is here because Waylon Pike, after being arrested for this heinous crime, told Detective Daniels”—Jason pointed at the officer seated next to Shay—“that Jana paid him to do it.” Jason paused, still pointing at Daniels. “Their entire case is based on the word of Waylon Pike, who you will learn in this trial is a convicted felon. An arsonist. A thief. And yes, a murderer.” He hesitated again and let both hands drop to his side. “The only witness in this case who will testify that Jana paid Pike to kill Dr. Waters is Pike. Ladies and gentlemen, as you listen to the testimony in this case and assess the credibility of the sole mouthpiece for the state’s case, ask yourself this question: Are you going to convict my sister on the word of a man like Waylon Pike?”

He stopped talking for a full three seconds, letting the seed he’d just planted sink in. Discrediting Pike was his entire case, and he’d led with it.

He again touched his sister’s shoulder. “It’s important in a criminal trial to put your hands on your client if you’re the defense lawyer. It shows the jury that you’re not scared of your client, and they shouldn’t be either.” This nugget came from Professor Pamela Adams, the dean of criminal law at Cumberland with whom Jason had set up several meetings.

“This is my sister. Jana Rich Waters. She isn’t perfect by any stretch, but she’s lived here in Marshall County all her life. She’s served this community on numerous committees and chaired the Gothic Guild, the First Methodist Church Women’s Group, the Ladies of the Lake auxiliary board, and too many other organizations to count. She and Dr. Waters have two children, Niecy and Nola. Their relationship was strained at the time of Dr. Waters’s murder. We won’t be denying that. But remember something as the state trots out its evidence that Ms. Waters was unfaithful, that she was worried that Dr. Waters was going to divorce her, that she had a drug problem. None of those things speak to whether she paid Waylon Pike to kill her husband.” Jason was arguing, which was prohibited in opening, but Knox had said he should push the envelope. “If the state objects, it makes them look bad. You’re representing a criminal defendant on trial for her life. The judge will likely give you some leeway.”

Jason glanced at Shay Lankford, who was frowning, but she made no move to object. “Again,” Jason said, as he walked back toward the jury and put his hands on the railing, “at the end of the day, when all is said and done, all they have is Waylon Pike.”

Jason spent the rest of his opening discussing the virtues of the burden of proof, which was carried solely by the state. “Jana Waters doesn’t have to offer any evidence in this case. The sole burden rests with the state to prove to you beyond a reasonable doubt that Jana Waters is guilty of murder. If you have one doubt . . . just one . . . then the court will instruct you to return a verdict of not guilty.”

He closed with similar words to the prosecutor but with an obviously different expectation. “I’m confident that when you hear Waylon Pike testify and the lack of any corroborating evidence to back up his story, you’ll return the only verdict that justice demands. Not guilty.”

When he took his seat, Jason felt his sister’s hand on his again. She gave him a squeeze, but Jason didn’t look at her. He was hyped up and tried to calm himself down. He thought he’d done a good job, but as Knox had warned: “You never really have a clue what the jury is thinking. Don’t drive yourself crazy trying to figure that out. Just do your job.”

Jason exhaled a ragged breath. Do your job, he told himself.

“Is the state ready to call its first witness?” Conrad asked.

“Yes, Your Honor,” Shay said, standing and gesturing to the back of the courtroom for a deputy to open the doors. “The state calls Waylon Pike.”