Paris Trout (26 page)

Townes did not reply, and it struck Seagraves that
the prosecutor had reservations of his own about showing them to the
jury. Judge Taylor, however, had changed sympathies. "I believe
the jury is able to see for themselves which wounds were bullets and
which were surgery."

He handed the pictures to Seagraves, who took them
back to the defense table and studied them, one by one. Trout looked
at the first three, and then he moved in his chair until he was
facing a different direction.

The pictures showed the girl on an examining table.
She was naked, and even with her eyes closed, something in the
flashbulbs made her appear surprised. The surgical cuts were closed
with tangles of black thread. As Seagraves finished with each
picture, he handed it back to Townes, who carried it to the first
juror, who passed it on to the second.

It took half an hour for all the jury to see all the
pictures, and then Townes showed them to Agent E. Smythe. "Are
all these wounds consistent with her description of the wounds she
suffered inside the house?"

"
I would say so."

"
In your experience with the Georgia Bureau of
Investigation, have you had occasion to visit other victims of
gunshot wounds?"

"Yessir."

"Do you have a knowledge of anatomy, Agent
Smythe?"

"
Yessir, I do."

"And do you have an opinion which one of these
shots killed the girl?"

"I would say the one into the stomach."

"Objection," Seagraves said.

The judge said, "I'll allow it," and
Seagraves stood where he was a long time, staring at him, until the
judge met his eyes. "I believe the agent's opinion would be
considered reliably expert in shooting matters, Mr. Seagraves."
There was a conciliatory note in what he said, however. Seagraves saw
he had remembered who got him elected. Seagraves sat down and stared
at the table where Trout was drawing something across the top of his
pad.

When he looked again, he
recognized it as a family tree.

* * *

SEAGRAVES BEGAN HIS CROSS EXAMINATION. "Agent
Smythe, in your medical opinion, how successful was the surgery to
remove the bullets from Rosie Sayers's body?"

"I do not know, sir."

"
But what I want to know, do you feel Dr. Braver
did a good job?"

"I have no way to know that."

"
You couldn't say if he might of gone in there
with his knife and scissors and cut too much off this or not enough
off that?"

"No sir."

"You couldn't say if he might of made it worse
.... "

"From the direction of the shot," the agent
said, "I don't believe there was a thing your doctor could do to
make it worst."

"
You have seen wounds like this before?"

"
Yessir."

"
You have seen someone who was shot in the
stomach?"

"Yessir."

"
You have seen someone shot in the side?"

"
Yessir."

From the table Seagraves leaned toward the witness.
"Have you ever heard of somebody died from an operation?"

When Seagraves had finished with the agent, he
glanced again at the notepad on the table. At the top of the family
tree, where his mother's name was, Trout had drawn a spider that was
also a face. It wasn't a face Seagraves recognized — he couldn't
say if it was male or female, young or old — but he thought it was
somebody real.

Judge Taylor recessed for
lunch at ten-thirty again and did not reconvene until one, when Ward
Townes called Linda Boxer.

* * *

THE LITTLE GIRL CAME out of the back of the courtroom
alone, wearing a new yellow dress, her hair tied in back with
ribbons. She was afraid, and when the court officer offered her the
Bible, she accepted it as if it were a present. Seagraves noticed the
ladies in the jury box smiling.

Judge Taylor leaned toward the child and said, "I'm
afraid we need that Bible there for the court, honey, but I'll get
you your own if you want."

The girl straightened her dress. "I got my own,"
she said, and handed it to the judge.

"
Would you put your hand on top of it for me?"
he said.

She put her hand on the Bible, and the court officer
swore her in. When it was done, Townes leaned on the rail in front of
the witness box and scratched his head.

"
Linda, can you tell us how old you are?"

"
Eleven."

"
And you say you've got a Bible at home?"

"
All us got Bibles."

"
You and your sister?"

"
Me and my sister and my brothers too. Everyone
got us our own."

"
And so, when you put your hand on top of the
Bible and promise to tell the truth, you know what that means, don't
you?"

The child nodded.

"
Could you tell us?" _

 
She nodded again.

"
Now? Could you tell us now?"

"
The devil get you if you don't tell the truth,"
she said. "Come and snatch you up for that."

"
All right then, let me ask if you remember the
day when the men shot Rosie?"

Seagraves stood up. "Objection. I am
understanding of the problems with witnesses of this age, but the
prosecutor is leading her here."

Judge Taylor sustained.

"
Do you remember the day when the shooting
happened?" Townes said. The child nodded, her braids were as
stiff as wire and moved with her head.

"
You have to say it out loud, honey,"
Townes said.

"
I remember."

"
Where were you when the men came?"

"Me and Jane Ray was in the house," she
said.

"
The boys' side?"

She nodded.

"
And what did you see?"

"We seen the men come up on the porch, and then
Momma come up there to argue with them."

"Did you go out on the porch too?"

"
No sir."

"And did you hear them arguing?"

"
They said something, and then they ran into the
house and shot Rosie."

"
The other side of the house?"

"Yessir."

"
Did you see them shoot Rosie?"

'
"No sir."

"
You heard them?"

"
Yessir."

"
Did it take a long time or a short time?"

"
A long time," she said.

"
And when did you see Rosie again?"

"Me and Jane Ray stayed put."

"
Did you see Rosie again?" The child did
not answer. "Linda? Can you tell us?"

"We seen the men," she said.

"When was that?"

The child began to search the courtroom then, looking
for someone. Her thumb went into her mouth, and Seagraves saw that
she was about to cry.

"
Linda?"

Her eyes filled, and tears the size of marbles rolled
down her cheeks. There was no sound at all. "You don't have to
talk anymore," Townes said. "You want to stop now?"

"We seen them running out from the back the
house," she said suddenly. "They was runnin' and fannin'
their coats. When they got into the car, then we come out and saw
Rosie."

"
And where was she then?"

"
Out the back door, on the ground."

"Did Rosie say anything?"

The child shook her head. "To Momma," she
said. "We never got that close to hear it."

"Where were you, and where was your momma?"

"
Me and Jane Ray come out and saw what they had
did. Momma was shot on the ground too, holding Rosie."

The child's eyes filled again. She dropped her head,
and Seagraves could see tears dropping into her lap. Townes said,
"Did you think your momma was going to die?"

"
We thought we was all going to die," she
said.

"
Thank you,"
Townes said, and then he turned and looked at Seagraves as if
something had been explained.

* * *

SEAGRAVES APPROACHEDTHE CHILD carefully. He said,
"Linda, did you know who Mr. Trout was before that day?"

At the sound of the new voice she flattened herself
against the back of the chair. The judge leaned toward the child
again. just a few more questions, honey. Can you tell us a few more
things?"

She nodded.

Seagraves said, "Did you hear of Mr. Trout
before he came to your house? Did you know who he was?"

She nodded.

"
How was that?"

"
When he lent the boys money."

"
He lent Thomas and Henry Ray money?"
 

"Uh-hmh."

Seagraves smiled at the child, trying to get her to
smile back. "That was a nice thing to do, wasn't it?"

"
No sir."

"
It wasn't nice to give your family money when
you needed it?"

"
He didn't give it," she said.

"
You're right. He lent it. Do you know what that
means?"

She looked beyond him now, into the seats behind the
railing.

"
Linda," he said, bringing her back, "did
you wonder how come Mr. Trout would shoot your momma and Rosie?"

She did not answer but slowly brought herself to look
at Trout.

"Linda?"

"
It just seem like a natural thing for him to
do," she said.

Seagraves held the gate, and she went through it and
then to her mother, who was sitting on the aisle in back. Mary McNutt
straightened the girl's dress and wiped at her cheeks, and then she
picked her up, pressing the child's face into her collar, and carried
her out of the room.

Seagraves was watching her
when he heard Townes's voice. "That's all for the people, Your
Honor."

* * *

SEAGRAVES CALLED BUSTER DEVONNE. He stood in the
witness box in a coat that looked like somebody had stolen it off an
organ grinder. He put his hand on the Bible and stared right at the
jury and swore to tell the truth. He stared at them, and he smiled.

"
Mr. Devonne," Seagraves said, "what
is your age?"

"I'm forty-four years old."

"
Are you employed by Mr. Trout?"

"
Yessir, I worked for Paris, off` and on, eight
years."

"
In what capacity?" Buster Devonne narrowed
his eyes. "In what position?"

"I do some collecting," he said.

"
Anything else?"

"
Whatever else needs to be done."

"And on the afternoon in question did Mr. Trout
have occasion to use your services?"

Buster Devonne smiled and shook his head. "Excuse
me," he said, "but it struck me comical. It sounded like
Twenty Questions." There was some quiet laughter in back, and
Buster Devonne straightened in his seat. Seagraves repeated his
question.

"
Yessir," Buster Devonne said. "he
asked me would I drive him out to Henry Ray's, to get him to sign a
note on the car."

"
Why didn't Mr. Trout just go out there by
himself?"

"
When he thought there might be trouble, he took
somebody along."

"
What sort of trouble?"

Buster Devonne shrugged. "There were two pretty
big Negroes there, which I had information were very bad, mean
Negroes. Plus Mary McNutt and the girl."

"So you went with Mr. Trout to protect him."

"
I went to keep things in hand, yessir."

"
And what happened when you got to Henry Ray
Boxer's house?"

"
Well, let's see. Thomas Boxer and Mary Jane was
on the porch with this girl that got shot. We stopped at the steps
and greeted them very nicely."

"
What exactly did you say?"

"
Inquired for their health," he said.

"
And what did they say?"

"
Nothing at First. They stood up on the porch,
looking down, and then Mr. Trout talked to her."

"
You mean Mrs. McNutt?"

"
Yessir. He said, 'We have never put a hardship
on you, Mrs. McNutt. We have always done you kindnesses when you
called on us, and I can't understand to save my life why you or one
of the boys didn't come in and talk this over.' "

"
And what did Mrs. McNutt say?"

Buster Devonne shook his head. "Nothing. Then
Mr. Trout and myself assented the stairs, and he told them that they
would have to sign a blank note. He said, 'You-all know this is
right,' and asked me for the note."

"You had the note."

"
Yessir. Mr. Trout don't tote papers. And so I
handed it to him, and he give it to the boy to sign."