Page 68 of Courtroom Drama
“She’s fair. Kind. Very kind. And I love the kids very much. I love working for her.”
Margot gives an affirming nod.
“Can you give us an example of some of Margot’s kindness?”
“Well, just a few months before Joe died, my father passed unexpectedly. I found out when I was at the Kitsches’. It was just Margot and me there at the time. She was in the middle of getting ready for a charity event. It was her own event that she was hosting for Sea Save, I think. She had her full glam team there at the house.” Ms. Pembrooke pauses and makes eye contact with Margot again. I examine the exchange closely. Despite their lack of physical indications, it’s evident there’s a well of connection between these two women. Ms. Pembrooke continues. “Margot dropped everything. She sent everyone home. She missed her event. She made cardamom tea and held me while I cried.”
Durrant Hammerstead pulls a tissue from his pants pocket and hands it to Ms. Pembrooke. She dabs at the corners of her eyes, then crumples the tissue into a ball and lowers it to her lap.
“What was your relationship like with Mr. Kitsch?”
Ms. Pembrooke dulls a bit, like a moody manager just walked into the room or someone bumped her in a cashier’s line. “It was fine. Pleasant. He wasn’t around often, so I didn’t spend much time with him.” She looks down at her lap, reflecting. “He always said thank you if I did something for him, if I ran down the hill when he was craving his favorite Mediterranean wrap or if he saw me walking in with his dry cleaning. But other than that, we didn’t speak much.”
“Tell us, Ms. Pembrooke, what were those last days of Joe’s life like? Were there any changes to his routine?”
She shakes her head. “No, it was pretty normal. Though by normal, I mean every day was different. But Mr. Kitsch was in town that week. He was working locally, on the set of that Kit Harington filmThe Never Days.”
A few people around the courtroom nod in recognition, likely pleased they’ll get to mention an actor’s name in their reports from the day, possibly gaining more clicks for their respective articles. I knowof it, too.The Never Daysis a postapocalyptic thriller set to release next week. And thanks to the attention around Joe’s death, it may now see more significant box office numbers than otherwise anticipated.
“And what about on the part of Mrs. Kitsch? Did you observe any changes in her behavior in the days leading up to Joe’s death?”
“No. She was home that morning, got the kids off to school. Then she usually went out about her business and would return by late afternoon most days to spend time with the children.”
Durrant Hammerstead makes eye contact with several jury members so we catch the not-so-subtle subtext. Margot was a doting wife and mother, even on that last day of Joe’s life.
I hear the ticks of a clock’s second hand reverberating in my ears as we inch into the specifics of Joe’s final moments.
33.
Exculpatory Evidence (n., phrase)
evidence the defendant did not commit the crime
when jurors should take notes
“Tell us about that final day,” Durrant Hammerstead says, and I shift in my seat. “What do you remember?”
Ms. Pembrooke swallows hard and leans forward. “Joe came down for breakfast around seven forty-five, just as the kids were wrapping up their toast and eggs. Margot was trying to gather the kids’ backpacks and shoes to get them out the door.”
I try to picture Margot in a bathrobe and slippers, hair pulled back in a banana clip, ushering her kids out the door to get to school on time. The vision doesn’t come easily. I rarely saw my own mother in the mornings. She left for her job at the collection agency at six forty-five every weekday to try to beat the relatively minor Bakersfield traffic. If I was up early enough, I might catch her on her way out the door, carrying her travel mug full of too-strong black coffee and a strawberry Nutri-Grain bar.
“The kids had been gone three hours by the time...” She looks down. “They hugged him goodbye, pressed quick kisses on his cheek, then rushed out the door as they always did.”
I picture Dover and Emblem, adorned in their navy school uniforms, kissing their father goodbye. I’ve seen this exact scene play out on an episode before. Margot has kept them shielded since Joe’s death.The only pictures in the press have been quick exits from a car with sweatshirts covering their faces. Our view of Emblem’s court interview is far more than the world has seen of her in the last year.
Gloria Pembrooke continues. “I offered to make him his morning smoothie.”
“Did he have a morning smoothie often?”
“Oh yes. Pretty much every day.”
“And did Margot typically partake in these morning smoothies?”
She nods. “Yes. I usually filled the blender and they both would have one.”
“And what was in these smoothies?”
“I use a variety of things. Spinach, bananas, honey, chia seeds, protein powder, juices. Whatever they might be needing. That morning was most all those things.”
