Yep. There it was. A tiny little desk off to the side with its own little mic on a stand. Ty sauntered over and sat down at it. Ollie turned to speak to the people directly behind the table, one of whom moved over a seat so Ollie and Theo could sit close.
Ty leaned forward and said into the microphone, “So this isn’t the defendant’s chair.”
The room behind him tittered. Ty blinked, disconcerted; he hadn’t expected them to appreciate the joke.
Chiu waited for the laughter to die down and then continued. “Thank you, Mr. Morris.” He made it sound likedie in the gutter, wretch. “I would like to state for the record that the matter this query pertains to is the sudden death of Eileen Sanford at Hilliard’s Grocery on the twenty-seventh day of April of this year. We have asked Mr. Morris, who was present at the scene, while not on call as a paramedic nor currently employed by the Orford Township emergency services, to give an account of his actions.”
If he didn’t regret giving Ty a microphone already, he would soon. “Was my police report deemed deficient in some way?”
“Your report was thorough. This query is merely to address any outstanding concerns that may be held by members of the community.”
Oh, so he was going to turn over the microphone and let the people who hated Ty grill him. Super.
“We will also be hearing accounts from others who were present at the incident.”
For a moment Ty had an unbidden flash of Alan Chiu calling upon Mrs. Sanford to give her testimony by Ouija board, but then he gestured to the other side of the room and Ty recognized Jake and Brent, one of the EMTs who’d been on duty, as well as the store manager.
Weird choices, Ty thought. The store manager had thanked him profusely. Jake had a crush on him. Brent had been trying to convince Ty to apply for a job with Orford Township EMS.
Chiu started the discussion by having Jake, who’d been with Mrs. Sanford in the grocery aisle when she collapsed, give his account. When it was Ty’s turn, Ollie tapped his shoulder and handed him a sheet of paper.
It was a copy of Ty’s police statement.
Ty dutifully read it out loud, trying not to smirk when he noticed Chiu’s eyes following a sheet of paper he had in front of himself. Obviously he had his own copy of Ty’s statement and had been hoping to catch Ty contradicting himself.
Asshole.
Chiu scowled.
Point for Ollie and Ty.
After Ty, Christie, the store manager, and Brent, the EMT, gave abbreviated accounts:I got him the defibrillator. He used it but it didn’t help. When we arrived the patient was DOA. It looked like someone had attempted CPR and electrical defibrillation without success.
Short and to the point. Ty appreciated that. He’d worded his report the same way. Nothing subjective; nothing someone could pick apart in court.
Someone had attended the same professional CYA seminar Ty had.
“Thank you, Mr. Patrick. If you could just remain at the microphone for a moment. When you arrived on the scene, what did you note about the patient’s condition?”
Brent paused. “Um, not to be indelicate, but do you mean apart from the fact that she was dead?”
Chiu’s eye twitched. “What was the state of her attire? Was she bleeding? Were all of her apparent injuries addressed?”
So that was his angle.
“She wasn’t bleeding because her heart had stopped beating. Her shirt was open because a defibrillator has to make contact with the skin.”
“And was Mrs. Sanford’s head wound addressed?”
“If you mean did it look like anyone attempted to stop the bleeding, no.”
Finally Chiu seemed triumphant. “Thank you—”
“There wouldn’t have been much point, as her heart was not pumping any blood.”
The microphone picked up the sound of Chiu’s teeth grinding. “You may be seated, Mr. Patrick. Mr. Morris?”
Ty leaned forward. “Present.”
