TRIALS OF THE HEART - PART TWELVE

PREVIOUSLY

From far away, he heard Hank's voice from that afternoon saying, "Manning is a menace. Rappaport should get him to cop a plea and end this for all of us." An idea began to form in Bo's mind. Nora's voice spoke to him next. "If he pleads guilty to a lesser charge, then Rachel could start to put this all behind her."

With his jaw set in grim determination, Bo headed back to the police station.

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The green file was marked "confidential" and Bo held it as though the contents could actually burn his fingers. He tried to tell himself that he was letting his imagination get away from him; that his run-in with Nora had nothing to do with his suspicions about Rachel. Snapping the file shut, he threw it in a bottom drawer on his desk, which he carefully locked. "One thing for sure," he thought, "our marriage can't survive another incident like that. This ends tonight."

A young policeman knocked on the door and announced, "We have the prisoner, Sir."

"Give me a minute, Ryan," he said. When the door closed, Bo tried to compose himself. He hated what he was about to do, but in his heart he knew that unless Rachel and Nora got closure to the Phillips murder soon, he could kiss his marriage goodbye. Manning would have to confess and plead guilty, and Bo was determined to make it happen tonight. "Bring him in!" he shouted.

Two policemen brought Todd into the office, each with a hand gripping an upper arm. As they approached the desk, he was shoved forward roughly, and made to stand in front of the commissioner like an unruly schoolboy facing the headmaster. Bo took a moment to assess his quarry.

Todd stood looking down at him. His face was impassive, but looking closely, Bo could see that every muscle in his body was tensed. On first glance, he seemed like the same defiant man so familiar to Bo. He wore the blue jail uniform of denim pants and chambray shirt. Only a few of the buttons were done up, revealing a triangle of white T-shirt at his chest. The sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, giving Bo a good look at the steel bands binding his wrists. But the commissioner saw with satisfaction that Manning seemed to be missing his usual cocky attitude; he looked tired and even a little sad. Watching his prey closely, Bo said, "You know, I never get tired of the sight of you in chains, Manning." He was pleased to see Todd wince.

"That's real nice, Bo," said Todd, mustering up a little sarcasm. "Those charm school lessons are paying off." He took a step forward and now the commissioner could see the anger. "Why did you drag me up here? Didn't you stick it to me enough this afternoon in the courthouse?"

"I'm doing you a favor, Manning," said Bo, leaning back in his chair and grinning. "You indicated you were less than pleased with your living arrangement, so I thought you might like a change of scenery. We can have a nice, friendly little chat."

"Funny," said Todd. "I don't see either of my lawyers here, and I don't do 'chatting' without them."

"You won't need them. This is strictly off the record. I just need the answers to a few questions."

"Do you think I'm stupid? C'mon, where is it? The hidden tape recorder you have waiting for me to trip up." Todd's eyes narrowed.

"There is no tape recorder, Manning. And you have my word nothing you say will leave this room." At a signal from the commissioner, the guards pushed Todd into a chair facing the desk. "Ryan, bring us a couple of sodas, will you?" said Bo, handing over some change.

"Gee, Commissioner, since everything is so 'friendly' and all, I'm sure we won't be needing these." Todd held up his manacled wrists. Bo hesitated a moment, then nodded, and the remaining guard removed the handcuffs. After the sodas had been served, the policemen retreated out the door, leaving the two men staring across the desk at each other. Noticing Todd glance at a paper plate with three chocolate chip cookies, Bo held it out.

"Would you like…" Bo was startled as Todd quickly snatched all the cookies from the plate and began to eat them messily. He watched in morbid fascination for a few moments, then opened a file. "I've been looking over the statement you gave the night you were arrested. You claim it was Viki you saw dragging the victim out of the lodge?" he asked incredulously.

"No. I saw Viki go in, but it was another chick that dragged her out. My sister must have spooked her into getting rid of the evidence. You've never cared about my story before. Why bring it up when Hank is finished with his case?"

"Humor me here, Todd," said Bo. "All along you've claimed I was the killer. So why did you say you saw a woman with the body?"

Todd shrugged. "Maybe you had one of your girls do your dirty work."

"You know Nora has been placed in a bar at the time of the murder, and Rachel's car was in the repair shop."

"She could have taken a cab."

"No, the doorman of her building vouches that she was inside, and her phone records show several calls made during the time frame of the murder."

"So maybe this Georgie psycho pissed off someone else," speculated Todd.

"We haven't been able to come up with anyone else with a motive and opportunity, and neither have your defense investigators."

"So that's it, then," snarled Todd, tossing the remnants of the cookies toward the plate. Crumbs went flying all over the commissioner's desk. "If there isn't any other obvious suspect, then pin it on Todd Manning. He does everything bad in this town." He stood up abruptly, wiping his hands on his shirt.

"Sit down!" shouted Bo. Todd obeyed, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

"I just want to look out the window," he said in frustration. "Or do you Buchanans have dominion over the stars and the moon now?"

Bo narrowed his eyes. "Fine. But we're not done talking about this." Todd walked over to the small, grimy window and gazed upwards. Sensing that a man getting his first glimpse of the night sky in over two months needed privacy, Bo busied himself with some papers. After a few minutes, he quietly got to his feet and moved closer to his adversary. He was surprised by what he saw.

As he looked up at the heavens, Todd seemed completely relaxed, and his expression was almost joyful. Seen from the profile, he looked years younger than his age, and Bo realized he was glimpsing a side of Todd Manning that was rarely seen. As he became aware of the commissioner watching him, Todd turned his head and Bo watched in fascination as the mask he showed to the world settled over his features.

"What were you thinking about, Manning?" asked Bo in curiosity.

Todd shook his head. "Oh no, Commissioner. That's not the way it works. You get this," he said, gesturing at his own lanky frame. "The law lets you lock me up, put me in chains. I have to go where you want me to go, eat what you deign to feed me, see only the people you let me see. But you don't get what's in here." He pointed to his head. "That's all mine."

"Fine, Manning, keep your sick thoughts to yourself. My guess is that you were thinking about your daughter, since you were looking at the stars." Bo ignored the feeling of self-loathing he felt as he continued. "Maybe you'd like to call her." Todd's head snapped toward him. "Here we go," thought Bo.

"Call my daughter? Now?"

"Why not?" answered Bo, trying to look sincere.

Todd looked suspicious. "What's the catch?"

"There is none. Look, I might not be willing to see you go free on bail, but I'm not unreasonable. Go on."

Todd approached the desk and turned the phone toward him. "She's at Dorian's. If that witch hears my voice, she'll never let me talk to my kid." Bo picked up the receiver and dialed in the number Todd gave him.

"Hello, Kelly? This is Bo Buchanan…Drew's there? Well tell him hi for me." Noticing Todd's impatient glare, the commissioner asked for Blair and handed over the phone.

"Blair, it's me," said Todd when his ex-wife picked up.

"Todd?" she answered in surprise. "So you did get out on bail?"

"No, they denied it again," he said angrily, "so for a consolation prize I get to talk to Shorty."

"Oh, Todd, I just put her to bed!"

"Well….don't wake her up then," said Todd, feeling acute disappointment. Bo was secretly cursing.

"Look, maybe she isn't asleep yet. I know she'll want to speak to you. Just let me check on her."

After a pause, Todd heard a sleepy voice on the other end. "Daddy?"

"Shorty! It sure is good to hear your voice." Bo moved behind the desk, leaving Todd sitting on the edge with his back turned toward him.

"Where are you Daddy? I miss you," said Starr and Todd felt his chest constrict.

"I'm not too far away," he said keeping his voice even. "And I'm thinking about you all the time." He could hear rustling.

"Mr. Rabbit misses you too, Daddy." Todd smiled at the thought of Starr's favorite stuffed animal, now completely beat up, droopy eared and missing an eye.

"Tell Mr. Rabbit I said hi," he said.

"He wants a kiss," he heard his daughter say.

"Starr, I can't…."

"Kiss Mr. Rabbit, Daddy!" she insisted. Todd gave a sidelong glance over his shoulder and saw that the commissioner seemed absorbed in some work. In the softest voice he could manage, Todd made a smacking sound into the receiver. Bo seemed not to notice.

Starr and Todd talked for about 15 minutes on a variety of subjects, then the little girl mentioned that she was starting first grade the next week. "You promised you'd take me to school on the first day, Daddy," she reminded him.

Todd closed his eyes tightly and took a deep breath. "I'm not going to be able to make it Shorty."

"But Daddy! You promised! And you promised you'd take me to see dolphins and you never did that either!"

"Starr, look, I'll make it up to you…" He could hear sniffling on the other end. Suddenly Blair was on the phone again.

"Todd, she's really tired. I think that's enough for tonight."

"Blair, wait!" said Todd. "If I paid for it could you take Shorty on a trip next week? I promised her…"

"Todd, she starts school next week. We can't leave now."

"She won't miss that much, and maybe when you get back I'll be out of here, and…"

"I can't really talk about this now," said Blair, forcing a cheerful voice for Starr's sake. "Say goodbye." Todd tried to get Starr to bid him farewell, but all he could hear was muffled sobbing. He hung up the phone slowly and dropped his hands to his lap.

"That couldn't have gone any better if I'd scripted it myself," thought Bo after listening to Manning's end of the conversation. Todd's shoulders were hunched over in defeat. Bo eyed the back of his shirt, stenciled with "Llanview City Jail", and noticed it was shaking slightly. He heard a sniff as Todd reached up to rub his nose. The commissioner let him have a few minutes to himself.

Bo never liked exploiting other people's pain, and the fact that it was Manning's didn't seem to make it any easier. He hated using a child, and reminded himself that he was doing this for Nora-so that the two of them could get their marriage back on track. Laying his half-glasses on the desk, he rubbed his eyes.

"How was Starr?" he asked in a neutral voice.

"Fine," was the answer, given in a lack-luster tone.

"And how was Blair?" asked Bo. He received the same answer. A playful smirk stretched along his lips.

"And how was Mr. Rabbit?" Todd shot off the desk in a flash, and turned around. He was shooting daggers from his red eyes.

"Give me a break!" he shouted.

Bo laughed. "Relax, Manning. I'm just teasing you. Lighten up!"

"Lighten up? You want me to lighten up?" He walked quickly to the window again and spoke with his back turned. "Thanks to you, I'm locked up when my kid needs me," he said. "And that is something I will never forgive."

Bo moved a little closer. He held an unpleasant image of himself as the forked-tongued serpent depicted in a long-forgotten Sunday school book. He swallowed hard. "You know, Manning, if you're convicted of the murder, you'll probably never see Starr again."

Todd banged his fists on either side of the window. "Duh! Ya think?" he shouted. He glared over his shoulder at his tormentor. "Don't you think I figured that out, Bo? I don't think of anything else!" He turned back to the window. "This is sadistic, even for you." Now it was Bo's turn to wince.

"On the other hand, if you plead guilty to manslaughter, you'd get 20 years and be eligible for parole in ten."

"Right, like they'd ever grant me parole," muttered Todd to the window.

"You might be surprised. Cooperate, do the time without trying to escape, and you may just walk out in time to see your daughter go to the prom….graduate from college…walk her down the aisle some day." Todd turned around. He was distraught but obviously listening closely. "Even if you do the whole stretch, you'd know you were going to get out one day. A little bit of hope can go a long way, right Manning?" Todd began to run his fingers through his already unkempt hair. Bo continued, "Blair can bring Starr to see you at Statesville…"

"Do you think I'd let her see me in there?" snapped Todd.

"Maybe not, but there are other programs: work release…furloughs…you could see your daughter from time to time. And I'll hold up your transfer for a while so you can spend some time with her here before you go." Todd stared at him, his face a study in agony. "C'mon, Manning. You have great lawyers. They could probably get an even better deal out of Hank. Let me call them all down here. A few minutes, you make a statement, sign your name and this nightmare is over for everyone." Todd turned back toward the window and leaned his forehead against the glass.

"No….no….I'm not going to prison for something I didn't do," he mumbled. Bo grabbed his arm and jerked him around.

"Look, I don't really believe you'd kill Georgie just to frame me," he said angrily. "But that girl had a really nasty mouth on her. It's easy to see how she could taunt you into losing your temper. Before you knew what was happening, you'd whacked her with the bat." Todd was shaking his head from side to side. "C'mon, Todd. Haven't you put Viki through enough worry? And what about Rappaport? Have you thought what losing this case could mean to his reputation?" Bo stepped a little closer and hardened his mouth. "And your wife…" He saw Todd stiffen. "She's been so loyal to you. Do you really want to watch her waste her life pining away when they send you up for life?"

"That's enough!" said Todd, pulling his arm away from the commissioner. He took a step forward until their faces were just inches apart. As he looked down at the shorter man, his eyes were the color of agates, and just as hard. "Now listen real good, Buchanan, because this is the last time I'm going to say this," he said in a cold, calm voice. "I have done things that I'm not very proud of, things I'd give the world not to have to tell my daughter about in a few years. As today's little drama in the courthouse proved, I'm going to be paying for those crimes for the rest of my life." His body shook and his voice broke as he said, "But I did not kill Georgie Phillips-I did not hit her with a baseball bat." He squeezed his eyes shut and whispered, "I swear it on my daughter's life."

Bo suppressed a shiver as he felt a chill spread throughout his body. He didn't blink and he didn't move, but he felt as if the slightest breeze could blow him away; because in that moment he knew, knew without a doubt, that Todd Manning was innocent. The green file locked in his bottom drawer suddenly had the power to blow his whole life to kingdom come. Outwardly, he hadn't changed expression. Looking steadily at Todd he said, "Then we have nothing more to say to each other."

Todd looked as though he'd just taken a beating. He stared at the commissioner with a look of abject pain on his face. Swallowing hard, he said softly, "I guess not." He turned to the window, as Bo walked resolutely toward the back door of his office. Glancing over his shoulder, Bo saw his prisoner looking utterly wrung out and defeated. He took a moment to collect himself before flinging open the door.

While Bo was busy for a few moments dealing with some things that needed his attention, Todd looked through the window at the streetlights shining around the city square. It was a very lovely evening and the prospect of spending the waning days of summer locked in a subterranean cell seemed almost unbearable. "Are you ready to go back, Manning?" asked Bo from the doorway.

Todd sighed deeply. "I live for it," he mumbled to the window. With a last glance at the night sky, he walked across the office and joined his guard and the commissioner at the entrance. The policeman reached back and pulled out the handcuffs. Todd was already bringing up his hands for them when Bo cleared his throat.

"Listen, Ryan," he said self-consciously. "You're just taking him across the squad room and down to the lock-up. Maybe you can forget the cuffs this once." Todd's eyes widened in surprise and he slowly dropped his arms back to his sides. He stared at Bo, as though he wasn't quite sure what it meant.

"Sure, Commissioner. Whatever you say," said Ryan putting away the handcuffs. "C'mon, Manning. Let's go." He tugged gently on Todd's upper arm. His charge put his shoulders back, lifted his head and walked swiftly across the squad room, glaring at any curious on-lookers. In the doorway on the other side, he stopped and turned back a moment, locking eyes with the commissioner across the room. The two men stared at each other, perhaps reassessing what they thought they knew about the other. Finally, at the prompting of his guard, Todd pulled away and disappeared down the hallway. Bo grabbed his coat, and headed out of the station without another word to anyone. He needed a drink badly.

TO BE CONTINUED