'When Mr. Darius was arrested, did your daughter move in with you?'
'She did.'
'While Lisa was staying at your home, did her husband phone her?'
'Repeatedly, Mr. Page. He phoned for her several times each evening.'
'Is it true that inmates can only make collect calls?'
'Yes. All his calls were collect.'
'Did your daughter accept the calls?'
'She instructed me to refuse them.'
'To the best of your knowledge, did your daughter speak to the defendant while he was incarcerated?'
'She may have, once or twice immediately after his arrest. Once she moved in with me, she stopped.'
'What was your daughter's attitude toward her husband?'
'She was scared to death of him.'
'Did this fear increase or decrease when Mr. Darius was released on bail?'
'It increased. She was terrified he would come for her.'
'Did the defendant phone Lisa Darius after his release on bail?'
'Yes, sir. The first evening.'
'Did you hear the conversation?'
'Snatches of it.'
'Did you hear the defendant make any threats?'
'I believe he told her she would not be safe in Portland.'
'When you say you believe he said this, what do you mean?'
'Lisa told me he said it. I was standing at Lisa's shoulder and could hear something of what he said.'
'Do you know if Mrs. Darius believed the defendant meant this as a threat?'
'She was confused. She told me she wasn't certain what he meant. He seemed to be implying Lisa was in danger from someone else, but that didn't make sense. I took it that he was threatening her indirectly, so no blame could be placed on him.'
'justice Ryder, when was the last time you saw your daughter alive?'
For a brief moment the judge lost his composure. He sipped from a cup of water before answering.
'we had breakfast together between seven and seven-thirty a.m. Then I drove to Salem.'
'When did you return home?'
'Around six in the evening.'
'Was your daughter home?'
'No.'
'Did you see anything in the house that alarmed you?'
'The television was on, but no one was home. The sound was high enough so Lisa should have heard it and turned it off before she left.'
'Was there evidence that she'd had a visitor?'
'There were two coffee cups in the kitchen and some coffee cake was out, as if she'd been talking to someone.
'Did your daughter leave a note telling where she was going?'
'No.'
'Nothing further.'
'Your witness, Mrs. Tannenbaum,' judge Norwood said.
'He's lying,' Darius whispered. 'I never threatened Lisa. I was warning her.'
'He's not lying, Martin. He's saying what he honestly believes happened.
If I push him, he'll just harden his position.'
'Bullshit. I've seen you take witnesses apart. Ryder is a pompous asshole. You can make him look like a fool.'
Betsy took a deep breath, because she did not want to lose her temper.
Then she leaned over to Darius and spoke quietly.
'Do you want me to push justice Ryder until he breaks down Martin? Do you really think it will help you get bail if I cause One of the most respected judges in the state, and the father of a young woman who has been brutally murdered, to crack up in open court in front of one of his colleagues?'
Darius started to say something, then shut up and turned away from Betsy.
'No questions, Your Honor,' Betsy said.
'Our next witness is Detective Richard Kassel,' Page told the judge.
Richard Kassel sauntered down the aisle. He was dressed in a brown tweed sports coat, tan slacks, a white shirt and a bright yellow print tie.
His shoes were polished and his black hair was styled. He had the smug look of a person who took himself too seriously.
'Detective Kassel, how are you employed?'
'I'm a detective with the Portland Police Bureau.'
'Did you arrest the defendant yesterday evening?'
'Yes, sir.'
'Tell the judge how that came about.'
Kassel swiveled toward the judge.
'Detective Rittner and I received a call over the police radio. Based on that communication, I entered the grounds. The door to the defendant's house was locked.
We identified ourselves as police and demanded that the defendant open the door. He complied. Detective Rittner and I secured the defendant and waited for the other cars to arrive, as we had been ordered to do.'
'Did other officers arrive soon after?'
Kassel nodded. 'About fifteen minutes after we arrived, you and Detective Barrow arrived, followed by several others.'
Betsy's brow furrowed. She checked something she had written during justice Ryder's testimony. Then she made some notes on her pad.
'Did you discover the body?' Page asked.
'No, sir. Our instructions were to stay with the defendant. The body was discovered by other officers.'
'Did you give Mr. Darius his Miranda warnings?'
'Yes, sir.'
'Did Mr. Darius make any statements?'
'Other than to ask to call his lawyer, no.'
'Your witness, Mrs. Tannenbaum.'
Betsy looked unsure of herself She asked the judge for a minute and pretended to look through a police report while she worked through her thoughts.
'Detective Kassel,' Betsy asked cautiously, 'who told you to enter the Darius estate and arrest Mr. Darius?'
'Detective Barrow.'
'Did he say why you were to arrest Mr. Darius?'
'Yes, ma'am. He said there was a tip that the defendant had killed his wife and her body was in his basement.'
'Did Detective Barrow tell you who gave him the tip?'
'I didn't ask.'
'How was Mr. Darius dressed when he opened the door for you?'
'He was wearing a white shirt and pants.'
'Mr. Darius, please stand up.' Darius stood.
'Are these the pants?' Detective Kassel took a second to look at Darius.
'Yeah. Those are the ones we arrested him in.'
'And this is the white shirt?'
'Yes.'
