Chapter 8 - what my brother forgot)
Seth took the stand after lunch.
He looked confident.
That was his greatest weakness.
He had spent his entire life surviving consequences through certainty.
If he said something loudly enough, someone else usually became uncertain.
His attorney began gently.
"Mr. Bennett, do you love your niece?"
"Of course."
"Would you intentionally hurt her?"
"Never."
I stared at him.
"Describe what occurred."
Seth folded his hands.
"She was pulling decorations. I told her to stop. She scratched me. I raised my hand to block her."
"Did you slap her?"
"No."
"Did you call her a monster?"
He hesitated.
"I may have said she was acting like one later because Kallie was screaming."
My attorney wrote something.
His lawyer continued.
"How would you describe your sister's behavior?"
"Unstable."
The word came quickly.
He had been waiting to use it.
"Has she behaved emotionally in the past?"
"All the time."
"Objection," Elise said.
"Sustained."
The judge looked at Seth.
"Answer the question asked. Do not generalize."
Seth nodded.
But I could see irritation rising.
He didn't like correction.
Elise stood for cross-examination.
"Mr. Bennett, how old is Paisley?"
"Two."
"How much does she weigh?"
"I don't know."
"Approximately?"
"Twenty-five pounds?"
"You're thirty-four years old?"
"Yes."
"Approximately one hundred eighty pounds?"
His attorney objected.
Judge Cole allowed the question.
"Yes."
Elise nodded.
"Your declaration says a two-year-old scratched you so aggressively that you needed to use an open-hand defensive motion."
"Yes."
"Where was the scratch?"
Seth lifted his left hand.
"I don't have it anymore."
"Did you photograph it?"
"No."
"Seek medical treatment?"
"No."
"Tell anyone at the party?"
"I don't remember."
"Did you message Ms. Bennett afterward and say Paisley had scratched you?"
Silence.
"No."
"Did you tell CPS?"
"I didn't speak to CPS."
"Did you tell your wife?"
"I don't remember."
"Did you tell your mother?"
"I think so."
Elise nodded.
"Your mother testified this morning that she personally saw Paisley scratch you."
Seth relaxed slightly.
"Right."
"My question was whether you told her."
He stared.
"I don't remember."
Elise walked back to the table.
Then turned.
"Mr. Bennett, did you send Ms. Bennett the message, You're raising a monster and everyone knows it?"
His jaw tightened.
"I was angry."
"Did you send, If you accuse me of abusing your kid, I swear you'll regret it?"
"She was threatening me."
"Did she threaten you?"
"She said I couldn't see Paisley."
"That's a boundary, Mr. Bennett. What was the threat?"
His face reddened.
"My family was being taken away."
Elise paused.
"Your family?"
"My niece."
"You had seen Paisley approximately once every four to six weeks before the birthday party, correct?"
"I don't keep a schedule."
"Correct?"
"Probably."
"Yet you believed being denied access to her justified telling her mother she would regret accusing you?"
"I didn't mean anything by it."
"You also later emailed that Ms. Bennett destroyed your marriage."
Seth looked toward Melanie.
She was seated in the back row.
Her face was expressionless.
Elise continued.
"Did your wife leave the marital home after the birthday incident?"
"Temporarily."
"Because of Ms. Bennett?"
"Because Kallie got into her head."
Melanie looked down.
Elise asked, "Has your wife accused you of punching walls?"
Seth's attorney stood.
"Objection."
A long argument followed.
The judge limited that line of questioning.
Elise didn't need it.
Seth was already angry.
She returned to the birthday.
"Did you tell anyone after Ms. Bennett left that Paisley deserved to be hit?"
"No."
"Did you say she needed it?"
"No."
"Did you say somebody had to teach her?"
"No."
"Did you say Ms. Bennett lets that little monster do whatever she wants?"
"No."
Each answer came faster.
No.
No.
No.
No.
My attorney nodded.
"Nothing further at this time."
Seth looked almost pleased.
He had forgotten one thing.
People who lie often focus so intensely on controlling other people that they forget their past selves are witnesses too.
The court adjourned for the day.
Outside, Seth approached me before Elise could intercept him.
"Happy?"
I said nothing.
"You wanted this."
I kept walking.
He followed.
"You ruined Mom."
Elise turned.
"Do not speak to my client."
Seth laughed.
"Or what?"
A courthouse deputy looked over.
Seth stopped.
That moment was small.
But I saw something in his face.
Shock.
For perhaps the first time in his adult life, somebody else's boundary had immediate consequences.
He walked back toward my parents.
Dad looked exhausted.
Mom was crying.
And for half a second, I felt guilty.
Then I remembered Paisley's cheek.
The guilt passed.
The next morning, Nora would testify.
May you like
And my parents still believed her testimony was the most dangerous thing she had.
They had no idea the phone in Elise's evidence bag contained eighteen minutes capable of dismantling every statement they had made.
