Crash Test Dummy

Chapter 30

"Okay, that sounds like a teenager. Only go there if you have to, though."

Cory looked at his list. "The next item says 'finding hidden stash and showing to J&M but not to Mom.'"

"He didn't tell me about the stash when he found it, but he did tell me later when his uncle cleaned it out. He specifically told me that Jake and Marlow knew about it."

"Why did he tell you that?"

"I asked him."

"Is there anything else I need to know about the incident in case I need to cross?"

"You already know that it was recorded on camera by Livecam. You have the video feed."

"And so do they," Brock reminded.

"It's the incident that triggered CW's anger and determination to go joyriding," Mom clarified.

"Why did that particular incident get CW's goat?"

"We had told him there were no camera's in his space. The company asked us to test drive the little hidden camera so we put it in there while we were on vacation. I didn't tell CW because I didn't trust his friends. I knew he thought I was being unfair. I figured I could remove it as soon as we go back, and CW need never know. But then he saw me watching the camera feed of Clarence in F2. CW trusted his uncle. When he saw him emptying his stash and mumbling about having to hide the key to the motorcycle, he sort of lost it."

"According to the next entry, Jake and Marlow broke into CW's crib and hung out there during cold weather," Cory said.

"They weren't exactly simultaneous," CW corrected. "They broke in the first day that we were going to hang out. They cut school and snuck in to surprise me. After that I started locking the windows every night. They could still break in, though. I didn't find out about that until way later. Evidently once they were expelled from school, they broke in after Mom left for work and stayed there until just before I got home. They'd go out and come back in like they'd just arrived. On the days she was home, they broke in once she was in bed and bounced early. I didn't tell Mom they had been expelled from school and refused to attend the alternative school, so we hung out for that hour. On the days Mom was home, we'd meet at McD's and chew the fat."

"I suspected Jake and Marlow weren't on the up and up," Mom said. "I even told CW that the series of B&Es in our neighborhood started after he became friends with them." She sighed. "I guess if they ask me if I was aware of the boys expulsion, I could use the during discovery line again."

"Use it if you must, but if you use it too often, a red flag will go up in the mind of the defense lawyer."

"Maybe they won't be thinking time line," I said.

"Boxes of stuff in the trunk?" Cory asked.

"One night when I was putting the trash in Jake's trunk so Mom wouldn't find the empties, I saw a couple of boxes in the trunk," I said. "There was a computer monitor sticking up out of one box. The guys told me the boxes contained their stuff from when they moved out of the house and started living in the car. I took their word for it. I just put it on the list because I know Jake and Marlow claimed I was part of their theft ring. They claimed that before I realized that one of the robberies was on the night that I played games with BJ until 9:30."

"I don't think they'll bring that up," Brock said. "We already have discussed it with your Mom, though, so she knows about it. The robberies will be covered during the trail, but you two will only be asked about them if they try to implicate CW. With BJ awake and able to testify, I doubt that will happen."

"Isn't BJ on your witness list?" I asked.

"He is," Cory said. "He will testify to you shouting, 'no' to Jake. That's the main reason he's on the list, but he can impeach any accusations they make. I don't expect them to pursue a line of defense that will make them look bad to the jurors. I imagine that's a moot point." He looked back at the list. "Warning about cameras," he said.