He nearly overreached himself. You think he will leave the country and intimidate witnesses? asked the magistrate with polite incredulity. I doubt if his violent arm would reach so far. However, on the balance of evidence and especially in respect of the missing property I am inclined to agree with you. Bail is denied.
Brunskill sat down and Maskell shrugged and stuffed some papers back into his briefcase. And so I was remanded for trial at the Central Criminal Court. I was going to see the inside of the Old Bailey, after all.
Maskell had a few words with me before I was taken away. Now I can find out the strength of the police case against you. Ill have a word with the prosecution and then you and I can sit down together and discuss this whole thing. If you want anything ask that I be informed, but I shall probably see you tomorrow, anyway.
A prisoner on remand is theoretically an innocent man. Practically, he is regarded neutrally as neither guilty nor innocent. The food was good, the bed soft and there were no irksome restrictions except one. I couldnt get out of the nick. Still, you cant have everything.
Maskell came to see me the following afternoon and we sat in one of the interviewing rooms. He regarded me thoughtfully, then said, The case against you is very strong, Mr Rearden; very strong, indeed. Unless you can prove conclusively and without equivocation that you could not have committed this crime, then I fear you will be convicted.
I was about to speak, but he raised his hand. But we can go into that later. First things first. Now, have you any money?
About a hundred and fifty pounds. But I havent paid my hotel bill I wasnt given the chance. I dont want hotel bilking to be added to the charge sheet, so itll be nearer a hundred pounds I have to play around with.
Maskell nodded. As you may know, my own fee has been taken care of. But I am not the man who will fight your case in court; that will be done by a barrister, and barristers come even more expensive than I do, especially barristers of the calibre needed to win this case. A hundred pounds would come nowhere near the amount necessary.
I shrugged. Im sorry; its all Ive got. That wasnt exactly true but I could see that even the best barrister in the business couldnt get me out of this one and there wasnt any point in throwing my money away.
I see. Well, there is provision for a case like yours. A barrister will be appointed by the Court to act for you. The trouble is that he will be not of your choice; yet I am not with out influence and I will see if I have any strings to pull that will get us the best man.
He took a folder from his briefcase and opened it. I want you to tell me exactly what you did on the morning in question. He paused. I already know you did not have breakfast at your hotel.
I didnt sleep well that night, I said. So I got up early and took a walk.
Maskell sighed. And where did you walk to, Mr Rearden?
I thought it out. I went into Hyde Park and walked up as far as the Round Pond. Theres a famous building up there Kensington Palace but it was closed. It was very early in the morning.
I shouldnt imagine there would be many people in Hyde Park or Kensington Gardens so early. Did you speak to anyone make enquiries at Kensington Palace? Did you ask the time of opening, for instance?
There wasnt anyone around to ask.
Very well; what did you do then?
I walked back through the park to Hyde Park Corner and over into Green Park. Then up Bond Street into Oxford Street. I was doing a bit of window shopping, you see.
And what time would this be?
Oh, I dont know. Say, about nine fifteen. I was dawdling a bit. I had a look at a place called Burlington Arcade, then I went on up Bond Street looking at the shops, as I said. Its marvellous nothing like it in South Africa.
And you didnt speak to anyone at all?
If Id known I needed an alibi I would have, I said bitterly.
Just so, said Maskell. So you arrived at Oxford Street what did you do then?
Well, I hadnt had breakfast and I felt a bit peckish so I found a pub and had some sandwiches and a pint. I was chatting to the barman, an Irishman. He ought to remember me.
And what time was this?
It must have been after ten oclock because the pub was open. Say, half past ten.
That alibi comes a little late, said Maskell. Its not relevant. He consulted a sheet of paper from the folder. I must tell you that the police version differs from yours substantially and they have a great deal of evidence to show. He looked me in the eye. Do I have to point out the dangers of lying to your lawyer?
Im not lying, I said indignantly.
He spoke gravely. Mr Rearden, let me say that you are in deep trouble. I gather you want to enter a plea of not guilty at your trial, but I must warn you that, on the evidence now extant, you are likely to lose the case. Public concern about crimes of violence of this nature has been increasing and this concern is reflected by the heavy sentences imposed by the courts.
He paused to collect his thoughts and then went on in measured tones. Now, as your solicitor I cannot prejudge this case, but I would like to say this: If the diamonds were to be returned, and if you entered a plea of guilty, then the court would be inclined to leniency and, in my opinion, your sentence would be not more than five years and possibly as little as three years. With a remittance of sentence for good behaviour you could be out of prison in as little as two years.
On the other hand, if the diamonds are not returned and if you enter a plea of not guilty then your sentence is going to be very heavy assuming you are convicted, an assumption which on the evidence I have is very likely. If I may use slang I would say that his Lordship is going to throw the book at you; hell lock you up and throw away the key. I doubt if you would get away with much under fourteen years, and I assure you that I have great experience in these forecasts and I do not speak lightly.
He cleared his throat. Now, what do you say, Mr Rearden? What shall we do about this?
The only diamonds I saw that morning were in the shop windows of Bond Street, I said distinctly.
He looked at me in silence for a long time then shook his head. Very well, he said quietly. I will go about my business and yours but with no great hope of success. I ought to warn you that the police have such evidence that will be very difficult for defence counsel to refute.
Im innocent, I said obstinately.
He said no more but collected his papers and left the room without a backward glance.
II
So there I was in the dock of the Central Criminal Court the Old Bailey. There was much pomp and circumstance, robes and wigs, deferences and courtesies and me popping up from the bowels of the earth into the dock like the demon king in a pantomime, the centre of attraction. Of course, I had competition from the Judge. It seems that when a man gets to sit on the Bench he feels that hes entitled to be a licensed jester and he loves nothing more than to have the audience rolling in the aisles at his witticisms. Ive seen worse music hall turns than a Criminal Court judge. Still, it does lighten the atmosphere a court would be a pretty grim place without the comic bits and the Chief Comic isnt prejudiced; he aims his barbs at prosecution and defence alike. I found that I quite enjoyed it and laughed as much as anyone else.
Maskell was there, of course, but in a minor role; defence counsel was a man called Rollins. Maskell had tried again, just before the trial, to get me to alter my plea of not guilty. He said, Mr Rearden, I want you to consider once more the consequences of losing this case. You will not only receive a long sentence but there are certain other implications. Long-term prisoners are invariably regarded as high-risk prisoners, especially those who are regarded as having financial backing. In the absence of diamonds to the value of £173,000 you would undoubtedly come into that category. A high risk prisoner is treated very differently from the ordinary prisoner and I understand that the circumstances can be rather unpleasant. I would think of that if I were you.
I didnt have to think of it. I hadnt a hope in hell of getting the diamonds back and that was the crux of the matter. Even if I pleaded guilty Id get a stiff sentence in the absence of the diamonds. The only thing to do was to put on a brave face and make the best of it. It struck me that Mackintosh was a very smart man and that maybe Mrs Smith was even smarter.
I said, Im sorry, Mr Maskell, but Im innocent.
He looked puzzled. He didnt believe a word I said but he couldnt figure out why I was keeping my mouth shut. But then a wintry smile came to his face. I hope you dont think the investment of so many years of your life is worth the money. Too much time in prison is apt to change a man for the worse.
I smiled at him. I thought you said you wouldnt prejudge the case.
I think you are a very foolish young man, he said. But you have my best wishes in your unfortunate future.
The trial got under way laboriously. First the jury details were settled and then the action began, the prosecution getting first crack. The prosecuting counsel was a tall, thin man with a face like the blade of a hatchet, and he fairly revelled in his job. He led off with a rather skimpy introduction and then began to lay on the prosecution witnesses, while Rollins, my counsel, looked on with a bored expression on his face. I had met Rollins only twice and he had been offhanded on both occasions. He knew this was one he wasnt going to win.
The prosecution witnesses were good very good, indeed and I began to see why the prosecuting counsel was looking so cheerful despite the misfortune of his face. Expert police witnesses introduced photographs and drawings of the scene of the crime and, that groundwork laid, the pressure was applied.
There was the motherly old soul who had identified me at the police station line-up. I saw him strike the postman, she testified, the light of honesty shining from her eyes. I was standing in the corridor and saw the accused hit the postman with his fist, grab a yellow box from him, and push him into an office. Then the accused ran down the stairs.
The prosecutor offered her a plan of the second floor. Where were you standing?
She indicated a place in the corridor and looked across the court straight at me as guileless as you please. The sweet old lady was lying like a flatfish, and she knew that I knew she was lying. She couldnt have been standing in the corridor because Id checked, and the details of her evidence were all wrong, anyway. There wasnt a thing I could do about it, though.