Benji in Control
by: E Walk
(© 2009-2011 by the Author)
 

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Chapter 50 

The Surprise Witness

Benji and I walked out of the courtroom.  We decided that we would walk to a restaurant that was close by.  When we walked in, Judge Willard and R. B were eating.  We started to walk toward them, but Judge Willard shook his head no.

Benji looked up at me, “Daddy, why don’t they want us to sit with them?”

“Benji, I’m not sure.  Perhaps some of the enemy is in the area and Judge Willard recognizes them.  We probably should ignore R. B. and the Judge.  Look, there’s Rax.  I don’t think that there would be a problem if we sat with him.”

We approached Rax’s table, Benji was very official, “Mr. Fox, could we join you?  All the tables seem to be occupied.”

“Be my guest.  That way the owner won’t kick me out for malingering.”

Benji giggled, “I have no idea what that big word means.  Did Coach Bridenbaugh bring his sons to your house this morning?”

“Yep.  Will and my Mother have already worked out a deal where the boys will have a place to run free and she’ll feed them.  In fact, my Mother is playing Cupid trying to make it so Will and I become more than friends.  I’m not sure that I’m ready for an already made family.”

Judge Willard went to the bathroom and motioned for me to follow him.  We were standing at the urinals and he practically whispered, “Some of the Tomasek party is in the restaurant.  That’s why I didn’t want you to sit with Ray, Jr. and me.”

“Ray, Jr. doesn’t know them, but I have bad feelings about them based on what they tried to pull in court this morning.  There is something about the Tomasek name that is nagging me in the dark areas of my brain.”

When I got back to the table, Rax excused himself, “I need to get back and make sure that everything is ready for Mr. Willingham’s spectacular this afternoon.  I’ll see you in the courtroom.”

As Benji and I were walking back to the court house, he looked at me, “Daddy, why does everything have to be a big surprise.  We know that R. B.’s step mother is lying through her teeth.  She doesn’t really want R. B.  What is it that's so important that they are trying so hard to get control of R. B.”

“Benji, I have no idea why R. B.’s stepmother is trying so hard to get control of R. B.  They must think that R. B. has something or knows where something is that they want.”

When we walked into the courtroom, there was a large screen on the left side of the courtroom and a camera in the center.  Benji asked, “Is that for our side or are the bad guys playing games again?”
 

“Benji, I haven’t the foggiest idea what’s happening.  We’ll just have to wait and see.  I’m guessing that this is something that Uncle Howie planned, since Rax knew that something big was happening.”

Judge Slocum made his appearance at precisely two o’clock.  He looked around at the paraphernalia, “Mr. Willingham, I hope that the work that you did is going to clarify this case.  It seems that you have gone to an awfully big expenditure of time and money to do whatever you are going to do.  Proceed with your case.”

Uncle Howie went to the television camera and spoke, “Ms Bradford, are you there?”

“Yes, Mr. Willingham, I’m here.  The crew tells me that my picture should be at your location, shortly.  Is Ray Jr. in the audience?”

Uncle Howie answered, “He’s not in the courtroom at the present time, but we can get him very quickly should the need arise.”

Ms Bradford appeared on the screen, “Good afternoon from Manaus, Brazil.  As I look around the courtroom, I don’t see Mr. Tomasek and his cronies.  They are the people who have been orchestrating what has been happening with regard to this case.  Rebecca Allgood Tomasek is only doing what her father is telling her to do.  She has no love for Ray, Jr.   Mr. Tomasek is using his daughter to try to gain control of things that I have in my possession, by getting  control of Ray, Jr.”

I looked at Uncle Howie, because I had no idea what Ms Bradford was talking about.  Uncle Howie nodded, “Ms. Bradford, would you care to explain that last comment, please?”

“I’d be glad to explain, so that perhaps, Mr. Tomasek and his mobster friends will get what’s due them.  I have in my possession some movies that show Mr. Tomasek and his friends in pornographic activities.  They have used those films to control who does and doesn’t get the posh female roles in the movies.  Once they are spurned by an actress, they make it very difficult for the actress to get a decent role in a movie.”

Uncle Howie asked, “Why, are Mr. Tomasek and his friend so interested in getting their hands on the films that you have in your possession?”

Ms Bradford nodded, “The biggest reason is that there are some young women in some them who are underage.  Secondly, they sometimes branched out and filmed pictures of some the male stars of Hollywood, having sex with other men and boys.”

Judge Slocum asked, “Ms Bradford, why are you just now telling us that these films are in your possession?”

“I was afraid of what Rebecca Allgood Tomasek Lewis would do to Ray, Jr. if she were to ever become his guardian, should something happen to me.  I did not know of her wedding to Mr. Tallinn, until just recently.  She has no legal right to be Ray, Jr.’s guardian, since she was never legally married to Ray, Jr.’s father.  In fact, I have made Dr. Douglas Christiansen Ray, Jr.’s guardian, should something happen to me.”

Ms Bradford continued, “Mr. Willingham, is Ray, Jr. available and are the FBI agents on hand to protect him while Ray takes them to where the films are stashed?”

Uncle Howie spoke into the microphone, “An FBI team is in the courtroom as we speak.  R. B. is nearby, and I can have him here in less than five minutes.  Judge Slocum, would you please seal the courtroom and have Mr. Tomasek and his friends returned to the courtroom while Dr. Christiansen goes next door and gets Raymond Burnside Lewis, Jr.”

I went to get R. B. and Judge Willard.  R. B. asked, “Is the trial over?”

I shook my head, no, “Not yet, Your Mother is talking to us via a satellite.  She wants to talk to you.”

“What for?”

“R. B., I don’t know, but it must be important.”

When we were admitted to the courtroom, Gwen asked, “Ray, Jr., have you been behaving yourself for Dr. Christiansen.”

“Yes, Mother.  What did you want to talk to me about?”

Gwen took a deep breath, “Remember when you were younger and we lived together with your father and we would pretend that there was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?”

“Yeah, I remember.  The pot was always in the same place, and I would get a gold wrapped piece of candy if I went to look.  Is there still some candy there?”

Gwen smiled, “No, but there is something more important than candy hidden there.  I want you to take Dr. Christiansen and the FBI people to the hiding place and give them what is in the pot.”

R. B. asked, “This isn’t just a way to get me back to your house, is it?”

“No, there’s no one there right now, since I’m still in Brazil.”

R. B. asked, “If there is no one there, how are we going to get in?  I don’t have a key and I don’t know the combinations to the locks?”

Ms. Bradford sighed, “Ray, I’ve told Mr. Burris that you were coming and he will meet you at the residence when you get there if you let him know of your arrival time.”

Ms Bradford turned her attention to Judge Slocum, “Sir, it would probably be best if you could make it so Ray, Jr., Mr. Christiansen and their FBI escort could travel to the location unimpeded.  These people are ruthless, and I’m afraid of what they might do if they were able to alert their cohorts on the West Coast what was happening.”

Judge Slocum answered, “Believe me, I’d put the entire kit and caboodle in jail, if I could, but the trial that we’re conducting has nothing to do with what you ask.  In fact, Dr. Christiansen has been charged with obstructing justice, and the jury hasn’t rendered a verdict on the case, as of yet.”

Uncle Howie stood, “Your Honor, for the matter of expediency, we rest our case.”

The Judge pointed to Mr. O’Connor, “Does the plaintiff have any closing remarks?”

Mr. O’Connor stood, “There are grounds for a mistrial in this case.  The defense’s introduction of a different case was done deliberately to confuse the minds of the jury.  The fact that the prosecution never had a chance to question Raymond Burnside Lewis, Jr. or Mrs. Bradford is also grounds enough to declare a mistrial.  We have proved that the four defendants deliberately impeded the dispensing of justice in the previous case of Rebecca Lewis.  The prosecution rests it’s case.”

Judge Slocum had a smile on his face, “Mr. Willingham, your turn.”

Uncle Howie went and stood in front of the jury, “Ladies and gentlemen, I have never seen a weaker prosecution than was presented here today.  They never even really attempted to show how the defendants interfered with justice.  As far as the prosecution not having an opportunity to talk to J. R., they served the wrong person with the subpoena so that is their fault.  The prosecution was so intent on gaining control of Raymond, that they lost the purpose for what they were doing and didn’t even touch on the disregard of the previous case.”

Judge Slocum stood, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, remember the defendants were charged with obstructing justice and denying Mrs. Tallinn what is rightfully hers.  You will be sequestered until you reach a verdict. 

The jury sent word requesting the record of the previous trial where Mrs. Lewis requested that Ray Lewis was not of sound mind when he made his latest will.   Uncle Howie leaned over to me, “That’s a good sign.  There is at least one person on the jury who wants to have all the facts before them.”

Benji touched my arm, “Daddy, I’ve gotta go the bathroom, bad.”

“Go ask the bailiff if there are any bathrooms close by.”

Benji went to talk to the bailiff and the bailiff motioned for one of the guards.  I watched as the guard and Benji left the courtroom.  I saw one of Mr. Tomasek’s cronies go to talk to the bailiff.  The bailiff shook his head no.

The bailiff disappeared and when he reappeared he announced, “The jury has reached its verdict.  Please rise for Judge Slocum.”

After everyone was seated. The judge asked, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you made your decision.”

The foreman handed the bailiff a note, “We find that the defendants are not guilty of obstructing justice.”

“Members of the jury, I want to thank you for your service.  I would like to say to the plaintiff in this case, I hope that you do not continue to clog the already overcrowded legal system to get what is not yours.  Quite frankly, I would like to throw the lot of you in jail.”

As soon as the court was adjourned, two men approached the defense table.  The elder of the two men introduced them.  “Good afternoon Judge Flowers, and gentlemen, we’re from the local FBI office.  My associate is Don Lansberry and I’m Ed Rimmey.  We will be traveling with the three of you who are going to Los Angeles to recover the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”

Benji looked around, “Which three people are going to Los Angeles?”

Mr. Lansberry answered, “We thought that you should go, to make sure that nothing happened to your Dad and R. B.”

Benji started to argue, “I know nothing about the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”

“We thought you could keep R. B, company.  You’re only going to be gone overnight.”

“But Mr. Lansberry, we won’t have any clean clothes with us.”

I interrupted, “Benji, we can stop by Mr. Weaver’s apartment and get our bags.  We have enough clean clothes for one night and we can always buy anything else that we would need.”

Benji wasn’t so sure, “Who’s going to take care of our brothers?”

“Benji, you worry too much. Greg and Jordan are staying at Summerhill.  They have Patty and Karen to help them as well as Callie and Denny.  The guys will be fine.”

It was decided that we would meet the two agents at Cole’s apartment, and we would go to the airport and leave our vehicles there.  Mr. Rimmey frowned, “I suggest that we try to stick together.  Dr. Christiansen, try to stay between Mr. Lansberry and me.  They know that Raymond, Jr. is the only person who knows where the films are located, and they are desperate.  There’s no telling what they might try to do.  In fact, we have arranged for a police escort to accompany us, just in case.”

When we arrived at the airport, we went to the Delta check-in point and received our boarding passes on non stop flight 71 to Los Angeles.  When they started to call people for the flight, the attendant announced, “At this time we would like to board Dr. Christiansen and his party.”

The five of us were ushered to seats near the rear exit where they were loading food or something on the plane.  The steward winked, “Please remain seated until I tell you to move.  We want you to go one by one and get on the truck that is loading supplies onto the aircraft.  Your baggage has already been put on the truck.”

“This is the captain.  Please get in your seats and fasten your seatbelts.  We have been cleared for departure as soon as all of the doors are secured.”

While the captain had been making his announcement, we had gone to the truck.  Benji giggled, “This is like a carnival ride.  What are we going to do next?”

Mr. Lansberry grinned, “We’ll be boarding a flight for Houston through the back entrance.  We will be arriving in Los Angles on a different airline and at a different terminal, which will make it next to impossible for the bad guys to track us.  When we arrive at Los Angeles, we will be picked up by a police helicopter and taken to your mother’s mansion, since we understand there is a helicopter pad there, for us to use.  That will be when we are the most vulnerable.  The people in Los Angeles are still working on the final arrangements.”

Once the truck was lowered, we could feel it moving.  It stopped and started to back up but this time we entered the aircraft at the front of the cabin.  The hostess showed us to our seats.  The guys and I were in a row with three seats.  Mr. Lansberry was in the row in front of us and Mr. Rimmey was in the row behind us.”

After a smooth flight to Los Angeles, we were indeed picked up by a police helicopter, but we didn’t go to the Bradford/Starr mansion.  Instead we went to police headquarters in the area.  We met up with two more FBI agents and Mr. Burris.

Fortunately R. B. recognized Mr. Burris.  Mr. Burris hugged R. B., “I’m glad that you didn’t have to go back to the Military Academy.  It was costing your Mother a bunch of money and you hated it.”

Mr. Rimmey was the head of the group going to the Bradford home.  It was decided to not take a helicopter because it would announce our arrival and the helicopter could be downed by gun fire.  Instead, we were going to take five police cars.  As we were approaching the Bradford mansion, we were told to get out of sight.  Mr. Burris was in the lead car and opened the gate.  As the last of the five car cavalcade was through the gate.  Two cars were coming toward the gate at a high rate of speed.  Fortunately, the gates closed quickly enough to prevent the cars from gaining entry.  However, the lead car crashed into gate and exploded.

R. B. laughed, “It’s a good thing that I know a secret way out.  The gate probably won’t open, now that it was hit.”

Benji was getting bored, “R. B., where are these films that these people want?  The sooner we give them to the FBI, the sooner you and your mother will be safe.”

R. B. giggled, “If anyone can find them it would be you.  Just think what boys like to do best and you'll find them.”

I looked at Benji and I could tell his mind was working.  I still hadn’t a clue where the films might be.  I thought to myself, ’It will be interesting to see if Benji can figure out where the films are.’ 

To be continued...

Editor's Notes: Well, that was Exciting!  Let's see, I think I have a good idea as to where the films are.  I won't say here, because I don't want to even take the chance that I might spoil it for someone else.

When I send this to E Walk for posting, I will see if I am right.  He can tell you next time if I was right or not.  The only reason I am even mentioning it is that I don't want to cheat and pretend that I knew and then when the next chapter comes out, I could say that I knew.

Thank you E Walk for another fine chapter!

Darryl AKA The Radio Rancher

Posted: 01/14/11