have always feared that such a day would come. We are here
to determine if this is, indeed, that dark day.
“The results of these tests, which were delivered to me yesterday in the strictest
confidence from the Toronto lab that tested the DNA, can now be revealed to you. This
was the report which was sent to me.” He held up a few pieces of paper stapled together
in the upper right-hand corner. “I’m going to read it to you now.” He cleared his
throat and began to read aloud. “‘The evidence in this case which was presented by
the prosecution at the trial, namely the semen and the traces of blood on Phoebe DeGraff’s
undergarments, and the skin collected from beneath her fingernails, has partially
degraded over the years because of the conditions of storage…’”
A groan of frustration traveled around the room. “All this crap for nothing,” Jake
said to Tess in disgust. The governor held up his hand for silence and, when the noise
in the room simmered down, he continued. “Because of this decomposition, it would
be difficult, if not impossible, to definitively call this sample an exact match to
a suspect’s DNA. However, the DNA samples from the evidence are more than adequate
to rule out a particular suspect. We have determined that all of these samples belonged
to the same person. An unidentified male.”
The governor lowered the report he was reading, cleared his throat, and looked slowly
across the audience of people assembled there. His expression was grave. Then he lifted
the paper again and resumed reading. “The DNA did not, in any particular, match the
sample from the man who was convicted and executed for this crime—Lazarus Abbott.”
CHAPTER 5
T here was a wail from Edith Abbott as she rose from her seat and, with a feeble cry,
collapsed. A cluster of people surrounded her, trying to revive her.
“NO,” Tess whispered. The room had erupted into chaos with reporters shouting and
shoving. While the people in the room surged around her like a wave, Tess sat immobile,
frozen in shock, remembering the face of the man who had ripped the tent open those
many years ago. Ripped their lives apart. Her heart was racing out of control.
Edith came around quickly, although the color of her skin remained pasty. Clutching
her attorney’s arm, Edith resumed her seat at the table. The police chief, Rusty Bosworth,
was on his feet, demanding to be heard. The governor recognized him.
The chief lumbered up to the table and took the microphone from the governor. He glared
out at the assemblage. “All right. As many of you already know, Lazarus Abbott was
my cousin. But I never questioned the verdict in his case. Neither did anyone else
in this town. Everyone figured he was guilty.”
A murmur of disapproval went through the crowd.
“Now if these results are right, it seems maybe Lazarus was railroaded. I’m not making
excuses for the police work involved because I wasn’t chief at the time. I wasn’t
even on the force when this crime happened,” Bosworth continued. “But I personally
want to assure everyone here that this case will be reopened, and the police department
will not rest until we get to the bottom of this.”
“Thank you, Chief Bosworth,” said the governor as the chief took a deep breath and
appeared ready to elaborate on his promise. “That’s very reassuring.”
The florid-faced chief frowned and gave the microphone back to the governor, then
resumed his seat.
Tess stared straight ahead. Her hands were clammy and her face felt stiff, as if it
were not real, but a plaster cast set over her human face. The noise around her scarcely
registered. She felt light-headed and her stomach was churning.
“The chief is quite right to remind us, and the officers of the police department
of Stone Hill, that this case is now offically unsolved once again. I want to turn
this over,” said the governor, “to the
to determine if this is, indeed, that dark day.
“The results of these tests, which were delivered to me yesterday in the strictest
confidence from the Toronto lab that tested the DNA, can now be revealed to you. This
was the report which was sent to me.” He held up a few pieces of paper stapled together
in the upper right-hand corner. “I’m going to read it to you now.” He cleared his
throat and began to read aloud. “‘The evidence in this case which was presented by
the prosecution at the trial, namely the semen and the traces of blood on Phoebe DeGraff’s
undergarments, and the skin collected from beneath her fingernails, has partially
degraded over the years because of the conditions of storage…’”
A groan of frustration traveled around the room. “All this crap for nothing,” Jake
said to Tess in disgust. The governor held up his hand for silence and, when the noise
in the room simmered down, he continued. “Because of this decomposition, it would
be difficult, if not impossible, to definitively call this sample an exact match to
a suspect’s DNA. However, the DNA samples from the evidence are more than adequate
to rule out a particular suspect. We have determined that all of these samples belonged
to the same person. An unidentified male.”
The governor lowered the report he was reading, cleared his throat, and looked slowly
across the audience of people assembled there. His expression was grave. Then he lifted
the paper again and resumed reading. “The DNA did not, in any particular, match the
sample from the man who was convicted and executed for this crime—Lazarus Abbott.”
CHAPTER 5
T here was a wail from Edith Abbott as she rose from her seat and, with a feeble cry,
collapsed. A cluster of people surrounded her, trying to revive her.
“NO,” Tess whispered. The room had erupted into chaos with reporters shouting and
shoving. While the people in the room surged around her like a wave, Tess sat immobile,
frozen in shock, remembering the face of the man who had ripped the tent open those
many years ago. Ripped their lives apart. Her heart was racing out of control.
Edith came around quickly, although the color of her skin remained pasty. Clutching
her attorney’s arm, Edith resumed her seat at the table. The police chief, Rusty Bosworth,
was on his feet, demanding to be heard. The governor recognized him.
The chief lumbered up to the table and took the microphone from the governor. He glared
out at the assemblage. “All right. As many of you already know, Lazarus Abbott was
my cousin. But I never questioned the verdict in his case. Neither did anyone else
in this town. Everyone figured he was guilty.”
A murmur of disapproval went through the crowd.
“Now if these results are right, it seems maybe Lazarus was railroaded. I’m not making
excuses for the police work involved because I wasn’t chief at the time. I wasn’t
even on the force when this crime happened,” Bosworth continued. “But I personally
want to assure everyone here that this case will be reopened, and the police department
will not rest until we get to the bottom of this.”
“Thank you, Chief Bosworth,” said the governor as the chief took a deep breath and
appeared ready to elaborate on his promise. “That’s very reassuring.”
The florid-faced chief frowned and gave the microphone back to the governor, then
resumed his seat.
Tess stared straight ahead. Her hands were clammy and her face felt stiff, as if it
were not real, but a plaster cast set over her human face. The noise around her scarcely
registered. She felt light-headed and her stomach was churning.
“The chief is quite right to remind us, and the officers of the police department
of Stone Hill, that this case is now offically unsolved once again. I want to turn
this over,” said the governor, “to the
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