Pillars of Love

court martial on the U.S.S Abraham Lincoln, she had arrived home late last night. There was a message waiting directing her to come to the DC Central Detention Facility in the morning where she wa

ent the afternoon before the murder. All the evidence was against Tom. It didn't appear that NCIS had looked at anyone else for the murder. Tom accepted a plea deal for 2nd degree murder and the military court sentenced him to fifteen years. Jillian returned to Tom in the cell. "I read your case. And you pleaded guilty." "That is because my defense attorney told me if I didn't, I would get the death penalty. He said the panel wouldn't believe me because everything pointed to me.Some of the other inmates have told me he rarely goes to trial. He pleads his clients out." Jillian didn't reply for a moment. She knew his defense attorney and felt he was lazy and borderline incompetent. He was being investigated by the Judge Advocate General. "So tell me what you think happened. You didn't have an alibi, did you?" "No, I left the house and went to the mall to buy Christmas presents for my wife and my dad. There were zillions of people there, so I doubt anyone remembers seeing me. My meeting with my client was canceled so I went for a long drive to clear my head. I got back to the Hyatt around midnight. The police figured the murder happened between 8:00 and10:00 p.m. So I was screwed." "And your attorney didn't send an investigator to check? No, according to the records, he did not investigate. So, what do you think happened?" "Okay, when I was paying the phone bill, I noticed a lot of calls to Brian during the hours I was at work. Our families were very close, so I thought maybe my wife was asking for his help with something." Taking a deep breath, Tom continued. " The day of the murder, Brian and I met for our weekly handball game. I casually asked him why she'd been calling him. He turned pasty white and didn't say anything. I wasn't prepared for his reply when he finally spoke. He told me he had been having an affair with my wife and that he felt so guilty about it he was going to break it off that night. His confession completely floored me. We had been friends since high school and yet he did this to me. And my wife?Well, I knew things had not been too good lately, but this? I lost it. At the top of my lungs, I called him every name I could think of. And yes, I probably threatened to kill him." Tom leaned forward, his life depending on her understanding. "But afterwards I settled down, and we talked. We didn't get back to being friends or anything, but he told me how sorry he was. He wanted to do what he could to make things right. He had planned to see her that night because he knew I was going to be out meeting with a client, which would go late. Brian was going to tell my wife that the affair was over. When I left him he was very much alive." Jillian ran her fingers through her long brunette hair wondering how she could know what the real truth was. Tom swallowed and continued. ""I was still angry when I went home. I waited for my wife to come home, and told her I knew all about Brian. She didn't even make excuses, but blamed me for working all the time and never being home. She said she was getting a divorce. I told her that was fine, but I was keeping the large trust fund I'd brought into the marriage and that had allowed her to live like a queen. I packed a bag and got a room at the Hyatt House." Tom stopped for a minute trying to work out how Jillian was feeling. Jillian tried to keep her face non-committal but she sensed the truth in what he was saying. "And what do you think happened from there?" "From there, I can only guess what happened. Tom sighed. "I