Free Redress of Grievances by Brenda Adcock Page A

them back
further."
    "That
shouldn't be necessary, but I'll call later to let you know where I'm staying."
    "She'll
be at the Hyatt," Alex said. Taking a piece of paper from her pocket, she
handed it to Phyllis. "That's the number for the hotel and the suite
number."
    Phyllis
smiled as she took the paper from Alex.
    "Well,
I guess that's everything," Harriett said. "I told Lacey to call you
or Nick if she needs anything."
    "Have
a safe trip," Phyllis said.
    As
Harriett climbed into the cab of her truck, she wasn't particularly looking
forward to spending three or four hours in the truck with Alex. It wasn't that
she hadn't thought about her former lover over the years. She simply wasn't
sure what they would have to talk about.
    HARRIETT
ACCELERATED ONTO Interstate 35 North and felt the truck shift smoothly into a higher
gear. Glancing at the clock on the dashboard, she slid a CD into the truck
stereo system. As she watched the traffic around her, she adjusted the volume
control. Instrumental jazz flowed through the rear speakers, and she settled
down in her captain's seat. The sun was shining brightly, and she pulled a pair
of sunglasses from a case on her visor even though the tinting on the truck
windows filtered out most of the road glare. The weather was warm for
mid-February, and the air coming through the vents kept the truck cab
comfortable. Between Austin and Georgetown, traffic was heavy, punctuated by
frequent stops and starts. Alex had been silent since they left Austin, and
Harriett could barely see her out of the corner of her eye. When Alex finally
spoke, the sound of her voice surprised her.
    "I
see you still enjoy jazz," Alex said.
    "I
have some other CDs if you want to change it," Harriett said, knowing that
Alex had never been particularly fond of jazz.
    "This
is fine," Alex said, looking out the side window.
    "Want
to tell me more about the case? We have a long way to go."
    "I
lied to you at dinner, Harriett," Alex admitted. "Sharon Taggart's
case is similar to the Wilkes case in a number of ways. Except that Jared
Wilkes was a psychopath, and that's not the case with Sharon."
    "How
did they catch her?"
    "A
passerby claims to have seen her and remembered a partial plate number of a car
at the scene of the last shooting. It took the police a while, but they
narrowed down the description of the car and got lucky."
    "But
she denies being the shooter."
    "Absolutely.
But there's no doubt she had the weapon in her possession, and her fingerprints
were the only ones on it. Sharon was an accomplished marksman in college. I
believe she was on the rifle and pistol team there."
    "I'm
not clear on how she shot them. Did she just walk up to them?" Harriett
asked.
    "She
didn't actually shoot anyone. She shot at them, but according to the medical
examiner, no one was ever hit. All the victims died as a result of injuries
after she fired. All of the shootings occurred on busy freeways, and the police
believe she shot at the vehicles."
    "So
the victims killed themselves by their reaction to their vehicles being shot
at."
    "Yes,"
Alex said. "There had been a number of incidents over the last couple of
years in which motorists reported they had been shot at. Of all those
incidents, four died. A couple of others were seriously injured but recovered.
In fact, some of the charges against Sharon are actually attempted
murder."
    "An
interesting twist. Drivers killed by their own panic."
    "But
since the shooter's actions were the proximate cause of the deaths, whoever was
responsible can still face a murder charge."
    "Second
degree at best. She may have planned to fire at the vehicles and not planned
for anyone to be killed as a result," Harriett hypothesized. "It
shouldn't result in the death penalty. Has the family considered a psychiatric
evaluation?"
    Alex
smiled slightly. "I'm surprised you would even mention that, considering
Wilkes."
    "Even
a first year attorney would have to request an examination. Is Sharon