Part 76 - The Trial Of Dr. Kang (XII)

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height

Dr. Heliodore Kang took the stand first thing the next morning.

"Please state your name for the record," said Gibson, barely able to restrain his smile.

"Dr. Heliodore Kang," said Kang, in a voice that was just human enough for you to miss the robotic tinge.

"Could you describe your relationship to the Defendant?" asked Gibson.

"We're share what was once a single brain," Kang explained "I have the left half and he has the right half. As my counterpart was making use of both sides of the brain up until eight months ago we still share memories up until that point."

"Since it falls within the window of the period where you share memories, could you describe the events of the night of September 3rd of last year, in your own words?" asked Gibson.

"Certainly," said Kang "I, which is to say the Defendant as I did not exist as an individual at this point, made a series of threatening phone calls that evening. Not just to Dr. Po but to all the other scientists whom I considered my rivals. I was driven by jealousy and drink, enraged by the fact that I hadn't made a significant contribution to science in years-"

Defendant Dr. Kang scoffed audibly.

"-When I called Dr. Po she wasn't even angry. She didn't take my threats seriously at all. That made me furious. I wasn't a galaxy-class scientist anymore, and now I wasn't even a man? I was just some clown whose mortal threats could be disregarded so easily? I wasn't thinking clearly, remember I was drunk, so I formed the plan at that time to kill her. I premeditated it, you might say."

Defendant Dr. Kang rolled his eyes and began whispering with his lawyer.

"What happened next?" asked Gibson.

"I had more than enough equipment around so I jury-rigged up an evaporating knife-" began Kang.

"For the benefit of the court," said the Judge "Could you define 'evaporating knife'?"

"Certainly, your honor," said Kang "By this I mean a tool with a safe handle and a cutting edge which will break apart and evaporate after a period of time, in this case three standard hours. They make for especially good murder weapons as they destroy themselves."

"I see," said the Judge.

"What did you do next?" asked Gibson.

"I took the knife to Dr. Po's building. It was easy to slip in when one of the residents opened the front door for themself. I forced my way into her apartment, overpowered her, stabbed her fourteen times, threw the knife in the bathtub so the chemicals it would break down into would go down the drain, and left."

"Where did you go?" asked Gibson.

"In the short term, back home," said Kang "In the long term I knew I had to get off Mars until the heat died down. So I signed on aboard the Armstrong in an attempt to flee justice."

"Do you recognize the version of yourself who is responsible for those actions in the courtroom today?" asked Gibson.

"I do," said Kang "It's that man right there!"

He pointed to the Defendant.

"Let the record show that the witness pointed to the Defendant," said Gibson.

"I only have one further question," said Gibson "Dr. Kang, how would you characterize the actions you took that night?"

"Murder," replied Dr. Kang "Cold blooded murder."

"I have nothing further, your honor," said Gibson.

He managed to sit down at the correct side of the courtroom.

"Your witness, Mr. Diamond," said the Judge.

Diamond was still scribbling notes. He looked up, nodded, and stood.

"Dr. Kang," he said, as he began to pace the courtroom "You're not on particularly good terms with my client, are you?"

"No," admitted Kang.

"Have you ever tried to kill my client in the past?"

"No," said Kang, emphatically.

"What about any of his associates, have you tried to kill any of them?"

"I refuse to answer that question on the ground that it may incriminate me," said Kang.

"So I guess what I'm getting at is you would agree that you're enemies, wouldn't you?" asked Diamond.

"Oh we are most certainly enemies. But that doesn't mean I would commit perjury to harm him," said Kang.

"That's not what I asked, Dr. Kang," said Diamond "You're the one who brought up perjury. Funny that."

"Watch yourself, Mr. Diamond," said the Judge.

"I apologize, your honor," said Diamond "Dr. Kang, you said you made an evaporating knife in order to commit the alleged murder, correct?"

"That's correct," said Dr. Kang.

"That sounds complicated," said Diamond "You just made one on a whim? What's the formula for something like that."

Kang smiled smugly, and easily rattled off the formula.

"See that's the one I'm familiar with too," said Diamond "I work a lot of murder cases, you see," he explained "How long does a knife using that formula take to set?"

Kang looked at the man wide-eyed. For a long moment he said nothing.

"The witness will please answer the question," said the Judge.

"I must have been mistaken," said Kang "I have a quick setting formula that I just remembered just now. It's-"

"That wasn't my question," interrupted Diamond "How long does the formula you just gave us take to set?"

"...two days..." said Dr. Kang.

"And yet you say you made one in one night," said Diamond.

"I was mistaken," said Kang "I used a different formula."

"So you're saying now," said Diamond "No further questions, your honor."

Gibson stood immediately.

"Your honor, may I re-examine the witness?" he asked.

"Go ahead," said the Judge.

"Dr. Kang what was the formula that you now recall you used on the night in question?" asked Gibson.

Dr. Kang gave it.

"And how long would a knife made with that formula take to set?"

"An hour," said Kang.

"No further questions," said Gibson.

Dr. Kang leaned over towards Diamond.

"He made that new formula up on the stand!" He hissed in his lawyer's ear "How much did that testimony hurt us?"

"A lot," admitted Diamond, in a whisper "If you had hired any other lawyer on the planet you'd be screwed."

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net