A Stranger in the Mirror

A Stranger in the Mirror Page 36

Toby Temple's death made newspaper headlines all over the world. If Toby had become a folk hero, then Jill had become a heroine. Hundreds of thousands of words were printed about them, their photographs appeared in all the media. Their great love story was told and retold, the tragic ending giving it an even greater poignancy. Letters and telegrams of condolence streamed in from heads of state, housewives, politicians, millionaires, secretaries. The world had suffered a personal loss; Toby had shared the gift of his laughter with his fans, and they would always be grateful. The air waves were filled with praise for him, and each network paid tribute to him.

There would never be another Toby Temple.

The inquest was held at the Criminal Court Building on Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, in a small, compact courtroom. An inquest examiner was in charge of the hearings, guiding the panel of six jurors.

The room was packed to overflowing. When Jill arrived, the photographers and reporters and fans mobbed her. She was dressed in a simple black tailored wool suit. She wore no makeup and she had never looked more beautiful. In the few days that had lapsed since Toby's death, Jill had miraculously bloomed into her old self again. For the first time in months, she was able to sleep soundly and dreamlessly. She had a voracious appetite and her headaches had disappeared. The demon that had been draining her life away was gone.

Jill had talked to David every day. He had wanted to come to the inquest, but Jill insisted that he stay away. They would have enough time together later.

"The rest of our lives," David had told her.

There were six witnesses at the inquest. Nurse Gallagher, Nurse Gordon and Nurse Johnson testified about the general routine of their patient and his condition. Nurse Gallagher was giving her testimony.

"What time were you supposed to go off duty on the morning in question?" the inquest examiner asked.

"At ten."

"What time did you actually leave?"

Hesitation. "Nine-thirty."

"Was it your custom, Mrs. Gallagher, to leave your patient before your shift was up?"

"No, sir. That was the first time."

"Would you explain how you happened to leave early on that particular day?"

"It was Mrs. Temple's suggestion. She wanted to be alone with her husband."

"Thank you. That's all."

Nurse Gallagher stepped down from the stand. Of course Toby Temple's death was an accident, she thought. It's a pity that they had to put a wonderful woman like Jill Temple through this ordeal. Nurse Gallagher looked over at Jill and felt a quick stab of guilt. She remembered the night that she had gone into Mrs. Temple's bedroom and found her asleep in a chair. Nurse Gallagher had quietly turned out the lights and closed the door so that Mrs. Temple would not be disturbed. In the dark hallway, Nurse Gallagher had brushed against a vase on a pedestal and it had fallen and broken. She had meant to tell Mrs. Temple, but the vase had looked very expensive, and so, when Mrs. Temple had not mentioned it, Nurse Gallagher decided to say nothing about it.

The physiotherapist was on the witness stand.

"You usually gave Mr. Temple a treatment every day?"

"Yes, sir."

"Did this treatment take place in the swimming pool?"

"Yes, sir. The pool was heated to a hundred degrees, and - "

"Did you give Mr. Temple a treatment on the date in question?"

"No, sir."

"Would you tell us why?"

"She sent me away."

"By 'she,' you mean Mrs. Temple?"

"Right."

"Did she give you any reason?"

"She said Dr. Kaplan didn't want him to have no more treatments."

"And so you left without seeing Mr. Temple?"

"That's correst. Yeah."

Dr. Kaplan was on the stand.

"Mrs. Temple telephoned you after the accident, Dr. Kaplan. Did you examine the deceased as soon as you arrived at the scene?"

"Yes. The police had pulled the body out of the swimming pool. It was still strapped into the wheelchair. The police surgeon and I examined the body and determined that it was too late for any attempt at resuscitation. Both lungs were filled with water. We could detect no vital signs."

"What did you do then, Dr. Kaplan?"

"I took care of Mrs. Temple. She was in a state of acute hysteria. I was very concerned about her."

"Dr. Kaplan, did you have a previous discussion with Mrs. Temple about discontinuing therapy treatments?"

"I did. I told her I thought they were a waste of time."

"What was Mrs. Temple's reaction to that?"

Dr. Kaplan looked over at Jill Temple and said, "Her reaction was very unusual. She insisted that we keep trying." He hesitated. "Since I am under oath and since this inquest jury is interested in hearing the truth, I feel there is something I am obligated to say."

A complete hush had fallen over the room. Jill was staring at him. Dr. Kaplan turned toward the jury box.

"I would like to say, for the record, that Mrs. Temple is probably the finest and bravest woman I have ever had the honor to know." Every eye in the courtroom turned toward Jill. "The first time her husband suffered a stroke, none of us thought he had a chance of recovery. Well, she nursed him back to health single-handedly. She did for him what no doctor I know could have done. I could never begin to describe to you her devotion or dedication to her husband." He looked over to where Jill was sitting and said, "She is an inspiration to all of us."

The spectators broke out into applause.

"That will be all, Doctor," the inquest examiner said. "I would like to call Mrs. Temple to the stand."

They watched as Jill rose and slowly walked over to the witness stand to be sworn in.

"I know what an ordeal this is for you, Mrs. Temple, and I will try to get it over with as quickly as possible."

"Thank you." Her voice was low.

"When Dr. Kaplan said he wanted to discontinue the therapy treatments, why did you want to go ahead with them?"

She looked up at him and he could see the deep pain in her eyes. "Because I wanted my husband to have every chance to get well again. Toby loved life, and I wanted to bring him back to it. I - " Her voice faltered, but she went on. "I had to help him myself."

"On the day of your husband's death, the physiotherapist came to the house, and you sent him away."

"Yes."

"Yet, earlier, Mrs. Temple, you said that you wanted those treatments to continue. Can you explain your action?"

"It's very simple. I felt that our love was the only thing strong enough to heal Toby. It had healed him before..." She broke off, unable to continue. Then, visibly steeling herself, she continued in a harsh voice, "I had to let him know how much I loved him, how much I wanted him to get well again."

Everyone in the courtroom was leaning forward, straining to hear every word.

"Would you tell us what happened on the morning of the accident?"

There was a silence that lasted for a full minute while Jill gathered her strength, and then she spoke. "I went into Toby's room. He seemed so glad to see me. I told him that I was going to take him to the pool myself, that I was going to make him well again. I put on a bathing suit so that I could work with him in the water. When I started to lift him off the bed into his wheelchair, I - I became faint. I suppose I should have realized then that I wasn't physically strong enough to do what I was trying to do. But I couldn't stop. Not if it was going to help him. I put him in the wheelchair and talked to him all the way down to the pool. I wheeled him to the edge...."

She stopped, and there was a breathless hush in the room. The only sound was the susurration of the reporters' pens as they frantically scribbled on their shorthand pads.

"I reached down to undo the straps that held Toby in the wheelchair, and I felt faint again and started to fall. I - I must have accidentally released the brake. The chair started to roll into the pool. I tried to grab it, but it - it went into the pool with - with Toby strapped into it." Her voice was choked. "I jumped into the pool after him and fought to free him, but the straps were too tight. I tried to lift the chair out of the water, but it was - it was too heavy. It...was...just...too...heavy." She closed her eyes a moment to hide her deep anguish. Then, almost in a whisper, "I tried to help Toby, and I killed him."

It took the inquest jury less than three minutes to reach a verdict: Toby Temple had died in an accident.

Clifton Lawrence sat in the back of the courtroom and listened to the verdict. He was certain that Jill had murdered Toby. But there was no way to prove it. She had gotten away with it.

The case was closed.