The trial had only begun, yet Tyler was already drained, earlier he was missing the outside world, now all he wanted was to crawl back to his lonely cell, away from the cameras, the eyes, the spotlight. So he can listen to himself think, yet there he was with no option, because he knew getting that life improsonment was the most important moment of the plan, Paul Goodman had to get it right, if not all these would have been for nothing.
Judge Graff adjusted his robe and gave a nod.
"Mr. Barra, you may call your next witness."
Rafael Barra stood smoothly, voice crisp, "The People call Brian Keller."';
A tall, wiry young man in his early twenties stepped nervously toward the witness stand. He wore a skirt and a jacket, he had fancy make up on, his palms were sweating as he was sworn in. Once seated, he shifted uncomfortably, eyes flicking between Barra and Tyler.
Tyler stared at him in utter confusion, he's never seen his roommate dress like that before. Besides, what the hell was he doing on the stands, he didn't know anything about what happened, and the two haven't even spoken in months.
"Mr. Keller, can you tell the court how you know the defendant?" Rafael Barra said
"…We were roommates at the university. For two years."
"And during that time, would you say you were close?" Rafael Barra added
Brian hesitated, then nodded, "Yes. We were close."
"How close?"
The question hung, reporters leaned forward, pens scratching. Tyler looked on in confusion, they were just roommates, nothing more nothing less, so, what sort of closeness was the prosecutor looking for exactly…
"…He was more than just a friend. Tyler and I were… intimate. We were lovers." Brian replied and a ripple swept the courtroom. Gasps, murmurs, the scratching of cameras clicking faster and Tyler almost choked on his on spit. It took Paul gently patting him on the back for the coughing that followed to stop.
"That's a lie," Tyler blurted out loud enough for Brian to hear, "why are you lying?"
"I'm sorry Tyler, I have to tell them the truth," he replied, the courtroom was slowly getting drowned by noise, so Judge Graff banged his gavel once for silence,
Barra stepped closer to the witness stand, his tone sharper now, "Mr. Keller, did the defendant ever discuss his intentions toward Charlie Kuck with you?"
"…Yes. He told me he was planning something. That he wanted to prove himself. I thought he was joking at first… until it happened." Brian replied
"I never said that to you Brian, why are you lying?!" Tyler yelled out and Paul Goodman instantly grabbed him by the arm.
"Do not say any other word unless spoken to first!" Paul whispered aggressively into his ear
"He is lying Paul, I don't have sex with him. What the fuck! That's disgusting, what the fuck!! He's lying man! He is!"
"I don't care!" Paul replied, "Keep your cool or you will blow this whole thing up."
Tyler sank into his chair and stared at Brian who was looking intently at Rafael Barra.
"After the shooting, did Tyler Robinson contact you?" Rafael Barra asked Brian
"Yes. He texted me that night. He said… he said he'd done it. That he killed Charlie Kuck. And then he told me not to talk to the police. To keep quiet." He looked at Tyler for an instart then darted his eyes back to Rafael Barra.
Barra held up a folder, flipping through pages, "The prosecution has submitted those messages into evidence, Your Honor. For the record, can you confirm these are the texts Tyler Robinson sent you?"
Brian glanced briefly at the printouts, then swallowed hard, "Yes. Those are the messages."
"I didn't send that guy any messages Paul, you have to tell them, he is lying through his teeth," Tyler said to his lawyer.
"I saw the text messages, the printouts are irrefutable, they were taken from your roommate's phone, but during the cross examination I will ask him to show us the text messages from his phone directly, just have patience." Paul whispered back to Tyler
Barra then spoke slowly, "So, to summarize: the defendant confessed the crime to you directly, and then attempted to obstruct justice by ordering you to remain silent. Correct?"
"…Correct." Brian replied
Barra straightened, turning briefly toward the bench.
"No further questions, Your Honor." Rafael Barra walked back to his table with a smile on his face. He knew what he was doing, all this was well planned out, to Tyler it felt like the man pierced through his chest aiming for his heart. He and Brian weren't the best of friends, but they were always cool with each other. He knew most of Brian's girlfriends, they always hung out together, and holidays were always fun at their place because they always threw a party and invited friends over. Heck, Tyler was even close with Brian's own mother, the two always communicated like a mother and son does. As Tyler look back at Brian sitting at that witness box, he hoped that the amount he was paid to dress up like a clown and come out here and lie was worth it.
Judge Graff's eyes turned to the defense table.
"Mr. Goodman, your witness."
Paul Goodman rose, slowly, his face calm and his eyes sharp. He walked to the center of the courtroom, then turned toward Brian Keller on the stand.
"Mr. Keller, you testified that you and Tyler Robinson were… intimate. That you were lovers. Is that correct?"
"…Yes." Brian replied
"Strange, then. In the two years you were roommates, not one friend, not one professor, not one neighbor, ever saw or heard of this supposed relationship. Isn't that right?"
"…We kept it private."
Paul tilted his head slightly, studying him, "Private. So private that no one else can confirm it?"
"That's… that's right."
Paul let the silence stretch, then stepped closer. His tone remained polite, almost gentle.
"Mr. Keller, you also testified that Tyler confessed to you in a text message. That he admitted to killing Charlie Kuck. Did I hear you correctly?"
"Yes."
"Do you have your phone on you right now?"
"Yes,"
"Could you take it out?" Paul asked politely and Brian took out his phone, "now I want you to open that conversation you had with Tyler, I want to see it with these two eyes of mine from the direct source, because I couldn't find the same supposed conversation in Tyler's phone."