The Trial of Evan Gage

A cat’s distinctive yowl broke the eerie silence, and Maria Costanza didn’t need to be told that something was wrong. She’d known that from the moment she had to let herself into the house with her key. Even before, and then all during the election, at 7:30 a.m. the family mansion would already be buzzing with campaign staff. But since his landslide victory, the soon-to-be Governor of Texas had gone back to leading an almost normal life. At this time of the morning, Maria would have expected to see Paul J. Shepard already seated at the breakfast table.

The cat’s yowl grew louder as the Mexican-born housekeeper stepped closer to a door in the hallway leading to basement games room. Maria’s palms were already damp as she tentatively clasped the doorknob. As the door began to open, the lilac-point Siamese shot past her, and skidding his way across the wide expanse of kitchen tile, he flew through the cat door.

Very slowly, Maria forced herself to descend the carpeted stairs, and before she’d even reached the bottom, she could hear someone gasping. When she did look across the big room, it was to see an unknown man slumped in the leather club chair nearest the billiards table, one hand clutching his throat. In her panic, Maria didn’t notice that his eyes were red and swollen, or that he appeared disheveled and unshaven. However, she did notice all the blood and that the fingers of this other hand were curled around the grip of a handgun in his lap. She tried to stifle a cry, and had she remained in the room, she would also have noticed that the man didn’t react at all to her being there.

Following the cat’s example, Maria’s exit from the house was almost as fast.

Her terror continued as she fled across the side lawn and stumbled her way through the shrubbery to the residence next door. Now almost breathless, she managed to hammer on the front door.

After the 911 call was made, it didn’t take long for the peace and quiet of that particular section of the Park Cities to be shattered. With politics playing a very large part, and despite raised voices and angry words, the case was immediately handed over to Dallas jurisdiction, much to the chagrin of the Highland Park police department.

Shortly before 9:00 a.m., the murder of the future Governor of Texas, his ex-beauty queen wife and their seven-year-old daughter made the late breaking news on every major network. No details were given, and the homicide detective in charge would say only that the Dallas police already had a suspect in custody, but no name was being released. He also admitted that the deaths had been particularly gruesome.

"At this early stage," he added, "we have no idea as to the possible motive."

When Brian Mullen first arrived on the scene, he hadn’t been quite sure where to start. Maria Costanza seemed to be too shocked to be of any immediate help, and two paramedics were already attending to the man in the games room. Still seated in the club chair, the gun in his lap now safely bagged, the man had an oxygen mask over his face.

"Well?" Brian asked.

"Looks like a severe asthma attack," one paramedic said. "We need to get him outta here."

Brian then took a quick look at the remains of the Shepard family.