Now, who wants to talk about how pathetic Magdalene is (on the female side) vs Trey (on the male side)?

[mrsmajessick]

LN Cronan,

 

Do you believe the cops would be so stupid as to not realize Gideon only broke-up with Eva to try to cover up his involvment? I mean like that's never been done before. This is old skool crime novel stuff to add drama to the novel and not really a "real" police investigation. There are way too many holes and outright would never happens to take this seriously. Cops don't have the power to trail people just based on mere suspicion. Police officers have to convince the Chief they have enough evidence to spend man hours following Gideon & Eva around. They have zero evidence on Eva to follow her around. Gideon on the other hand they could justify until challenged by the Mayor, which is usually what rich people get their lawyers to do - make a call to the mayor's office and demand their client either be arrested on left alone. At which case the police either have to anty up or kick rocks.

 

If the cops really wanted to arrest Gideon they could based on the theory that Gideon killed Nathan to protect Eva. Let Gideon and his lawyer try to convince a court that he didn't. It's not a cop's job to try and cover all aspects of a case only to bring to justice the "most likely of suspects" that's why people like say Casey Anthony walk because the cops had enough to arrest her but not enough evidence to convict her - she was the most likely of all people to have committed the crime - just as Det. Graves has surmised about Gideon, but it's possible for Gideon and his high dollar lawyers to convince the jury he's not guilty because he and Eva broke up - he had no motive - a jury would probably be more likely to buy that excuse than the cops.

 

On the other hand, an experienced DA would tear both Eva & Corrine apart on the stand and Monica for that matter. The whole case would be out in the open, something I think would push Gideon to confess if it would protect Eva. A smart DA would see that these people are willing to go along way to cover things up - no one would want a public trial with the press stalking your every move and your face being on the cover of the NY Times everyday and TV camera crews - "Billionaire kills Socialites' Rapist Step-Brother" film at eleven.

 

The DA's opening statement could very well be Gideon Cross killed Nathan to protect his girlfriend Eva Tramell... The only person who is saying they aren't a couple is Gideon and Det. Graves claims she was an eye witness to when that event happened - after Nathan's murder when he was on the phone at the jail with Eva. She wouldn't need Eva's information to testify to that.  And Nathan was trying to blackmail Gideon that's another motive. The fire at his hotel at the same time as Nathan was being murdered is opportunity even if a few people saw him they could not account for him every minute which pokes holes in his no opportunity defense.

 

The fourth amendment gives people the expectation of reasonable privacy - meaning yes they could follow Gideon around the city in public places without a warrant because there is no expectation of privacy when a person is out in public. They could not stand outside of his door and try to listen to conversations taking place inside his home, office, or hotel room without a warrant issued by a judge. And for that they would need to show probable cause of a crime.

 

This is not a case that the FBI would be brought into either. If the police couldn't locate Gideon they would call the U.S. Marshals to find him and bring him in and this is by authority of the Attorney General. But, since Gideon has not been charged with a crime he is free to move about as he pleases. Police have not seized his passport - which would require a warrant and that goes back to showing probable cause of a crime - which if Det. Graves has the information she claims she does, she could show probable cause. So "if" the police told him to stick around they have no real basis of saying that other than to try to put pressure on him. If Gideon needed to go to Las Vegas to take care of buisness he could do so without having to notify anyone. He's a free man at the moment. Until the police arrest him and then they would have to prove he's a flight risk and for the judge to set bond either very high or no bond at all and take away his passport.  

 

So, I think in EWY the police are either going to have to arrest him of f-off because at some point it becomes police harassment to continue to investigate him with no real reason towards arrest.

 

Also, Eva and Gideon were still communicating by phone. All the cops need is a subpoena to get their phone records to show they were still in communication with one another and the cops did find him having a "family" dinner at Eva's house the night they went to inform her of Nathan's death. That's a lot to try and sell to jury that "they" were "broken up." I wouldn't buy it and neither would the cops.

 

Also think and hope the whole police thing goes away quickly. I think it was only used to show how far Gideon would go for Eva. It's been foreshadowed since BTY when Gideon tells Eva he would do anything for her, kill for her even. So, it's an old trick of the theatre that says when you bring a gun on stage, its got to go off. Well it did and now we get to see the lovers jump another hurdle in their quest for a happy life together. Compelling story-telling at its best - take your characters and put them in difficult situations and have them work their way out while bonding over the experience. Ahh and then they lived Happily Ever After. I can't wait!

[LN Cronan]

Hi Mrs. MaJessick,

 

You're right about a slew of stuff in your post, especially that the cops are NOT buying Gideon's cover story he dumped Eva. Gideon himself blew that with his reaction to Eva's break-up phone call. Detective Graves saw his face, and at that point, Gideon shot right to the top of the suspect list.

 

Knowing it and proving it are two different things. They need more than just their suspicions if they are going to get a slam dunk conviction, or better yet, him to plead under a plea bargain. Technically right now, they do have enough to get an indictment. They've got a good argument for motive. Opportunity is weak -- there's only a tiny possible hole in Gideon's alibi. So their best bet is to build a compelling case for motive, one Gideon's lawyers aren't going to be able to dismantle easily. Right now, it's the cops' word against Gideon's. But Eva's word against Gideon's is a whole other matter.

 

Gideon's not going to confess to them -- but they can trick Eva into placing herself in a position where she could incriminate Gideon and/or herself. If Gideon was willing to kill for her, he'd be more than willing to throw himself under the legal bus himself in order to spare her from possibly facing charges herself in connection with the murder. Charges that could range from obstruction (for shielding Gideon after she learned the truth from him) to accessory after the fact (for actively helping him to avoid prosecution by conspiring with him.)

 

The cops do have enough evidence to follow Eva around, not only based on Gideon but also based on Stanton and Monica. Eva is a potential "material witness". She's the link between Nathan and all the people who had motive to kill him. Indeed, she herself would have been on the original list of suspects herself. It's why the cops went to see her even before Stanton and Monica (and even before Gideon too -- they got lucky by finding him at Eva's) They eliminated her when they learned she had no clue beforehand about Nathan. But there's a chance she has learned crucial stuff ("material" evidence) since that time.

 

There are even legal cases (very, very rare, but I did cover one as a reporter) where a material witness fled the state in order to avoid testifying in a murder trial. She ended up getting extradited back to the state on a warrant for her custody, and getting held in jail herself, because she fled after having been subpoena'd to testify. (The victim was her own child and the accused was her boyfriend. She specifically was fleeing in order to prevent the trial from happening.) Again, this is very rare, and serious murder cases are about the only time this gets done. The point is, though, a potential material witness could be put under surveillance during an investigation, most especially when police are trying to prove direct communication between the witness and the suspect -- and most certainly in a murder case, the most serious of the serious crimes.

 

They'll already have been pulling all the electronic paper trail they can on her, from her phone records to her credit card bills, via subpoenas for those documents. They have probable cause to convince a judge to sign a subpoena. But if they want to follow a physical trail, in order to prove she had actually met with someone (in this case, Gideon) they need to actually tail her.

[LN Cronan]

Gideon is NOT free to simply move around anymore, not when he's the chief suspect in a murder case. Not unless he wants to find himself go from suspect to formally-charged defendant so fast it will make his head spin. Nothing will trigger the cops faster than attempted flight while an investigation is underway.

 

Trust me, that's based on real life stuff I saw for years covering cops and courts. He will have been warned by the cops -- and strongly re-warned by his own lawyers -- to not do anything that would even remotely appear to look like he was fleeing. Cops actually do say such things as "stick around" and "don't leave the state."

 

Gideon actually could leave the state if his lawyer let the cops know ahead of time, in a show of cooperation, that "my client is travelling to such-and-such place for X amount of time." This would be bending over backwards to prove he is not a flight risk. His benefit to doing this is to help ensure the cops do not rush to get an arrest warrant based on the mere suspicion he's making a run for it.

 

He could not leave the country -- not unless he absolutely wants to guarantee he'll immediately get indicted for murder, extradited back and held without bail, no matter how strong or weak the police case is at that moment. Leaving the country under any circumstances, when one is a chief suspect in a murder case and has been warned to stick around, would be viewed by any judge as a person being the ultimate flight risk -- and viewed very badly by a jury (because yes, the cops/prosecution most certainly would use it against him.)

 

Murder is different from every other crime in that chief suspects have very good reason to run -- and look very guilty by doing so. Innocent people stick around -- and bend over backwards through their lawyers to make sure the cops understand beforehand about any need to travel.

 

And this very idea intrigues me, because of the luggage tags on the cover of Entwined. Will Gideon actually sneak off anyway with Eva while fooling authorities into thinking he's still around? Very risky to do so. But it's even riskier to spend time with Eva in New York. Gideon has the resources (from tinted glass limos to private planes) to be able to (paying trusted people very handsomely to cover his Arse) sneak around. He could consider it the lesser of two evils -- see Eva where the NYPD can't simply tail her.

 

The U.S. Marshal's service rarely is involved in tracking down a suspect wanted for arrest. The Marshals get involved in tracking down fugitives already convicted (who have either jumped bail while awaiting sentencing or actually escaped from custody, especially Federal custody.) If Gideon took off for Vegas and then New York state indicted him, it likely would be some combo of Las Vegas police, Nevada state police and/or assistance from the FBI in finding him to arrest him. Then he'd face extradition proceedings in the Nevada, and once the way was cleared for him to be taken back to New York, the New York authorities would have to make arrangements to transport him back. The most common way would be to have some New York cops fly to Nevada and drag Gideon back, handcuffed, on a commercial flight. If he were within driving distance (say, North Carolina) New York cops would drive a cruiser down there and haul him back.

 

This also is done all the time in serious felony cases, most especially murder. Every extradited murder suspect (plus some rape suspects) I ever saw in court was fetched by either the local or state police where the crime happened. If a suspect were within reasonable driving distance, the cops would fetch him/her with a cruiser, driving to the state where the suspect was arrested and held as a fugitive. If he/she were being held in a distant state, the cops fly there on commercial flight, and haul the suspect back on a commercial flight, handcuffed and shackled the whole way.

[LN Cronan]

Gideon kept Eva in the dark about Nathan's murder for more than just the reason he feared she'd leave him forever if she knew he was capable of killing.

 

Because if Eva knows for a fact he did do it, she herself becomes legally tied up in the case and could even face charges herself for everything from keeping quiet (obstruction) to helping him avoid getting charged (accessory after the fact.)

 

This is the very trap the cops have laid. To put her in a position where she has only two choices

 

1. Do the right thing by cooperating with the police
2. Go down herself alongside him

 

I think Eva and Gideon's best hope now is that the cops will screw up when they spring the trap, doing something that ends up violating constitutional rights -- and thus the evidence they obtain will be inadmissable. They are walking a very thin line right now, especially because Eva's also has expressly invoked her right to have a lawyer.

 

I think the cops are hoping the case won't ever go to trial period -- that Gideon will sacrifice himself under a plea deal in order to ensure Eva does not go to prison too.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

I think that the most the police can prove this thus far is:

• Eva was seen going into Gideon’s apartment building. There is no proof that Eva actually had face to face contact with Gideon (although we the reader know differently) in that the police have no physical proof, videotape, eye witness accounts.

I wonder if the media actually got a hold of this story whether the public opinion would sway in Gideon’s favour. Once the information about Eva’s rapes and torture was revealed, I am not sure that there would be a person in the State of New York that would convict this man.

I could just see the media circus that would accompany a story like this. Picture it, a million Gideon supporters; high financiers, heads of charities Gideon publically/privately supports, friends, restaurateurs, etc. all parading themselves up and down the media boulevard proclaiming the good deeds of the wrongly accused Gideon. All the national news/media outlets would have a freaking field day.

Everyone has suggested the idea that Gideon might confess in order to save Eva. Has anyone considered the possibility that Eva might confess all of the secrets about her past in order to save Gideon? Thus far, Gideon has been the one chasing and rescuing Eva and protecting her from her past. Wouldn’t it be interesting if Eva were to lay down her shame and guilt and secrets in order to save her man?

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

Here is what we know for sure:

• Nathan was a scumbag who got murdered but yes he was murdered.

• I didn’t say that the cops wouldn’t investigate his murder; in fact I stated very early on in this process that his murder would be investigated.

• I simply don’t think that his murder would be investigated with the same ferocity as another one that involved an “innocentâ€.

• The OJ S****** trial was a HUGE spectacle for 2 reasons:

1. OJ was a famous athlete who was greatly admired by the public.

2. Nicole S & Ron G. were innocent people who were BRUTALLY murdered.

• The only correlation between these two cases is that Gideon is a famous man. Nathan was a horrible criminal who committed heinous crimes and won’t be missed by anyone.

• Any DA’s office that takes on this case and LOSES would be committing career suicide! One need only look at the OJ trial and the DA’s office to see the effects that trial had on their careers. Ms. Marcia is now doing stints on some court reporting show…that’s not a promotion! It is a demotion!

• I can’t see a DA taking on a case like this without rock solid evidence.

It will be really interesting to see just how technical Sylvia gets with the next book. Each of us is sitting in our respective corners waiting to see how things will turn out. :)

[mrsmajessick]

Hi LN Cronan,

 

Okay, this is an area where I can offer my expertise. Until formally charged, Gideon IS free to move about as he pleases. There is no legal law that says a "suspect" can be remanded to his home city by the police. Unless the police want to make an official arrest a person can't be held in that manner. And a person leaving the state is not evidence of guilt. After all, it's not like Gideon has been charged with anything and if the police don't have enough evidence to arrest, then they have nothing to keep him from moving about as he sees fit. It is not the police's job to ensure a conviction, only to offer whatever evidence they can come up with. It is for the courts and the jury to decide if the suspect is guilty or not. Police don't build cases, DA's & ADA's build cases - that's what they're trained to do. Detective are of useful benefit in hitting the streets and gathering witnesses or additional evidence, but cases do not go to trial solely based on what police have to offer. The state has the final say on picking the case up or dismissing it.

 

Secondly, the police don't know if Eva is a material witness or not and they haven't even questioned her to find out so there's no basis to follow her. There's not even mere speculation based on her answers because she hasn't given any.

 

There was a mob boss a few years back who had a girlfriend, the police didn't have any reason to bring her in so they weren't able to question her even though it was strongly believed she more than likely had information regarding her shady boyfriend. It's not just the police's word, they needed to provide evidence that the girlfriend had information crucial to the investigation - without that, she was as free as a bird. Hard to prove pillow-talk as evidence the mobster could have been working alone completely without the girlfriend's knowledge. This is the same case with Eva. Doesn't matter that she's the glue that binds - does she know whats sticking to her is the question and can the police prove she knows.

 

The cops can decide to arrest Gideon at any time at this point - in state or out of state or out of the country - they do it all the time. I've personally made a call to The New Scotland Yard and asked them to pick up a suspect from a hotel in London because we had enough evidence to charge him with murder. Once the paperwork was sent, they pick the man up and detained him until the U.S. Marshals went and picked him up. The suspect was there for a meeting he wasn't hiding or trying to elude arrest. The Marshals are used a lot in non federal cases to pick up suspects that the local police may not be able to locate or don't have the manpower to search without taking away from protecting the city. The FBI would hardly ever be used in a case like this especially when you consider states also have their own form of investigation bureaus such as New York State Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI). Who, like the US Marshals, are governed by the Attorney General and that's why the Marshals are used far more frequently than the FBI to apprehend state criminals.

 

Think about this...Even if Gideon and Eva were still openly seeing each other being photographed together having dinner going to parties - so what? Being someone's boyfriend is a big leap to killing the person who raped the woman years ago. They can't just speculate that because Gideon is Eva's boyfriend of a couple of months he would kill for her. As far as motive is concerned - no case has ever been considered a slam dunk conviction just because the suspect had motive and or means.

 

Let me give you another example of an acutal case. A man is found dead in his office - one shot to the head. His brother had the most to gain because he would get their shared buisness upon the brother's death to do with as he pleased. But, then it came out that the wife had a large insurance policy and she too had a lot to gain. Both the brother and the wife had a strong motive and the means. The man was shot with a gun that was kept on the family boat that either the wife or the brother could have gotten too. Neither had any witnesses to account for them at the time of the killing. Both said they were home alone. Both suspects lawyered up asap and refused to answer any further questions. What's a DA to do? He could have tried both the wife and the brother and run the risk of a hung jury in both cases because they were equally capable. Or he could have tried them together and said they teamed up to kill the victim. In the end he could do neither; there wasn't enough proof to say either or both did the deed. So for years no one was charged until a mistress popped up in a totally different case. This woman flew under the radar because she had nothing to gain from killing the victim because it was a fling and she was married to someone else and had been for years. This is what the cops surmised so they never turned her over for further investigation. Well, if they had, it would have come out that she killed him simply because she wanted too. That's what she finally confessed to the police and that's what she said in court. She's currently serving life without the possibility of parole. No one knows her motive and it sounds real cold to say - she just felt the need, but sometimes that's the way it goes.

 

Eva will never know for a fact if Gideon killed Nathan or not. The best she can do is take his word for it if he admits to her he did. She did not see him actually put the knife in Nathan's chest therefore it could be argued by a very savvy lawyer it's hearsay which the judge would have to agree to what's called a hearsay exception for her testimony to be admissable. If this were to happen, the DA would most certainly go after her credibility and this is where things could get tricky for both Eva and Gideon.

[LN Cronan]

Hi LNCronan,

I think that the most the police can prove this thus far is:

• Eva was seen going into Gideon’s apartment building. There is no proof that Eva actually had face to face contact with Gideon (although we the reader know differently) in that the police have no physical proof, videotape, eye witness accounts.

I wonder if the media actually got a hold of this story whether the public opinion would sway in Gideon’s favour. Once the information about Eva’s rapes and torture was revealed, I am not sure that there would be a person in the State of New York that would convict this man.

I could just see the media circus that would accompany a story like this. Picture it, a million Gideon supporters; high financiers, heads of charities Gideon publically/privately supports, friends, restaurateurs, etc. all parading themselves up and down the media boulevard proclaiming the good deeds of the wrongly accused Gideon. All the national news/media outlets would have a freaking field day.

Everyone has suggested the idea that Gideon might confess in order to save Eva. Has anyone considered the possibility that Eva might confess all of the secrets about her past in order to save Gideon? Thus far, Gideon has been the one chasing and rescuing Eva and protecting her from her past. Wouldn’t it be interesting if Eva were to lay down her shame and guilt and secrets in order to save her man?

 

If she was tailed, Eva would have been seen entering the apartment building. Plus (though she was in a daze and thus didn't remember doing it) she checked in with the downstairs desk in order to go be allowed to enter Gideon's private elevator and go upstairs. So in addition to an eyewitness trail both outside and inside the building, there is a paper trail at the front desk. Additionally, they could question the front desk person to confirm Eva was on the pre-approved list to be allowed to go upstairs whenever she wanted. Finally, because it's a private elevator to the penthouse, there's only one place she could have gone upstairs..

 

Gideon was at his own gym when she arrived. Sometime soon after Eva got there and was waiting outside his door, he arrived home, and he would have been seen entering by the cop(s) outside. His own doorman and his own front desk person could be questioned to confirm he went to the elevator and rode upstairs.

 

Together, this would be enough for a jury to believe beyond reasonable doubt the police assertion they met. Not exactly what they talked about. But that they met. What's more, a jury likely would believe beyond reasonable doubt the police theory about why Eva went there and what she wanted to talk about -- exactly what Detective Graves had just told her. Because Eva would have been followed (and timed) the entire way going directly from point A (Detective Graves at the Krav Maga studio) to Point B (Gideon's building) and then to Point C (rode the private elevator to his apartment itself.) 

 

The book excerpt we have for Entwined strongly suggests Eva left (or was sent away) almost immediately after Gideon found her on his doorstep. The excerpt definitely indicates she and Gideon didn't really talk -- and she she had no idea if/when they would be able to. But Gideon felt such a need to talk to her that he sneaked into her apartment an hour later, to do just that.

 

My theory: he found out from his own people almost immediately upon arriving home that she had been tailed to his building. It's not like his own people would have simply ordered Eva to leave when she was sitting there on his doorstep. But once Gideon got to the building, they would have immediately alerted him to something crucial -- the police had tailed her from her own gym right to his building. So Gideon then immediately sent her away in order to give the appearance they did not, in fact, talk. Or talk at any length. If it came down to it, one or the other could testify he sent her away as a crazy ex girlfriend trying to confront him with a kooky theory. He told her to "leave right now"  

 

Meanwhile, underneath that lie "go away Eva, you're nuts" would be the real truth -- Gideon realized it was incredibly dangerous for her to stay any length of time. The longer she was there, the more convincing the police argument would be that they had a serious conversation about what Graves said -- and the stronger the case Gideon very possibly said something about whether or not some or all of Graves' accusations were, in fact, true. If the cops had very good reason to suspect Gideon talked, they could then start putting pressure on Eva to either voluntarily tell them what Gideon said or try to force her (via means of threatening to charge her themselves) to testify under forced immunity.

 

Bottom line -- the longer Eva stayed at Gideon's, the greater the argument the trap might have begun working beautifully.

[LN Cronan]

Being a little silly and snarky here -- just because Corrine entered the Crossfire that day and then came out looking freshly f***** might make it reasonable to assume she met with Gideon, police could conclude if a cop had watched her enter the building and then later emerge mussed up. But because the cops couldn't prove through eyewitnesses inside, including the security desk, she got to go upstairs to Gideon's office, a jury certainly would have reasonable doubt they ever met. (Unlike Eva, who at the time was convinced they "met" and did more than that, ha, ha.)

 

Note: the fact Gideon had no clue Corrine had even been in the building, when Eva first confronted him, leaves me to conclude Corrine never made it past the lobby. The lobby security desk would have called up to Scott, who if Gideon were available, would have asked Gideon whether he could see Mrs. Giroux. If Gideon said yes, then Scott would have told the desk to send her up, and Scott would have had her wait in reception. But we know at the time, Gideon had Nathan in his office -- and so he would have told Scott no interruptions under any circumstances. 

 

So Scott would have instructed the desk to politely inform Mrs. Giroux Gideon was unavailable and that Gideon would be given a message she had been by. (A message he hadn't yet had the time to deliver when Gideon was literally cleaning up after Nathan and Eva simply barged past him into Gideon's office.)

 

At the time, Corrine wouldn't have been on a pre-approved list to simply ask Scott to schedule her in to see Gideon, nor would she have been allowed to go past the lobby onto the elevators. Gideon had found out only the night before she was back in town. Plus, she had complained the night before Gideon hadn't been returning all of her phone messages -- so this indicates to me there wasn't any standing order for Scott to interrupt him any time Corrine called, let alone allow Corrine to drop by his office unannounced. 

 

So if it ever came down to it, all the cops could say with any certainty is that Corrine entered the Crossfire at X time and departed at Y time. But when the cops then tried to follow the inside trail through questioning the building staff and the check-in log at the security desk, they would have found out for certain Corrine never made it past the lobby -- that she was in fact, turned away. (And actually in the case of the Crossfire, all the cops really would need to do is check the security camera tapes.)

 

This is a sharp contrast to the night Eva went straight from Detective Graves to Gideon's building. Through eyewitness accounts, and the downstairs desk check-in log (and maybe even security footage of the apartment building lobby) the police would be able to prove much more than Eva entered the building. They could prove Eva made it all the way upstairs to Gideon's apartment. And that soon after, Gideon arrived home and went upstairs to his apartment too. The prosecutor could convince a jury beyond reasonable doubt Eva and Gideon met face to face. And the longer they were up there together, the stronger the argument that the pair of them seriously talked about what Graves had just revealed to Eva.

[jls1216]

I seriously hope that Corrine takes a hike early on in the book. I am really sick of her!

[LN Cronan]

I can't wait to see how she takes it when she realizes she never had Gideon back to begin with. Corrine certainly became furious during the showdown with Eva, when Eva made it clear she (Eva) knows Gideon hadn't been sleeping with Corrine recently and wasn't going to so ever again, because he was in love with her (Eva). Dropping an f-bomb and slamming her door were Corrine's reactions.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

I think that Corinne does know that she doesn’t really stand a chance of winning Gideon back. I think that is why she is fighting as dirty as she is. Somewhere deep down inside she knows that Gideon doesn’t really love her and it is getting to her psychologically. So instead of keeping her head up and walking away with grace, she decides out of desperation to throw the rule book out and try every single ploy in the book to win Gideon. Sigh! Oh poor Corinne.

[LN Cronan]

Hi LNCronan,

I think that Corinne does know that she doesn’t really stand a chance of winning Gideon back. I think that is why she is fighting as dirty as she is. Somewhere deep down inside she knows that Gideon doesn’t really love her and it is getting to her psychologically. So instead of keeping her head up and walking away with grace, she decides out of desperation to throw the rule book out and try every single ploy in the book to win Gideon. Sigh! Oh poor Corinne.

Perhaps Corrine sensed all those years ago that Gideon was all too willing to settle -- settle for being chased, settle for being seduced, settle for getting engaged. But when she no longer could deny the sexual relationship was dead-end (he still wouldn't spend an entire night with her nor have sex anywhere other than the hotel) the engagement itself was dead-end. So she got desperate, and she tried to break the stalemate by making him chase her. It didn't work. Gideon let her go instead of fighting for her. 

 

Fast forward to the very recent past, the night Bared ended. She actively began chasing Gideon again, crashing a fundraiser where Gideon was with his new girlfriend. And so with her own eyes at that very dinner, Corrine watched him figuratively fight for Eva and literally chase Eva out the door. I think that's when something snapped inside Corrine, and she turned from a "good person" to a scheming b****  The next morning, she awoke with a fully-formed plot to destroy the relationship.  

 

In Reflected, Gideon started "seeing" Corrine again, spending time with her in a way that made everyone assume they were a couple again. And as soon as Gideon started taking Corrine out, Eva vanished from his life. I'll bet for those last three weeks of Reflected, Corrine deluded herself into thinking she had won. Just like all those years ago, he was letting himself be caught all over again. Step by step he would settle for dating her exclusively again, then sleeping with her again -- and ultimately settle for marrying her. This time, she would make certain the wedding took place. Chasing him all those years ago worked then -- and it was working beautifully now.

 

So it was a very nasty surprise when Eva confronted her and Corrine learned the hard way her plot to destroy what Eva had with Gideon did not work. The Eva showdown came in the final 36 hours of Reflected, and as far as Corrine knew as the story ended, Gideon and Eva were still apart. But it was obvious Eva had not given up on Gideon. So as Entwined opens, will we find a Corrine who has resigned to the inevitable - Eva will go back to Gideon? Or will Corrine turn even uglier in order to keep them apart? Only June will tell.

[sscrph]

Hello I think that Gideon told Corinne that he and Eva were taking a break from each other and this is so believable because of the incident that just happened at the concert with Brett witnessed by hundreds of people but most importantly Arnoldo because he would have been the first to see Gideon and Corinne together and assume that Gideon dumped Eva due to the Brett incident making the ruse that much more believable...

[LN Cronan]

Hello I think that Gideon told Corinne that he and Eva were taking a break from each other and this is so believable because of the incident that just happened at the concert with Brett witnessed by hundreds of people but most importantly Arnoldo because he would have been the first to see Gideon and Corinne together and assume that Gideon dumped Eva due to the Brett incident making the ruse that much more believable...

I think your theory is very plausible. Why did Gideon pick Arnoldo's restaurant, of all places, to take Corrine. Because just a few days earlier, Eva got caught red-handed in a passionate embrace with another man while Arnoldo was there. Gideon ordered Angus and Arnoldo to get Eva out of his sight that night. I'll bet Gideon never got around to telling Arnoldo he and Eva kissed and made up (er, f***** and made up) later that night. 

 

So who better to gossip to Corrine (and even to the cops, if it ever came down to it) about Gideon having good reason to dump Eva. Especially if Arnoldo is such an old friend of Gideon's -- it's quite possible that he knew Corrine back in the day, trusted Corrine back then and would talk to her now. Arnoldo had been pretty disgusted with Eva the end of that Friday night and was very concerned Eva was going to hurt Gideon badly.

 

There's a pretty even split here in the community between people who think Gideon's telling Corrine they're only friends and people who think Gideon is ruthlessly lying to Corrine (actively and/or by omission) because he will do almost anything in order to ensure he and Eva can be together again as soon as it is safe. 

[jls1216]

I think he took her to that restaurant because he knew that the paparazzi would be there because it was a hot new restaurant. 

[LN Cronan]

I think he took her to that restaurant because he knew that the paparazzi would be there because it was a hot new restaurant. 

 

I think he deliberately arranged for the paparazzi to show up and made absolutely certain it was leaked exactly who Corrine was. Remember, she'd lived overseas for many years and only very recently had moved back to New York. Who knows -- maybe Arnoldo himself was the one Gideon asked to do it. Asked Arnoldo to give him a a table for two at the front of the restaurant and tip off the paparazzi himself in order to absolutely guarantee the pictures and story got out.

 

What Gideon was doing was far too crucial to simply leave to chance. He had to be sure the tabloid gossip he was out with his former fiancee would hit the Internet as soon as possible. Because Nathan was out there watching Gideon as part of stalking Eva. It worked too -- the story about Gideon and Corrine was all over the place the next morning, as Eva soon found out.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

Easy now lady…you keep this up and I am going to enlist the help of some A-List Celebrities to host some kind of Pity Corinne Telethon (just kidding!). But seriously now, your theory assumes that Corinne hasn’t noticed that the EXACT same pattern has begun all over again.

Gideon contacts her when he wants, dates her when he wants and all advances that she makes (such as when she tried to see him at the Crossfire Building but was turned away) would indicate that something wasn’t right….YET AGAIN!!

I am absolutely sure that wouldn’t have been lost on Corinne. She lived through that once and if anything her awareness would have been heightened about Gideon’s aversive behaviours. I would also think that Corinne might have made a play for Gideon with a kiss and would have been rebuffed. I think that would have put Corinne on edge even more. I don’t think that Corinne would have consented to dating Gideon again without her at least trying to have some type of physical intimate contact (with kisses, hugs, etc.). That was part of the problem the first time around and surely that wouldn’t have been lost on Corinne a second time.

I think that when Corinne came back to New York she may have initially thought that she could just be friends with Gideon but quickly realized that would never work for her. So in a last ditch attempt she decided to make a play for Gideon. Gideon made it very easy for her to believe that there was hope because he started asking Corinne out again and made sure that they were publically linked together. I think that Gideon’s use of Corinne is cruel, but that’s another topic for another day.

I think that when Eva confronted Corinne at her apartment, it came as a nasty surprise to her. Maybe Corinne thought that Eva would go quietly into the background, but instead she got a knock at the door and an emotional punch to the gut. I think that Corinne may have been blind-sided and thus got nasty in the hopes that Eva would “just go awayâ€. She must have realized in that instance that this was going to be a very difficult situation and that in the end she was mostly likely going to lose.

Corinne saw for herself just how Gideon was with her. He was never even remotely that attentive to Corinne even when they were engaged. It is just a sad situation. I really wouldn’t want to see the Corinne character have a mental breakdown. I stated it before and I will state it again, I think that Corinne had the misfortune to love a man who never really loved her and didn’t have the courage to tell her.

[GiGi]

 

Hello I think that Gideon told Corinne that he and Eva were taking a break from each other and this is so believable because of the incident that just happened at the concert with Brett witnessed by hundreds of people but most importantly Arnoldo because he would have been the first to see Gideon and Corinne together and assume that Gideon dumped Eva due to the Brett incident making the ruse that much more believable...

 

Hi Sscrph,

You make an interesting point. It could be possible that Gideon told Corinne about his “break†with Eva. I don’t think that he went into specifics but I could definitely see Gideon allowing Corinne to draw her own conclusions (the wrong ones I might add). You also make an interesting point about Arnoldo. If Gideon took Corinne to Arnoldo as some kind of confirmation about his “break-up†with Eva, then he succeeded. I could definitely see Arnoldo buying the “rouse†especially after what happened at the concert. :)

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

I think that Gideon arranged for the paparazzi to photograph him and Corinne together. I could absolutely see how that would be staged. It would help to set up his alibi and evidence that he had begun to move on with his life. I know that you and I disagree about who killed Nathan but this part of the theory makes complete sense to me.

Gideon has ruthlessly use the media for his “modus operandi†in the past so why not again for this situation? As far as the Nathan situation is concerned, it could be argued that Gideon refused to pay Nathan’s blackmail because he wasn’t with Eva anymore so therefore Eva’s problems were no longer of his concern. I wonder how he spun that with Nathan. I wonder exactly what Gideon said to to Nathan when he refused to pay the blackmail. I wonder if Sylvia will address this issue in the next book. I hope so.

[GiGi]

Hi Mrsmajessick,

Thank you for your insight into how the justice system works. I personally find that very interesting and think that it makes for a more interesting discussion. Your information also helped to solidify something that I already suspected. I thought that people could travel freely if they weren’t under arrest (so long as the courts and all appropriate legal factions were informed first). Your information provides a different light to some of the theories presented.

[LN Cronan]

   

Hi Sscrph,

You make an interesting point. It could be possible that Gideon told Corinne about his “break†with Eva. I don’t think that he went into specifics but I could definitely see Gideon allowing Corinne to draw her own conclusions (the wrong ones I might add). You also make an interesting point about Arnoldo. If Gideon took Corinne to Arnoldo as some kind of confirmation about his “break-up†with Eva, then he succeeded. I could definitely see Arnoldo buying the “rouse†especially after what happened at the concert.

 

It was true that in a way, Gideon was taking a "break" from Eva. So if he told Corrine that, it wouldn't be lying. Gideon could refuse to talk about why (what Gideon, refuse to answer questions, not him, ha, ha.) But Corrine could find out from Arnoldo what happened with Brett. Knowing herself from many years ago how possessive Gideon is, Corrine would naturally conclude Eva destroyed what she had with Gideon by "cheating" on him. 

 

Three weeks later, he was still "seeing" Corrine and Eva was still gone. I'll bet Corrine fooled herself into thinking that by then, "break" really meant "break up" because Gideon had now had plenty of time to think about it and decided he was finished with Eva forever. Especially because he had another option, Corrine telling him she still loved him and had left her husband to come back to Gideon. 

 

Corrine was right, during the fight with Eva, that she (Corrine) knew for a fact Gideon wasn't seeing Eva at all. Corrine claimed Gideon was spending all his free time with her. I'm taking the "all" with a grain of salt -- this is Corrine, who is still trying to make Eva jealous and thus has every reason to over-inflate that. However, Corrine was spending enough time with Gideon to know for a fact he wasn't seeing Eva anymore. Corrine was 100% right when she threw that back into Eva's face. 

[LN Cronan]

GiGi,

 

It had been only three weeks that Gideon had resumed taking Corrine "out." She'd still have been more than willing to take things slow with Gideon, especially if by subtle signs she was being manipulated into thinking they were making slow by steady progress.

 

I know the community here is split on how Gideon was handling her (honesty they were just friends) or calculated manipulation (they were going somewhere.) I definitely believe the latter -- because EVERYTHING  was riding on the lie, and the cops had NOT simply gone away.

 

As the pressure of the ongoing murder investigation continued to mount, Gideon would continue to slowly "move things along" with Corrine. He needed to get the cops to go away, so he needed Corrine going around telling people they were back together. (What, Corrine lie about her status with Gideon -- not her.)

 

The fact she'd go around letting people know Gideon was "seeing" her again and Gideon was NOT denying that to anyone would fool Corrine into believing it was true. Didn't matter they weren't sleeping together -- YET. For weeks now, Corrine was the only woman Gideon was taking out, and it was apparent he'd definitely left Eva.

 

Remember, when Christopher had lunch with Eva near the very end of Entwined, he said " .... Gideon getting back together with Corrine." I'm certain Christopher would have been asking Corrine what the deal was and would have been trying to wheedle stuff out of Gideon too. Corrine would be making claims she believed were true, and Gideon (in true Gideon fashion) would brush off the questions -- by doing so, lying by omission that it was true he was "seeing" Corrine again. They were "back together."

[sscrph]

Perhaps the first snapshot is of Page Six the gossip column reporting that Gideon Cross and Corinne Giroux are now an item and interjecting Brett into the story by reporting the incident at the concert and Gideon's subsequent break up with Eva Tramell. And it would be about time for Brett to return to the area from his southern concert tour at the perfect time Eva needs him to be her "rebound" man in more ways than one.

[LN Cronan]

Good morning, sscrph!!! So good to have yet another person go from guest reader to active member.

 

The incident with Brett happened after the concert in an alley outside the club, near the stage door where the band's buses were parked. The audience never saw it. However, as the fight progressed, it drew attention from people backstage. The fight starts on page 163 in Reflected -- it definitely mentions Brett's fellow band members as having poured into the alley, ready to brawl -- until they saw who Brett was fighting with, "the man with the money behind their record label."

 

The two people who had come to the concert with Gideon and Eva -- Gideon's old friend Arnoldo and Eva's new friend Shawna -- also had been backstage, meeting the band, when the fight erupted just outside, and they too came out. Angus showed up too -- Gideon's limo was parked in the alley. Angus and Arnoldo forcibly took Eva away in the limo.

 

Thus far, Brett's been very discrete that while there really is an Eva out there (he confirmed this in a radio interview about three weeks later) he hasn't publicly confirmed the woman is "Eva Trammel."

 

That said, however, I'm certain it's going to get out in Entwined who the woman in "Golden" is. Then with a little digging (such as asking Brett's band members) it's going to come out Eva had been a groupie sleeping with Brett years ago back in San Diego, before the band (and before Eva herself) became famous. The tabloids are going to have a field day.