MARTINEZ -- Rambling at times, emotional at other times, Susan Polk continued her cross-examination of her youngest son, Gabriel, Monday at her trial for the bloody October 2002 murder of her elderly husband, Felix, in the family's Orinda pool house.

In the most dramatic moment of a day, Polk -- who is defending herself -- asked Gabriel if he harbored feelings for she and his two other brothers.

"I still have affection for my brothers. I still have affection for you, but there's bad with the good," Gabriel Polk answered.

The youngest Polk described for the jury a seemingly dysfunctional upbringing that included numerous troubles for he and his brother at home and at school. Polk's questioning at times seem like she was merely talking with her son, with whom she has had little contact over the last three years.

"It's almost a therapy session between Gabriel and his mother," said legal analyst Steven Clarke. "They are getting out a lot of stuff that has happened over the years…He (Gabriel) is able to control himself, but underneath I think he has an agenda."

"I think he blames his mother for his lot in life. That is coming through very clearly (to the jury). He's a strong witness for the prosecution."

Superior Court Judge Laurel Brady cautioned Polk about her rambling cross examination style outside the presence of the jury.

"Some of the dialogue is almost like you're having a conversation that you've wanted to have for three years," the judge told Polk.

Prosecutors say Susan Polk, 48, stabbed her 70-year-old husband Felix Polk while the two were going through divorce proceedings. They allege Susan Polk wanted her husband's multimillion-dollar estate.

Polk claims her husband attacked her with a knife and she had to defend herself. The couple's youngest son, Gabriel, then 15, found the body 24 hours later, according to authorities.

As the first witness called by the prosecution last week, Gabriel Polk said his mother repeatedly threatened his father's life. The 19-year-old drew a bleak picture of his family life, and also described finding his father's bloodied body.

Susan Polk then cross-examined her son for about three hours, challenging his credibility. The confrontation, played out before a pin-drop-quiet audience, was often uncomfortable as Polk asked probing questions of the high school senior.

"Why did your father tell you I was delusional?" she asked at one point, questioning whether there was evidence of that.

"Because of the way you were acting," Gabriel Polk replied. "I didn't need his evidence. I saw your delusions myself."

Their exchanges seemed to frame the raw emotion of family conflict in legalistic terms.

"Isn't it true," Susan Polk asked during a dispute over how tall Gabriel had been at the time of a school yard fight, "that you were not the big guy that you are now?"

"Between the four years when you murdered my dad and now ... yeah, I grew a lot," Gabriel Polk said.

Felix Polk was a well-known Berkeley psychologist whom Susan Polk first met when he was 42 and married and she was his patient. She says they started having sex when she was 16, after he drugged and raped her.

The couple eventually married and had three sons. Gabriel and Adam, 23, are testifying for the prosecution; Eli, 20, is expected to testify on his mother's behalf.