[The Advocate 04.0] The Advocate's Dilemma

by Teresa Burrell

  “There’s a car in the alley just off Pacific Coast Highway and Juniper. A young boy just ran from the car and an older man was chasing him. I think the boy is in trouble. Please help.”

  He wiped his fingerprints from the phone, tossed it inside Chris’s car, and walked to where he had parked.

  It was nearly ten o’clock and JP was only two blocks away from what he assumed was the drop-off for Tuffy’s money. He drove slowly to Ash Street and past the corner. A trash can sat near a bench at the bus stop. He continued on until he found a spot where he could watch without being seen. He waited but no one ever came to pick up anything near the trash. He wondered if Tuffy was watching and since Chris had not made a drop, he didn’t make a pickup. He looked around to see if he could see where someone might be watching. There was one apartment building that presented as a possibility. Lights were on in twelve of the fifteen rooms and someone could be observing from any one of them. There were cars parked on the street and without going from car to car, JP couldn’t be certain there wasn’t someone watching from a parked vehicle. There were also several rooftops where a person could hide. There were just too many possibilities.

  The more he thought about it, the more he decided Tuffy wasn’t expecting a drop. There was probably a code or response for the text required for this very reason. He hoped he hadn’t blown the chance of catching him by showing up, but he had been careful. He never stopped near the trash can, and he was well hidden from any observer.

  He waited. It was nearly midnight and there was still no Tuffy. By one o’clock JP gave up and went home. He drove to where Chris had parked his car in the alley. It was gone. He would check in the morning to see if it had been towed.

  Chapter 38

  “This won’t take long. I just have to pick up some files and copy a few things for my trial this afternoon. Then we can go to lunch,” Bob said to Sabre as they neared his office.

  “No problem. We have plenty of time.”

  Sabre noticed two police cars as they pulled into the parking structure. “I wonder what that’s about?”

  “As long as it’s not about me, they can hang here all they want,” Bob said.

  Bob parked in the lot. They exited the car and took the elevator up to the second floor. “You know it wouldn’t hurt you to take the steps once in a while,” Sabre said.

  “Nah, that would be way too healthy.”

  They left the elevator and started across the walkway that looked into the courtyard toward Bob’s office. Two policemen were situated near his door. “Bob,” Sabre said, “that looks like Klakken inside.”

  “I’ve already told them what little I know. I wish they’d leave me alone.”

  Klakken greeted them as they walked inside the office.

  “What can I do for you today, detective?” Bob asked.

  “Mr. Clark, you’re under arrest for the murder of George Foreman. You have the right to remain silent….”

  “I’m not saying a word. Sabre,” Bob said. Sabre withdrew her phone and dialed before Bob could finish saying, “Call Leahy.”

  “I just did.” Sabre stepped back a few steps. “Jerry, they just arrested Bob.”

  “I’ll see him at the station in a couple of hours. They’ll need to book him before they let me in. It’ll take at least that long, probably longer. Just tell him to keep his mouth shut.”

  “I’ll see you there.” Sabre hung up the phone and stepped back toward Bob and Klakken. “Bob, Leahy will meet you at the police station. He said not to talk to anyone until he gets there. Think like a lawyer.” Sabre followed the detective as he walked Bob out the door. She caught the detective’s eye. “Do you really need to take him out in handcuffs?”

  “Yes, I really do,” he said complacently.

  ***

  At the police station Jerry spoke with an officer he had encountered many times before. He turned to Sabre and said, “We’ll be able to speak with Bob in a few minutes. They’ll have him in custody overnight for sure. I’d like to have him arraigned tomorrow morning and out of here, but technically they have seventy-two hours to arraign him. So, if I can’t get him on calendar tomorrow, he stays all weekend.”

  “Will they give him bail?”

  “I don’t know. It depends on what they charge him with. It’s not going to be easy.”

  Sabre stood up, paced, and sat down again. “This is so preposterous. I can’t believe they think he killed Foreman.” She felt so angry and choked back tears. She hated to cry but the more she fought the tears, the angrier she became.

  “We’re going to help him out of this mess. First things first. We need to get him out of here. Everything they have is circumstantial,” Jerry stated reassuringly.

  “But it was enough to make an arrest and apparently the D.A. thinks it’s enough to file charges.”

  “Mr. Leahy,” the officer said, as he walked up to him. “You can see your client now.”

  Sabre took a deep breath, trying to calm herself as she and Jerry walked down a hallway and into a cubicle where Bob waited for them. “Fine mess you have us in now, Ollie,” Bob said, making light of the situation.

  “Are you okay?” Sabre asked.

  “It’s all about the adventure, right?” Bob said.

  “Did the police try to question you?” Leahy asked.

  “Yeah, but they quit as soon as I invoked my right to counsel. I haven’t said a word, not that I really have anything to say.”

  “Good. Keep it that way. I probably won’t be able to get you arraigned until Tuesday, although I’m going to try.”

  “Any chance of getting bail?”

  “I’m not going to lie to you. It won’t be easy but there’s always a chance. And if we do, it won’t be cheap,” Leahy said.

  “What are we going to do?” Sabre asked.

  Bob looked at Sabre. “I need you to cover my trial this afternoon and take care of my calendar tomorrow...and maybe for the next twenty years.”

  “Stop that,” Sabre said. “Jerry’s going to get you out of here, aren’t you?” She looked at Leahy pleadingly. “Jerry, what can I do?”

  “You can find out who really killed Foreman. That would help.”

  “JP is on it. He has several good candidates.” Then she remembered her problem with attorney/client privilege. “We’ll find a way.”

  “A way to what?” Jerry asked.

  “A way to figure this out. We’ll find out who killed him.”

  “What other candidates do you have?”

  “He’s still investigating, but we’ll get you something. I promise.”

  “Sabre, will you do me a favor?” Bob asked.

  “Of course. Anything.”

  “Will you go tell my wife where I am? And try to explain this to her the best you can. I don’t want her seeing it on the news or something. She should be at home. If you go right now, you can stop there and still make it to court in time for my trial.”

  “Do you want me to continue the case?”

  “No, just do the trial, if you don’t mind. I have a non-offending father who’s in custody in Vacaville Prison. He didn’t want to be produced and he wants the opposite of whatever the mother wants. He said she’s the worst mother he’s ever seen. It only took him three kids with her before he figured it out. I think some of it is just from spite, but the reports make Joan Crawford’s mother look like a saint.”

  “I’ll take care of it. I don’t have anything else on calendar and I’ll go see Marilee first.”

  “Thanks. I know she’ll want to come see me so you may want to check on visiting hours before you leave here,” Bob said.

  “She should be able to come between two and four today,” Leahy said to Sabre.

  “Are you sure you want her to come here?” Sabre asked.

  “You know her. It doesn’t matter if I want her to or not. She’ll come anyway. But yeah, she’s a tough cookie and she’ll feel better if she comes and sees me. Maybe I can put her mind at ease a bit. Now, get go
ing or you’ll be late.”

  Chapter 39

  JP and Sabre met at The Coffee Bean before court the next morning to strategize a way to help Bob. “You have to talk to Marcus,” JP said. “Klakken is going to stop looking now that they’ve made an arrest.”

  “I know, and we’re the only people in the world who are certain it wasn’t Bob who killed Foreman.”

  “Us and the killer, and we have plenty of suspects.”

  “Smithe, Tuffy, and Sammy.”

  “And Chris McKenzie.”

  “Do you think it could be him?”

  “It could, but I’m not sure he even knew Foreman. I suppose he could’ve been avenging Tuffy’s territory. And let’s not forget about Dana. We know she lied about having an affair with Bob.” JP’s usual poker face showed concern. “Right?”

  “Right.” Sabre looked at JP curiously. “How can you even ask that?”

  “Bob is a very good friend of mine and I know for a fact he didn’t kill Foreman, but I don’t know whether or not he’s having an affair with Dana. We never talk about that sort of thing. I may have known him longer than you have but you know him better, so I’m asking.”

  “You don’t talk about that sort of thing because he doesn’t do that sort of thing. More importantly, I know Bob well enough to know that if he were going to have an affair it wouldn’t be with a client and certainly not someone like Dana Foreman. Bob is a charmer and all the girls like him. He could have an affair with any number of attractive attorneys or social workers or court personnel, and for that he wouldn’t risk his marriage. So he sure as hell isn’t going to risk his marriage and his license to practice over some loser client. No, Dana is lying and we need to know why.”

  “Then we’ll find out why.”

  “Do you think Celia or Frank could have done it?” Sabre asked. “They’ve never liked Foreman and they’ve had to endure a lot of years with him. Maybe they just reached their limit.”

  “I don’t think Celia has it in her, but Frank certainly does. He seems to be in control, but I think there’s something bubbling under the surface with that man. But, I can’t see what he would really have to gain by it and I don’t think he does anything without a calculated reason in mind. His killing is done in the financial world. Besides, Klakken already investigated both of them and they have alibis.”

  “That’s right. They were home together with Marcus and Riley.”

  “So what do we do next, boss?” JP asked.

  “I need to talk to Marcus about Smithe and Tuffy. We need to get those creeps off the streets one way or another. You could go to Detective Nelson about Sammy and Chris McKenzie, but even if one of them leads back to Smithe or Tuffy we still need Marcus to connect the dots or there’s nothing to make them suspects in Foreman’s murder.”

  “So you’re saying I need to find something else or Marcus has to come around.”

  “That’s about the size of it, and so far he’s been pretty adamant about not wanting me to say anything about the incident with Smithe. If he continues to not allow disclosure, I’ll have to respect that and still find a way to help Bob. I’ll also see if I can get anything out of Dana’s attorney, although that’s not likely.”

  “I wouldn’t trust that guy. He’s slicker than butter on marble.”

  Sabre cocked her head to one side and looked at JP. For a split second she remembered what Dave had said about JP wanting her. She swiftly dismissed the thought as ludicrous. “He’s a decent guy and a good attorney, which is why he likely won’t give me any information,” she said. “Do you know if Chris was picked up?”

  “I spoke with Greg Nelson last night. He said they impounded the car and they’re looking for Chris. They have his cell phone and they may even have him by now.”

  “Good. Why don’t you follow up with Nelson on Chris and see if you can get anything more out of Sammy before he gets out of custody. I’ll talk with Marcus, and if we can get anything we can use we’ll set up a meeting with Klakken this afternoon.”

  JP’s eyes looked distant for a second. “Sure,” he said. Sabre wondered where JP had slipped away. She was pretty certain it had to do with Klakken. She left it alone.

  ***

  Sabre sat on the edge of Marcus’ bed in his room in La Jolla where he beat her in a tense video game of Modern Warfare 3. Sabre didn’t expect to win. She was actually quite bad at those games, especially action games. Marcus wasn’t an expert either, but he had more experience than she did.

  “You’re looking real good. How are you feeling?”

  “Good. The doctor said I can go back to school on Monday.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “I’m ready. I miss my dad. I wish stuff was different.”

  “What kind of stuff?”

  “I wish my dad hadn’t been so mean.”

  “He was mean to you?”

  “He was mean to everybody. He yelled a lot and he’d hit me if I didn’t do what he wanted. He was nicest when I worked with him.”

  “Did he hit your mom and Riley?”

  “He hit mom a lot, especially when he was drunk. Not Riley so much. Riley knew how to stay out of his way. Riley was always telling me not to talk back to him, but sometimes I couldn’t help myself. The words would just come out.” Marcus’ face changed from distress to sadness. “And now I wish he wasn’t dead.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Sabre said. She knew from speaking to his psychiatrist that it was good for Marcus to talk openly. After a discussion with the doctor in very general terms so as not to violate the attorney/client privilege, the doctor had suggested it would be therapeutic if Marcus could help find his father’s killer. “Marcus, you may be able to help us find who killed him, you know.”

  “Do you think my mom did it?”

  Sabre sat up a little straighter, surprised by the question. “Do you?”

  “No.”

  “Why do you ask?”

  “I hear stuff.”

  “What kind of stuff?”

  “About that attorney she had. But I don’t think my mom did it. Did that attorney do it?”

  “Do you know what I think? I think it had something to do with the big man in the black Mercedes, the man who beat up your father, and if it was him you can help us with that.”

  “What would I need to do?”

  “You said before you didn’t want me to say anything about the man to anyone. I know you were afraid because of some things that happened, so I haven’t told anyone, just like you asked. But if the police knew, they could investigate and maybe find your dad’s killer.”

  “Will I have to go to juvenile hall?” His voice was full of fear.

  Sabre took his hand. “No, you’re not going to be in trouble.”

  “But I was doing bad stuff, too.”

  “You were doing what your father made you do. I promise you I will use every bit of fight I have in my body to see that you don’t get in trouble. Besides, the police will want to stop that horrible man, not punish you.”

  Marcus sighed. “Okay, you can tell.”

  “You are being very brave. When I tell the police they will want to question you, but I’ll be with you when you talk to them.”

  Marcus nodded his head. He looked down at the video game controller he held in his hand. “Do you want to play again?” Marcus asked.

  “Sure, but this time I’m going to beat you.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  Chapter 40

  Sammy smiled when JP walked into the cubicle where he waited at the San Diego County Jail. JP felt a little sorry for him again. He was such a pathetic soul. He had to know that JP wasn’t there to help him, yet he seemed pleased to see someone, anyone. For a second, JP wondered if he was being played; maybe Sammy was smarter than JP thought. Maybe he really was Tuffy, but who texted Chris with the place and time of the drop? He would’ve had to have another accomplice or access to a cell phone. JP dismissed the thought as quickly as it came into his mind.
Access to a cell phone in custody wasn’t that difficult, but Sammy just wasn’t that smart.

  “Hello, Sammy. How are you doing today?”

  “Okay. This isn’t the worst place to be and I don’t expect to be here too much longer.”

  “Good for you.” JP couldn’t see any reason to waste time, so he went straight to the point. “What can you tell me about Chris McKenzie?”

  Sammy laughed but it sounded edgy and forced. “Tuffy’s latest queen, huh? Have you met him?”

  “We had an encounter.”

  “He’s not very good at his job—kind of a mess, actually. He made a much better drone bee than a queen. Did he tell you he was Tuffy?”

  “At first.”

  “But then he squealed like a pig, didn’t he?”

  “He said a few things.”

  “I knew that guy was trouble. I told….,” he stopped abruptly.

  “You told Tuffy not to make Chris a queen?”

  “I didn’t say that.” Sammy said, trying to sound tough.

  “Does Chris know who Tuffy is?”

  “No.” He snickered as if that were ludicrous.

  “How do you know? Maybe he has learned who he is since you’ve been out of commission. You don’t work with Tuffy anymore, right? Maybe things are different.”

  Sammy shook his head. “No way would Tuffy let a numbskull like Chris know anything. He’s too risky. He’d squeal in a heartbeat to protect his own skin.”

  Just like you would, JP thought. He remembered the conversation he and Sammy had had the last time where he was willing to sell Tuffy out for the right price. That’s the problem with criminals. There’s no real loyalty, which he was very thankful for when he was a police officer.

  “What about Tuffy’s other queen, Jaleel?”

  “Man, Chris really spilled his guts.” Sammy took a deep breath and blew it out quickly, making a loud emphatic noise. “I don’t know what Jaleel knows, but you wouldn’t get anything out of him. Don’t even waste your time.”