“Sucking up to me won’t work.”
“I’m trying everything.” Mary didn’t say, But it has before.
“I’m too busy to take the case.”
“It won’t take long.”
“I don’t like kids. I have a dog.”
“So get your dog a kid,” Mary said, even though she was pretty sure it was the other way around.
“Still, I don’t want it. Count me out. I want to go home.”
“Bennie, if you met this little boy, you would be totally on board. He’s the sweetest kid and he’s had the hardest time in life. He’s been physically and sexually abused, then his grandfather died, and now he’s in a foster home. You wouldn’t believe how much he’s been through, and he’s got nobody in the world to look out for him but us.”
“Sympathy doesn’t work for me.” Bennie sipped her coffee.
“What does work for you? What do I have to do to get you to take his case?”
“There’s nothing you can do. I don’t want to take it, and I won’t. I hate stepping into a case that was somebody else’s. I like to control things from the beginning.”
“It is the beginning of the criminal case,” Mary told her, urgently. “The investigation started only yesterday. Even the detective admitted that it’s preliminary, they said it in open court.”
“DiNunzio, who you kidding? I saw an article about the kid online. Somebody’s already trying to taint the jury pool on you.”
“That was leaked by opposing counsel, Nick Machiavelli.”
“Machiavelli!” Bennie’s eyes flashed with recognition. “Machiavelli, that bogus pretender to some nonexistent throne?”
“Yes,” Mary answered, surprised. “How do you know him?”
“First, it’s not a name you forget, and secondly, I had a case against him once and he annoyed the crap out of me. Is he really your opposing counsel?”
“Yes.” Mary saw an opening, knowing that Bennie was insanely competitive. “He’s representing the teacher’s aide who abused Patrick and he’s been pulling the strings against us. He’s the one who got the guardian ad litem hired in the shelter care hearing, and the guardian ad litem testified against our Child Advocate, which was one of the reasons we lost.” Mary watched Bennie begin to simmer, then realized she had a trump card left to play. “And I never intended to tell anybody this, but he attacked me in his office today.”
“Attacked you?” Bennie’s mouth dropped open in outrage.
“Mary, are you serious?” John asked, appalled. “When?”
“After the shelter care hearing.” Mary felt shaky, talking about it now. “I don’t want to go into details because it’s creepy, but he has this thing against me and he’s vowing to take it out on Patrick. He tried to kiss me, but I hit him and got away but—”
“Say no more!” Bennie smacked the table, incensed. “Why didn’t you tell me that? That should’ve been the first thing you said! You’re my partner, and I’ll be damned if I’ll let anybody get away with that!”
“Really?” Mary said, touched.
“Of course! I absolutely will represent Patrick and we absolutely will win!”
“Thank you so much, Bennie. I really appreciate it.” Mary glanced at John, who looked back at her with a concerned frown, undoubtedly about her revelation, but she waved him off.
Bennie was still jazzed, her face alive with animation. “I can’t wait to take him down. It’ll be my pleasure. I’ll do it for sport.”
“Now here’s the hard part, guys.” Mary pulled out her chair and sat down. “Even though I’ve just asked Bennie to be Patrick’s lawyer, I’m worried that I don’t really have the power to hire an attorney for Patrick because I’m not Patrick’s guardian. He’s currently in DHS custody, so DHS has legal custody and the power to hire an attorney for him. But I thought I could beat them to the punch.” She turned to Bennie. “I figured if you said yes, then I could call DHS and tell them you were on board before they even thought about hiring him a criminal lawyer.”
“One problem.” Bennie hesitated. “DHS could decide not to hire me—and they will decide against me, if you’re right about Machiavelli being on the other side, pulling the strings.”
“Right, Machiavelli could have Harris, the guardian ad litem, call DHS and refer them to an attorney. They could even manipulate the result so that Patrick gets in deeper trouble, sabotaging him.”
Bennie nodded, on the same page. “We’re fighting a war by proxy, and he’s going to keep fighting. We have to keep outmaneuvering him.”
“Okay, so how about this idea? Edward had an estate—about $350,000 in real estate, life insurance, cash, and stocks—and Patrick is the sole beneficiary. The executor is a lawyer in the Northeast named James Geltz. I’ve already been in touch with him to get a deposit to reserve Patrick’s admission to private school.” Mary realized that James hadn’t called her back yet. Anthony hadn’t called her either, but that was another matter. “The only party with any legal authority besides DHS is the executor and he has the power of the purse. In other words, the executor has the authority to hire a lawyer and authorize an expenditure for attorneys’ fees, doesn’t he?”
“If the grandfather was Patrick’s legal guardian. Was he?”
“No, unfortunately, but that just means I have to move fast, doesn’t it? DHS isn’t going to hire Patrick an attorney because they aren’t going to leap to Patrick’s defense that quickly and they don’t have funds to pay anybody with. They don’t know about the will or the executor yet. This all just happened.” Mary was trying to improvise, using Bennie and John as a sounding board. “So Bennie, now that I know you’re in, how about I call the executor and ask him to hire you? I’ll email him a representation agreement and get his digital signature right away. Then we’re in first, before DHS wises up.”
Bennie frowned. “There’s only one problem. Under Pennsylvania law, a person who is convicted of killing someone who left him an inheritance is not entitled to inherit. So if Patrick were convicted of killing his grandfather, he gets nothing under the will. Since this is a real possibility, the executor would be well within his discretion to refuse to pay Patrick’s defense costs. The same is true of the expenditures for private schooling you mentioned.”
“Oh no.” Mary grimaced. “I wonder if that’s why James isn’t calling me back. He could be dragging his feet.”
“It’s possible, and here’s more bad news. Life insurance is distributable in accordance with a beneficiary designation form, not a will, but if Patrick were found guilty of Edward’s murder, the insurer doesn’t have to pay off to him, even though he’s the beneficiary on the policy. So no life insurance proceeds are coming Patrick’s way either, which is too bad, because they often pay quickly.”
Mary saw an opening. “But Patrick hasn’t been convicted of murder. He hasn’t even been charged.”
“That’s right, and it’s the only wiggle room you have.”
“I’ll take it,” Mary said, heartened. “So it’s up to the executor’s discretion whether he authorizes or denies, and your point is, I should expect a fight.”
“Yes, and if he denies it, there’s still another solution.” Bennie pursed her lips. “I’ll represent Patrick for free. That way we don’t have to go begging to the executor. He has no power over us if we don’t want our fees paid by the estate.”
“Would you do it on that basis?” Mary asked, surprised. “Pro bono?”
“Absolutely.” Bennie’s blue eyes glittered with excitement. “Crushing Machiavelli is definitely in the public interest. Either way, the first step is you calling the executor.”
“On it.” Mary reached for her telephone, but just then, John waved his hand to get her attention.
“Hold on, ladies. I just thought of something else we might have missed.” John frowned in thought. “I think there’s an ethical problem if I represent Mary and you, Bennie, represent Patrick. Mary and Patrick’s interests are in conflict and members of the same law f
irm, especially one this small, aren’t generally supposed to represent codefendants in criminal matters. It runs afoul of the Code of Professional Responsibility.”
Mary hadn’t even thought of that as an ethical problem.
Evidently, neither had Bennie, because she was frowning. “You’re right. But I know how to fix that. A Chinese Wall.”
“Exactly.” John nodded. “It’s a borderline case, but I’d go with a Chinese Wall.”
Mary had no idea what they were talking about. “I feel dumb. Could you explain to me what a Chinese Wall is?”
John smiled. “There’s no reason for you to know this, it’s a big-firm thing. In a situation like ours, where two lawyers in the same firm are representing criminal codefendants with conflicting interests, then the ethical way to keep both representations is to put up a Chinese Wall. It’s an invisible barrier to communications within the firm. As a practical matter, it means that because I’m your lawyer, Mary, I can’t talk to Bennie about Edward’s murder case.”
“I see,” Mary said, relieved. She didn’t want Patrick to lose Bennie as a lawyer, nor did she want to lose John as a lawyer.
John continued, “Conversely, Bennie can’t talk to me about the murder case and that includes every last detail, like meeting schedules, phone calls, or any procedural questions about the case. It has to end, here and now.”
Bennie nodded, newly grave. “Right, so John, you and I have no further discussions about the murder case, starting from this moment.” Bennie turned to Mary. “By the same token, no more meetings between you and Patrick.”
“Wait,” Mary said, dismayed. “Why is that? I was planning on visiting Patrick to stay in touch with him.”
“You can’t. It is not prudent. There can’t be any crosstalk between you two from this point on. If I’m Patrick’s lawyer, I don’t want him talking with you anymore.”
John interjected, “She’s right, Mary. If you keep seeing Patrick, sooner or later you’re going to start to get information from each other. He could easily tell you something that Bennie told him, and if he did, you would tell me. That’s a violation of the Chinese Wall. If we want to keep both representations in-house, that’s what we have to do. If you ask me, it’s a borderline enough case in such a small firm. I know there’s case law that says we’re too small for a Chinese Wall.”
Bennie snorted. “Oh, please. I didn’t get this far by not taking risks. It’s a reasonable risk, and I’m going to run it. I think this is an ethical choice and I can defend it if I have to.”
Mary kept thinking about Patrick. “But I think it’s best for Patrick if I see him. I have to stay in touch. What if I promise that I won’t talk about the case with him? I can hush him if he starts talking about Bennie.”
John shook his head. “Mary, I’m your lawyer in the criminal matter. Follow my advice. Even apart from the Chinese Wall, it wouldn’t be good for you to be meeting with Patrick. Everything you say to each other is discoverable by the police. Remember, you’re not his lawyer anymore, so your conversations aren’t covered by attorney-client privilege.”
“I’m still his lawyer in his special education case.”
“Only until Machiavelli decides to challenge that. If DHS has custody of Patrick now, they can go hire a new special education lawyer. We would have no power to stop them.”
Mary couldn’t accept that answer, if it meant not seeing Patrick. “We could go to the executor and get him to sign a representation agreement for me, too, guaranteeing I remain Patrick’s special ed lawyer.”
“Good, do that. But still, you would be vulnerable in the murder case and you would be making Patrick vulnerable, as Bennie said. You two are suspected of being in cahoots, on the murder case, with you as accessory after the fact, if not a co-conspirator. You said it, they could even believe that you killed Edward.”
Mary deflated, knowing they were making sense. “So I really shouldn’t see him anymore.”
“Not until we get this settled. It’s best for Patrick.”
“Oh boy.” Bennie came over and placed a hand on her shoulder, an uncharacteristically tender gesture. “Tell you what, I’ll visit the kid for you,” she said begrudgingly.
Mary looked up at her. “When?”
“Soon.”
“Tomorrow night?”
“Fine.” Bennie rolled her eyes. “Am I a good partner or what?”
“Yes, and thank you.” Mary smiled, rallying. “Will you be nice to him?”
“I’ll be nice to him, on occasion,” Bennie answered, with a wink. “Now call the executor, and I’m leaving the room. This meeting is over, and the Chinese Wall is hereby up.”
CHAPTER FIFTY
“Dammit!” Mary looked at John in frustration, her cell phone in hand. She had called and texted James Geltz again, but he hadn’t answered either. “I can’t reach Geltz.”
“He must be out.”
“This is driving me crazy. It can’t wait.” Mary rose, anxious. “Machiavelli isn’t going to sit on his hands. He probably already called Harris to get a lawyer in place and get the jump on us.”
“Where’s Geltz’s office?”
“In the Northeast.”
“So he probably lives up there, too.”
“Right.” Mary knew what John was thinking and started scrolling through her phone. “Let me see if I can get his home address. I’ll go up there, right now. That’s not crazy, is it?”
“On the contrary, it’s exactly what I would do. It can’t wait. Like I told you, family law is twenty-four/seven, and Patrick is screwed if Machiavelli gets his criminal lawyer in place before we get Bennie in place.”
“I agree.” Mary plugged in James Geltz’s name, and only a few addresses popped onto the screen. Two of the addresses were in the far suburbs, but one was in Northeast Philly, near Geltz’s office. “Bingo. I know where this is. It’s not that far.”
“So go.” John stood up, walking to the door. “I’d go with you but my brother is visiting me this week. He’s actually at home, waiting for me. I picked him up after the shelter care hearing.”
“Oh, sorry.” Mary felt a pang of guilt, crossing to meet him at the conference room door. “I didn’t realize that you were busy tonight.”
“It’s okay, he’ll be fine. The Sixers game out in LA is on, and he loves basketball.” John hesitated as if to say something, but stopped himself, and Mary realized that he was about to open up to her.
“John, what were you going to say?”
“Remember I told you that it can be difficult to be a guardian?” John stopped in the threshold, turning to her, his eyes unusually pained. “This is one of those times. He’s having issues at his group home, so he’s going to stay with me this week.”
“Oh no,” Mary said, quietly. “Is there anything I can do?”
“No, but thanks.”
“What’s his name?”
“Tom.”
“Is he older or younger?”
“Older.” John’s expression tightened, his handsome features forming a professional mask again, as if that was all he wanted to reveal.
“I wish you had mentioned on the phone that you were busy. Once I had your okay, I didn’t need you to come in.”
“I came in for a specific reason.” John lowered his voice, glancing over his shoulder. “To back you up with Bennie. I thought it would help you shame her into representing Patrick. Nobody wants to look bad in front of a witness.”
“That was so nice of you. Thank you.”
“What the hell happened with Machiavelli? You had to hit him?” John’s fair skin flushed with uncharacteristic anger. “That’s outrageous! You want me to beat him up for you?”
“Nah.” Mary waved him off. “You’ve done plenty for me already. Thank you, really. Now go home and take care of your brother. I’m going to track down a wayward executor.”
“Good luck,” John called out, as Mary headed for the hallway.
“Good night!” Mary called back, thin
king randomly that if she didn’t have Anthony, she might have set her sights on John. Then again, she was only assuming she had Anthony. All she had at this point was a caterer and a dress that didn’t fit, but this wasn’t the time to worry on her wedding drama.
Half an hour later, Mary was in her car and speeding back up I-95, in caffeine heaven after a big cup of coffee she’d bought at a Wawa convenience store. She was surprisingly energized, even jittery after what happened with Machiavelli. Telling Bennie and John the story had brought it back to her, though she hated trivializing the attack by using it for leverage with Bennie. Mary told herself that she turned it into a good thing if it helped Patrick, and the ultimate irony was that because Machiavelli was such a pig, he had Bennie on his ass, which was poetic justice.
Mary raced up I-95 and noticed that she was approaching the exit for Geltz’s neighborhood. Edward’s neighborhood was only twenty minutes away from Geltz’s neighborhood, but Edward’s was on the west side of I-95, which served as an unofficial dividing line in this part of the city. Unlike the neighborhoods on the west side of I-95, the neighborhoods on the east were more upscale, and Mary had been there many times, visiting lawyer friends. The homes were new construction or townhomes with yards, trees, and a gorgeous view of the Delaware River, which flowed between Philadelphia and New Jersey.
Mary took the exit, followed around to the right, and let the GPS direct her to Riverlook, a fancy development designated by a stone entrance landscaped with shrubs and illuminated from tiny lights in the ground. She took a right into the development and followed the GPS to Geltz’s house, getting the lay of the land. Large single-family homes were interspersed with townhomes, and their façades were of gray or beige stone, illuminated from below with tiny lights. The grounds were tastefully landscaped and manicured.
Mary found Geltz’s house, which was 221 Hudson Lane, and parked at the curb, getting the first impression that nobody was home. His house was three stories tall, but the windows were dark and if it had landscaping lights illuminating its façade, they had been turned off, too. There was a circular driveway in front of the house but it was empty.
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