by Mark Gimenez
He said they would never speak about what had happened to her ten years ago or what had happened on that mountain in Idaho. That was all in the past now, and Elizabeth Brice was finally able to leave the past behind her. The violation she had suffered ten years ago had owned her life ever since. But no longer. Because that violation had given her a better life—a child’s life.
Grace was worth it.
Gracie was driving the ball down the field, but she couldn’t focus, not with her SO acting the fool on the sideline, shouting and cheering and doing some kind of funny little dance now. God bless him, he had the rhythm of a rock. Maybe it was better when Dad multitasked during her games … No, this was better. Like, totally. She smiled at him as she ran past.
Everything was different now. Everything was better. Her parents seemed to actually like each other—she had never seen Mom kiss Dad before—and in public! PDA! Dad was a new man, a real grownup, a manly father more than a big brother (although he promised to still take them to Krispy Kreme every Saturday morning). He had bear-hugged her a dozen times since she had come home.
And Mom—wow, Mom was a complete stranger. She had held Gracie and cried and cried when they got off the plane. She hadn’t even stopped to talk to the reporters waiting for them. She had even come up to school and had lunch with Gracie yesterday. That had never happened before. And she wasn’t mad at the world. She was happy. She wasn’t going to be a lawyer anymore.
But she still would not allow Gracie to get a tattoo for her eleventh birthday.
Gracie had changed, too. She was a different girl since the last time she had played on this field. She had been abducted, buried, and saved. She had seen things no fourth-grader should ever see and met people no fourth-grader should ever meet and learned things no fourth-grader should ever learn. And she had talked to the President of the United States of America. They had captured the man with the red hair and long rifle, and the president had called just to say thanks. She made sure he knew she was a Democrat. He laughed and said that was okay with him.
She was even happy to see Sam, even though one look at her room and she knew he had gone through all her personal stuff. She decided not to kill him, at least not now.
Her family was finally together.
“Gracie, take it to the goal!”
Coach Wally was having a cow. So Gracie turned on the speed, faked out two defenders, drove to the goal, and blasted the ball just inside high left post. It was Gracie’s third goal, and they were still in the first quarter. The other girls mobbed her.
The team had made it into the playoffs. Luck would have it, their first-round opponents were the Raiders. The snot’s team. Her butthead father, Mr. Creep himself, was again standing on the sidelines, wearing a slick suit, and drinking from a big plastic mug. Mrs. Creep was standing next to him like a prison warden. You’d think the big jerk would know when to leave well enough alone. Well, you’d be wrong.
“Pa-a-a-a-a-nty che-e-e-ck!”
The players and spectators instantly fell silent. Brenda groaned. “Not again.”
This time, though, was different for Gracie. She didn’t feel as if someone had punched her in the stomach. She didn’t bite her lower lip and fight back the tears. She didn’t wish to die or that she were bigger and older so she could beat the guy up or that Dad would do something or that Elizabeth Brice, Attorney-at-Large, would—
“Oh shit, Gracie!” Brenda said. “Your mother!”
Gracie turned away from the big jerk and saw her mother marching straight across the soccer field and past the players and directly toward Mr. Creep; her fists were clenched. Gracie heard Sam’s high-pitched voice from the sideline: “All right, a fight!” Gracie looked over and saw Dad running after Mom, but she would be punching out Mr. Creep before he could stop her. Gracie heard Sally’s gleeful voice behind her: “Your mother’s gonna kick his big butt into next week!”
Fifteen days ago, Gracie would have paid to watch this fight. But she was different now. She ran over and cut off her mother.
Elizabeth Brice was no longer a forty-year-old rage-filled lunatic. She was no longer a tough-broad white-collar criminal defense lawyer willing to wear short skirts to win trials. She was no longer hard and mean and ruthless.
But she was still a mother.
And the most dangerous creature on earth is a mother whose child has been threatened, insulted, harassed, or bullied.
Elizabeth Brice was going to punch that big son of a bitch in the mouth.
“Mom, stop!”
Grace suddenly appeared; she grabbed Elizabeth’s arm and pulled her to a stop just as John ran up.
“Mom,” Grace pleaded, “I can handle this.”
“No, Grace, I’m your mother. I’ll handle it!”
“No,” John said, “I’m your father, I’ll handle it!”
“No! Both of you—listen! I’m a big girl now. I can handle it myself!”
Elizabeth stared into her daughter’s blue eyes. Her anger dissipated as if blown away by the soft breeze. Grace was different, too.
“You are a big girl, aren’t you?”
“Yes, Mother, I am.”
“You’re sure you don’t want me to beat this guy up?”
“I’m sure.”
John said, “Can I beat him up?”
“No! I’ve got it covered.”
Elizabeth smiled. And then Grace smiled. And Elizabeth Brice saw in her daughter’s eyes that Grace did indeed have it covered. She leaned close to her daughter and whispered, “Make it good.”
Mom and Dad walked off the field, and the cute referee blew his whistle to restart the game. Gracie quickly stole the ball from a Raider and then kicked the ball on a high arch over the defenders to Brenda, who was open along the Raiders’ sideline. Brenda controlled the ball and drove it up the sideline. Gracie’s mind quickly plotted out her angle of attack. Precise timing was required to pull this off. Gracie cut across the field and ran toward the Raiders’ sideline, to a point that would intersect the ball and …
Brenda kicked the ball up the sideline just as Gracie arrived at the exact point, her concentration focused like a laser beam on the ball, now driving the laces of her white Lotto soccer shoe into the ball, with all her might, sending the ball forcefully—
—right at Mr. Creep’s head.
He bailed. The plastic mug went flying, ice and liquid splattered all over his expensive suit, and he hit the ground hard on his big butt. The other parents laughed out loud. Mrs. Creep was grinning down at him.
Gracie walked over to the big jerk.
“I’m a girl.” She put her thumbs inside the waistband, like she was going to pull her shorts down. “You wanna check?”
Mr. Creep shook his head.
“I didn’t think so.”
Gracie rejoined the game.
Sam was standing on the Tornadoes’ sideline; he was terribly disappointed. Dangit, he wanted to see a real fight.
He had cried when Gracie came home because she wasn’t dead or nothing. It was good to have a big sister again. Just the same, he hoped she didn’t find out that he had gone through all her personal stuff in her room while she was gone.
Kate Brice was standing next to Sam. Thirty-eight years late, but she finally had her fairy tale marriage. She looked down at her husband. She had been wrong: Ben Brice had come back.
The war was finally over for Ben Brice.
He sat in the wheelchair, Kate’s hand resting on his shoulder and Buddy resting on the ground beside him. The doctors had said he could come to the game but only if he stayed in the chair. He had started to argue but decided against it; he would’ve come even if they had to roll the hospital bed out here. Gracie was safe. And he had found his peace.
He looked up to John and Elizabeth. They had survived this and were stronger for it. They were one now.
“Thanks, Dad,” John said. “Sorry about shooting you.”
“You weren’t the first.”
Elizabeth leaned dow
n, kissed Ben on the cheek, and whispered in his ear: “Thank you, Colonel Ben Brice, for saving Grace.”
Ben looked out at Gracie racing down the field. His past had in fact come back—West Point; Special Forces school; Commander Ron Porter; Captain Jack O. Smith; Sheriff J.D. Johnson; Lieutenant Roger Dalton; Major Charles Woodrow Walker; Quang Tri and the china doll—but not to haunt Gracie, as he had feared. His past had come back to save her. The pieces of his life that had never seemed to fit together had fallen into place like a complex puzzle to form a whole life that he only now understood. He thought of that life and he thought of his mother. She had been right all along.
God did have a plan for Ben Brice.
BOOKS BY MARK GIMENEZ
Available now in e-book:
The Color of Law
The Abduction
The Perk
The Common Lawyer
Accused
Available in e-book on December 1, 2011:
The Governor's Wife
And Mark's first children's book,
Parts & Labor: Book One of the Adventures of Max Dugan
Praise for Mark's books
THE COLOR OF LAW
No. 6, Sunday Times paperback list (UK)
No. 28, New York Times hardback list
Amazon's Top 10 Mystery & Thriller List, 2005
Finalist, 2005 Thriller Award for Best First Novel
Finalist, 2005 Gumshoe Award for Best First Novel
Alan Cheuse's (NPR/All Things Considered) 2005 Holiday Booklist.
Top 10 of 2006, CrimeSquad.com (UK)
"First novelist Gimenez draws on his experience as an attorney in this taut legal thriller that echoes To Kill a Mockingbird. With fast-paced and edgy prose, dramatic tête-à-têtes between attorneys, and an explosive courtroom conclusion, Gimenez effectively weaves elements of race, class, and justice into a story of a lawyer who rediscovers the difference between doing good and doing well."
- Library Journal (starred review)
"Gimenez delivers an authentically creepy debut novel. A big part of this thriller's appeal is its moral backbone… . This is a well-calibrated contemporary morality play, set in get-rich-quick Dallas, with tours of country clubs and gated communities, and knowledgeable forays into Darwinian legal tactics. Gimenez also gives us a hateful character who becomes more sympathetic the more he fails. Fast-paced and thought-provoking fare."
- Booklist (starred review)
"The Color of Law is an unbeatable legal thriller with a lot of heart."
- Texas Monthly
"Gimenez makes his debut with a legal thriller based in Big D that will keep you on the edge of your seat… . 'The Color of Law' is full of twists and turns into the dark side of human nature with a final courtroom scene straight from 'To Kill a Mockingbird.' "
- San Antonio Express-News
"American lawyers, more accustomed to speaking the language of their people, are much better at [writing legal thrillers]. Scott Turow and John Grisham are the best known, but there are many others. I recommend The Colour of Law by Mark Gimenez, one of the most promising American lawyer-writers I’ve read recently. It's a Grisham-like novel about a slick, successful, ambitious Dallas corporate lawyer whose life changes when he has to defend a black prostitute accused of murder."
– The Guardian (UK)
" 'The Colour of Law' by Mark Gimenez is a compulsive read that owes its heart, soul and passion to Harper Lee's 'To Kill A Mockingbird'. In this fast-paced debut, Gimenez sinks his teeth into the manicured and corrupt world of lawyered, high-society Dallas in all its ostentatious glory: golf club memberships, fancy houses, fast cars, sleek wives and the all-encompassing reach of cold, hard power. In A. Scott Fenney—a young, rich and ruthless corporate lawyer at one of Dallas's most prestigious firms who glibly practises 'aggressive and creative' law for his high-paying clients—will the world find a hero or a patsy? Only a case involving a poor, black, drug-addicted prostitute and a dead white senator's son will tell. Warning: you can lose an entire lazy Sunday to this one.
– Time Out London
"New author and former lawyer Mark Gimenez, a Texan, has written a riveting story about the corruption of the law… . Gimenez matches up to biggies like John Grisham and Scott Turow, with a thrilling tale of how the law actually works."
– Calgary Sun
"This is a powerful courtroom thriller set in Dallas and featuring an engaging hero in the form of hotshot corporate lawyer turned defence attorney, Scott Fenney. Gimenez is a gifted plotter and the story winds its way through some good twists before arriving at a startling conclusion. Along the way, Gimenez also makes some points about wealth, social responsibility and race relations in America."
– Canberra Times
"A little To Kill a Mockingbird with some Law & Order thrown in, Color is a page-turner, and Gimenez—a real-life attorney-turned-author—seems to warrant his billing as 'the next John Grisham.' "
- Houston Press
"At least once a year a new legal thriller hits the shelves, hyped to the stars, with promises that the author will be 'the next John Grisham.' Usually, the fanfare is wasted, the hype is a lie and the promises fall flat because the book isn't very good. Not so with Mark Gimenez' compelling debut, The Color of Law."
- Chicago Sun-Times
"The plot setup is as convoluted and intricate as anything in recent memory, an inverted morality tale that equals some of the best work of legal thriller writers Scott Turow, Lisa Scottoline or John Grisham."
- BookPage
"Gimenez's stunning debut is easily one of the most provocative legal thrillers to come along in awhile… . This is a must read, inspiring and delicious."
- New Mystery Reader Magazine
" 'The Color of Law' is more than just a highly readable legal thriller. It's also a blistering attack on both the legal profession and super-rich Texans in Dallas … It's a tasty plot—big money, political intrigue, sexy wives, precocious little girls—but the novel would be a lot less fun without Gimenez's scathing portrait of the city and its most powerful citizens."
- Washington Post
"This debut novel takes the best from Grisham, Meltzer, et al – and adds yet more to make this one of the best legal thrillers I have read for some time."
– CrimeSquad.com
"Gimenez maintains a rhythm that keeps pages turning long past bedtime."
- Austin American-Statesman
"The book starts fast and never slows down."
- Houston Chronicle
"Gimenez's debut has plenty of twists and flashes of humor. A promising, distinctive new voice."
- Kirkus Reviews
"Gimenez does a fine job with the plot; lots of twists and the courtroom scenes are great."
- Globe and Mail
THE PERK
Best-seller lists
No. 6, Ireland
No. 11, Australia
No. 17, UK hardback
"Remember when John Grisham exploded on to the courtroom drama market with novels of breathtaking brilliance? Lightning just struck twice."
- The Daily Record (Scotland)
"Gimenez returns to the complex legal thrillers where he seems to be at his best. The Perk has mystery, humour and history along with well-drawn characters that the reader will actually care about. As is often the case in legal thrillers, there is a mix of those characters that take the moral high ground and those who seem just out for their own good. Unusually, there are also a few comic and slightly caricatured figures here as well—but they all fit well together in the plot. Together with great characters and a strong plot there is also lots of interesting historical information. The ending may not be what is expected but it is all the better for it and proves to be a good finish to an excellent book. As ever, Gimenez is highly recommended, impossible to put down and definitely not to be missed."
- CrimeSquad.com (UK)
"Just as well I started The Perk on the weekend, as I couldn't put down this bo
ok… . This one's a cracker—neatly woven subplots, a taut thriller and a wonderfully current statement on American popular culture. And yes, Gimenez may possibly be the next Grisham."
- Kerre's Book Reviews (UK)
“Gimenez fills the John Grisham hole in the legal-thriller genre so well there may be no room left for Grisham.”
– The Sunday Times (Perth)
"Gimenez's novels are gripping, intense thrillers. Guaranteed to keep you up well into the night, The Perk is an exceptionally well crafted novel, populated by a cast of characters that are realistically-drawn and appealing. As always, thought-provoking, intelligent, and addictive. Highly recommended."
- Civilian-Reader (UK)
Top Ten of 2008—"We read lots of thrillers and they can tend to merge into one another. The Perk stood out by a mile as an excellent example of the genre and a stunning, well told tale in its own right. Gimenez' stature continues to grow."
- CrimeSquad.com (UK)
THE COMMON LAWYER
Best-seller lists
No. 8, South Africa
No. 10, Ireland
No. 11, Australia
No. 13, UK paperback
"The Common Lawyer is about an overpowering need to right a shocking wrong, and it contains violence, romance and some heart-warmingly managed ethical dilemmas … The pace is perfect; the style clean and transparent; the emotional manipulation, effective; and you can see the film from here. It will entertain many people."
- Times Literary Supplement (UK)
"Mark Gimenez writes colloquially smart dialogue but plots like an old master."
- The Australian
"The Common Lawyer is an addictive, compulsive read. With an interesting, flawed protagonist who matures as the novel progresses, a cast of well-drawn and diverse characters, and a great plot (not to mention the unexpected twist at the end), this is a must-read novel. Highly recommended, The Common Lawyer will keep you reading into the night."
- Civilian-Reader (UK)
ACCUSED
Best-seller lists
