by Aiden Bates
He found the yearbook he'd been looking for and dragged it back over to his desk. Sometimes law meant standing up in front of a jury, arguing with passion and dignity. Sometimes it meant slogging through old yearbooks with crossed fingers, hoping to hit proof of something one way or another. Maybe he should start including that in his career day talks.
***
Ray got to the bakery first. He had planned it that way. He wanted to be able to see the entrances and the exits. Most of the cops he knew liked to find that kind of position for themselves; paranoia was something of an occupational hazard. Today, though, he had an extra motive, one that he couldn't pretend he didn't feel anymore. He wanted to see Doug Morrison walk in.
That happened five minutes after Ray got his coffee and sat down. Doug looked around and found Ray, and when he did his eyes absolutely lit up. No, this thing between them wasn't just in Ray's head. Ray had found someone special in Doug. The only question that remained was what he was going to do about it.
Doug came over to the table to deposit his things. He gave Ray a quick grin and then he headed back over to the counter, allowing Ray a prime opportunity to admire his backside once more. He came back a few moments later with a black coffee and a fruit and yogurt combination. "So," he said, pink lips curving into a smile, "how's it going? I know Plymouth's kind of a hike from Framingham. Or do you live somewhere in between?"
"No, I live right in Framingham. It makes it easier, you know? The day to day commute is just no fun. But I don't mind the drive out here once in a while. The ride out of Boston has to be something to groan about, though." Ray grimaced. He hadn't thought about that.
"Yeah, well, it could be worse. It's a reverse commute, you know? And I don't get a chance to listen to music as often as I'd like, so I splurged on the upgraded sound system for the car." He chuckled. "It's like an indulgence."
"Really? I wouldn't have guessed you for a rock 'n' roll fan." Ray grabbed for his coffee.
"We don't all exchange our souls for a better knowledge of tort law." Doug smirked at him and scooped up a spoonful of his yogurt. "I used to play in a band, actually."
Ray's jaw dropped. "Really?"
"Yeah. Right up until law school officially ate my life. I mean we weren't ever going to be the next Pearl Jam or anything, but it was fun and we got to make a little bit of extra money on the side and stuff." Doug ducked his head and blushed. "What about you? Did you ever play in a band, or were you always a straight-laced cop?"
Ray laughed and let his hand brush up against Doug's. Doug didn't pull it away. "I wasn't in a band, no, but I can't say that my family was impressed by my career choice. I still get little stuffed pigs every year for Christmas." He shook his head. "They wanted to name me Flower."
"Oh." Doug made a face. "Hippies."
"Yeah. I grew up on a commune out in Athol. Don't get me wrong, it was a great place to grow up and I've still got a fantastic relationship with everyone out there. But they were a little shocked by my decision. They're a little iffy on the whole 'establishment' thing."
Doug grinned. "I would expect so. They could hardly clam the title of hippy if they didn't at least squirm a little, right? I can't pretend my dad was enthusiastic about law school until he found out I was going into defense." His smile went wider. "I'm pretty sure he had nightmares about me going into corporate law or something."
"Why can I not see that?" Ray tried not to think about the way that his chair was migrating toward Doug's. He had nothing to be ashamed of. This was fate, after all.
"Yeah, I just couldn't stay awake through my corporate classes. It's more lucrative, don't get me wrong, but that's not why I wanted to go into law in the first place." Doug leaned a little bit closer to Ray, too. It wasn't just Ray's imagination. And that cotton candy scent was everywhere, just everywhere. "I mean money was a factor, don't get me wrong, but that was more because I wanted to help take care of my dad, you know? There was never a time when Dad wasn't there for me. He was literally right there, front and center, for every event. Every milestone. Every swim meet, every debate meet, every award. He felt like he had to be, I guess, since Mom wasn't around."
Ray shifted. He didn't want to pull away, but he couldn't sit there and pretend that he didn't fully believe that Larry was guilty of killing Emilia either. "Do you miss her?" he asked instead.
Doug bit the inside of his cheek. "Mom was very religious. She, ah, she wasn't exactly thrilled when the tests came back. It was ugly for a while. She was trying to get Dad to drop me off with Social Services for a little while. She said I was a punishment from God for their sins." He cleared his throat and looked down. "So, I guess no, I don't really miss her. I feel a little guilty about not missing her, but I can't say I'm exactly broken up about her loss. My dad was the only parent I ever needed."
Ray put an arm around Doug and pulled him close. It was too soon for that sort of thing and he knew it, but he didn't care. He could almost feel the distress radiating off of his omega, and his protective instincts wouldn’t be ignored. "You've never told anyone that before, have you?"
"No." Doug's voice was quiet, and he leaned into the embrace. "I probably shouldn't have said anything, all things considered." He chuckled softly into Ray's arm. "Sorry. It's not something I like to admit."
"I wouldn't imagine." Ray had met plenty of people whose mothers rejected them, and while he couldn't understand directly how that felt, he knew that it was a terrible feeling. "We've got a guy in Abused Persons, his family did put him into foster care. He and one of our detectives in Cold Case just had a baby. You could talk to him about it if you wanted. Ryan's a good guy. He's friendly, and he's seen a lot of stuff."
"Maybe." Doug looked up and smiled. "I mean I know a lot of people have it worse, right? My dad was everything. That's why it's so important to me to fight for him. He fought hard for me, for so long. I figured that when I went to law school I'd be able to give him an easier retirement, help him to travel and see more of the world. I didn't think that I'd be defending him from murder charges."
"Yeah, well, I bet that's the last thing that he was thinking too." Ray managed a little grin. He'd never met a criminal who expected to get caught.
The door to the shop opened and the prosecutor, Chris Maggio, walked into the shop. Both Ray and Doug had to pull back a little bit. Ray wouldn't object to being caught offering comfort to anyone, under most circumstances, but it would definitely make most people uncomfortable to have a meeting while two men cuddled.
Maggio shook hands with Ray, and gave a rueful laugh when he saw Doug. "Damn it. If I'd known you were on the case I'd have asked to have someone else assigned." He turned to Ray. "I've faced off against this guy three times. You want to know how many of those cases I won? Zip. Zilch. Nada. I'm not saying that Morrison doesn't lose, but he's not someone you want to take on."
Doug laughed a little, picking himself up from the sad picture he'd presented just moments before. "It's good to see you, Chris. You look good. How's Marie?"
"She's good, she's good. We're expecting our first baby in December." Maggio beamed.
Doug's expression of delight was unfeigned. "That's amazing news! Good luck to all three of you, and keep me posted. I want all the pictures." He turned to face Ray. "I really like working with Chris. He's smart, he knows his stuff, and he's honest. He wants the same thing we all do—to get the right person for the crime."
Ray nodded. "That's good news." He cleared his throat. "Okay. Since we're going there now, we've uncovered some new evidence in the Larry Morrison case. We need to re-open some of those investigations, at least. And Doug is petitioning for a new trial, which he'll probably get."
Maggio took a sip of his coffee. "I got the notification, of course, but the evidence was pretty damning. What other evidence could there possibly be?" He shook his head. "I mean I know he's your dad, Doug, but sometimes the jury does come to the right conclusion."
"Sometimes." Doug's little smile was full of steel. "Of course
, this is a highly unusual situation. I've rarely come across defendants who are so incredibly unwilling to speak up in their own defense."
Ray pulled a folder out of his briefcase. "I wouldn't have set this meeting up if I didn't think there was merit here. I mean I am the one who put him away." He pulled a piece of paper out of the folder and pushed it across the table to Maggio. "This is a list of eight Lakeville Killer victims for which Larry Morrison has an ironclad alibi. Multiple witnesses, date stamped photos, you name it. Those are just the ones Doug has come up with in, what, a week? Two?"
Maggio took the list and paled. "This is… this is no good."
"Those were almost my exact words when Doug came to me. Except I only had two names." Ray sighed. "I don't like to be wrong either. And for the record, I do think that some of them are Larry Morrison kills."
Doug's grin was wolfish. "We've agreed to disagree."
Maggio was staring at the paper. "This means that there has to be at least two killers."
"Or that there's just one killer who's still at large." Doug sipped from his coffee, just as calmly as if he was talking about stocks and bonds. "Yeah."
"How does this even happen?" Maggio looked up and back and forth between Doug and Ray.
Ray squirmed, but Doug leaned forward. "Like I said, this is a very unusual situation. I don't know why Dad was unwilling to come up with these. It's not like he doesn't know where he was. It's not like he did these murders or wants credit for them. I will find out why he wants to rot for crimes he didn't commit, but I won't let a killer go free."
Maggio nodded and held up the list. "Can I keep this?"
"Of course." Ray nodded. "I've got the backup. And I have the feeling that Doug will be adding to that list."
"Absolutely." Doug nodded. "I'd like for us to keep the communication lines open. It's hard enough to be out there doing the work without getting in each other's way, and we all want to make sure that the person who killed these women faces justice. Right?"
"Damn right." Maggio nodded. His face was still pale. "This is… I mean the last thing a prosecutor, or at least a decent prosecutor, wants is to find out that he locked up the wrong guy." He sat back and slumped his shoulders. "I mean how does this even happen, though? No knock on Detective Langer or the guys at the State Police, but how does all of the evidence point to one guy and have it turn out to be wrong?" He pointed to Baldovini's name. "There were multiple eyewitnesses who said that they saw Morrison walking with Baldovini that night, but he wasn't there when she would have had to be murdered!"
"Dad isn't exactly the most distinctive guy. He's average height. He dresses like an average older white guy." Doug played with the spoon from his yogurt. "He doesn't stand out in a crowd. By the time that people put that name out there, people were thinking, 'Oh, that nondescript white guy must have been Larry the Librarian.' Of course."
"I guess." Maggio shook his head. "I mean Doug, I'll look into these but I'm confident that we'll be able to take these off of your father's record. I wouldn't have brought charges if I weren't confident that Larry Morrison was guilty, though. Some of these other cases may be the work of another killer, and if they're all the work of someone else I will throw a huge party. I'll be the happiest wrong guy in the history of wrongness. But Doug, this might not go the way you want."
Doug's cheeks colored up. "I know, Chris. I appreciate that. I do. I have to see this through."
Maggio sighed. "I get it. As much as anyone can get it, I guess." He shook his head. "I have to say, though. I've never seen a guy who said he was innocent who refused to provide evidence on his own behalf."
"Me either." Ray bit his lip. "Look. I get that the three of us aren't supposed to be on friendly terms while we're working a case like this, but these are really exceptional circumstances. Let's make sure that we share information, okay? I want to be sure that we're all on the same page. The threat to public safety has to be my first priority."
"Of course." Both lawyers nodded and Doug brightened. "And we're really all on the same side anyway. Chris and I respect one another, you and I respect one another, I don't see a reason why we wouldn't be able to work together."
They all shook on it, and then Maggio checked his watch. "Okay. Well, I need to run. I've got opening arguments in an arson trial in twenty minutes."
"Yikes." Ray shook his head. "Arson was never my favorite. Good luck."
Maggio waved a hand. "Even Doug couldn't get this guy off. They caught him on the scene with a gas can in his hand, and burns. Anyway, let me know what the next thing you dig up is."
"Will do." Maggio left, and Ray and Doug were alone again.
Ray turned to Doug. "I had no idea that you and he knew each other." He leaned back toward Doug.
"Oh yeah. Like I said, he's a good prosecutor. He's fair. He's good. He's smart, too." He rubbed his hands together. "I like going up against him. He makes you work for it. Chris is never going through the motions, you know?" Doug looked over at him. "Well, I suppose I should get back to the office."
"We could meet up maybe tomorrow and see if we can come up with any alternative theories." The words fell out of Ray's mouth almost without his conscious control.
Doug brightened up at the suggestion. "Maybe meet up at five or so?"
"Sure thing. It might not be the best thing for public consumption." Ray shrugged. "Civilians get upset when you talk about dead bodies in front of them."
"Go figure." Doug laughed. "Meet up at my place at five, and we can work on it then."
Ray watched him go, a little spring in his step, and wondered just what he'd gotten himself into.
Chapter Four
Doug had everything ready when Ray showed up on Saturday at five. He had finger foods, simple and easy, nothing that would get in the way of discussion of the case. He had evidence, notes in neat little binders that coordinated with his decor. He had wine, although he didn't set that out because he didn't want to create a frivolous impression.
Well, he did want to create a frivolous impression. He wanted, more than anything, to convince the beautiful alpha to take him to bed and drive all thoughts of anything but Ray Langer from his brain, preferably more than once. But he wasn't going to do that. He needed to remember his priorities. Dad was more important than his libido.
He knew that Langer was interested. He couldn't misread those signals. Not with the way they'd moved toward each other, like they were drawn by magnets, for crying out loud. No, he was pretty sure that Langer was attracted to him. Langer had probably come to the same conclusion that Doug had. They needed to focus on the case, not on sex. They had a job to do. Public safety and all that.
Maybe Doug should take a cold shower before Ray got here. If he'd gotten to the point when he'd reduced stopping a serial killer to "public safety and all that," he needed to get control of himself.
When the buzzer rang, alerting him to Ray's arrival, he knew that he was out of time.
He opened the door. Ray's eyes bulged when he saw Doug, and for a moment Doug panicked. He should have dressed more professionally. Tight jeans and a fitted tee shirt were probably not the right way to impress a cop, and God he probably looked like an absolute hooker. His tattoos were even visible, for crying out loud. That wasn't the right way to send a message that he was focused and ready to work on the case.
Then he gave himself a mental shake. He was Doug Morrison. He looked good in those jeans, and he was a damn good lawyer in tight jeans and a tee shirt or in a suit and tie. "Hey, Ray. Come on in."
Ray followed him into the condo. He looked good, dressed casually himself in dark jeans and a dark polo shirt with a rabbit on it. "Nice place," he said, glancing around.
"Thanks. It's convenient, you know? Walk to work, that kind of thing." He gestured to the couch. "Make yourself comfortable. Can I get you anything? Coffee, water, wine?"
Ray raised an eyebrow. "I'll take a glass of wine, since you're offering." He sat down on the couch.
Doug walked
over to the bar and pulled out the wine he'd hidden there. He opened it and poured two glasses, and brought it over to the couch. Then he sat down far enough away from Ray to be respectable and gestured to the material he'd assembled. "So. We should probably get started."
Ray smiled a little and reached for one of the binders. "I guess my first question would have to be, can you think of anyone who might have set your father up?"
They went over the case for a good two hours. They discussed the possibility that someone was going out of their way to set Larry up, but Doug couldn't point to someone that had enough of a grudge against the man. They talked about the possibility of a coincidence, but the evidence was too overwhelming and Larry's refusal to give himself an alibi was too damning. The only possibility was a killer who looked enough like Larry that was willing to let Larry take the blame, for whom Larry was willing to sacrifice everything, and that was so farfetched that Doug just couldn't wrap his head around it.
