Page 15 of One of Us Is Guilty

‘Come on. I’ll read the damn report. Just spit it out,’ I said.

‘Probable cause of Molly Green’s death was decapitation,’ said Buchanan.

‘Jesus, why is that only aprobablecause?’

‘Because a full examination was not possible?’ said Buchanan.

‘I don’t understand,’ I said.

When Duff spoke, he startled me. He had been quiet this whole time. And his voice was dry and cracked, as if it had come through the trunk of a dead tree instead of a throat.

‘A full examination of the body wasn’t possible because her head is still missing,’ he said.

3

Eddie

The Second Avenue Deli, now located on Third Avenue for reasons that I still don’t understand, had about the best pastrami sandwich I’d ever tasted. Some people preferred Katz’s Deli, and I wouldn’t argue, but in this part of town there was nothing better.

Harry Ford wrapped his hands around the famous sandwich, took a bite. I started with the French fries, because they’re the best. Harry, when he was still a judge, had been my mentor and we’d grown into best friends. He didn’t just use law books for show, like I had that morning – he’d read them. He also drank a little more than was good for him, which these days meant his legal knowledge wasn’t as sharp as it used to be. Harry blamed that on his age, not the booze.

Under the table, Harry’s dog, Clarence, whined softly. Harry took some smoked ham from his side plate, fed it to Clarence.

‘I let you bring the dog in here, but I didn’t say you could feed him,’ said a passing waiter.

‘He’s an assistance animal. And he ordered his own plate,’ said Harry.

‘What does heassistyou with?’ asked the waiter, with a derisory sneer.

‘He bites rude waiters,’ said Harry.

The waiter raised an eyebrow, moved on.

‘I don’t like the sound of this case,’ said Harry.

‘If it was up to you, we’d never take any cases,’ I said.

‘If it was up to me, we wouldn’t take the kind of cases that get us into trouble. We’d be poorer, but we wouldn’t have as many scars. And we might have more personnel.’

Recently, my partner Kate Brooks had left the firm.

Justice in America doesn’t come cheap. And I’m not talking about legal fees. Delivering justice takes a little piece of your soul. Kate had done the right thing, paid the price for it and now she wanted some time to herself, to adjust. She was a good person. Honest, true, loyal and one of the finest lawyers of her generation. That either made her totally suited to life in criminal defense or completely unsuited, depending on how you looked at it. She could do the job better than me, but she never wanted to cross over the line.

The scales of justice in this city aren’t balanced. The prosecution has all the weight and leverage. Sometimes you had to bend the law a little to even up those scales.

Kate Brooks wasn’t someone who bent the rules. So, for now, she wasn’t a lawyer.

‘If somebody is innocent and they need my help, I’ve got no choice, Harry. I have a responsibility.’

‘There’s always a choice,’ he said. ‘You made a mistake a long time ago. When you took on that case, you didn’t know your client was guilty. You’ve been carrying that around like an anvil on your shoulders. Time to put it down, kid. You can’t save everybody.’

‘I can try.’

‘And, eventually, you’ll fail. And that’s okay too.’

‘Not today I won’t. Will you come with me to meet this client?’

Harry put down his sandwich, took a sip of water.