- •If the nine of us had a vote, Rafter would be the first sacrificial lamb. Eight to one.
- •I doubted if the Yale money went to feed needy students. "Well, the United Way spreads the money around the city, and I'm sure some of it went to help the poor."
- •Invention failed me. "None," I said softly.
- •I flipped through the papers as Mister walked to the windows and peeked around the
- •Instead of shooting Colburn, he aimed at Nuzzo and repeated the three questions. Nnzzo
- •I could see our friends and a squadron of cops flying across the city, through rash-hour
- •I didn't know. There was blood on my face and shirt, and a sticky liquid that a doctor
- •I met Claire the week after I moved to d.C. I was just out of Yale with a great job in a
- •It's standard procedure in that situation--they notify the hospitals, and everyone is placed
- •It was busy and dusty and I was fascinated with the place.
- •It was a soft jab, and I was not in the mood to spar. "Do you know if he had aids?"
- •I saw a paralegal scanning blueprints at a desk next to a secretarial pool, and I asked him
- •I smiled again and nodded my agreement. An ass and a fool. If Chance had been pleasant
- •I was tiring of the games. I could tell she was pleased that my brush with death had
- •It was over. And I hated to tell my mother.
- •I don't know which of my parents got the worst end of my visit. My mother wanted
- •It was my life, not his.
- •I drove alone on the narrow paved trail while he stalked down the fairway chasing his
- •Vengeance. Two more volunteers manned the stove. Several hauled the food to the
- •I tried to understand this. "Then where do these people live?"
- •Volunteers stepped forward to help. One parked them in a corner near the kitchen and
- •I hadn't planned on sleeping with these people. Nor had I planned on leaving the building
- •I thought about Claire for the first time in several hours. How would she react if she knew
- •I squatted close to him, and held out a cookie. His eyes glowed and he grabbed it. I
- •I didn't smell anything foul, though I was certain I could feel lice jumping from its head
- •I hadn't dreamed of parting with my fabulous car. I was almost offended.
- •It was dim, cold, and empty. He flipped on light switches and began talking. "There are
- •In eighty-six; must've been a hundred years old. He made a ton of money, and late in life
- •In the summer, cuts down on the street traffic. You want coffee?"
- •I listened intently, and he could read my mind. Mordecai began to reel me in.
- •I raced to the sidewalk, sliding in the snow but staying on my feet, then down p Street to
- •I must have made a strange sound, because a jogger gave me an odd look, as if I might be
- •I didn't want to sit in the car by myself, but by then I trusted him with my life anyway.
- •I cursed Mister for derailing my life. I cursed Mordecai for making me feel guilty. And
- •Vintage Warner. I had a problem, he already had the solution. Nice and neat. Twelve
- •It was almost five before I found a few minutes alone. I said good-bye to Polly, and
- •In a tight booth.
- •Invitation. Mordecai had something on his mind. I could tell by the way his eyes followed
- •I called in sick tuesday. "Probably the flu," I told polly, who, as she was trained to do,
- •I was alone, with my choice of seating. I walked quietly to a spot above the rear door,
- •Its leaders who allowed such a thing to happen. She blamed Congress, especially the
- •I closed the door, sat down. "Thought you were sick," he said.
- •It was a very nice apartment; at twenty-four hundred a month it should've been even nicer.
- •I put a log on the fire, fixed another drink, and slept on the sofa.
- •I was impressed and touched by the idea, and I could not simply dismiss it. I promised
- •I cut the editorial from the paper, folded it, and placed it in my wallet.
- •Immediately known that we were up to something.
- •Very somber Rudolph that a bad precedent could be set. With a firm so large, granting a
- •It was getting dark, and Sofia seemed anxious to leave. Abraham retreated to his office.
- •I stuffed the pills in my pockets. Leon was napping in the car. As we sped away, I called
- •I explained why I was there. He found a clipboard and studied papers stuck to it. In the
- •It would be our last meal together as husband and wife, ending the same way we'd begun,
- •I walked to m Street, in a light rain that was turning to sleet, and in significant pain.
- •It was an assault, a burst of personality that put me on my heels. I shook hands, reeling,
- •I caught a very faint smile, a relaxing around the eyes, nothing a surveillance camera
- •Impression he would have rather stayed in bed.
- •Into a pile on the bed--socks, underwear, tee shirts, miletries, shoes, but only the ones I
- •I believed him. He'd been a friend for seven years, close at times. More often than not,
- •If Braden Chance had made the connection between the eviction and Lontae Burton, he
- •I go play tennis for two weeks on Maui, then when we return you go back to your plush
- •In the past fifteen years, two and a half million low-cost housing units have been
- •Violate their leases, which can lead to eviction. They move around, sometimes they leave
- •I wrote down these instructions as if they were complicated. Waylene was owed two
- •Verified it. Mordecai said, "va is a good agency. We'll get the checks sent here."
- •Vision of Claire sitting in her lawyer's fine office, at that very moment, finalizing plans to
- •I was in no hurry to leave the clinic at the end of my first day. Home was an empty attic,
- •Very thin. I ignored him. "Your names please," I said to the two uniformed cops. They
- •Indicating how much he paid for it."
- •I almost asked why the city didn't intervene and enforce its laws, but fortunately I caught
- •Intake room, and disappeared. We set up our clinic, and were ready to dispense advice.
- •I was spellbound by his story. With every client I had met so far during my brief career as
- •I walked several blocks and stopped at a busy corner. Leaning on a building, I dialed
- •I grunted and gave him my best smart-ass laugh. "The arrest warrant usually follows the
- •Into the parking lots were of the midsized commuter variety, mostly clean and with all
- •In cars, begging for coins, counting the hours until she could see him, then being ignored
- •I removed each file from my cabinets, waved them under Gasko's nose, and returned
- •I noticed something I should have seen before. There were different levels of
- •Interest in leaving me alone; the two searches were clear proof that Arthur on the top
- •Initially. In the event we recovered damages, the family would be a nightmare. It was safe
- •It was already a habit.
- •I wasn't about to scold her. I had done nothing since the day before to help her find
- •It was a small step, but not an insignificant one.
- •It was Friday afternoon. I might not survive a weekend in the city jail.
- •I closed my eyes and tried to get comfortable, which I found impossible to do while
- •If searching for a dime. Finding none, he pointed and grunted at a metal detector, which I
- •Voice was calling for a guard. The punk with my jacket did not put it on. The cell
- •I wasn't hungry, but I thought about food. I had no toothbrush. I didn't need the toilet, but
- •Incarceration was over. Sofia waited outside with her car, and they whisked me away.
- •I left my apartment just before sunrise, Saturday, in a rush to find the nearest newspaper.
- •It sounded like a silly little spat--a bunch of lawyers quibbling over nothing but
- •I was not going to be sucked into an argument I couldn't win. "Are you going to Naomi's
- •I almost ran a red light. She was sleeping on the office doorstep at sunrise; she was barely
- •I drank tea with a Catholic priest at the Redeemer Mission off Rhode Island. He studied
- •I thanked her for calling, and we promised to keep in touch. When I laid the cell phone
- •I left as soon as I could. She invited me to return for lunch. We could eat in her office,
- •I once rode.
- •I arrived at the Associated Life Building shortly after seven Monday morning. The day
- •It was so familiar!
- •Important people, Hector had been found by the only person he was running from.
- •Indexed into the file. You did this because you knew Braden Chance would remove it at
- •In d.C. And we've talked to the guard who was with you on January twenty-seventh."
- •Interest in talking. Hector asked how much rent was being charged for the apartments,
- •I watched ten minutes of the second half, then left with spasms in my back, aftereffects of
- •I thanked them and left. The motel was at least ten miles from our office. I called Megan
- •If I couldn't keep her locked away in suburban motels for three nights, then how was I
- •I stared at the phone long after our conversation was over. I did not want to see Warner,
- •Ignored.
- •I told him the story, stretching it out with every detail because I was in control of the
- •I took a deep breath and enjoyed the humor of his question. He relaxed too. We were too
- •I waved him off and walked away.
- •Vehicles behind it. A large, toothy dog with a chain around its neck guarded the front. I
- •I left Megan at Naomi's, and promised to call later in the afternoon. Ruby had become a
- •Valuable. There appeared to be no motive. He encountered a street person in some
- •It had been many years since a member of Congress had been shot in Washington.
- •I vowed to get a bed. I was losing too much sleep floundering on the floor, trying to
- •In a lengthy article, he examined each of the three defendants, beginning with RiverOaks.
- •It was twenty minutes past nine when I arrived with my lawyer at the Carl Moultrie
- •It was only a first appearance! I would stand before the Judge while he read the charges. I
- •I nodded in agreement. It certainly felt unusual to me.
- •In the midst of this sad obituary, a glimmer of hope sprang forth. After Temeko arrived,
- •In his finest moment, he dwelt on street crime, and the deterioration of our cities. (His
- •Implied that he thought so, but bring in Justice!
- •I followed her into the front room, where in the center Mr. Deese sat next to her desk. He
- •I almost hoped the police would sweep the streets again.
- •In a hallowed corner of the building I'd never been near. Mordecai was treated like a visiting dignitary by the receptionist and staff--his coat was quickly taken, his coffee
- •Interest in judicial proceedings in Omaha. He knew what he could do with a jury in the
- •Individual wrongs; they are sometimes used as pulpits.
- •I drove to the Georgetown Law School near Capitol Hill. The library was open until
- •I wanted to take my seat in the jury box, listen to it all, and not be bothered by anyone.
- •If at trial we proved the defendants liable, the jury would then consider the issue of
- •It was a spellbinding performance, given off the cuff with the skill of a gifted storyteller.
- •It was the perfect case for the levying of punitive damages, and there was little doubt in
- •I caught a few stares from Rafter, but who cared. He and the rest were anxious to get their
- •I was unlocking the car when the cell phone rattled in my pocket. It was Judge DeOrio.
- •I avoided the jury box and sat next to Mordecai. Wilma Phelan had left.
- •Involved in this mess, and we'll have us an old-fashioned spitting contest." He pointed at
- •Voices would be heard through ours.
- •I was too surprised to say much, so I just listened. I wished Mordecai could hear him.
- •I didn't dare think of the future; the past was still happening.
I believed him. He'd been a friend for seven years, close at times. More often than not,
though, we'd been too busy for friendship.
"Why are they pointing at me?"
"The file has something to do with Mister. You went to Braden Chance and demanded to
see it. You were seen near his office the night it disappeared. There is evidence someone
gave you some keys that perhaps you shouldn't have had."
"Is that all?"
"That, and the fingerprints."
"Fingerprints?" I asked, trying to appear surprised. "All over the place. The door, the light
switch, the file cabinet itself. Perfect matches. You were there, Michael. You took the file.
Now what will you do with it?"
"How much do you know about the file?"
"Mister got evicted by one of our real estate clients. He was a squatter. He went nuts,
scared the hell out of us, you almost got hit. You cracked up."
"Is that all?"
"That's all they've told us."
"They being?"
"They being the big dogs. We got memos late Friday--the entire firm, lawyers, secretaries,
paralegals, ev erybody--informing us that a file had been taken, you were the suspect, and
that no member of the firm should have any contact with you. I am forbidden to be here
right now."
"I won't tell."
"Thanks."
If Braden Chance had made the connection between the eviction and Lontae Burton, he
was not the type who would admit this to anyone. Not even his fellow partners. Barry
was being truthful. He probably thought my only interest in the file was DeVon Hardy.
"Then why are you here?"
"I'm your friend. Things are crazy right now. My God we had cops in the office on Friday,
can you believe that? Last week it was the SWAT team, and we were hostages. Now
you've jumped off a cliff. And the thing with Claire. Why don't we take a break? Let's go
somewhere for a couple of weeks. Take our wives."
"where?"
"I don't know. who cares. The islands."
"What would that accomplish?"
"We could thaw out for one thing. Play some tennis. Sleep. Get recharged."
"Paid for by the firm?"
"Paid for by me."
"Forget about Claire. It's over, Barry. It took a long time, but it's over."
"Okay. The two of us will go."
"But you're not supposed to have any contact with me."
"I have an idea. I think I can go to Arthur and have a long chat. We can unwind this thing.
You bring back the file, forget whatever is in it, the firm forgives and forgets too, you and
I go play tennis for two weeks on Maui, then when we return you go back to your plush
office where you belong."
"They sent you, didn't they?"
"No. I swear."
"It won't work, Barry."
"Give me a good reason. Please."
"There's more to being a lawyer than billing hours and making money. Why do we want
to become corporate whores? I'm tired of it, Barry. I want to make a difference."
"You sound like a first-year law student."
"Exactly. We got into this business because we thought the law was a higher calling. We
could fight injustice and social ills, and do all sorts of great things because we were
lawyers. We were idealistic once. Why can't we do it again?"
"Mortgages."
"I'm not trying to recruit. You have three kids; luckily Claire and I have none. I can
afford to go a little nuts."
A radiator in a corner, one I had not yet noticed, began to rattle and hiss. We watched it
and waited hopefully for a little heat. A minute passed. Then two.
"They're gonna come after you, Michael," he said, still looking at the radiator, but not
seeing.
"They? You mean we?"
"Right. The firm. You can't steal a file. Think about the client. The client has a right to
expect confidentiality. If a file walks out, the firm has no choice but to go after it."
"Criminal charges?"
"Probably. They're mad as hell, Michael. You can't blame them. There's also talk of a
disciplinary action with the bar association. An injunction is likely. Rafter is already
working on it."
"Why couldn't Mister have aimed a little lower?"
"They're coming hard."
"The firm has more to lose than I do."
He studied me. He did not know what was in the file.
"There's more than Mister?" he asked.
"A lot more. The firm has tremendous exposure. If they come after me, I go after the
firm."
"You can't use a stolen file. No court in the country will allow it into evidence. You don't
understand litigation."
"I'm learning. Tell them to back off. Remember, I've got the file, and the file's got the
dirt."
"They were just a bunch of squatters, Michael."
"It's much more complicated than that. Someone needs to sit down with Braden Chance
and get the truth. Tell Rafter to do his homework before he pulls some harebrained stunt.
Believe me, Barry, this is front-page stuff. You guys will be afraid to leave your homes."
"So you're proposing a truce? You keep the file, we leave you alone."
"For now anyway. I don't know about next week or the week after."
"Why can't you talk to Arthur? I'll referee. The three of us will get in a room, lock the
door, work this thing out. What do you say?"
"It's too late. People are dead."
"Mister got himself killed."
"There are others." And with that, I had said enough. Though he was my friend, he would
repeat most of our conversation to his bosses.
"Would you like to explain?" he said.
"I can't. It's confidential."
"That has a phony sound to it, coming from a lawyer who steals files."
The radiator gurgled and burped, and it was easier to watch it than to talk for a while.
Neither of us wanted to say things we would later regret.
He asked about the other employees of the clinic. I gave him a quick tour.
"Unbelievable," he mumbled, more than once.
"Can we keep in touch?" he said at the door.
"Sure."
________________________________________________________________
Eighteen
My orientation lasted about thirty min.utes, the time it took us to drive from the clinic to
the Samaritan House in Petworth, in Northeast. Mordecai handled the driving and the
talking; I sat quietly, holding my briefcase, as nervous as any rookie about to be fed to
the wolves. I wore jeans, a white shirt and tie, an old navy blazer, and on my feet I had
wellworn Nike tennis shoes and white socks. I had stopped shaving. I was a street lawyer,
and I could dress any way I wanted.
Mordecai, of course, had instantly noted the change in style when I walked into his office
and announced I was ready for work. He didn't say anything, but his glance lingered on
the Nikes. He had seen it all before--big-firm types coming down from the towers to
spend a few hours with the poor. For some reason, they felt compelled to grow whiskers
and wear denim.
"Your clientele will be a mixture of thirds," he said, driving badly with one hand, holding
coffee with another, oblivious to any of the other vehicles crowded around us. "About a
third are employed, a third are families with children, a third are mentally disabled, a
third are veterans. And about a third of those eligible for low-income housing receive it.