I is for Innocent

"What time's he get back?"

"Lunchtime, he said, but he sometimes skips lunch and heads for the law library instead. Why, what's up? You want to get a message to him?"

A low-level dread had begun to churn in my chest. "I better go over there and have a chat with him myself. Which courtroom, did he say?"

"Judge Whitty, Department Five. What's going on, Kinsey? You sound very strange."

"I'll tell you later. I don't want to commit myself quite yet."

I walked over to the courthouse, which was only two blocks away. The day was su

I went up the wide concrete steps, through ornate wooden doors. The corridor was empty. The floor was paved with glossy irregular stone tiles the color of old blood. The lofty ceilings were hand-stenciled and crisscrossed with dark beams. The lighting fixtures were wrought-iron replicas of Spanish lanterns, the windows secured by sturdy grillwork. The place might have been a monastery once; all cold surfaces, stripped of ornament. As I passed, the door to the jury assembly room opened and prospective jurors poured out into the hallway, filling the air with the tap-tapping of footsteps and the murmur of voices. Soon I could hear the incessant squeaking of stall doors in the rest rooms across the hall. Department 5 was located another two doors down the hall on the right, the lighted sign above the door indicating that court was still in session. I eased the door open and slipped into a seat in the rear.

Lo

"Let's go outside where it's private. You're not going to like this."

We walked side by side without a word, footsteps clattering, down the corridor, down the concrete steps, out the front entrance to the sidewalk. We struck off across the grass just far enough to ensure that we wouldn't be overheard. He turned and looked at me and I plunged in.

"I don't know a nice way to say this so I'll get right to the point. It turns out Morley's files are more than disorganized. Half the reports are missing and what he's got there is suspect."

"Meaning what?"

I took a deep breath. "I think he was billing you for work he never did."

Lo

"Lo

"How'd he think he could get away with that? I got a court date in less than a month. Did he think I wouldn't notice?" he asked. "Hell, what's the matter with me? I didn't notice, did I?"

I shrugged. "In the past, from what I've heard, his work was always great." Small comfort to an attorney who could end up in court with nothing in his hand but his dick.

Lo

"Who knows what he was thinking? Maybe he was hoping he could get caught up."

"How bad is it?"

"Well, you still have the witnesses from the criminal trial. It looks like most of them have been subpoenaed, so you're cool on that score. I'm guessing maybe half the witnesses on the new list never heard from him. I could be wrong. All I did was a spot check. I'm really judging by the number of reports I can't find."

Lo

"Look, we still have some time. I can go back and fill in, but if we run into a snag, we're up shit creek. Some of these people may not even be available."

"Jesus, this is my fault. I've been tied up with this other matter and it never occurred to me to question his paperwork. What I saw looked okay. I knew he was backlogged, but what he gave me seemed fine."

"Yeah, what's there is fine. It's what's not there that worries me."

"How long will it take?"

"Two weeks at the very least. I just wanted you to be aware of what you're up against. With the holidays coming up, a lot of people are going to be tied up or out of town."

"Do what you can. At two, I'm taking off for Santa Maria for a two-day trial. I get back late on Friday, but I won't come into the office until Monday morning. We can talk about it then."

"Will you be staying up there?"

"Probably. I could come home at night if I had to, but I hate losing the hour drive time each way. After a full day in court, I just want to grab a quick bite somewhere and then hit the sack. Ida Ruth will have the motel number if there's an emergency. In the meantime, do what you can, okay?"

"Sure."

I went back to the office. As I passed Lo

"What's he want?"

"He just read Morley's obituary. He says it's urgent he talk to whoever's taking over for him."

"Let me get back to my desk and I'll pick it up in there. Maybe he's got some information for us. What line's he on?"

She held up two fingers.

I trotted down the hall, closed the office door behind me, dumped my handbag, and reached across my desk, punching line two, which was blinking steadily. "This is Kinsey Mill hone. Is there something I can help you with?"

"I read in the paper Morley Shine died. What happened?" The voice was well modulated, the tone cautious.

"He had a heart attack. Who is this?"

There was a pause. "I'm not sure that's relevant."

"It is if you want to talk to me," I said.

Another pause. "My name is David Barney."

My heart did one of those sudden hard bangs. "Excuse me. I'm the wrong person to ask about Morley Shine-"

He cut in, saying, "Listen to me. Now, just listen. There's something screwy going on. I talked to him last Wednesday-"

"Morley called you?"

"No, ma'am. I called him. I heard some ex-con named Curtis McIntyre is set to testify against me. He claims I told him that I killed my wife, but that's bullshit and I can prove it."

"I think we should stop this conversation right here."

"But I'm telling you-"

"Tell it to your attorney. You have no business calling me."

"I've told my attorney. I told Morley Shine, too, and look how he ended up."

I was silent for half a second. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Maybe the guy was getting too close to the truth."

I rolled my eyes. "Are you implying he was murdered?"

"It's possible."

"So is life on Mars, but it's not likely. Why would anybody want to murder Morley Shine?"

"Maybe he'd found something that exonerated me."

"Oh, yeah, really. Such as what?"