I poured some lotion into my hand and rubbed it on Zack’s back. There were some worrying abrasions there – pressure sores – too much time in the chair and not enough time taking care of skin. I didn’t say anything, but when Zack flinched the first time I touched a raw spot, I went into his bathroom for the Polysporin and dabbed some on the abrasions. “So, what was Margot doing there?” I said.
“Hovering,” Zack said. “When it comes to her clients, Margot’s part mother hen, part pit bull.”
“That’s an interesting image,” I said.
“Accurate too,” Zack said. “Margot’s a good person to have on your side. She’s protective and she doesn’t back away from a fight. According to Margot, the first she’d heard about Jason’s news conference was on
“So Margot talked to Jason today,” I said.
“Don’t I wish? He didn’t answer his phone. Margot left a voice mail. At that point, as far as she was concerned, Jason was just an ex-client who was about to do something stupid. She wanted to talk to him, but he wasn’t at the top of her list. She had appointments with clients who were racking up billable hours. His news conference wasn’t until midafternoon. She thought she had plenty of time.”
“But she didn’t.”
“No. She tried calling him a couple more times, then she assumed he just wasn’t answering his phone, so she went to his house.”
I took a pair of silk briefs from Zack’s dresser and handed them to him. “And Ginny was there. It must have been quite a scene to walk in on.”
“It’s one I won’t forget for a while.” Zack shuddered. “There was so much blood. Ginny was soaked. By the time we were finished with Debbie and her gang, someone had notified the press, and they got some peachy shots of Ginny coming out of her ex-husband’s house covered in blood.”
“She’s not under arrest?”
“No. The police can’t do anything until they collect the evidence. If they think Ginny’s concealing something, they’ll keep an eye on her.”
“So what’s next?”
“Ginny’s going to call me after she’s talked to the twins.”
“Those poor girls.”
“Losing a father when you’re that young has to be rough.”
“I wonder how Em and Chloe will remember him.”
Zack shrugged. “Time will tell. Right now the priority is to get their mother out from under this.” He pulled on his socks – cashmere, winter and summer, because his circulation was so poor. “Ginny wants you there when she and I get together. I said I’d ask, but nobody’s going to blame you for taking a bye on this one.”
I screwed the lid back on the Polysporin. “Lately, my attempts to put my head in the sand haven’t met with much success. I might as well do what I can.”
We finished dressing in silence, weighed down by the thought of what lay ahead. Zack chose a lime green and hot pink tie that I especially liked. He was knotting it when the phone rang. He answered and mouthed Ginny’s name.
“We’ll be there in ten minutes,” he said. “Joanne’s coming too.” He paused, listening. “I’ll tell her.” He rang off. “Ginny’s grateful. Time to move along, Ms. Shreve.”
“I know,” I said. I thought of the leg spasms, the abrasions on his back, and the weariness in his voice. “Zack, let’s still go to the lake tonight. I’ve already done the shopping. Mieka’s looking forward to having Taylor. And this case will be here when you get back.”
He looked at me hard. “That is so tempting.”
“Give into temptation,” I said. “After the meeting at Ginny’s we can swing by the house, pick up the dogs, and have the barbecue smoking and the martinis poured by six.”
“Sold,” he said. “I love the lake before the people come. It’s nice to be safe from human mischief.”
“People do complicate things,” I said.
We took Zack’s car to Ginny’s – a mistake as it turned out because a shiny new Jaguar with a vanity plate AMICUS is more noticeable than a Volvo station wagon of indeterminate age with a licence plate that says nothing. There were media vans parked in front of Ginny’s condo. Zack pulled into a parking spot well away from them. “What the hell do they think they’re going to see?”
“Us,” I said. “Lucky you wore your pretty tie.”
“Thanks,” he said. “Jo, how do you think Ginny should handle this publicly? It’s not just a question of optics; her behaviour could have ramifications down the line.”
“Legal ramifications?”
“Yes. If this comes to trial – which I hope to God it doesn’t – Ginny’s behaviour in the next few hours could be significant.”
“You can’t expect her to perform, Zack. She must still be in shock. Whatever her feelings were about Jason, seeing him like that must have been a nightmare.”
“Ginny’s strong – she’ll do what she has to do.”
“Then have her issue a brief statement expressing her shock and sorrow and asking that the media respect her children’s right to privacy at this sad time.”
Zack grunted. “You really think the media are going to buy into that?”
“Reporters have kids of their own. They should know when to draw the line.”
“How about the voters? What do you think Jason’s death does to Ginny’s election chances?”
“It finishes them,” I said simply. “Ginny may not have been charged, but the suspicion that she had something to do with his murder is there. And purely pragmatically, she needs to be campaigning, but the moment she steps out in public, she’s fair game – the press can ask her whatever they want.”
“So she just holes up in her condo until this blows over?”
“It beats the alternative.” I pointed at the media vans. “Those vans are going to be a permanent fixture till the police figure out what happened to Jason.”
“Any suggestions? Deb isn’t going to let Ginny leave the jurisdiction.”
“Lawyers’ Bay is near Regina. It’s a gated community, and we have a guest house sitting there empty.”
Zack smiled approvingly. “Good plan, Ms. Shreve.” He glared at the media. “Time to face the ravening hoards.” He opened his door and reached into the backseat for his chair. The TV people were on him like the proverbial ticks on a dog. Zack unfolded his chair and gave them his barracuda smile. “How about backing off until I get into my chair? And, incidentally, the answer is ‘no comment.’ ”
The bravest of the group stood his ground. “We haven’t asked anything yet,” he said.
“Whatever you ask, that’s the answer.” Zack slid into its seat and wheeled towards the condo. I stayed right behind him.
There were six of us at the meeting: Ginny, Keith, Margot, Sean Barton, Zack, and me. Ginny was sitting cross- legged on the window seat. Framed by a wash of blue sky, her open-necked white shirt crisp, Ginny could have been an ad for the benefits of condo living, but her face was pale and her eyes unfocused. We exchanged muted greetings, then Zack moved close enough to Ginny to take her hand. He always connected physically with his clients. It was, he said, his way of telegraphing to a judge or jury that his clients were human beings in whom he believed.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
“Okay. Telling the kids was rough.”
“How are they doing?”
“I’m glad they have each other.”
“Joanne has an idea that should help,” Zack said. He glanced at me.
“I thought you and the girls might like to get away for a few days,” I said.
Ginny’s eyes moved to Zack. “Will the police let me do that?”
“I’ll talk to the inspector in charge of the case and see. I think I can get her to agree. The cottage we own is just forty-five minutes from the city, so if the police have questions you can be at headquarters in an hour. I think as a good faith gesture, you should stay in town till tomorrow night. By then the first rush of questions will be over.
