“That doesn’t mean that the clients he represents are innocent,” Jennings said.
“Of course not. But I have more confidence in something Jeffrey tells me than something someone else tells me.” Jennings shrugged as Denton continued: “Just keep a clear head and run things by the book. Get me the strongest case you possibly can.”
“Madison is guilty, Tim.”
Denton’s face hardened. “Then let’s nail his ass.”
CHAPTER 30
CHANDLER FINISHED INTERVIEWING TEN people: five board members, Michael Murphy, Ed Dolius, and three clients — all in four days’ time. He had filled his notepad with solid evidence of Harding’s erratic behavior. There were still two weeks before the preliminary hearing.
Chandler had spoken with Denise nightly since arriving in California; after the third day, she began asking when he was going to return home. Noah missed him, and they had agreed to start trying for a second child four months ago. But there always seemed to be a reason why he could not be home; or Denise had to study for a law school exam; or he came down with the flu. His pledge of “next month; I promise” was in jeopardy. This time, everything had gone according to schedule, except for one thing: as the crucial day approached, Chandler was 2,500 miles away.
“I’ll try to get as much as possible done over the next day or so and catch a flight back.”
“I’m on break from school,” Denise said, “so I’m relaxed and I don’t have to get to bed so early. Don’t screw this up, Ryan. If you’re not home in two days, forget it.”
Chandler wrapped up as much as he could over the course of the next twenty-four hours, bid farewell to Madison and Hellman, and vowed to return as quickly as possible. He hoped to have access to either the physical evidence or Gray’s report by then so he could begin his own analysis.
On the six-hour flight home, Chandler made use of his time by organizing and rewriting his notes and data into a cohesive plan. He had all the circumstantial evidence he needed against Harding and a relatively good case, with one exception. He could not place her in Madison’s car on the night of the murders. In fact, he couldn’t place anyone in the car. But even absent direct evidence linking Madison to the act of driving the vehicle, the circumstantial evidence against him was damning: it was his car, no one else’s fingerprints were found; the Mercedes had not been reported stolen, there was no sign of forced entry, and he had no alibi.
On the other hand, the homeless person who thought he saw a male driving the car could be impeached without too much effort. In court, a few confusing pictures flashed in front of him and he’d have to admit the driver could easily have been a female with her hair pulled up, wearing a baseball hat. The weakness of his testimony would be laid bare in front of the jury.
Witness aside, he needed to find some way of placing Harding in that car or Madison would be facing a very depressing, uphill battle. There’s got to be something I’m overlooking. I can’t let a good man go down for a violent crime he didn’t commit. With this thought, he closed his eyes to rest.
The next voice he heard was that of the pilot announcing they would be landing at John F. Kennedy International in fifteen minutes. He straightened his seatback, stretched his neck, and rubbed his eyes. His mouth was dry. Looking out the window, he saw the familiar lights of the Rockaways up ahead. He was home.
DENISE AND NOAH GREETED him at baggage claim. When Noah saw his father approach, he ran through the crowd of bodies and into his arms. Chandler threw him into the air as the boy laughed devilishly. He gave his son a big hug and a kiss on the cheek, then handed him a box containing a Transformers action figure he had bought on the way to the airport in Sacramento.
“Cool, Dad!” Noah shouted as he struggled to pry open the plastic packaging.
Chandler gave Denise a hug with Noah in his arms as they trudged over to the carousel to retrieve his lone suitcase.
“I missed you guys,” he said.
“Missed you too, Daddy,” Noah said, freeing the Transformers figure from its shell. “Are you going away again?”
Denise shot a glance at Chandler.
“Well, Daddy’s home for a while, but then I’ll need to go back to California again.”
Denise’s smile reversed into a frown.
“It’s a very tough case,” he said to Denise. “Phil’s been framed, and it doesn’t look good. I think I know who did it, but I just have to prove it.”
“So, to get your attention, I have to get accused of murder and hire you to get me off?”
“By then you’ll be an attorney. First get one of your buddies to defend you, then hire me to get you off.”
“This isn’t a joke, Ryan.”
Chandler sighed, the smile melting from his face. “No. No, it’s not. But I don’t really have a choice. I can’t let Phil go down.” He looked over at Denise as they settled in front of the carousel. “There’s one thing I never told you about how I came out of my funk. Maybe it’ll help to put things in perspective.”
The conveyor belt jerked to life. “One night, a few months after I had to accept a disability retirement from the department, Phil found me on a street
