She would've gone to Townsend and told him to pay more attention to his
marriage or something. Who knows? She might even have tracked this
other guy down and told him to shape up and be with Clarissa if that's
what she wanted. That's the way Susan is.'
I'd just met Susan, but I could already picture it. 'I'm sorry, Tara,
but I think I need at least to talk to Susan and see if maybe she knew
who the other guy was.'
'But I thought she already said there weren't any problems in the
marriage. In fact, I got the impression she was upset that the police
even asked about it.'
'If she doesn't think it has anything to do with her death, she might
just be trying to protect Clarissa's reputation like you were.'
She didn't say anything.
'If it matters, I don't see the harm in talking to Susan about your
concerns.'
'I'm mostly worried about Townsend. You don't know him. The way he
was Sunday night? He's usually nothing like that, and things have only
gotten worse since then. He's an absolute wreck. I don't think he can
take any more. My parents and I are having a hard enough time on our
own, but now we're worried about Townsend too. If he finds out, I
don't know what he'd do.'
'I'll be as discreet as possible,' I promised, 'but I can't ignore what
you've told me.'
By the time Tara left the office, she understood that she could no
longer control what became of the secret her sister had confided in
her.
I needed to tell Johnson about Clarissa's phone call to Jessica Walters
and what I'd learned from Tara. And I still needed to follow up on
what Duncan had told me this morning: Had Johnson really asked Townsend
for a polygraph?
No one picked up at MCT, so I paged him again. He returned the call
fifteen minutes later from a crime scene. I could barely hear him over
a chorus of angry voices in the background.
'Sorry about the delay, but today's been a bitch. I got a home
invasion gone bad here right now. Two guys dead and a front yard full
of gang bangers taking sides. We're meeting back at Central at four to
go over where we are on Easterbrook. Can it wait till then? We can
patch you in on speaker.'
'It can wait, but I'll meet you over there.' I knew from experience
that attending a meeting by conference call is a guaranteed way to be
confused and ignored, two areas where I didn't need help.
'Sounds good. We should have the bad guys separated from the less bad
guys by then.'
I turned my attention back to the task of reviewing the files I had
inherited from Frist. With only a partial caseload, I had thirty-two
pending cases and thirteen waiting to be reviewed for prosecution
decisions. Far fewer files than in DVD, where I'd celebrate if I fell
into the double digits, but homicides, sex offenses, and felony
assaults would require more of me than the drug cases I had learned to
prosecute on autopilot.
By midafternoon, I had finished compiling a calendar of all scheduled
appearances and a list of motions, responses, phone calls, and other
follow-up projects that needed to be done. If only I could learn to
get the actual work completed as efficiently and neatly as I could list
it.
MCT was housed in the downtown Justice Center, just a quick diagonal
across the Plaza Blocks from the courthouse. I took the stairs to the
fourth floor. When I got to MCT's large suite of cubicles, Chuck threw
me a Diet Coke from the mini fridge and a look from deep down in a
naughty place. I missed the soda by a mile, but I definitely caught
the look. As usual, Chuck Forbes didn't miss a thing.
'Nice catch, Kincaid. Something distract you?'
'Just your piss-poor aim. Mike, don't ever rely on your partner in a
gunfight.'
Chuck's partner, Mike Calabrese, was finishing off the second and, for
him, final bite of a Krispy Kreme glazed. Licking his fingers, he
said, 'That boy there doesn't need his gun. He disarms the world with
his rapier wit.'
He disguised the New York accent, giving the impression he was
mimicking something Chuck said recently, most likely after their annual
shooting re-quals. Seven times out of ten, I could outshoot Chuck at
the range.
Johnson took control of the meeting once everyone was settled around
the table. 'Thanks for coming back in. As it turns out, the LT OK'd
us for overtime on this, but I appreciate that everyone was willing to
show anyway. I know it was a bad day out there today. Before I let
you in on what Walker and I have been working, where are you guys on
the paperwork?'
