Advice of Counsel (The Samuel Collins Series Book 1) (20 page)

Landra called shortly after 9:00 o’clock and I was too drained
to even begin to tell her what had happened, so I didn’t even mention it.  
When she asked what I was up to, I told her truthfully that I was messing with
the Siamese and I left it at that.  It was probably the first time I didn’t
invite her to spend the night -- not that she would have -- but I usually asked
anyway just for the hell of it.  But that night, I was just too damn tired and
I didn’t feel like company.  Even Landra.  I was in a bad way.

I called Niki the next morning and told him about the Siamese. 
I knew it was Larry, but I felt like I needed to rule out the other
possibilities.  It was plausible that the rock-through-the-window incident was
random, or at least I’d tried to tell myself that.  But it was highly unlikely
that the snake had found its way into my office by chance.  And while it was
also possible that the snake did not arrive packed away in the Datacare boxes,
it was more likely that it did.  I had to face facts.  Larry was going to be a
formidable opponent.  The broken window was not the most original form of
intimidation, but the snake-in-the-box trick was pretty damn good.  It was a
first for me, anyway.  Thinking of the damn thing winding itself around my arms
made me cringe.  It gave me a whole new respect for the late great Steve Irwin.

Up to the cat incident, Larry’s tricks had been fairly
harmless.  Unnerving but harmless.  It would have been different if the snake
had been poisonous or if we’d been in the office when the window shattered. 
But the cat was a whole different matter.  Larry had messed with the wrong guy
when he messed with my cat.

Niki and I discussed all of this, and I took the opportunity to
tell him that I was calling off his investigation of Landra.  I felt better
about our friendship instantly, and I realized it was something I should have
done weeks earlier.  While we were on the phone, Niki invited me to a black tie
party that one of Stacy’s friends was throwing for them the following month,
and I assured him I’d do my best to be previously engaged.

I hadn’t had any luck in my attempt to allow Landra to testify
before the grand jury and the date was rapidly approaching. The paper had run a
column each day on the weekend, hyping Drake up to be a great guy.  It made me
want to puke because, as far as I was concerned, the guy was a loser. 
Fortunately, Drake’s parents had gone public with their opinion that there was
no way Landra was capable of murder, so that was a huge consolation.  I had
been wrong in my assessment when I told Landra not to call them.  While Drake’s
mother never came right out and acknowledged that her son had tried to rape
Landra, she admitted that Drake had been going through a tough time and that he
hadn’t been himself.  And both she and her husband had defended Landra when the
reporter asked pointed questions about Landra’s guilt.  But notwithstanding the
Reeds’ opinion on Landra’s innocence, the reporter had still put a negative
slant on Landra.

I’m convinced that human beings are compelled to place blame,
even in the case of an accident.  Of course this truth is spurred on by the
legal system where there’s no such thing as an accident, and someone is
always
at fault.  And of course there are the pricks like me that capitalize on the
system.

After stewing over the articles for half the weekend, I finally
folded up the paper and threw it in the recycle bin.  I decided to salvage what
was left of the weekend and devote it entirely to pleasure.

Saturday had been chilly and drizzly, but Sunday promised to be
warm and sunny.  By noon, the sky was clear blue and the temperature was
already in the upper 60s.  Landra and I decided to take a drive to the Hill
Country, so we headed out IH-10 and ended up in Fredericksburg, a quaint German
town that has become a tourist Mecca.  We had lunch at a brewery and sampled
different beers, then we walked up and down Main Street with all the other tourists. 
We held hands as we walked and I don’t know if it was the weather or the place,
but I was feeling very sentimental towards Landra.  She was such good company. 
She never got on my nerves, even when she’d argue with me over something where
she was clearly wrong.  And even though she’d rarely give in and admit that I
was right, it somehow made our relationship all the more satisfying.  I’ve
always loved a good argument and I could always count on Landra to give me
one.  In fact, I’d find myself coming out with outlandish remarks just to get
her going.  I’d done it a couple of times already that day when she finally
called me on it.  We were in a shop that had all kinds of stuff for the home
and I made a comment about a piece of furniture that had Landra’s name all over
it.  I’d spent enough time with her so that I could spot which item in the
store she’d go nuts over, and I knew she’d love this eclectic end table.

“That’s got to be the ugliest coffee table I’ve ever seen,” I
baited her.

“End table,” she corrected.

“Whatever.”  I waited for the assault but to my disappointment,
she walked past it without even giving it a second glance.

“Damn.  I’m losing my touch,” I said under my breath.

She turned around and moved in close to me and smiled. 
“Gotcha.”

“What do you mean?” I said playing dumb.

“I’m onto your little game, Sam.  And I can play it better than
you can,” she said.

“I have no idea what you’re on about,” I lied.

“You’re so full of shit,” she said laughing at me.  She had her
hair pulled back in a ponytail and she looked like a kid.  “You’re trying to
get me to argue with you over that end table that you know I love.  You walk
into a shop and you pick out what you know will be my favorite thing in the
store, then you tell me how awful it is.”

“Now why would I do that?” I asked, unable to contain my smile.

She poked me in the chest with her finger.  “Because you like
to argue with me.  Too bad you never win.  You’re just lucky I’m not one of
your opposing counsel because I’d kick your ass in court every time.  Just like
I do in all the arguments you try to bait me into.”

“You mean you’re on to me?”

“Mister,” she moved in closer, “I am sooo on to you, it’s not
even funny.”  She looked in my eyes and started laughing.  “You’re thinking of
buying it for me, aren’t you?”

“Damn!  How’d you know?”

“Because I know how you think.”

“Well that sucks.  You spoiled everything.”

“I’ve fallen in love with you, Sam.”

It was so out of the blue that at first I thought I must have
heard her wrong.  The woman next to us turned around and stared at me.

“Did she say she loves me?” I asked the woman.

“I believe she said that she’s fallen in love with you.”  She
gave a doting look that reminded me of Penny.

I turned back to Landra and gave her a wicked smile.  “Then
I’ve got you where I want you,” I said in my best Dracula imitation, and I went
for her jugular.  “I’m gonna give you a hickey.”

“No you’re not!”  She was laughing, trying to get away, but I
squeezed her tighter.

I wasn’t really going to do it.  Hickeys gross me out.  But it
was a good threat so I breathed heavily and slobbered on her neck for a
minute.  She was laughing and hitting at me, and trying to push me off, but
after a while people started to stare.  I let go of her and she slugged me in
the chest.

“Yuck!  That’s disgusting!” she said, wiping at her neck.

“Yeah, but you love me.”

Landra rolled her eyes.  “I never should have said anything.”

“Hey, don’t be that way.”  I pulled her close to me.  “I like
you too.”

Landra’s eyes got real big.  “Like?”

I had to laugh out loud.  She was so easy to goad.  An employee
walked by and I flagged her over.

“Excuse me, would you ring up that coffee table over there
please?” I asked.

She looked around confused.

“The end table,” Landra clarified.

“Certainly,” the clerk said agreeably.

Landra smiled and threw her arms around my neck and hugged me. 
“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“Thank you!  It’s beautiful.  And I know exactly where I’m
going to put it,” she said happily.

Her smile was contagious.  I kissed her on the cheek and spoke
softly in her ear, “I love you too.”

I had a double setback the next week in Landra’s case.  The DA
again turned down my request at having Landra testify before the grand jury.  I
had braced myself for the outcome, but it still came as a blow.  What was even
more disturbing was some additional “evidence” that the DA was suddenly
considering.

The autopsy had turned up traces of Rohypnol in Drake’s system,
and the DA contended that Landra had drugged Drake to make it easier to push
him out the window.  My testimony would be even more crucial to Landra’s
defense if the thing went to trial since I’d been with Landra virtually all
night up until the time that Drake assaulted her. If she had drugged him, she
would have had to have done so right under my nose.  There was no way.

I couldn’t believe that the prosecutor was even bringing it
in.  In fact, I considered it risky on their part to make such a ridiculous allegation. 
They had to know that I could find a countless number of experts who would testify
that Rohypnol is a widely-used recreational drug, especially in Texas, and that
it was more likely that the drug had been self-induced.

I thought back to when I’d met Drake Reeds outside on the patio
at the party, trying to remember if there had been any indication that he was
on drugs.  His hand had been clammy, which I supposed could have been a side
effect of a drug, but then again, maybe he was one of those people who always
have sweaty palms.

I called Landra over at Mrs. Howard’s.

“Do you know if Drake Reeds ever did drugs?” I asked.

“Not in front of me.  Why?”

“The autopsy turned up traces of Rohypnol in his system.”

“Rohypnol?  What is it?”

“I’m not really sure.  I know it’s a drug often associated with
sexual assaults.  Do you know of any of his friends that do drugs?  Anyone he
could have gotten them from?”

The line was silent while she considered the question.  “I
don’t know, Sam.  None of his friends did anything like that in front of me. 
After my husband’s overdose that would have been the last thing I would have
ever put up with,” she pointed out.

That wasn’t what I wanted to hear.  It wouldn’t help me prove
anything.

“The DA is going to say you drugged him,” I said, waiting for
her response.  To my dismay, she remained calm and collected, which told me it
was going to be bad.

“Why are they doing this to me?” she asked quietly, almost to
herself.

“I don’t know, Landra.  But we’re not going to let them get
away with it,” I assured her.  “Rohypnol is widely abused as a recreational
drug.  The fact that they are even bringing it up tells me that they’re trying
to pad a case that has nothing to back it up.  Let’s not lose our perspective
on the case.”

“They’re pissed off that they couldn’t prove my involvement in
my husband’s overdose, and they’re trying to get even by accusing me of
murdering Drake.  Why else would they be doing it?  Any objective prosecutor
would see that it was self-defense.  If it had happened to any other girl at
that party, nothing would have come from it.  Nothing!  God almighty, I should
have let him rape me!”

“Don’t say that, Landra.”

“I have to go.”

“No, wait!”

“What?”

“What are you doing right now?”

“I’m getting ready to go over to Andy and Verna’s.  I’m taking
Andy to a doctor’s appointment.”

“Will you come over after you finish?”

“I don’t know.  Let me just call you.”

I hated hearing her so upset, and I wanted to kick myself for
not breaking the news to her in person.  Damn, damn, damn!  I swore to myself
that I’d never do it again.

“Okay.  Call me when you’re finished,” I said.

I was so pissed off when I hung up that I went straight over to
the DA’s office and accused them of having a vendetta against Landra because of
their previous failure to link her to her husband’s overdose.  They adamantly
denied that anyone in the DA’s office would fabricate a case to exact revenge,
but my persistence paid off.  I discovered that one of the prosecutors assigned
to Landra’s case had indeed been involved in the investigation of Landra’s
husband’s overdose.

Although I hadn’t accomplished anything tangible yet, at least
I’d called them on the overzealous prosecution of the case.  And the higher-ups
were bound to take a closer look now that an allegation of impropriety had been
lodged.  The more I thought about it, the more I decided that Landra was right.

I went straight home from the DA’s office.  Landra’s car was
still over at Mrs. Howard’s, so I walked next door to the Johns’ house.  Mrs.
Johns answered the door and looked understandably surprised to see me.  I’d
never been to their house.

“Samuel!  What a nice surprise.  Come in.”  She opened the door
all the way and stood back while I entered, then she closed it behind her and
smiled again.  Whatever she was cooking smelled amazing.  “How have you been?”
she asked.

“Fine, thanks.  And yourself?”

“Just fine.  We’re expecting all of our boys and their families
this weekend, so we’ll have a full house.”  It sounded like a lot of hassle to
me, but Mrs. Johns seemed excited.

“Is Landra still here?” I asked.

“No, but they should be back any time.  Can I get you something
to drink?  A cold beer?”

I was going to say no, but a beer sounded good and I knew I
didn’t have any at home.  “Sure.”  I figured I could always take it with me.

I followed Mrs. Johns back to her kitchen, checking out the place
on the way.  She had lots of pictures scattered all over the house, and lots of
little porcelain figurines like old people collect.  Something was simmering in
a pot on the stove and I was tempted to look under the lid, but I decided I
better not.  If Mrs. Johns was anything like Mrs. Howard, it would be a big
no-no.

I sat down at the kitchen table and Mrs. Johns brought me a
beer and pulled out the chair across from mine.  I took a big swig and set the
bottle down on the table.

“How did Landra seem when she came over?” I asked, trying not
to give anything away in my tone of voice.

“Preoccupied.  She didn’t say why, but as soon as she left with
Andy, Sara called and told me what had happened.”  She shook her head and
looked distressed.  “Poor girl.  She does nothing but good and yet she’s made
to suffer so.  It just isn’t right.”

“What did Mrs. Howard say happened?”  I knew that Landra
confided in Mrs. Howard, but I wasn’t sure to what extent.

“That the DA was going to say that Landra poisoned Drake Reeds.” 
I nodded my head without saying anything.  “We’re all just so glad that Landra
has you, Samuel.  As you know, we love her very much.  She’s like a daughter to
Andy and me . . . to Sara too,” she said, looking towards Sara’s house.   She
reached her hand across the table and rested her hand on top of mine.  “We’re
all counting on you to get her out of this mess.”

“I know.”

If I wasn’t feeling the pressure of Landra’s defense before,
Mrs. Johns’ comments certainly nudged me in that direction.  I was beginning to
feel claustrophobic despite the fact that Mrs. Johns’ kitchen was open and
airy.  I needed to get out of there.  Mrs. Johns’ was psyching me out.  “Do you
mind if I take this with me?” I asked, holding up the bottle of beer.

“Go right ahead,” she said.

“Thanks.  Will you tell Landra to come over to my house when
she gets back?”

“Sure.  Can I send some of this meat sauce with you?” She took
the lid off and I looked over her shoulder as she stirred.  “It’s got fresh
mushrooms, and garlic, and onions, and spinach . . .,” she said, as if the
smell alone wasn’t tempting enough. “Absolutely.  Tell Landra that I’ll feed
her if she comes over.”

Mrs. Johns smiled.  “I’ll send enough for both of you.  And
here’s a loaf of French bread you can take too.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Johns.  Remind me to come visit you more often.”

It was another hour before Landra knocked on my door.   I was
afraid she would go straight home without stopping by and I kept watching out
my front window to make sure her car was still at Mrs. Howard’s.  I was so
relieved when she finally knocked that I found myself feeling grumpy that she’d
made me wait so long.  I opened the door and pulled her inside then I picked
her up and squeezed her.

“What took you so long?” I asked indignantly.

“What do you mean?  I came straight over.  What’s wrong?  Verna
said you came looking for me.”

“Nothing’s wrong.  I was just worried about you.  Are you
okay?”

“I’m okay.  I just wish all this would be over.”

We walked arm in arm back to the fortress.  I told her about my
trip to the DA’s office and about our chat, and I told her that I was convinced
she was right about why they were prosecuting a case for murder when it was
obviously self-defense.

“You told them all that?” she asked in disbelief.  “What did
they say?”

“They denied it of course.  What else are they going to do? 
But I’ll tell you what; I think it opened their eyes.”

Landra climbed into my lap and rested her head against my
chest.  “You’re wonderful, Sam.”

“I know.”  She thumped me on the head.  “And I made you a
delicious dinner.”

“Funny, your house smells just like Verna’s.”

“She told you?”

“She told me.”

“Don’t you people believe in keeping
anything
to
yourselves?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.  Are you hungry?”

“Starved.”

“Good.  And I did boil the pasta on my own.”

Landra put her arms around my neck and looked me in the eye. 
“Verna thinks you’re very thoughtful.”

“She does?” 

“Well, yeah.  Until I told her otherwise, she did.”

I grabbed Landra’s waist and tickled her, but she squirmed off
my lap and moved to the other side of the couch.  I followed her and cornered
her there.

“Tell me that thing that you told me that day in that shop,” I
said, resting my weight against her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said.

When my brother was about five years old, he gave our dad a
tiny statue of a gorilla with the caption underneath:  “Tell me you love me or
I’ll beat it out of you!”  It had probably been 20 years since I’d seen the
thing, but it sprang to mind as I tormented Landra.

“Say it,” I coaxed, laying more heavily on her.

“No way.  You first.”

I was about to relent when the phone rang.  “You’re lucky,” I
told her, and I let go and got up to answer the phone.  She smacked me in the
ass before I could get away, and I answered the phone with a stupid smile on my
face.

“Collins,” the voice said on the other end.

“Niki.  What’s up?”

“It was Larry,” he said.  “Or at least the snake was.”

“Then everything else was too,” I said.

“Yeah.  You know, you might want to keep an eye on this guy. 
He’s got a mean streak.”

“Why?  What else did you find?” I asked.

“Your cat’s not the only one he’s hurt.  He spent some time in
Juvenile when he was 12 years old for torturing animals.”

I could feel my jaw involuntarily clenching up.  I wanted to
kill the guy.  “What kind of a person does that?” I asked, not really expecting
an answer.

“One that’s very unstable,” he said matter-of-factly, then he
changed the subject.  “Did you tell Landra about the party?”

“Uh.”  I considered lying but I knew he would bust me.  “Not
yet.”

“Why don’t you bring Maddie?”

I looked over at Landra.  “Nuh uh.”

“Landra’s right there?”

“Yep.”  He laughed his easy laugh.  “How do you know it was
Larry?” I asked, changing the subject.

“I found out where he got the snake.  How’s Maddie taking
everything?”

“She’s understandably nervous.  Especially after the cat.  I’m
going to need to talk to you about that, but not now.”

“Call me when Landra leaves.”

“In the morning,” I said.  “Why don’t you come by my office?”

“I can’t do it until 1:00 o’clock.”

“I’ll see you then,” I said, and I hung up the phone.

“You want to go to a formal party with me next month?”  I asked
Landra.

“I’d love to.”

“You love me?”  I picked her up and swung her around.

“I said, ‘
I’d love to
’ not ‘
I love you,
’” she
laughed.

I put her down and took out two pasta bowls from the cabinet. 
“Same difference.”