The Advocate's Daughter (33 page)

That's when Hellstrom gestured to the papers on the worktable. “No. I have a contingency plan. Something I thought we might work on together.”

Sean scanned the papers. They were motions challenging the conviction of John Chadwick, Mason James's college roommate.

“We can use the case to look into James's past.” Hellstrom grinned again. “I doubt he killed those girls, but maybe we can connect James to Chadwick's beating at the prison or some of his other mischief. I thought we could finish the good work your daughter had started.”

An image of Abby flashed in Sean's mind for the briefest of moments. She was walking on the beach, hair blowing in the wind, waxing poetic about justice and the law.

“I think Abby would like that,” Sean said. “I think she'd like that a lot.”

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book opens with a dedication to my children. I did this not only because I'm blessed to have such kind and remarkable kids, but also because the pages of
The Advocate's Daughter
are filled with things I've appropriated from their lives. It was only natural when writing about the Serrat family to turn to my everyday life for inspiration. But more so, I hope that years from now my children will read the book and understand that I saw them—that I heard them—and that they recognize the joy they brought to my life. From Em's sunrise escapes, to Jake's love of Guns N' Roses, to Aiden's jokes, to the loyalty they have to one another, my children are the heart of this novel. (My wife would be quick to point out, however, that all crimes and foibles of the Serrat clan are purely the work of their father's imagination.)

Speaking of my wife, Tracy, I've rewritten this part several times, but it still comes out sounding cliché, something all writers hate. But what the hell: Since I was sixteen, home to me has been wherever you are. I owe this novel, and everything else, to you. Everything.

Okay, enough of all that. There are many people I need to thank for their contributions to this book.

I'm fortunate to work with the best publishing team in the business. My literary agent, Lisa Erbach Vance, lived up to her reputation as a “super agent,” providing exceptional representation and sage advice. It is also an honor and a privilege to work with my editors, Jaime Levine and Anne Brewer. Thanks also to Jennifer Letwack, Bill Warhop, and the rest of the St. Martin's Press team.

Special thanks also goes to my law firm, Arnold & Porter, which is filled with talented and supportive colleagues. Lisa Blatt, one of the best Supreme Court advocates of her generation (seriously, Google her), has been a loyal friend and supporter of my novels and legal career. I also must thank others in our top-flight Supreme Court practice group, including Reeves Anderson and Stanton Jones, who are my core beta readers in fiction—and everything else. So many other past and present lawyers and non-lawyers at the firm (and their significant others) also provided helpful information, feedback, or support: Brooke Anderson, Judy Bernstein-Gaeta, Annie Khalid Hussain, Dan Jacobson, Kathryne Lindsey, Chris Man, John Massaro, Evie Norwinski, James Rosenthal, Sheila Scheuerman, Mara Senn, Craig Stewart, and Rob Weiner.

Book clubs closely connected to the firm also deserve thanks. The Ladies of North Kenmore Street Book Club: Gayle Herbert, Joedy Cambridge, Denise Cormaney, MaryLynn Haase, Angela Huskey, Anna Manville, Marlene Regelski-RedDoor, Katherine Taylor, and Connie Young. Also thanks to Patty Donnelly's club, which includes Patty, Joanne Garlow, Cheryl Marsh, and Amanda Wingo.

I also must single out Debbie Carpenter—my longtime friend, legal assistant, and all around exceptional person.

Outside the firm, many other friends, including Dan Barnhizer, Robert Knowles, and Stacey Colino, provided helpful comments.

One of the great things about publishing novels is that it has given me the opportunity to branch out from the legal community into the world of writers. And so many writers have helped me along the way. I first must thank all my friends with the International Thriller Writers association. I encourage all current and aspiring thriller, suspense, and mystery writers to join ITW. From the moment I signed on, best-selling authors—too many to mention—went out of their way to support my work. During my time with the organization, I've served as Chair of the Debut Authors Committee, where I made several close friends (a rarity as you get older), including great writers Barry Lancet, Jenny Milchman, Ethan Cross, and ThrillerFest director Kimberley Howe. I then served as Awards Coordinator for ITW's annual book awards, and got to work with Carla Buckley, Joshua Corin, and Jeff Ayers. I then was the managing editor of ITW's
The Big Thrill
magazine, where I had a great time with my co-editors Barry Lancet and Dawn Ius, with endless support from ITW's leadership, including Liz Berry, M. J. Rose, and Janice Gable Bashman. At every turn, it seems, someone from ITW was there to help, from medical insights from D. P. Lyle, M.D., to advice about the publishing business from Alan Jacobson, to editorial feedback and many laughs from Barry Lancet (I've now mentioned Barry three times, to beat out the two nods he gave to me in his last book). And I cannot forget Shannon and John Raab, staunch ITW supporters and publishers of
Suspense Magazine,
who provided me many opportunities, and became good friends along the way.

Perhaps most remarkable, ITW's co-founder, best-selling author Gayle Lynds, took me under her wing. This book wouldn't have been published were it not for Gayle. She is a true writer's writer, and it is no surprise that the organization she co-founded carries forward her spirit of kindness, support, and mentorship. You're a rare and wonderful person, Gayle.

Last, but never least, thanks to readers. I love hearing from you, and I hope you'll drop me a line and let me know what you thought of
The Advocate's Daughter.

 

ABOUT AUTHENTICITY

The Advocate's Daughter
is a work of fiction and the names, characters, places, and incidents portrayed are the product of the author's imagination or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. (Forgive me, I've been a lawyer for twenty years.)

I'm often asked about whether some place or legal principle in my books is “real” or what inspired a specific scene, so I went through my research files to offer the following behind-the-scenes glimpse. Note, there are some spoilers, so wait to read this until you're done with the book.

There is a military base in Misawa, Japan, a place where I spent some unforgettable years of my youth. For dramatic purposes, I made the base and town dark and run-down. But in reality, it is a beautiful part of the world, the Japanese were kind and generous to us military brats, and I'll always hold a special place for Misawa and the friends I made there. I should add that my father, who spent a distinguished career in the military, bears no resemblance to “the General.” (Sorry, Dad!)

I tried to capture the spirit of the Supreme Court community, though I had to take liberties since that crowd tends not to have many vices. It is true that Supreme Court justices are rarely recognized in public. Sadly, surveys show that more Americans can identify Judge Judy than a justice on the Supreme Court.

The scene at Georgetown University Law Center at the beginning of the book was inspired by an annual event held by the Law Center's Supreme Court Institute in which members of the Bar gather to celebrate the end of the term. Every year, the Institute, headed by Director Dori Bernstein and Professor Irv Gornstein, holds moot courts (practice arguments) for advocates appearing before the high court. It is a tremendous service to the advocates and the justices, and I'm proud to periodically serve as a moot judge. The 2012 event honored Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, an opera lover, and singers from the Washington National Opera serenaded the popular justice. It was beautiful and stuck with me, hence the scene.

Much of the information about the Supreme Court in
The Advocate's Daughter
was inspired by or derived from not only my law practice, but the great work of many esteemed journalists and commentators. I continue to draw from Jeffrey Toobin's fun, readable books about the court. (The prank Sean Serrat played on Professor Tweed about the fake call from the president was from a real event involving Chief Justice John Roberts from Toobin's
The Oath.
So was the “do-over” reference concerning Obama's botched oath of office.) And, like the rest of the world, I benefited from the coverage of the high court by the Supreme Court press corps, including Robert Barnes, Joan Biskupic, Marcia Coyle, Adam Liptak, Tony Mauro, David Savage, Nina Totenberg, and others. I'm always amazed at the quality and insights of their coverage, which often must be done under intense deadlines. And I cannot forget SCOTUSblog, everyone's go-to source for information on the high court.

I've been to all the places depicted in the book, and did my best to try to make them feel authentic. With respect to the Supreme Court Building, I'd encourage all readers who visit Washington to march up the forty-four marble front steps (you can no longer enter from the front doors for security reasons, but it's still an experience). And it's worth the wait in line to attend an oral argument. Not to be overly sentimental, but, for me, watching how our country resolves some of the biggest questions of the day in a civilized way, under the rule of law, without violence, dampens the cynicism that might otherwise sneak in from living in Washington.

The court's library is as majestic as I describe, though I made up the secret staircase, I'm sorry to say. I've been fortunate enough to step inside the conference room where the justices preside in secret, and did my best to describe it. And there is a basketball court on the top floor of the building—the real “highest court in the land,” so goes the tired joke.

My scenes on the Hill I credit to the time my friend, and a senate chief of staff, Mike Sozan, has taken over the years to show me and my writer friends around, including the underground train and hideaway offices. And I'm lucky to know Brian Hook, the former special assistant to the president and assistant secretary of state, who is always a reliable source for Washington insights (and like me and Ryan, a connoisseur of eighties metal).

There is a Chipotle in Bethesda, Maryland, and Bethesda–Chevy Chase High School is a real school. Neither, of course, are frequented by a hapless, sketchy drug dealer. I hope they will forgive me.

Beyond the setting of the novel, the law school lecture Professor Tweed gives his students about James Callender will be familiar to law students I've taught over the years. The information on Callender, to the best of my ability, is accurate.

Some of the humor (or attempts at humor, anyway) in the novel come from real events. Like Ryan, my son Jake nearly fell asleep during a visit with a Supreme Court justice. And Jack's orange juice joke was taken from a funny article in
Salon
by Professor Jay Wexler about his time as a Supreme Court law clerk.

The speech Sean gives about his daughter on the front steps of his home was inspired in part by a high school commencement speech given by English teacher David McCullough, Jr., entitled “You Are Not Special.” I think the Serrats would share the same worldview as McCullough.

Capturing the grief of the characters was a challenge. I read several books about loss, but one that stayed with me was
When the Bough Breaks,
which contains many heartbreaking first-person narratives of grieving parents.

Many of the other insights about the court or Washington were the result of phone calls, meetings, and lunches with many serious people who took time to help me try to bring an air of authenticity to
The Advocate's Daughter.
All errors—purposeful or otherwise—are my own.

 

ALSO BY
ANTHONY FRANZE

The Last Justice

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

ANTHONY FRANZE
has garnered national praise for his work as a lawyer in the Appellate and Supreme Court practice of a major Washington, D.C., law firm.
The New York Times, The Washington Post,
and other prominent news outlets have quoted or cited Franze concerning the Supreme Court, and he has been a commentator on high-court issues for
The New Republic,
Bloomberg,
and the
National Law Journal
. He lives in the Washington, D.C., area with his family. You can sign up for email updates
here
.