Ties That Bind (9 page)

“Did she have a lot of visitors?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Men?” Reese continued with a syrupy smile on his face. “Or women?”

Parks laughed. “Men. She was real popular.”

Marcia intervened. “Why do think she’d commit suicide?”

“Maybe ’cuz her walkaway date was years from now.” She picked at a patch on her khaki pants. “That’s alotta hours down, ma’am.” “Down” meant behind bars.

“Did you two talk about things?”

“Cellies usually do,” she answered casually.

Frustrated, Kate sat forward in her chair. “Is there anything you can tell us about her that would help us understand why she might have committed suicide?”

“She, um, she gave that reason in the note, didn’t she?” Parks glanced at the warden, surprise suddenly lighting her face. “You think maybe somebody took her out?”

“We don’t know,” Evans said easily. “We’re just after the facts.”

“Is there anyone else we should talk to?” Marcia asked.

“Got me.”

The warden stood. “All right, Lena. You can go now.” When the woman left, Evans sat back down. “That wasn’t very helpful. The police said they didn’t get much out of her, either. Though she seemed more unnerved with you.”

“What’s next?” Reese asked his lawyer.

“Well, we need to delve into Bingham’s life inside the prison, and determine on our own whether we think this was a suicide or not. In any case, somebody was out to implicate you.” Carl faced the warden. “We need records of her activity, visitor lists, who she phoned, that kind of thing.”

“The only way you can look at those documents is with a court order. The police had to get one, too.” She frowned. “Why aren’t you working with them?”

“We prefer to conduct a simultaneous investigation of our own.”

“Fine by me,” the warden told them. “Get the paperwork and you can take a closer look at Anna Bingham.”

o0o

REESE AND KATE had always had a lucrative law practice, with a satisfying number of pro bono cases added to the mix, but when Kate left, Reese worked like a demon to grow the firm from what it was when she was on board. Freud would have a lot to say about that, but Reese didn’t care. When he’d acquired more clients than he could handle, he’d taken in three other lawyers and they were now bursting at the seams and making plans to move to bigger accommodations. The only downside was he’d let the pro bono cases they accepted dwindle in number.

Due in court in two hours, Reese sat down to review his notes on the upcoming hearing. Ted McAlister had been arrested for a second DUI. The first time around, the man had been fined a grand, given ninety days restriction of his license, and attended a mandated drug and alcohol program. After this second offense, the penalties would be harsher. At the very least, Reese hoped to keep him out of jail.

As he always did before a court appearance, alone in his office, he leaned back in the chair, closed his eyes, and went over his arguments in his head. It used to drive Kate crazy that he didn’t write them out. But he worked better when his thoughts were fresh in his brain. As planned, his assistant, Yolanda Price, knocked on his door a half hour before he was due in court.

She entered his office and found him with his feet up on the desk, hands linked behind his head, eyes closed. The lights had been dimmed, so he was in shadows. “Ready, Reese?”

“Yep.” He righted himself in the chair and stood.

“You okay?” Yolanda asked.

“Sure, why not?”

Her brows furrowed. Trim and fit at almost sixty, Yolanda ran his office efficiently, taking care of details with seeming effortlessness. Often she still mothered him. It appeared that this was going to be one of those times. “You don’t have to pretend around here that nothing’s going on. We all know. We’re all worried.”

“I called that meeting to discuss this with the staff. They seemed reassured.”

“That’s not what I mean. We’re worried about you personally.”

He shrugged into a lightweight heather-brown pinstripe suit jacket. “That’s nice, I appreciate it.”

“You’ve had to deal with her.”

No antecedent to the pronoun was needed. Yolanda had been with them from the beginning, but had taken his side in the divorce, believing Kate had been at fault. Reese knew that was because his assistant witnessed firsthand how angry and hurt he was after the split, and Kate was gone from her viewfinder. Reese suspected Kate suffered as much, maybe not for as long, as he did, but he couldn’t convince Yolanda that they were both to blame.

“I have to see Kate. But I’m dealing.” He snapped his briefcase closed. “I wish you didn’t blame her so much.”

“Wish all you like,” she said sniffing.

He squeezed her arm as he said good-bye. He walked the short distance to the courthouse in downtown Westwood, appreciating the warm spring sunshine, trying to concentrate on the case, and not what Yolanda had said. He wouldn’t think about his ex-wife, or anything that might taint his concentration. Now, more than ever, he had to be at the top of his game.

Entering the courthouse, he passed through the security detector. The low din of conversation and the occasional beep of the machines filled the huge reception area. The checkpoint was slower than usual, and he thought he heard behind him, among the guards, snatches of talk mentioning his name. On his way to the elevator, several attorneys passed him. Some greeted him normally. A few smirked. More than one averted his gaze.

There was silence when he stepped into the elevator.

Guess “innocent till proven guilty didn’t apply to lawyers.” Fuck them, he could deal with it.

He met McAlister outside the courtroom. “Ted. Hi. Ready?”

“I hope you are, Bishop.” His client’s tone was gruff. Ted McAlister was a prominent businessman in Westwood, had a nice family, a girl on the side and a big drinking problem.

“Of course I’m ready. Why would you doubt that?”

The guy ran a shaky hand through his thin, graying hair. “I read the papers, boy.”

“Are you referring to the allegation by Anna Bingham?”

“Of course. You up to this today?”

Reese bit back a retort. “I assure you, Ted, I’m fully prepared to argue your case.”

“People are going to know about your situation. Will that hurt my defense?”

A valid question, still it stung. “No.”

“Hmm.”

“If you’d like to seek other counsel, I understand.”

“No, no, too late in the day for that. I want to get this over with.”

“Fine,” Reese said curtly. “Let’s go.”

Struggling not to be paranoid, Reese entered the courtroom. The mammoth space consisted mostly of wood-high ceiling, paneled walls, tables and spectator seats. When the opposing counsel gave him a second look, and the judge seemed to peer down, narrow-eyed, from the judicial bench, Reese refused to read anything into their actions.

He wondered if Kate was getting the same kind of vibes.

o0o

JUDGE LAWRENCE LARKIN always reminded Kate of Barry Krumble on the TV show, Judging Amy. Bearded, with a full head of just-graying hair, he was about fifty, in good shape and had a sharp, all-seeing gaze that intimidated most people.

Not Kate, though. As she waited in the conference room for the ranking judge in charge of administration for family court, she remembered their first few dealings…You’ve made some rather…creative decisions, Judge Renado…I hope I don’t have to tell you again that your theatrics in the courtroom are not well accepted…Superb work on the adoption, Kate. I’m not sure I would have seen through the father’s façade…

“Sorry I’m late,” Larkin said striding into the conference room. “Did you get coffee?”

“No, thanks, I’ve had plenty.”

Sitting across from her, his gaze was direct. “You look tired.”

“As you might expect.” She wasn’t going to pretend the last six days weren’t wearing on her.

“Been tough, I imagine.”

“Yes.”

“Give me a progress report.”

She sat back and smoothed down the skirt of her sage green suit. “Actually, the newspapers are doing a fairly good job with the facts. The alleged suicide is being investigated. The New Jersey cops are getting a court order to release Bingham’s records. We’ve got our lawyers on it, of course, and have gone to Longshore to talk to the warden. She let us speak with Bingham’s cellmate, too. Everything’s still in the investigative stages.”

“Fact-finding is important.” He cleared his throat. “I need to ask you some things. If they offend you I apologize ahead of time.”

“Go ahead.”

“Did you act unethically?”

“No.”

“Did Bishop?”

“No. At least I believe he didn’t. He says Bingham’s allegations are preposterous.”

Larkin leaned forward, bracing his arms on the table. “Kate, rumor has it Bishop was unfaithful to you in the past. With another lawyer, Lindsay Farnum. And that caused your divorce. This Bingham woman charges him with an affair, too.”

She tossed back her hair. “He did cheat right at the end of our marriage. But he had reasons. And I think it was the only time.”

“You aren’t known for getting along that well now. There have been strained moments at social events and professional meetings when you’ve met up. People still smirk about that time you were trying your hand at criminal court and filled in for another judge, and Reese substituted for another lawyer. There were fireworks then, and you had to recuse yourself.”

“People talk, Larry. I can’t help that. But I believe Reese when he says this allegation isn’t true. And I know, of course, that I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“What could be this Bingham woman’s motive for lying?”

“I have no idea. If the police don’t find anything, we’ll dig on our own.”

“Maybe you should be looking for an investigator now. In case it doesn’t go your way.”

“Good advice.”

“Well,” he said pushing back his chair. He didn’t stand to leave, though. “I won’t keep you. I hope you understand I had to touch base on this. “

“Yes, thanks for being so understanding about it.” She didn’t know exactly what she’d expected.

“I want to be fair. As you know, I’ve been prompt to chastise some of your actions, but I think you’re a good judge.” Briefly, he squeezed her shoulder. “And I had hoped to see you rise in the ranks quickly.”

“Had hoped?”

“This could hurt you professionally. Try to resolve it quickly.”

“I will. Do you believe me, Larry?”

“Yes, I believe you. I don’t, however, have the faith in Bishop that you do. A bit more advice?”

“Of course.”

“Don’t have too much confidence in your ex-husband. If he goes down, you go down with him.”

“Are you saying I should take sides against Reese? That I should blame him?”

“I’m saying you have to protect yourself, Kate. Let him sink if he’s guilty, but don’t let him pull you under with him.” Larry stood, said good-bye, and strode out.

Well, this was a surprise. An unpleasant one. Suddenly, she wondered if she’d been too quick to believe Reese.

With that thought still fresh in her mind, she went back to her chambers and called her lawyer. “Carl,” she said, leaving a message on his voice mail. “I just spoke with Judge Larkin. He had some disturbing things to say about Reese. It makes me wonder if I’m going about this in the right way. Call me asap.”

Sitting back in her chair, she thought about Larry’s words. Everything inside her told her to believe Reese. Other than the infidelity, engendered by her abortion, she had truly believed everything he said. God, could she be wrong?

o0o

REESE WAS PISSED off by the treatment he’d received in court today: real from Ted McAlister; imagined, perhaps, from the judge and other lawyers. Because of that, instead of leaving the courthouse after the hearing, he headed to Kate’s chambers on the first floor. She probably wouldn’t be here, but if she was, she might be experiencing the same thing and they could commiserate.

He’d only been to her chambers a few times since the divorce. He didn’t like going there. As he waited for the elevator with a crowd of people heading home for the night, a fragment of memory hit him. They’d always thrived on competition, until she’d been nominated for a judgeship and he wasn’t—something that had been a goal for both of them from day one. Since the baby thing was also between them, their relationship had already been strained…

You’re jealous of this nomination, aren’t you?

No, of course not. I just don’t want it to be an excuse not to have another baby.

I’m not sure I want another baby.

You said you did.

Before our life gelled like it did. Look, things are perfect. Why upset the balance?

Because I want another kid. And Sofie shouldn’t be an only child. We always agreed on that.

Sofie’s ten. She’s fine as she is. It’s probably worse to have a brother or sister now.

She might be too old because you’ve hedged so long.

Leave it, Reese. You’re becoming really tedious about this.

Oh, excuse me for being tedious about my life!

Recalling that conversation made him uneasy, for reasons he didn’t care to explore, so he quelled it as he exited the elevator and headed for her office. Sometimes he wondered why he’d pushed Kate so hard. Was it jealousy of her success? No, he did want a second child. Still he could have lived without one; in the end, he had anyway. He stopped at her chambers and stared at the inscription on the frosted glass: Judge Kaitlyn Renado. Shaking his head, he knocked.

“Come in.”

He opened the door to find her seated behind her desk, writing on a legal pad. She looked up, wearing her glasses. Her eyes were probably tired. The smudges under them testified to the fact that she was. “Reese, this is a surprise.”

Checking his watch, he said, “I just finished upstairs. You done for the day?”

“Yes.” She leaned back. She’d removed her suit coat and wore a sage-green silk T-shirt that molded to her breasts. She appeared—what?—stiff with him, stiffer than usual. “Is there something specific you wanted?”

He closed the door and sat down on the opposite side of her desk. The room smelled nice—like perfume and potpourri. Framed by diplomas and accolades on the wall behind her, she seemed every inch the successful judge. He cleared his throat. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”