“In the second place, it’s a pain in the ass to have to come all the way to Jersey every time I want to talk to you. I’m just telling you so when they move you, don’t be upset.
“Here’s another thing. They let you shave in here?”
“Yeah.”
“Good. Next time they do, shave off the fucking hair.”
“You’re kidding.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“I gotta sell you to a jury. It’s gonna be hard enough without dealing with that.”
Jeremy thrust out his jaw. “Hey man, this is America. I got a right to a fair trial. They got no right to judge me on how I look.”
“Right,” Steve said. “And if you believe that, I have this land in Florida.”
“Well, it’s true, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, and it’s also true someone sometimes wins the lottery. But I wouldn’t wanna bet on that person being you.”
“That’s bullshit, man. I didn’t do it. No one’s gonna find me guilty ’cause of how I look. I ain’t cuttin’ my hair for that.”
Steve took a breath. “All right, how’s this? The prosecution’s gonna put someone on the witness stand and say, ‘And did you recognize the man you saw walking in the subway station with Jack Walsh?’ and the witness will say, Yes sir, it’s that kid right there with the green hair.’”
Jeremy thought that over. He frowned. “You may have a point.”
24
Mark Taylor was still on the phone when Steve Winslow pushed open the door. He covered the mouthpiece. “Sit down, Steve. I got stuff comin’ in now.” Into the phone he said, “Uh huh. Go on.” He listened for a minute, said, “O.K., keep on it,” and hung up.
“Glad you’re here, Steve, this thing is moving fast.”
“What you got?”
“The biggie is, it’s the kid’s gun.”
“The murder weapon?”
“No question about it. The bullets match.”
“Shit.”
“Well, it’s what you expected, right?”
“Yeah, but you can always hope. What else?”
“I understand you just waived extradition.”
“Right.”
“How come?”
“Frankly, I was tired of running over to Jersey.”
“Makes sense. Anyway, they’re putting together a grand jury, getting ready to indict Jeremy Dawson for murder.”
“Yesterday’s news, Mark. All of that’s just routine. You got anything fresh?”
“Well, word is Harry Dirkson’s gonna handle the case himself.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. And that’s opened up a bit of speculation.”
“Over what?”
“Is the D.A. getting involved personally just because the victim was a millionaire, or is it just because you happen to be attorney for the defense.”
“You’re trying to tell me Harry Dirkson doesn’t love me?”
“That’s putting it mildly. The word is he’s so pissed off about what happened in the Harding case, he can’t resist taking a shot at you in a case where he’s got your client dead to rights.”
“He doesn’t have my client dead to rights. He’s got circumstantial evidence. It’s bad, but it’s still just circumstantial.”
“Yeah, well he’s also got the eyewitness.”
“What eyewitness?”
“The one who saw Jeremy and Jack Walsh together in the subway station.”
“There really was such a witness?”
“Yeah, there was.”
“That’s not good.”
“Well, it’s not as bad as it could be. It turns out we were right about the witness bein’ a bum.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. That’s unofficial, by the way. The cops aren’t letting it out, but my man managed to get it. So that’s good news. The guy’s a wino. His identification’s not gonna be that strong. You should be able to rip him apart on cross-examination. So that’s good.”
Steve frowned. “Yes and no.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s a two-edged sword-the guy being a derelict, I mean. Yeah, sure, I can cut him up on the witness stand. But the jury’s not gonna like it. ’Cause a guy like that’s basically defenseless. If I tear into him, it’s like picking on a cripple. Sure, I can raise some doubts about the identification. Maybe even get the guy’s testimony struck out. But in the eyes of the jury, I’m a big bully picking on a helpless man, and the result is I wind up antagonizing them and prejudicing them against the defendant.”
Taylor frowned. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
“Yeah, well I bet Dirkson has. He’s probably happy as a clam the guy’s a bum.”
“You mean you’re not going to try to break down his identification?”
“I’ve got to. That’s my job.” Steve frowned and rubbed his head. “So here’s a job for you. Get one of your men to take some pictures for me.”
“Pictures?”
“Yeah, and then have him blow ‘em up to eight-by-ten glossies.”
“Pictures of what?”
“Kids with green hair. At least five of them. Head shots. Shot from the same angle. Similar photos, you got it?”
“Yeah.”
“And not just green hair. Green mohawks.”
“I understand. Anything else?”
“Yeah. First off, get a shot of Jeremy Dawson. Have the photographer use that picture as a model for the other ones.”
“Where am I gonna get that?”
“Are you kidding me? It’ll be on the wire services. They’re indicting him for murder. It’ll be on the front page of the Daily News.”
“Yeah, right. Anything else?”
“Yeah. Check on all the relatives. Check ‘em for alibis. See what they were doin’ that time of night.”
“Now that I like.”
“Why?”
“Routine, time consuming, and expensive.”
Steve frowned. “Yeah.”
“What’s the matter?”
“Well-”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t got a retainer?”
Steve shrugged. “My client’s a teenage kid.”
“Shit, that’s right.”
“On the one hand, he hasn’t got a dime. On the other hand, he’s got a holographic will that makes him the sole heir to millions.”
“What about that? Can the will stand up? Is it legally binding?”
Steve shrugged. “I haven’t seen it yet.”
“Yeah, but as a general rule-can a handwritten will knock out a prior one drawn up by lawyers?”
“It can if it’s drawn right.” Steve smiled. “And if you’ll recall, Jack Walsh consulted me about how to write the will. So if I knew what I was talking about, the will should stand up.
“Except for one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“One little law I forgot to mention. Not that it would have done Jack Walsh any good.”
“Oh yeah? What?”
“A person convicted of murder can’t inherit from his victim. If Jeremy Dawson killed his uncle, it doesn’t matter what that will says, he can’t touch a dime.”
“Shit, that’s right.”
“Which puts me in the unique position of handling a murder case on a contingency basis. If I get Jeremy Dawson off, he inherits and I get paid. If he’s convicted, he can’t inherit and I get zilch.”
Taylor shook his head. “Shit, what a bummer.”
“Yeah. So get going on the other relatives. Come up with someone else who could have killed the guy.”
“I’ll try, Steve, but Jesus.”
“What?”
“Well, Jeremy’s the one who was seen in the subway, he’s the one who inherits, and it was his gun. Now, I can try to make a case against one of the others, but let me tell you, it sure don’t sound good.”
“I’m not asking you to make a case, Mark. That’s my job. I’m just asking you to get the facts.”
“Yeah, and you’re paying me out of your own pocket. That’s the part I don’t like.”
“Don’t worry about that. I have every intention of being paid for this case. Now, you got anything else?”
“Yeah. It’s just incidental now, but I got a line on Julie Creston.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. She finished filming, showed up back in L.A. My contact out there looked her up. Frankly, what with the murder and everything, I’d forgotten to call him off. I didn’t think of it till he reported in. I’m sorry, ’cause it’s an unnecessary expense, and-”
“Screw the expense, Mark.” Steve held up his hands. “Let me make something clear. I either take a case or I don’t. The size of the retainer doesn’t matter. If I take a murder case, I’m gonna go all out. As far as you’re concerned, I want you to investigate this as if I had a hundred-thousand-dollar retainer. Don’t stint on anything. ’Cause frankly, the case looks pretty bad, and I need all the help I can get. You got it?”