Sheriff Mills is placing Dr. Cardoni under arrest. Multnomah County may have its own charges in the near future.
Is Dr. Cardoni charged with the murder of the woman on the tape? Frank pressed.
Fred Scofield stood up and answered Frank.
Sheriff Mills will be arresting Dr. Cardoni on the charge of murdering Mary Sandowski and for possession of cocaine, which was found in the doctor's bedroom, but I'll be going to a grand jury very soon to ask for indictments on eight other charges of aggravated murder. I anticipate that Dr. Cardoni will be spending a lot of time in Milton County in the near future.
I' d like you to step aside, Mr. Jaffe, Sheriff Mills said. We're going to cuff your client.
Cardoni switched into a fighting stance. Vasquez reached for his weapon. Frank laid his hand on Cardoni's arm.
Don't resist, Vince. I'll deal with this.
Then deal with it. I' m not going to jail.
You have to. If you resist, it will make things worse. It could affect release, and it can be used against you at a trial.
Amanda could see Cardoni processing this information. He relaxed instantly, again amazing Amanda at the speed with which he could change his emotions.
Can I speak with my client in private for a few moments? Frank asked.
McCarthy thought about the request, then nodded. You can do it in here, but I want Dr. Cardoni in handcuffs.
Cardoni's hands were cuffed behind his back, and Sheriff Mills conducted a pat-down search of the prisoner.
Do you need me? Amanda asked, trying to sound casual.
It would be better if Dr. Cardoni and I talked alone. We'll only be a minute.
No problem, Amanda answered, smiling to mask her disappointment.
I' m not going to pull any punches, Frank said as soon as the door closed. You're in a lot of trouble. Aggravated murder is the most serious crime you can face in Oregon. It carries a potential death sentence.
For the first time Cardoni looked worried.
Where are they going to take me?
Probably to the Cedar City jail.
How quickly can you get me out?
I' m not sure. There is no automatic bail in a murder case, and I don't want to move for a bail hearing until we're in the best position to get you out.
I' m not some car mechanic who can afford to sit around and collect unemployment. I' m a physician. I have patients scheduled for surgery.
I know, and I'll try to get the administration at St. Francis involved on your behalf.
Those bastards won't help me. They've been trying to get rid of me. This will give them their opening. Do you have any idea how long it takes to become a doctor? Do you know how hard I've worked? You've got to keep me out of jail.
I' m going to do everything I can, but I don't want to lie to you and build up your hopes. Scofield said that they were thinking of adding eight more counts of aggravated murder to the indictment. That could mean that they have eight other bodies. This is not going to be simple, like your assault case.
Now listen to me. Following my instructions could save your life. I mean that literally. You will be in a police car and then the jail, where they will process you in. Do everything they tell you. Do not resist. But do not, under any circumstances, discuss this case with anyone. I' m talking about cops, DAs and other prisoners, especially other prisoners. You're going to feel isolated and in need of a friend. There are going to be prisoners who will be your friend. They'll get you to feel comfortable. You'll unburden yourself to them. The next time you see your friend he will be testifying against you in exchange for having his case dropped. Do you understand what I just said?
Cardoni nodded.
Good. I'll be out to see you tomorrow. Try to think of people who can vouch for you at a bail hearing, and see if you can figure out why McCarthy wanted to know if you knew Dr. Clifford Grant.
Frank laid a gentle hand on Cardoni's arm. One last thing, Vince. Don't give up hope.
Cardoni looked directly into Frank Jaffe's eyes. His voice was steady and hard.
I never give up, Frank, and I never forget, either. Someone has set me up. That means that someone is going to pay.
So, Frank asked Amanda when they were alone in the car and headed home, what do you make of all that?
Amanda had been very quiet since the videotape started to roll, and she was subdued when she answered Frank's question.
The police seem pretty certain that Cardoni is guilty.
What do you think?
Amanda shivered. I don't like him, Dad.
Any specific reason, or just your gut?
His reactions aren't normal. Have you noticed that he switches emotions the way you and I switch TV channels? One second he's in a rage, the next he's cold as ice.
Vince isn't Marcus Welby, MD. That's for sure.
What was the other case you handled for him?
An assault. Vince was trying to score some cocaine. Amanda's eyebrows raised. He was in a bar that doesn't usually cater to members of the medical profession. He also tried to score with someone's girlfriend. When the boyfriend objected, Vince beat him so badly that he had to be taken to the hospital. Fortunately for Vince the man was an ex-con, and no one in that type of bar has decent eyesight or much of a memory when it's the police asking the questions.
The mention of violence made Amanda flash on Mary Sandowski's tearstained face. She felt a little dizzy and squeezed her eyes shut. Frank noticed that Amanda's face was drained of color.
Are you okay? he asked.
I was just thinking about that poor woman.
I' m sorry you had to see that.
Amanda grew thoughtful. When I was a little girl, you never took me to court when you tried the really bad cases, did you?
You were too young.
You didn't even do it when I was in high school. I remember asking you about the Fong case and the one where the two girls were tortured, but you never seemed to have the time.
You didn't need to hear about stuff like that at that age.
You always did shelter me when I was growing up.
You think it was easy for me raising a little girl by myself? Frank answered defensively. I always tried to figure out what your mother would have done, and I could never see Samantha letting me take an eleven-year-old to a rape trial.
No, I don't suppose she would have, Amanda answered with a brief smile. Then she thought about the videotape again and grew somber.
I guess it doesn't get much worse than what I just saw, she said.
No, it doesn' t.
I never really understood what you did, until now. I mean I knew intellectually, but...
There's nothing intellectual about criminal law, Amanda. There are no ivory towers, just tragedy and human beings at their worst.
Why do you do it?
Good question. Maybe because it is real. I' d be bored silly closing real-estate deals or drawing up contracts. And every once in a while you do make a difference in some poor bastard's life. I've represented a lot of very bad people, but I've also freed two people from prison who were sentenced to death for crimes they didn't commit, and I've kept people out of jail who didn't deserve to be there. I guess you can say that I spend a lot of my time in the shit, but every so often I come up with a pearl, and that makes the bad stuff worthwhile.
You don't have to take every case, though. You can turn some away.
Frank glanced at his daughter. Like this one, you mean?
What if he's guilty?
We don't know that.
What if you knew beyond any doubt that Cardoni tortured that woman? How could you help a person who could do what we saw on that tape?
Frank sighed. That's the question every criminal lawyer asks at some point in his or her career. I expect you'll be mulling it over while we work on this case. Those who decide they can't do it switch to some more refined type of law.