The Lawyer's Lawyer

by James Sheehan

  “I don’t want you doing anything that could get you in trouble.”

  “I’m going to look into this whether you call the police or not, Jack, so it doesn’t really matter to me.”

  “Okay, I’ll hold off for, say, forty-eight hours.”

  “That’ll work.”

  Dinner was at an intimate little Italian restaurant in the town of Apache Hills. There were no more than ten tables in the place, each with a white linen tablecloth. They ate by candlelight with a nice bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, the lighting so subtle that Jack could hardly read the menu.

  “This is such a lovely area of the state. The more I stay here, the more I like it,” he told Danni while taking a break from his delicious eggplant parmesan.

  “When are you going home?”

  “I don’t know. I think I might stay a while. I’m in one of Ron’s empty condos and, according to him, I can stay as long as I want.”

  “You don’t have any pressing matters at home?” Danni asked.

  Jack laughed. “Nope. I’ve got a gardener who takes care of the property, and Henry comes and goes whenever he likes. There’s not a whole lot there for me these days.”

  “Henry told me about your wife Pat and how much you loved her.”

  Jack didn’t respond right away. He was surprised by the remark, and any mention of Pat usually set him back for a second or two.

  “What did he say? I don’t know if I could put that feeling into words.”

  “It’s not really what he said, it was the way he said it. He was quite fond of her himself.”

  “They became great friends in a short period of time. Henry used to read to her when she could no longer do it herself.”

  Danni could see the sorrow in his eyes. Maybe this subject wasn’t such a good idea.

  “I’m sorry. We don’t have to talk about this.”

  “No, no, it’s fine. I had some terrible marriages before Pat. I was a very successful lawyer, but I was dead inside. She taught me for the first time how to really love somebody, but she’s been gone now for a few years. She’ll always be with me, but I have to move on.”

  “Are you sure you’re ready?”

  “You’re never sure of anything in this life, are you? But I can feel Pat kicking me out the door. She wants me to be happy and she’s in a place where jealousy and all that other stuff don’t matter.”

  “How do you know?”

  “I don’t really. I just feel it, and I trust my feelings. I believe in the universe and that Pat is part of the universe. I guess about now you’re thinking ‘This guy is nuts. I’d better get out of here.’”

  “Not at all. You’ve got something that works for you. That’s what we’re all searching for.”

  “And what works for you, Danni Jansen?”

  “I’m not sure. The universe sounds good. I need to move on from a lot of things. I just can’t seem to get there.”

  “You will over time.”

  “I’ve heard that line—time heals all wounds. It hasn’t worked for me, not in my personal or my professional life.”

  Jack decided it was time to change the subject. The past wasn’t necessarily a good topic when talking to a beautiful woman over a bottle of wine.

  “So you have a daughter in college, is that right?”

  “Yes—Hannah. She’s a great girl. She’s at the University of Colorado. I sent her to Denver when she was a child under circumstances that were very stressful for both of us, and she fell in love with the place. I can’t wait for her to come home for Thanksgiving.”

  “That’s great. I’m sure you two are close.”

  “We are. She only has me. Her relationship with her father is superficial. We divorced a number of years ago and he spends most of his time chasing younger women.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. It’s a way of life in Oak Vegas. That’s what I call this place. There are tons of pretty young women running around looking for rich men to help them along in life, and plenty of wealthy men who think with their little head.”

  Jack had to laugh at that line. “You haven’t given up on men, have you?”

  “I hope not. I haven’t been looking really. I spent my time raising Hannah, and I always had my work.”

  “Hannah’s gone now, and you’re retiring soon.”

  “I know. And those changes will bring other changes. In the meantime I’m concentrating on adjusting and finding happiness in everyday life. I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving. I’m going to make a big turkey with all the trimmings. What are you doing for the holiday?”

  “Nothing to speak of. Henry will probably come over if he doesn’t have a better offer. We might cook a small bird or go out to eat, depending on how we feel.”

  “That doesn’t sound like much fun. Why don’t you and Henry come to my house for Thanksgiving dinner. Hannah would love to meet you. She’s been talking about going to law school.”

  Jack didn’t hesitate. “That sounds great to me. I’ll ask Henry.”

  They left soon after, and Jack drove Danni home. She gave him a brief kiss on the cheek at the door before saying goodnight.

  Maybe this is what I’m really here for, Jack thought as he walked back to the car.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  It was after nine when he swung his Mercedes SLS roadster into the driveway and clicked the garage door opener. He checked his watch to be sure. No calls to make tonight. He needed to get to bed early so he could run on the beach in the morning. Got to work those extra pounds off right away. Maybe one cigar on the veranda before calling it a night. What’s the use of living in a mansion on the beach if you can’t enjoy it?

  It was a mansion—seven thousand square feet right on the water. Maybe it was too much for one person. Maybe the place needed a woman’s touch. He wasn’t ready for that, however. He’d just turned forty—way too young to settle down, especially when there were so many nubile young women out there eager to satisfy his needs. Marriage might happen down the road, but he didn’t need a wife in his profession, so why have one?

  The lights went on automatically when he pulled into the garage. He stepped out of the car and headed for the door leading into the house with his keys in his hand. He always kept the inside door locked. He’d read about burglars often coming through the garage door. He had an alarm system, but there was no downside to taking extra precautions in order to feel perfectly safe. He stuck the key in the door but before he could turn it the lights in the garage went out.

  It was pitch black. He couldn’t see anything. Before he could think, two powerful hands grabbed his arms and pulled them back. He could feel the handcuffs lock on his wrist. What the hell is this, a bust by the cops? He had some coke in the house but they’d never find it. He started to get angry to get his courage back. Then he lost it again.

  Whoever it was that had handcuffed him grabbed his throat and lifted him up with his back to the wall with one hand! He could hardly breathe and he was too afraid to speak. He was sure he was going to die. All this work, all he had accumulated—for what? To lose his life to a two-bit robber? He needed to do something. Beg, plead, bargain. Whatever.

  “What do you want? I’ll give you anything you want.”

  No answer. The grip was tighter. He could feel himself losing consciousness.

  “Please! Please! I’ll do anything. Don’t kill me.”

  “Shut up,” the voice said. It was deep and threatening. He knew there was a big, powerful man behind that voice although he still couldn’t see a thing. “I hear you like to use that word yourself when you’re making threats. That right?”

  “No, no. No threats. I’m a businessman.”

  The arm let him down but the hand stayed at his throat. He could at least breathe a little better.

  “You threatened Jack Tobin.”

  “Who?”

  “Don’t fuck with me, boy. You wanna die?”

  “No, no. I didn’t threaten anybody though.”

&nbs
p; The hand squeezed his throat harder, cutting off the flow of air.

  “Okay, okay!” he croaked. “Yeah, I threatened him.”

  The hand let up a little.

  “It wasn’t my decision. I have investors. They’re pissed at Tobin.”

  “Here’s the deal,” the voice said. “Something happens to Jack Tobin, you die. Understand?”

  “But I don’t control that.”

  “You’d better.”

  “Somebody has already been hired.”

  “Then I might as well kill you now.”

  “No. No, wait. I’ll call off the dogs. I promise. I don’t know if I can stop what’s already been done but I’ll try.”

  “You better succeed,” the voice said. “Your life depends on it.”

  Suddenly he felt weightless as the man kicked his feet out from under him. He landed on the hard concrete floor; his shoulder hit first and then his head.

  Everything went black after that.

  Henry called Jack the next morning.

  “I think that your situation has been taken care of but I’m not one hundred percent sure.”

  “What does that mean?” Jack asked.

  “Mr. Collins has other investors who he does not control. I convinced him, I believe, that it would be in his best interests to get them to follow his recommendation in this one situation.”

  “This is crazy, Henry. We’re talking about a college football player and an agent.”

  “No, Jack. We’re talking about millions of dollars and we’re talking about people who want to send a message to others that messing with their business can cost you your life.”

  “So what do I do, wait and see what happens?”

  “Do you still have that Sig Sauer you bought a few years back?”

  “Yes, I’ve got it but not with me. Why?”

  “I think you should start carrying it and maybe go to the range once in a while.”

  “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, Henry.”

  “Maybe not, Jack. Maybe this is just smoke. But I would prefer that you at least have the gun in your house.”

  “I’ll think about it. By the way, what are you doing for Thanksgiving?”

  “I’m spending it with you. Why?”

  “Wanda didn’t invite you over for all the fixings?”

  “As a matter of fact, she did. I’m just not ready to be the man of the house carving the turkey if you know what I mean.”

  “Gotcha. Danni invited us to come to Thanksgiving dinner. Whaddya think?”

  “Speaking of calling the police.”

  “Yeah, right. I probably don’t want to tell her about Collins’s threat. So are you coming?”

  “Sure. I’ll bring your gun with me.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Thanksgiving Day was cold and blustery, but Jack still got up early and went for a run in the woods. He’d found the running path just a few days after he arrived in town. It was literally two blocks from the condo and there was nobody around in the early morning but him, the birds, the trees, and a host of other small creatures. An armadillo had startled him just last week. They both jumped at the same time, the armadillo running about five paces or so in the opposite direction before stopping. So far as he could remember, it was the first time Jack had ever seen a live armadillo in motion.

  He ran five miles at an easy pace, breathing in the fresh air and taking the time to enjoy the beautiful morning.

  Part of his run took him down a giant sinkhole, a break in the limestone foundation that had formed over thousands of years. It was his favorite place. Looking up from the very bottom, he could see the tall trees clustered around the rim at the top, their branches rustling in the breeze causing the leaves to unhinge. A small stream snaked along from top to bottom, the sound so steady, so unchanging, yet altering forever the surrounding landscape. The sun filtering through the woods served as the spotlight for the leaves as they cascaded end over end.

  Jack always stopped for a few minutes to take it all in. It was here in places like this that he could make sense out of the world.

  Henry was at the condo when he arrived home. Jack had expected Henry to stay with him but Henry had declined the invitation, saying he was going to stay with a relative in town. He was dressed in sweats.

  “Have you been working out?” Jack asked, noticing that his friend was sweating.

  “A little bit,” Henry replied evasively. “Now I’m hungry. Want to go for breakfast?”

  “No. I’ll eat too much if I go out. Dinner is at two and I want to be hungry. I’ll scramble some eggs and make toast if you want.”

  “Sounds good,” Henry replied.

  It seemed strange to Jack that Henry did not stay with him then showed up sweaty in a jogging outfit. Something was going on.

  A brown wreath made of bare branches hung on the front door of Danni’s house, perhaps a symbol of autumn’s end and Christmas to come. Jack rang the doorbell.

  Danni answered wearing a snug brown sweater and jeans and the most beautiful smile Jack had yet seen. She gave Jack a big hug, then she opened her arms to Henry.

  “Here’s the man who saved my life. Welcome to my home, Henry.”

  She led them into the living room and sat them on the couch. A fire was just getting started in the fireplace, the wood crackling in the background. “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “I’ll have a beer,” Jack said. Henry indicated that would be fine with him as well.

  Danni left the room and returned a few seconds later with the beer and a beautiful young woman who bore a startling resemblance to her although her hair was dark brown.

  “This is my daughter, Hannah. Hannah, these are my friends Jack Tobin and Henry Wilson.”

  Hannah greeted them both warmly. She had a mature confidence about her that was rare for a woman her age.

  “Gentlemen, if you will accompany us to the dining room, dinner is ready to be served,” she said after the introductions were complete.

  The dining room was small, but it made the atmosphere even more intimate. Danni had decorated the table with a festive lace tablecloth, a gold leaf centerpiece, and deep orange candles. Danni and Hannah started bringing in the various dishes and setting them between the candles and the place settings: mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, collard greens, corn, and cranberry sauce. Last but not least came the turkey, beautiful and golden brown.

  “Gentlemen, please join us in a moment of thanks,” Danni said after she and Hannah sat down. They all held hands as Hannah spoke.

  “Dear God, please bless this food we are about to eat and these friends who have joined us today. Amen.”

  “Jack, will you carve the turkey?” Danni asked.

  Jack stole a glance at Henry who just smiled and nodded.

  “It will be my pleasure,” Jack said.

  The food was delicious and they talked and laughed as if they were old, old friends. Henry told stories about his and Jack’s fishing excursions on Lake Okeechobee.

  “The only thing that’s always missing is fish. They seem to know it’s our boat and that Jack’s cooking. I don’t want to eat what he’s cooking and they don’t want to be what he’s cooking.”

  Henry was a good storyteller and everybody laughed. Hannah regaled them with stories of life in Boulder, hiking the Flatirons, and being a freshman in a college so far away from home.

  “Mom sent me to Colorado when I was young and I hated it for a long time. Then I started to remember how beautiful it was. I couldn’t wait to go back.”

  All in all it was a great meal. Both men helped with the cleanup. Jack cleared the table and Henry loaded the dishwasher.

  “This is my job on the boat, too,” Henry told Danni. “Only we don’t have a dishwasher.”

  “Sounds like you need to speak up, Henry,” Danni replied.

  “It wouldn’t do any good. There are only two jobs in the galley and Jack’s a better cook but don’t tell him I said that.”


  After dinner, Hannah sat on the couch with Henry and peppered him with questions about life in prison and what it was like on death row, issues Henry didn’t usually talk about. She was so genuinely interested in his experiences, however, that he found himself telling her everything.

  “There were times when I thought I would never see the outside world; never have a delicious meal like the one we just shared; never enjoy a good conversation like this. It certainly teaches you to cherish every day.”

  “And that made you and Jack friends forever, I guess?”

  “We’re joined at the hip. He’s my brother as much as if we came from the same womb.”

  “Kind of like my mom and me. We had our differences along the way. For a long time, I resented her for sending me away to Colorado. Now that I’m older, I understand what the circumstances were back then. We’re becoming friends. Like you and Jack, we only have each other.”

  “There’ll be somebody else in your life eventually, Hannah. I’m sure of that.”

  Jack and Danni lingered in the kitchen, slowly putting the dishes and the pots and pans away.

  “It was a great day,” he told her. “Thanks for inviting us.”

  “Thanks for coming. You made it special for Hannah. It would have been boring with just her and me.”

  “You two seem very close.”

  “We are. It’s been just the two of us for a long time. It’s nice to have men in the house, though.”

  * * *

  Jack didn’t see Danni again until the next Wednesday. She wanted to spend all her time with Hannah before her daughter had to return to school. On Wednesday, they had dinner at The Swamp before going to the movies. Ron was there as usual.

  “Jack, are you still in town?” he asked, faking incredulity. “I know your case is over. What is it that keeps you here—The Swamp? You want to help me with the rent on my condo? I can’t figure it out.”

  Danni thought she’d have a little fun of her own at Jack’s expense. “It’s the free meals, Ron. Like tonight, for instance, Jack knows you’re going to pick up the tab. That’s why he insisted on coming here. I’m beginning to wonder about him.”