by Ali Vali
“I wish you the best when it comes to Jessica. If you need my blessing, you have it. Turns out the best thing I could have changed in my life to be happy was the girl.”
“You aren’t kidding, are you?”
“I only tell tales when I come home from fishing.”
“Wait!” The chair scraped a little wax off the industrial tile when Tully pushed it back into place, but Kara kept her seat. “What are you planning to do?”
“So many things that I don’t have time to list them all. If you’re worried I’ll forget you, you’re definitely in the top five of my things to do.” At a nod from Tully, the guard moved to the door to unlock it for her. “Enjoy your stay and I’ll see you soon.”
“The sheriff’s ready to see you,” the guard said as he showed Tully out.
Walking across the waiting room toward the sheriff’s office, Tully slowed only when she saw Jessica sitting under the only window staring down at her shoes. Her wrinkled blue scrubs appeared to be the same ones she’d come to town in.
“You need a minute, Tully?” the patrolman asked.
“Just with Carl.” Tully kept walking.
A huge moose head hung over the sheriff’s desk with a plaque that proudly announced where and when Carl had killed it.
“How in the hell did you find a judge in New Orleans to sign this?” Carl asked, holding up a court order. “And in less than twenty minutes after you found out about it?”
“You always told me when you have your prey in the scope, don’t hesitate to pull the trigger.” She picked up the videocassette he slid over. “This isn’t the kill shot, but it’s good bait to line up my trophy.” She pointed up to the moose head.
“This going to put an end to Evangeline’s case?”
“With any luck, yes.”
“Herby will be ready if you need him to testify. Those folks have suffered enough, and they deserve the justice you’re going to give them.”
“You got it, Sheriff.” She tapped the tape. “And thanks for this.”
“Does this mean you won?” Jessica asked as Tully headed for the exit.
“The sad thing is that you’re the only one who doesn’t see that she needs help.” Tully stopped with her hand on the doorknob.
“Just let it go, Tully.”
“For old times’ sake, huh?”
“For once, prove to me that you have a heart.”
“My proving days are over, and you lost the right to ask me for anything a long time ago.”
Jessica stood up when the guard called her name, but her attention stayed on Tully. “You bitch.”
“When it comes to certain things I guess you’re right, but you knew that already. I haven’t changed all that much since you left or from the time we met.” The heat from outside warmed Tully’s legs and side as she opened the door wider. “I just had a conversation with Dr. Nicolas, and I’ll tell you what I told her. If you need my blessing for a life together, you have it. I really do want you to be happy, Jessica, no matter what your opinion of me is. If it’s with Kara Nicolas, then so be it; only find the strength to help her make the hard decisions.”
“There’s no going back for you, is there?”
“You taught me something with all this, so no.”
Jessica put her hand up to her forehead and shaded the sun streaming through the door Tully was holding open. “You’re going to tell me I taught you how to hate me?”
“You taught me that you weren’t enough for me anymore, and that’s okay because I wasn’t enough for you either.”
“Of course she’s enough for you. She’s, like, ten years old. How hard is she to keep happy?”
“Libby isn’t up for discussion. Not now and not ever, so try and remember that. I realized I had only so much time to make up to Bailey and Ralph what I had neglected for too long.” She paused as if to let her words sink in. “I don’t want them to think they were an afterthought in both our lives. They deserve better than that.”
“I’m sure you’ve had ample time to warp their feelings for me.”
“You can’t have forgotten that much about me already. Your relationship with them will have nothing to do with me.”
Jessica let out a short laugh. “Just like everything in my life, what I make of it will have nothing to do with you.”
“Finally we agree to agree on something. You’re on your own, darlin’. Try and make the best of it.”
With that final bit of advice, Tully walked out and left Jessica to her visit. Tully was sure that Jessica felt the storm surge had washed away any concerns and consequences resulting from Kara’s arrest and disrupted law enforcement to the point of chaos.
And she was partially correct. Tully was a good lawyer, but she knew the rules had changed in this post-Katrina world. She had lost her arena. The courthouse at Tulane and Broad Street where she had slain her dragons had been deluged by six feet of water.
Chapter Twenty-nine
Tully smiled when she recognized two of the newly arrived cars in Alma’s driveway. The vehicles were bug- and mud-splattered, but the fact that they were there at all made her hope their occupants had fared better.
Roxanne’s husband and her teenage son James had been at the office when Tully had called everyone in to prepare for their evacuation. James had talked about the upcoming football season as his mother made backup disks for her and Tully to take with them. Tully wondered now what would happen to the school year. The flooding had damaged much more than the homes and businesses.
The other car belonged to her junior associate Josephine. Jo was single and had headed up to Baltimore to stay with her parents, but in her few telephone conversations with Tully she’d said she was coming back to her newly adopted home. She said she had heard from the nightly news that cases were still pending and clients were waiting to be represented.
“Carrying on the fun without us?” Roxanne asked from the porch.
“Some fun is hard to resist, and then there’s the kind that’s like having your wisdom teeth removed without meds.”
“Which one were you out having?” Jo asked as she appeared next to Roxanne.
“I just had a short visit with Kara Nicolas. She’s in jail in an attractive orange jumpsuit with a Plexiglas window separating us.” Tully rocked on her heels and laughed. “I haven’t had that much fun at work in a long time.”
“If you’d said in a long time, period, I’m thinking of someone who’d have knocked your head back a few pegs.” Roxanne pointed behind her at Libby, who was walking out of the house carrying two glasses. “Congratulations, by the way. Your mother and I had every faith in you to finally get it right. And this time around you got it right.” She put her arm around Libby’s shoulders and kissed her on the cheek.
“Thank you from both of us,” Tully said. She accepted a glass of tea and a kiss from Libby. “I see you all made it okay. How did your homes fare? Have you had a chance to make it back to the city yet?”
“My house in Lakeview got about twelve feet of water,” Jo said. “After I saw it was close to the eaves, I didn’t really need an accurate figure. My neighbor, who I begged to come with me, didn’t make it. I saw one of those painted messages in front of his house.” Jo shivered and rubbed her hands along her arms.
“Our place in Metairie got six feet,” Roxanne added. “They still won’t let us in, but a policeman who lives on our street called everyone and gave them the bad news. James is still upset over losing the baseball cards he’s collected since he was five. Of all the stuff in the house, that’s what’s got him down.”
“I know a little bit about the way he feels,” Jo said. “Some woman in a gas station on my way back here told me I should be happy because I was safe and my family was all right. She said the rest is just stuff.”
“She’s right about the family part, but hell if it isn’t our stuff and we liked it, huh? Losing it all isn’t exactly a picnic,” Roxanne said with a laugh.
“After so many died, I hate
to complain about things, but some of the furniture I had belonged to my grandmother. Pottery Barn can’t replace those memories.” Jo exhaled at length. “But enough morbid thoughts.”
“True.” Roxanne patted her on the knee and turned to Tully and Libby. “Jo and I were in touch the whole time we were on the run, as it were, and we also spoke to Pasco a few times.”
“After that we donned our WWTD bracelets,” Jo said.
“WWTD?” Libby asked.
“What would Tully do,” Roxanne supplied, getting a snort out of Tully. “After we got the information Pasco passed on to us, we made a few appointments.”
“Not without a little difficulty, mind you,” Jo said. “We worked on the case file and have a court date Wednesday in Baton Rouge with a Judge Archibald Raymond. With Pasco’s help we were able to serve Neil Davis at Children’s and their attorney, Victor Williams.”
“I hope you both realize that right now we can’t prove that Evangeline died because Kara was taking an illegal substance. We all know she was, but unless we have a witness willing to come forward to testify to that, all we have is speculation,” Tully said as she flipped through what they had filed.
“That’s why we’re going to court Wednesday—not on the Hebert case, but to argue that Dr. Nicolas should be barred from practicing until all this is sorted out. We have enough evidence to back us up on that one.” Jo got up and flipped to the final page of the brief so Tully could see the meat of the document she’d compiled. “The meeting with Neil and Victor tomorrow morning is merely a courtesy on our part, but I think Victor is going to see that our getting that injunction Wednesday is the first step in winning our case.”
“A little speculation never hurt anyone, huh?” Tully asked with a laugh.
“If you were a gambling woman, you’d be putting your money on us not even needing to go to court tomorrow. Victor’s going to talk the board into settling this as quickly as possible.”
“Let’s roll the dice, then,” Tully said. She stood up and put the brief under her arm. “And let’s get back to work.”
“You need to call Neil and tell him to contact someone on Victor’s staff and get me out of here,” Kara said through the glass. “Once you get through, you should try and get some sleep, Jessica—you’re not looking too good.”
“I haven’t slept in days, so I’m sorry I’m not up to par, and dragging Neil into this isn’t the wisest thing to do right now. We need to get an appearance in court and see if we can’t post bail so we can leave for Texas.”
Kara laughed, but her eyes remained cold. “I’ve never been in jail, but on TV part of the deal is you don’t leave the state, baby. These hicks will most likely outfit me with one of those ankle devices, just to stay on Tully’s good side.”
“I’m trying my best to help you, and I think it’s time you start listening to me.”
“Wait.” Kara put her fingers up to the side of her head and closed her eyes as if trying to read Jessica’s mind. “You gave up everything for me, and I’m supposed to just roll over and play your bitch now, right?”
“I did give up plenty to be with you, and if it isn’t enough, then you need to tell me. This is about both of us and what we have to lose.” Jessica tried taking long, deep breaths to keep her temper under control. “You didn’t believe me about Tully and what she’s like when she gets her teeth into something. It’s bad enough when she has to work for the truth, but you’ve been more than accommodating when it comes to just handing yourself over on a platter.”
“I thought you said not to give her that much credit.”
Jessica laughed, starting softly and gathering steam that ended in tears. “When it came to me, not her job. It was the job that made her forget all about me a long time ago, and it didn’t matter enough to me to fight to get her back.”
“So what are you trying to tell me?”
“That it’s not just you that’s going to lose out big on this one. I have a lot on the block too, and Tully is going to exploit every weakness we’ve exposed, and she’s going to start stripping us of everything important. You have your career to worry about, and I have my kids. Tully might have been a lousy spouse, but she’s a brilliant attorney, especially if she’s pissed at something and someone. Up to now we’ve done an excellent job at ratcheting up her anger, so it’s time to stop poking the bear with a sharp stick and go into survival mode if we’re going to get through this.”
“You can’t walk away from me,” Kara said with her hand on the glass. She appeared close to panicked.
“I’m trying to fix this, not leave. If that’s what I wanted, I wouldn’t be here.”
“Do what you have to, but get me out of here and I’ll do whatever you ask.”
Jessica nodded, then got up to talk to the guard. She knew that the only way to get Kara out was to talk to the sheriff—which wouldn’t be easy; he’d known Tully since kindergarten. To her surprise, she was immediately taken to Carl’s office.
“Thanks for seeing me so quickly, Sheriff,” Jessica said, grimacing when she saw the moose head.
“Anytime.” He waved to the chair across from his so she’d take a seat. “What can I do for you?”
“I need you to help get Dr. Nicolas a court appearance for a bail hearing.”
“Between you and me, if she volunteers to take a drug test I can have her in front of Judge Larkin within the hour.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, ma’am, but we had a storm blow through here not that long ago. Things are moving like molasses these days.”
She glared at Carl, literally biting her tongue, as his smile grew wider. “I believe that’s what’s called extortion.”
“Make accusations like that and our meeting is over. Good luck in getting that court date, and please let me know if there’s anything I can do for you.”
When Jessica stood up abruptly, her chair scraped along the tile floor, filling the quiet room with a screech. “I thought you were innocent until proven guilty.”
“And I thought you and the yahoo you came into town with took an oath to first do no harm. Life’s a bitch, ain’t it?”
“You’ll be hearing from our attorney.”
“Looking forward to that. But before you go off hunting for one, make sure you’ll have a room at that place you’re staying. It’s going to be a long search.”
“I’ll leave the hunting up to you, since it seems to be a barbaric hobby of yours.” Jessica gestured at the moose head.
“Freddie here proves a point of mine, so that’s why I keep him hanging around.” Carl stood up and patted the trophy on the snout.
“That you have the ability to kill a defenseless, stupid animal?”
“That I have the ability to bring down what I’m hunting for. A doctor who likes to use recreational drugs might just be good to keep Freddie company, but I wouldn’t want to stink up the place.”
“Fuck you, Carl.”
“You have a nice day now, Jessica, and happy hunting.”
Chapter Thirty
Tully felt Libby grip her hand as they drove through New Orleans on their way to Children’s Hospital. The streets were still mostly empty, with only a few lost souls walking around as if dazed amidst the police and National Guard troops still occupying the city. With so much debris everywhere, it was hard to figure out where to begin.
“Honey, do you think it’s smart to go home once we’re able to?” Libby asked.
“I’m not going to force you to do something you don’t want, but I don’t want to abandon the city. The kids love it here too, and you have a year of school left, whenever they open it up again. Do you really want to walk away from that?” They were driving past Tulane, which appeared to be locked down tight.
“At least I have a job.” Libby turned away from the window as she teased Tully.
“That you do, darlin’, and while it’s not going to be easy, I think it’ll be good for us to start fresh her
e together. If we’re going to build a life, this seems like a good time to start. From the looks of this place, we’re at least a little ahead of everyone else, since our damage is minor. For now, though, we’ll stay with Mom and Dad and live on the boat if things get tight.”
Jo looked out the window as they drove along, appearing lost in thought. “Do you think Victor’s going to recognize you without the power suit?”
Libby ran her nails along Tully’s jeans and smiled at the question. When they had evacuated, Tully hadn’t packed any work clothes, so casual was the style of the day. “Maybe when they see your ass in these pants, they’ll give you whatever you want. I know I would.”
“Can I quote you on that when I see Roxanne again?” Jo asked Libby.
“No more comments from the cheap seats,” Tully said. “We’re here.”
The same police officer Tully had spoken to when she’d gone in on the day of the evacuation was again on duty when she stepped into the lobby. With no patients and only a few staff people trying to clean up the storm damage, the hospital was quiet and calm.
“If you’re Tully Badeaux, that short guy said he was waiting for you in the executive boardroom. Said you’d know where he was talking about.”
“Thanks, Officer, and it’s nice to see you’re all right.”
Neil’s appearance stopped her from saying anything for a long while. The man actually appeared older than the last time she’d seen him, and a bone-deep exhaustion clung to him like lint. Next to him Victor wore chinos and was freshly showered, smiling as if he were waiting for a tee time.
“We appreciate you stopping by today, Tully. It saved us from having to call you in for another talk. After all the excitement we’ve all lived through, it’s time to start fresh, without this old business hanging over our heads.” Victor stood up and offered her his hand.
“Considering what you all are facing,” Tully responded, “I appreciate you making the time.”