Mary heard Judy hiccup in the front row, beginning to sob, her pink head bowing like a drooping petunia, and it was all Mary could do not to go comfort her. Judy sagged against William, the two of them sharing their broken hearts, though the two halves could never become one whole, Mary knew. When she had lost her first husband, her parents had been beside themselves, but together their family could not mend the pieces of their hearts, and their lives, which lay shattered. Only time had accomplished that, and it had taken awhile.
“… I had not met John’s brother, William, until today, but I have certainly heard about him, and so had anybody who knew John. John adored William and was completely devoted to him, and now I understand why. And I’m delighted to see the resemblance between the two brothers, for they have the same smile, the same curly hair, and even the same glasses…”
William laughed, then it trailed into a sob, his curved back shaking uncontrollably in his new suit, and Judy put her arm around him, holding him close, as Bennie continued, summing up.
“… And ladies and gentlemen, friends and neighbors, and most especially John’s family and Judy, let these be my last words today, and the end of this memorial service. John lived a life that we could all be proud of, every single day. He held himself to the highest standard in his professional and in his personal life. He stood up for what he believed, no matter what the cost. No matter who disagreed with him, either.”
Mary felt the words resonate in her chest, thinking back to what John had told them all, about how out of place he had felt at the firm. It hadn’t been easy for him to say or for them to hear, but it was honest. Mary gave Bennie credit for seeing that as a strength in John, even though it had rocked the firm.
“John Foxman was one of the finest lawyers I have ever met and one of the finest young men. Let’s live our lives the way he did, and honor him. Deepest condolences to his brother, William, his aunt, Susan, and uncle, Mel Hodge, and to all of his friends and colleagues here today. Thank you very much.”
Bennie stepped away to the sound of renewed sniffling, then went to check on Judy and William. Mary wiped her eyes as the pastor returned to the front of the room, said some concluding words and a final benediction, then finally gave the bronze urn holding John’s remains to William and ended the memorial service, dismissing everyone.
Mary felt so numb and sad through the long, painful slog of saying good-bye to John’s friends and clients, including Jim and Sanjay, then she had to make sure her parents and The Tonys were okay. They all looked teary-eyed and frail in unaccustomed black, and Mary and Anthony ushered them and The Tonys out of the emptying funeral home behind Marshall, Lou, Judy, William, and John’s Aunt Susan and Uncle Mel, a forlorn group heading for a private lunch reception at a nearby restaurant.
The front door of the funeral home stood open, letting in a bright shaft of sunlight, and Mary held Anthony’s hand, taking up the back of the line. Mourners filed outside, and she and Anthony had almost reached the threshold when shouting broke out outside, out on the street. Mary turned to Anthony, alarmed. “Did you hear that?”
“Yes?” Anthony craned his neck over the crowd. “Oh no!”
Suddenly the mourners shifted forward, and the shouting became a chant, “Justice for John! Justice for John! Justice for John!”
Mary stepped out of the funeral home, horrified to see what was going on. Mourners were being confronted by a flock of angry protesters, chanting and pumping homemade signs that read, #JUSTICE FOR JOHN! ROSATO & DINUNZIO CRYING HYPOCRITE TEARS! ROSATO & DINUNZIO—KILLER LAW FIRM!
Mary recoiled in shock. She never would have expected that there would be protestors at the funeral. She hadn’t heard that any of John’s friends were organizing on his behalf and there would be no reason to. She scanned their angry faces, but none of them seemed like the types of persons who John would have been friends with. His friends were lawyers and businesspeople his own age, and these protestors were younger and on the fringe. Suddenly she realized they weren’t real protestors at all, but they must have been sent by Machiavelli. He must have paid them to disrupt the funeral, and the depth of his depravity enraged her.
Funeral home attendants rushed to make way for mourners to pass, but the protesters outnumbered them, blocking their path, pumping signs, and chanting, “Justice for John! Justice for John! Justice for John!” The reporters filmed the mob scene with cell phones and video cameras. Traffic on the street slowed to a stop, and drivers rubbernecked at the scene.
Suddenly the protesters targeted Judy, surging toward her and jostling William in his wheelchair. William cried out in fear and curled into a ball, frantically protecting the urn in his lap. Protestors shouted at Judy, as if William weren’t even there, “You killed John! You killed John! Justice for John! Justice for John!”
“No, get back!” Judy flailed, trying to wave them away from William.
“Judy! Pop!” Mary hurried to help, but Anthony blocked her.
“No, it’s not safe for you. I got this. Stay here.” Anthony rushed forward with Bennie, Lou, Anne, Marshall, and the funeral attendants. They reached Judy and William and tried to push back the protestors, who kept chanting.
“Justice for John! Justice for John! Justice for John!”
A group of mourners including Jim and Sanjay were able to slip away, but Mary saw with horror that the older people were getting shoved around in the melee. Pigeon Tony got swallowed up by the crowd, and Feet’s Mr. Potatohead glasses popped off. John’s Uncle Mel threw his arms around his wife, Susan, hobbling in her black boot from her broken ankle, and Mary’s mother tried to help her, she was only four feet eleven inches tall.
Mary couldn’t stand by another second. She rushed off the step, pushed into the crowd, and hurried to her mother, gathering her in her arms as they were jostled left and right by the protestors, shouting their slogan.
“Justice for John! Justice for John! Justice for John!”
“Leave us alone!” Mary shouted at a female protester, hugging her mother close. “You work for Machiavelli, don’t you? He sent you, didn’t he? You should be ashamed of yourself!”
“Justice for John!” the female protester shouted back, mechanically. “Justice for John! Justice for John!”
“John, who?” Mary shot back, spitting mad. “Do you even know his last name? What is it?”
“Justice for John!” the female protestor replied, on autopilot. “Justice for John! Justice for John!”
“You’re a killer!” A male protester rushed to confront Mary. “You don’t want the truth to come out! You’re in the lawyer conspiracy!”
“Get out of here!” Mary yelled back, and the male protestor was about to grab Mary’s arm when Anthony flew out of nowhere, grabbed his arm, and punched him in the face.
“Keep your hands off my wife!” Anthony’s face contorted with anger, and behind him Bennie, Lou, Marshall, Anne, and the funeral attendants had succeeded in hustling Judy, William, The Tonys, and the Hodges away from the protestors and down the sidewalk.
“Babe, follow them!” Anthony took her right arm, and her father scooped up her mother, a bloody cut over his eye.
“Pop!” Mary gasped, horrified. “Are you hurt?”
“GO, MARE! GO!”
Mary took off with Anthony and her parents, and the funeral attendants formed a protective shell around them, getting them down the sidewalk and keeping the protestors at bay. A police cruiser raced to the scene, and two uniformed cops leapt out. The police contained the protesters, with the press behind filming away.
“Justice for John! Justice for John!” the protestors chanted, until the sirens swallowed their hollow cries.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE