The Lawyer's Lawyer

CHAPTER Twenty-Three



Danni called a little after three and said that the public statement had been approved. If they received the release in the morning, a joint press conference with the chief of police and the state attorney would be held tomorrow afternoon.

Almost as soon as he hung up, Jack received another call.

“Hello.”

“You f*cked up my mark.”

“Who is this?”

“Shut the f*ck up and listen. Nobody f*cks me over and gets away with it. I heard about your orchestration of this whole deal. You may think you’re a big shot but you’re wrong. I don’t work alone and my partners aren’t nice guys like me.”

“Don’t even think about going near Julian.”

“It’s not about Julian anymore. It’s about you, big shot. You’re gonna get yours. It may be tomorrow, it may be the next day, but it’s gonna happen. You can take that to the bank.”

“You don’t scare me, Collins. If people like you scared me, I’d have folded my tent up a long time ago. Have a nice day.”

Jack called Henry right away and told him about the conversation.

“I’m inclined to call the police. What do you think?”

“It was probably a throw-away phone so they won’t be able to trace anything to Collins. They may question him, but that will only make him and whoever his so-called friends are a little bolder. Collins anticipates that you’re going to call the police. He’s prepared for that. Why don’t you let me look into it.”

“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.