The Lawyer's Lawyer

CHAPTER Twenty-Seven



Jack was sitting at the bar in The Swamp putting down his third beer when Ron showed up.

“Out on your own tonight, lover boy?”

“I am. Sit down. I’ll buy you a beer.”

“Can’t. Don’t drink in my own place. That’s a rule.”

“Well then, let’s go somewhere you can drink.”

They’d been friends for too long. Ron could tell there was something not quite right about old Jack. “All right, finish up. We’ll go in my car.”

They drove down College Avenue heading out of town.

“Henry was in The Swamp last night for dinner. I stopped and chatted with him a little bit,” Ron said.

“That’s funny,” Jack said, more to himself than to Ron. “I thought he’d gone back to Miami. What the hell is he doing here?”

“I don’t know.”

Ronnie took him to a dark, quiet little spot east of town. There were a few people at the bar but other than that it was deserted. An attractive middle-aged brunette wearing a tight top and showing some great cleavage was tending bar.

“Well, if it isn’t the grand pooh-bah come to visit the slums,” she said to Ron who leaned over the bar and planted a kiss smack on her lips.

“Mabel, this is my friend Jack.”

“Pleased to meet you, Jack. Any friend of Ron’s is a friend of mine—only because Ron might buy this place someday and I need the job, know what I mean?”

Jack smiled. “I do.”

“What are you having?”

“Give us a couple of martinis,” Ron said. “Jack needs to talk and I’ve got to get him a little drunk first.”

“Sure thing.” She looked at Jack for a minute. “I’d say it’s woman trouble. I’ve been doing this for a long time—usually get it right.”

“Unfortunately you’re right again, Mabel.”

“Don’t worry. A good-looking guy like you won’t be lonely for long. Not in this town. As a matter of fact, I get off in five hours if you’re still around.”

That got another laugh out of Jack. “Thanks, Mabel, but I don’t think I’ll be making it that long. Not after this martini.”

Mabel had just handed him and Ron their martinis. She worked as she talked, always in motion.

“I’m here six nights a week, honey. You decide to go slumming again, you come see Mabel.”

Mabel moved on down her bar. The place was starting to fill up and she was greeting her regular customers.

“She’s a great bartender for a place like this,” Ron told Jack. “She’s got the goods—not bad looking, big tits, and a great personality. She packs the joint.”

“Why don’t you hire her?”

“I’ve got a different type of place. We cater to the college kids, the professors, and the businessmen. This is a workingman’s bar. You need a little fantasy and a little conversation. Mabel gives you all of it. She creates that little possibility in your mind that you might be the guy tonight. It keeps ’em coming back. Enough about Mabel; let’s talk about Jack.”

“Nothing to talk about really.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Jack. I see that puppy-dog look in your eyes. You’re a great lawyer but you’re a little sappy when it comes to the game of love.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“It means that you can tear somebody apart on the witness stand when they try to bullshit their way out of something, but a woman can wrap you around her finger in a heartbeat. Don’t forget, I’ve been through all your relationships with you. Pat was a great lady, but you picked some doozies before her.”

“Thanks for the compliment. If you’re trying to make me feel better, you’re doing a hell of a job. Remember you introduced me to Danni.” Jack took a large sip of his martini, finishing it off.

“Take it easy,” Ron told him. “You sip these drinks. It’s not like a beer.”

“Do you think I haven’t had a martini before?”

“I’ve never seen you drink one. Let’s get back to you and Danni. I thought you’d be great for each other. You’ve both been kind of out there for years. So what happened?”

Jack got Mabel’s attention and ordered a beer. One martini was enough.

“She just said she couldn’t do it anymore.”

“Do what?”

“Be in a relationship.”

Ron didn’t say anything for a minute or two. He was thinking about the situation.

“Maybe she just needs a little time, Jack. You guys have been seeing a lot of each other. She may be overwhelmed.”

“I’m an overwhelming guy.”

“And then some.”



Jack stayed in Oakville for another week although he never heard from Danni. He went jogging every day on his favorite path through the woods. On the morning he decided would be his last day, he came around a bend just after the sinkhole and found a man kneeling on the path maybe twenty feet ahead of him. The man had a ski cap on and a gun in his hand. The gun was pointed at Jack.

Jack had nowhere to go. The guy was obviously waiting for him. He desperately dove for the bushes. As he did so, he heard a pop. It wasn’t a gunshot. Maybe the gun had a silencer. Jack hadn’t noticed. He landed in the woods, hidden behind a decayed old oak amid a slew of dead leaves. He didn’t appear to be hit. He wasn’t in any pain.

What do I do now? Run, or just stay here?

He didn’t hear any more movement so he decided to stay put. If the guy found him, he’d be helpless but if he got up and ran, he might be an easier target. At least here he was fortunate enough to be somewhat hidden. A murderer doesn’t have the luxury of spending too much time searching around for his victim.

After about twenty minutes of lying completely still, when he heard no further sounds, Jack stood up and stepped back onto the path. What he saw shocked him.

The shooter was lying where Jack had first seen him with a pool of blood forming around his head. He was still in the kneeling position although he had fallen over. Jack carefully checked for a pulse. There was none. Then he saw the bullet wound in the temple on the right side.

So I come around this bend and this guy is kneeling ready to shoot me but instead somebody shoots him. Who? And why?

It took him a few minutes to think that one through but when he did, he decided it would be best to leave the premises. If he was there when the cops arrived, it wouldn’t be hard to put two and two together. He stopped at a convenience store along the way, asked to use the phone, and called 911, giving the dispatcher the exact location of the body.

Oh yeah, Jack thought as he ran back to the condo. It’s definitely time to go home.





PART THREE





Almost Two Years Later

January 2003

Route 27

Ten Miles South of

Perry, Florida