The Lawyer's Lawyer

CHAPTER Forty-Five



By the third day, Jack had settled into his routine somewhat. It was difficult to catnap during the day and even harder to stay awake all night, although the crickets chirping incessantly with the occasional accompaniment of a hoot owl did their part to keep him awake. The creatures of the night helped as well. He saw a slew of raccoons and possums, even a few armadillos. The animal that caused him the most concern, however, was a coyote. Jack saw him the first night, silently slinking by, his body close to the ground. Jack put his right hand on the Sig Sauer, hoping again that he would shoot it straight if the necessity should arise, but the coyote just kept going. He actually turned and looked right into Jack’s eyes as he passed—a kind of “welcome to the neighborhood” look. By the third night, Jack’s nerves had calmed. He was getting used to the place and, as a result, he constantly found himself waking up.

I’ve got to do better than this, he told himself each time.

There were other problems as well. The sandwiches were making him sick and constipated, and his body ached constantly. He was in excellent shape, but he wasn’t a young man anymore. Lying on the cold hard ground combined with inactivity was taking its toll. On the fourth day, he took some time before he went shopping and went for a short run and stretched for about a half hour. It made him feel so much better. Then he bought a big bunch of fruit along with his sandwiches. He just hoped the fruit didn’t give him the runs. Having the runs in the woods did not fall under the category of a good thing. In an abundance of caution, he put toilet paper on his list of things to buy the next morning.

The fourth night brought even a bigger problem. Jack was standing up just outside his pup tent looking at Danni’s backyard over the tree trunk that covered the entrance, wearing his night vision goggles. He didn’t remember falling asleep. All he knew was that at some point late in the evening he woke up to the feeling of cold hard steel pressed against his left temple.

“Bang!” a voice said.

Jack recognized it right away.

“Danni?”

“Jack, what the hell are you doing out here?” she asked, withdrawing the gun from his temple.

“I’m trying to catch my client.”

It was true but it sounded funny. Danni almost laughed.

“You could get yourself killed. If I hadn’t recognized you, I might have shot you.”

“Yeah well, I’m still learning how to be an Indian.”

Danni didn’t say anything. She seemed to be debating something in her own mind.

“Why don’t you come into the house and have some coffee,” she said, not waiting for an answer as she headed for the house.

Jack didn’t hesitate. It took him a few minutes to stumble out of the hollow, but he followed her inside.

Danni was already loading the coffeemaker when he arrived. It felt weird being back in this house under the circumstances. The last time he had been there, he and Danni were having a torrid love affair. Now a killer might be stalking her.

“Have a seat,” she said, motioning to the little table where she and Sam Jeffries had had coffee just a few days before.

Jack sat down. He didn’t know what to say to her so he didn’t say anything. He just watched her as she made the coffee. She’d been at the condo to dress him down for taking Felton’s case but under those circumstances, he hadn’t taken the time to look at her as he did now. She looked great—hadn’t changed a bit in two years. It was funny but he still felt connected to her. He’d known many women who were probably considered more beautiful than Danni but he hadn’t been attracted to them. What does that? he asked himself. How can I instantly feel connected to this woman all over again? Maybe it was her personality. Maybe it was her strength of character. She was so straightforward and direct. Those things were certainly part of it but Jack was sure there was something else, something in the universe that was unrecognizable to humans, that attracted certain people to each other. Of course, Danni was no longer attracted to him, he was sure. She probably wanted to shoot him. Maybe that’s why she invited him in.

“Do you want something to eat?” she asked. “I’ve got some apple pie.”

“That would be great.” Four days in the woods was enough to make him salivate over the thought of apple pie.

Danni set the pie and two mugs of coffee on the table and sat down across from him. Jack was still speechless so he filled his mouth with pie. Now he had an excuse not to talk and something to say when he was done.

“This pie is delicious.”

“Thank you.”

Another bite, a few chews, and he was cornered. Danni wasn’t making it easy for him. She could have made some small talk but she didn’t. He decided to wade right in.

“Why are you being so nice to me?”

“You mean besides the fact that you’re putting your life in danger to protect me from a serial killer?”

“A serial killer I freed from death row.”

“Don’t give yourself too much credit, Jack. I think the supreme court and Apache County had something to do with your client going free.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I do. You set the process in motion because you found some irregularities in the way he was arrested and prosecuted.”

“You told me to let it go and I didn’t listen to you.”

“You weren’t supposed to listen to me. I wasn’t answering your questions; I was just telling you to leave it alone.”

She was right but he couldn’t believe her attitude.

“I put your daughter in danger.”

“There you go again thinking you control the universe. You represented a client to the best of your ability. And my daughter is safe, by the way, because a man you freed from death row is protecting her.”

Jack was dumbfounded. He stuffed another hunk of apple pie into his mouth. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, Danni sipping her coffee and Jack steadily making the apple pie disappear.

“Do you want some more?” she asked.

“Sure.” The woods were looming in the background. He wasn’t going to pass up a second piece of the best pie he’d ever eaten, or so it seemed at the moment.

“I see Sam Jeffries in the woods every day at least two or three times,” he said.

Danni was cutting the pie. “Don’t ever let him see you, Jack. He doesn’t feel the same way about things as I do.”

“Nor should he.”

“Let’s not go back there again. Just stay away from him. He’s not himself these days. I shudder to think what would happen if he came upon you like I did. Speaking of which, I can’t talk you out of going back out there again, can I?”

Jack finished chewing his newest piece of pie.

“Nope. This is something I’ve got to do.”

Danni certainly understood that sentiment. She reached down into a cabinet below the sink off to the right and pulled out a thermos. She poured the rest of the coffee into it.

“Try and stay awake out there. Remember who you’re dealing with.”

“I can’t forget,” he said, taking the thermos from her and heading for the door.

“Thanks for the coffee. I’ll bring this back in the morning.”

“Just leave it by the back door. I’ll refill it for you,” she said.

Jack looked at her. “Really?”

“Don’t read anything into it. If you’re going to be out there, I want you to be alert.”