Chapter 14
“Detective Briscoe, Ms. Carmichael’s questions to you centered mainly on the difficulty you and Detective Green had in identifying Mitchell Grayson and then on finding his wife. I would like to ask you about Sara Grayson’s attitude when you did find her. Would you please tell us what she said when you identified yourselves and first spoke with her?”
“She said she had been expecting us.”
“Expecting you for what reason?”
“She indicated that she had been expecting us to find her and assumed that our being there had something to do with her husband.”
“So you approached her, told her Mitchell Grayson was dead and that you wanted to question her about his death, and she said she had been expecting you. Is that correct?”
“No,” Briscoe answered. “At the time, we hadn’t positively identified the victim we found at the Grayson’s former residence. Our main objective was to ascertain whether or not the body actually was that of Mitchell Grayson. After Mrs. Grayson said she had been expecting us and knew we were there about her husband, we began to question her about him.”
“What did you ask her?”
“We started by simply asking if she knew where her husband was.”
“How did she answer?”
“She said she assumed that since we were there talking with her, we already knew where he was. And when we asked her why she would assume that, she wanted to know if we had or hadn’t found her husband’s body.”
“Then Mrs. Grayson, in effect, identified your victim by telling you that her husband was dead, within the first few minutes of meeting her?” Morgan prompted.
“Yes.”
“What did you say then?”
“We asked if she knew what had happened to him.”
“How did she answer?”
“She said, ‘I thought you knew. I killed him.’ ”
“So not only did she confess, she assumed you already knew she was the one who had killed him.”
“Yes.”
“Detective, we’ve already watched the video tape of the conversation you, your partner, and Lieutenant Van Buren had with Mrs. Grayson once you reached the police station. What conclusion did you come to after that conversation?”
Briscoe shifted slightly in his chair and glanced at
“Do you still feel that way?”
“Detective Briscoe is a police officer with almost twenty-seven years on the force. This isn’t the first homicide he has investigated where a husband was killed by his wife. Due to his experience, he’s certainly qualified to tell us what opinion he formed as a result of his investigation,” Morgan stated.
Judge Yee nodded. “Objection overruled. You may answer the question.”
“No, I don’t think she acted without cause,” Briscoe answered.
“What made you change your mind?” Morgan asked.
“Objection,”
The judge waved her and Morgan forward, then covered the microphone in front of her with her hand.
“The evidence I have is more than hearsay,” Morgan argued. “I intend to call Detective Russell to tell the court about his investigation and I will call a member of the religious group to state some of their beliefs. Detective Briscoe formed his opinion after further investigation. As The People have already stipulated, that is precisely what they called him forward to testify about. And Your Honor has already ruled that his opinion is important.”
“His opinion on evidence that hasn’t been properly introduced is not relevant,” the judge noted. “After it is presented, and if it is allowed, you may then call the detective as a defense witness and ask what conclusion he drew. But for now, his opinion on evidence that has not even been introduced is disallowed.”
Morgan and Carmichael turned away and Judge Yee announced to the court, “Objection sustained.”
“I have no further questions at this time,” Morgan said. “I would, however, like to reserve the right to recall this witness at a later time.”
As Briscoe rose and returned to the gallery, Judge Yee checked the clock
on the back wall of the courtroom. “Due to the hour, court will adjourn for the
day. We will resume Monday morning at
Morgan spoke briefly with her client, then quickly gathered her belongings as Grayson was led away. She turned and searched the mostly departing observers until she spotted three familiar faces.
“Come on,” she urged
The three people met her halfway to the door. Morgan reached a small woman with outstretched arms first and embraced her warmly. “It is so good to see you, Grace.”
“Oh, you too, Honey,” the woman said, beaming.
Morgan turned and hugged the man standing beside her. “How are you, Drew?”
He smiled and squeezed her tightly. “I’m fine, Peaches. How are you?”
“I’m unbelievably happy now that you two are here,” she answered. “Did you have any trouble finding them, Tony?”
Alvarez shook his head. “Not at all. We spotted each other right away. And the drive from the airport wasn’t bad today, either, so we made good time getting here.”
“Grace, there is someone I really want you to meet,” Morgan told her as
Shaking the woman’s hand,
“Thank you. This is my first visit, so I’m looking forward to seeing the sights.”
“So am I,” he agreed. “We arrived in time to hear a little of the trial. Nice work.”
“Thanks. I hope you’ll remember that if I ever show up on your doorstep looking for a job.”
“Just give the word,”
With a smile,
“I have to be going, too,” Alvarez said quickly. “I’ll walk out with you, Abbie.” Giving the Comptons and Morgan a bright smile, he added, “It was nice to meet the two of you. I’ll see you at the office in the morning, Calea.”
“I’ll be in around
Grace Compton linked arms with Morgan as they began to walk slowly
toward the door. “I have been waiting for months to meet Jack McCoy and I
wouldn’t miss the opportunity for all the tea in
Morgan turned to her but before she could respond, the door in front of them opened and McCoy walked in.
He smiled as he approached them. “Looks like my timing is perfect.”
Holding his hand out to
“I can’t complain.”
“I’d like to introduce you to my wife,”
McCoy took her hand in his. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Grace.”
She looked up into his dark brown eyes. “So you’re Jack McCoy. I’ve heard quite a lot about you.”
Glancing quickly at Morgan, he said, “I hope you won’t hold that against me.”
“Not at all,” she answered. “I’ve really been looking forward to getting to know you.”
Looking at Morgan again, he suggested, “Well then, why don’t we get started right away? I know a little place near your hotel where we can all talk and have something to drink.”
Morgan exchanged a look with
Noting the look, McCoy quickly added, “If you’ve already made other plans, that’s okay. We have tomorrow to get better acquainted.”
As
“Grace Elizabeth!”
“Well why shouldn’t I make plans for myself instead of waiting for the
two of you to have your little affair? I didn’t come to
“At least you know who he’s having the affair with,” Morgan commented with an amused smile.
McCoy studied Morgan intently, trying to figure out what he had walked into. She met his look openly, as if she were waiting for his reaction.
Whatever was going on, he decided he was game. Turning his attention
back to the other woman he said, “I would love to have a drink with you. Why
don’t I come by and pick you up after you get settled into your room? Let’s say
about
“It’s a date,” she nodded.
***
“Let’s hope the parole board has sense enough to keep him where he is,” Morgan noted.
“The threats he made to you after the trial certainly aren’t going to work in his favor. I kept every one of his notes in a file I’m taking with me to his parole hearing, if he ever gets one. Any more letters?”
“Not since I moved to
“I know,” Morgan agreed. “But it isn’t easy to get away. If I take more than a couple of days, my practice starts to fall apart. It’s hard to keep my clients happy sometimes.”
“Have you thought about taking on a partner? It sounds like you have plenty of business for another person. It would free you up to do some traveling or just take some personal time.”
Morgan’s eyebrows arched. “I believe I’ll pass on adding another name to the door, thank you very much. Considering my last experience with partners, I’m surprised you would even suggest such a thing.”
“I guess I can understand your reluctance,”
Morgan sighed. “I haven’t decided what to do about Ann. When she first started with me, she made it clear her goal was to become part of a Wall Street firm and there’s no denying that she has the skill to do so. But some of her friends are working for those kinds of firms now, and they’ve been telling her about their exciting careers as gophers and filing clerks. She’s compared what they’re doing to all the experience she’s already gotten with me, and her goals have changed.”
“It sounds like you like her, and she’s worked with you for a quite a while. Surely you know something about her ethics by now.”
“It isn’t that I don’t trust her,” she acknowledged. “I just don’t think she needs to work in my shadow. With a little more experience she’s going to be an incredible attorney. If she practices on her own for a while and begins to make a name for herself, I think she’ll have the opportunity to become a partner in one of the more prestigious firms in town. Or she could build a very successful practice of her own. She has a lot of options.”
“And if she opts to stay with you?”
Morgan shrugged. “I don’t want a partner. I’ll have to steer her in another direction. I wouldn’t have any objections to helping set her up in an office of her own, even in the same building, and advising her when needed, but I’m happy practicing on my own. I don’t need the kind of headaches that such a close relationship brings, again.”
Checking her watch, Morgan asked, “I wonder what’s keeping Jack and Grace.”
***“You and Drew have been at this about the same length of time but he’s been an Executive A.D.A. a few more years than you. Sometimes I wish he hadn’t taken the position. His stress level has increased considerably since doing so. If I didn’t know for a fact that it would kill him to switch sides, I’d encourage him to get out of the D.A.’s office and into private practice. His heart wouldn’t be in it, though.”
McCoy swirled the ice in his club soda and nodded his agreement. “Once you’ve had a taste of being a prosecutor, it’s difficult to think of doing anything else. Nothing can compare to the feeling you get from knowing you played a part in putting the bad guys where they can’t do anymore harm.”
Grace Compton shook her head. “How many times have I heard the same sentiments from Drew? Calea was right; you two are a couple of peas in a pod.”
He leaned forward on the small table and regarded her intently. “And did she have anything else to say about me?”
“Oh, quite a bit. But the last time we really had a chance to visit was
when she was in the middle of defending Peter Fairchild and stayed overnight
with us in
As she took the last swallow of her vodka and tonic, McCoy asked, “Can I buy you another?”
She checked the neon-framed clock above the bar. “Aren’t we supposed to meet Drew and Calea back at the hotel in a few minutes for dinner?”
McCoy gave her a smile. “How would you like to have dinner alone with a mature, fun-loving attorney instead?”
“Are you suggesting we stand them up?” she asked in surprise.
He shrugged. “They’re the ones who left us to our own devices. They’ll
figure it out sooner or later. I know a barbecue place around the corner that
makes the best ribs this side of
With a broad grin she answered, “I say, lead the way, Jack. Ribs are my favorite.”