The Last Justice (5 page)

Petrov stopped talking and stared at Milstein, who seemed to have tuned out and was rummaging through the papers on Parker Sinclair's desk.

"Mind if we look around?" Assad asked.

"Help yourself," Petrov said.

"His computer," Milstein said. "Where is it?" The workstation had a keyboard and monitor but an empty laptop docking station.

"I don't know. He probably took his laptop home. Please let my office know if it's not in his effects. We use encrypted hard drives, so it would be impossible for whatever thugs did this to pull any information from it, but I'd still like to know if it's missing."

"Of course," Assad said. "We were at Parker's apartment this morning and there was no laptop, but we'll let you know if it turns up.

"I'll be in my office if you need anything. For confidentiality purposes, I'd appreciate your telling me if you take any of Parker's things-particularly any of his work papers."

Assad thanked Petrov while Milstein continued prowling about the room. Sitting in Parker Sinclair's chair, she opened the center drawer of his desk, where a business card caught her eye:

TUCKER THORNBERRY

WASHINGTON POST

Milstein took out her cell phone and dialed the reporter's number.

MetLife Building, Manhattan

cKenna punched a key on his laptop that brought up the next slide on the conference room screen.

"We've discussed the limited scope of what my office reviewed; now I'd like to discuss some specific cases. Our analysis of every case pending in the Supreme Court at the time of the assassinations suggests that only two warrant further inquiry: the Hassan case and the Nevel Industries case."

McKenna took a sip of water from a paper cup. "The Hassans are brothers from a wealthy family-both of them playboys and black sheep."

He clicked another slide, and up popped a cover of Business Week. It showed two young men standing back to back, wearing black suits and black ties, under the headline "THE BROTHERS BILLIONAIRE."

"They were sued for fraud in federal court by U.S. investors who had sunk tens of millions into a Saudi-based investment company. It turned out to be just another Ponzi scheme. The brothers used the company as their private piggy bank. In short, the Hassan brothers stole an estimated two hundred million."

Someone in the room gave a low whistle at the figure.

McKenna continued, "The trial court found them liable, the appeals court affirmed the judgment, and they appealed to the Supreme Court."

"So why do you think the case is worth looking at?" an FBI agent asked, "Just because of the amount of money at stake?"

"Partially, yes," McKenna replied. "But the main reason is that the Hassan brothers would benefit greatly from the delay in the case caused by the assassinations. A delay in the Supreme Court would allow the brothers, who have several homes outside the U. S., time to hide their assets because many foreign courts don't allow collection of U. S. judgments or even freezing of accounts until all U. S. appeals are complete. The delay created by Black Wednesday was invaluable. The extraordinary sum of money at stake, combined with the brothers'ties to organized crime in the U.S. and abroad, put the case on our list. A more detailed analysis is in your briefing book."

After fielding several more questions, McKenna said, "Okay, let's talk about the second case my office identified-Nevel Industries. This is a business dispute between two government contractors, again with millions of dollars at stake. The plaintiff, a competitor, sued Nevel claiming that the company had improperly obtained government contracts that should have gone to the plaintiff. Nevel's CEO, a man named Griffin Nash, who is at the center of the allegations, used to be the president's chief of staff. The Supreme Court had accepted review of the case to address the scope of the attorney-client privilege. The plaintiff alleges that Nevel was abusing the privilege and withholding documents that might reveal improper contacts between Mr. Nash and the White House. The company suing Nevel had steadfastly refused to settle, but was having financial troubles. The delay in the Supreme Court caused by the assassinations left the financially beleaguered company no choice but to settle the lawsuit with Nevel. That, in turn, ensured that the documents will never see the light of day."

"That seems pretty speculative," said Randolph Wolcott, one of two senators appointed to the commission, and a staunch supporter of the president.

"You're right, Senator. And this is a good chance to emphasize a key point: everything my office identified is speculative. We don't know that any case is connected to the assassination of the justices. Again, my office's assignment was to identify the top cases of interest. That, as you know, is one small piece of the investigation. The law enforcement officials will report on what are likely to be the most promising leads."

"So are you saying that everything we just heard was a waste of time?" the senator challenged.

"No, that's not what I'm saying," McKenna replied. "What I'm saying is that my office was assigned a narrow task: to identify those cases pending at the court where parties connected to the litigation may have benefited from Black Wednesday, or cases with anything else about them that might warrant a closer look. With that in mind, Hassan and Nevel Industries should be considered the best of the worst, since we found nothing beyond conjecture in any of the cases. Let me add, though, that Nevel was included not only because the company might benefit from delay-it also happened to be the very case about to be argued right before the gunman started his rampage."

After answering another round of questions, McKenna said, "And finally, there is a new development." The automatic blinds opened with a hum and everyone's eyes began adjusting to the light. "It may turn out irrelevant, but while we're all here, I think it's worth mentioning. I learned early this morning that one of Second Circuit Judge Ivan Petrov's law clerks was murdered last night."

A low rumble filled the room. "Right now the murder appears to be just random street violence, but because of the clerk's connection to a high-profile judge, one rumored to be on the short list to fill the current vacancies on the high court, the media will undoubtedly try to make more of it. Plan on it."

"Did you get the contact information for the detectives handling the case?" said FBI Deputy Director Frank Pacini, head of the commission's multi-agency federal law enforcement arm.

"Yes. I'll give you all a written report as soon as I return to the office. For the law enforcement officials here, however, I'd be happy to discuss what little I know on the break. Any other questions?"

The room was silent. His presentation had provided no solid leads just more speculation. On the lunch break, the law enforcement types, desperate from their own lack of leads, were anxious to talk to McKenna about Parker Sinclair. McKenna didn't mind, since Parker's murder would draw interest away from the two cases he had identified, especially Nevel Industries.

Noon Brooklyn, New York

etectives Milstein and Assad drove by the concrete barricades lining the street in front of the courthouse at Foley Square and onto the Manhattan Bridge.

"Want to do dinner tonight?"Assad asked, scanning traffic on the massive suspension bridge.

Milstein stared silently out the window at the East River. "Maybe. Where?"

"Oh, you know, anywhere's fine."

"Maybe," she said absently.

Assad knew that "Where?" meant what part of the city, lest they risk their jobs by being seen together. Rumors of their relationship at the station had only heightened her paranoia. Behind their backs, some of the detectives referred to them as whatever Hollywood couple was hot at the moment: Brangelina, Bennifer, TomKat. Some of their more racist brothers in blue were less playful, once leaving an Osama bin Laden doll posed in a sexual position with a bent-over Barbie on Milstein's desk.

They arrived at the Greenpoint neighborhood in Brooklyn and double-parked in front of a poorly maintained four-story walk-up on Driggs Avenue. Dakota Cameron, law clerk and, until today, Parker Sinclair's office mate, buzzed them into the building.

She was waiting for them on the landing outside her apartment door. As they reached the top of the stairs, Assad gazed at her for a long moment. She did not look the part of a conservative federal law clerk. Dakota wore a tight-fitting blouse that was cut low at the neck displaying the alluring curves of her breasts and a tight skirt accentuating her long, smooth legs.

"Ms. Cameron, we really appreciate you letting us come by on such short notice," Assad said.

"No problem," Dakota said.

Her voice was sultry and her eyes seemed to sparkle when she spoke, both of which Assad suspected drove the male clerks in Petrov's chambers to distraction. The detectives followed her into her apartment. It was small and exceptionally clean with pressed-wood furniture and worn shag carpet. They sat on a futon couch in front of a coffee table piled high with books, including The Brethren, The Nine, Supreme Conflict, and The Kincaid Court-staple best-sellers featuring the Supreme Court.

"Coffee?" Dakota asked. Both detectives declined.

"I'm not in the mood for any, either," Dakota said, holding up a huge mug. "But if I don't drink enough, I'll get a major caffeine withdrawal headache."

"Your job," Assad said. "It must be pretty demanding." He looked into her eyes, trying hard not to blink as she stared back at him. He was accustomed to women responding to him, and used it when necessary.

"Yeah," Dakota replied. She crossed her legs and fussed with her hair. "The law clerk community refers to the grinding two years with Judge Petrov as `the gulag."'

"He works you hard?"

"Yeah. He's not like other judges. He's much younger than most, for one thing, and he doesn't ever seem to sleep. And while most judges require only a one-year commitment, he requires a two-year clerkship. So between writing decisions and helping him prep for speaking engagements and public appearances, it can be hard. Not everybody makes it through."

Assad gave her an admiring stare, then said, "We're trying to find out if there's anyone who'd want to hurt Parker."