Untitled (51 page)

  Marshall stared at the man whom he'd admired for so long. Bradbury had always been like a knight to him, a crusader for a noble purpose. Now he looked like a common criminal, a thief caught in the act.

  "You were wrong, sir," said Marshall. "In a way, you have blood on your hands."

  Bradbury didn't respond. He just downed the rest of his drink.

  "You'll understand if I don't come when you're sworn in," said Marshall. Then he started to walk away.

  "I'm not getting the nomination," said Bradbury from behind him.

  Marshall turned around and saw that Bradbury had stood up again.

  "The White House will pull my nomination now," said Bradbury. "I was recommended by Toby and all the people you've just had arrested. The president will not want to back a candidate with friends like that."

  Marshall saw the logic in his words. With a scandal of this size, the president could not afford to get any dirt on himself.

  "Some people would call that justice," said Marshall. He turned his back on Bradbury and walked out.

  His footsteps echoed on the high walls of the chambers. All he could think about was the big mess the government had to clean up, and seeing his wife, who he was sure still loved him.

M
arshall and Chemin watched proudly as Detective Danny Cavanaugh accepted his commission and gold shield. Normally there would be a whole class of detectives receiving the honor, but this was a special ceremony. Only Danny's family and a few friends were allowed to attend. Deputy Chief of Police Tony Hill conducted the ceremony in his spacious office. Outside, spring had come early in March, and the sun shone over a clear sky.

  Danny's part in solving the Douglas conspiracy had made him a celebrity. Suddenly, the case against him was dropped and the messy brutality lawsuit quietly disappeared.

  Danny was reinstated and given his dream, a detective's gold shield. He'd even managed to get his father's old number, a fact that made Danny's mother and father cry like babies.

  Vinny was taking a desk job and going to law school at Wayne State University. Vinny's family stood in stony silence as Danny was sworn in. Marshall could see it in their eyes. They knew they were stuck with Danny forever.

  Deputy Chief Hill presented Danny to polite applause. He and Marshall hugged. And Marshall saw mist in his friend's eyes, something he hadn't seen since he was a kid.

  "I love you, man," Danny said into Marshall's ear.

  "Same here," said Marshall. "Same here."

  Danny's father made everyone wait for pictures. He'd gotten a new camera just for the occasion. They all stood together posing for photos commemorating the event.

  All of the initial arrests had been made in the Douglas conspiracy. Toby was in custody, stripped of her office and turned in by her coconspirators. The president had gone on national TV to express his deep regret about the matter and to spin the embarrassing situation into a positive light.

  Thounter was in protective custody, and his uncle, Robert Carson, had been offered a hundred thousand dollars to do an interview. Carson had refused. The old man was too heartbroken to talk about his disgraced nephew.

  Roberta had come out of her coma and was making a slow, but steady, recovery. Marshall told Nate that Roberta had been instrumental in helping him solve the case, so Nate let Roberta get away with an unpaid suspension for a year from the office. She would not be disbarred or fired.

  The CIA didn't care about Roberta, and Sommers made sure the FBI didn't either. Sommers had gotten a promotion and didn't mind throwing her new weight around. With Sommers's help, Marshall recovered the embarrassing tape of Roberta and the one of himself and Jessica. He destroyed them all.

  Sommers ended her relationship with Ryder when the case was over. Ryder didn't seem to mind. He'd gone back to D.C., trying to distance himself from his old boss and keep his career going.

  Bradbury withdrew his nomination for health reasons. At least, that was the official word. He retired from the bench, taking senior status. For Bradbury, it was the functional equivalent of being put out to pasture. His career was over.

  Moses' men had been arrested in a sting operation involving an armored car. The local police had set them up to rob the car, and made six arrests. Wood, Moses' right-hand man, was shot and killed. Moses escaped during a gun battle and was still at large. With his crew destroyed, Marshall was sure that his brother was gone for good.

  Marshall left his job at the U.S. attorney's office. Nate had begged him not to resign. But he was never going back. The cause of justice that he believed in so faithfully had been forever perverted in his mind.

  He was getting job offers from all over the country. Law firms in New York, D.C., Chicago, and even one in London called and sent letters of inquiry. T
ime
had put his face on the cover above the caption JUSTICE'S LAWYER. When all this settled down, he promised himself he'd look the offers over, and decide what he was going to do.

  Danny was like a kid, and he hugged and kissed Vinny in front of her stunned family. Marshall promised himself he'd talk to Danny later and make sure he knew this was a gift not to be blown. For now, he'd leave him to his happiness.

  "That's the luckiest man in the world," Marshall said to Chemin.

  "I don't know," said Chemin. "You're pretty lucky too."

  "That's right," said Marshall. "I still have you, don't I?" He kissed her as everyone started to file out.

  Marshall looked out of the office's window and saw the old courthouse across downtown. Lady Justice was still there, watching over the city.

  Justice was an ideal, a perfection of fairness, logic, and humanity, he thought. It was something that men aspired to, but never quite attained. Justice was flawless in its potential to function. It was men who were flawed in its execution.

  He knew now what Lady Justice's eyes were like under the blindfold. They were not sad or angry, as he had first thought. Her eyes were clear, resolute, and determined that the scales she held would never be imbalanced.

N
ovember.

  
Marshall held his son in his arms for the first time as the
nurses finished cleaning him off. He was eight pounds, but
he seemed so small, so fragile. His little hands and feet
moved without purpose, taking their first motions, like
leaves quivering in the wind.

  
Chemin lay on the operating table crying, but looking
happier than she'd ever been.

  
Marshall came to her with the child. He sat down and told
his wife how much he loved her and how amazing it had
been to witness the birth.

  
Chemin laughed, then asked to hold her son. Marshall care
fully placed the child in her arms. Chemin stroked his wrinkled
face, not believing how beautiful he was. She held the baby to
her chest and looked at him with such emotion that Marshall
believed he was witnessing some kind of miracle.

  
He regarded his family and knew in that instant that he'd
done it. Despite his apprehension and fear, he was going to
be okay. He had beaten the demon in his heart and his head.
And if there was some answer to life's great question, he'd
just taken the first step to finding it.

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