The First Councel

“If there’s anything I can… ”

I nod a thank-you and search for control. “You heard that Lamb… ”

“All I know is he died,” Trey says. “It’s all over the news, but no one has the hows and whys-FBI scheduled the briefing for first thing tomorrow.” He’s about to say something else, but his voice trails off. I’m not surprised. He’s too connected to be in the dark. He knows what the rumors are; he just doesn’t want to ask. I stare at him across the room, watching him fidget with his tie. He can barely make eye contact. And even though he’s right in front of the sofa, he refuses to sit down. But he still won’t ask. He’s too good a friend.

“Say it, Trey. Someone’s got to.”

He looks up, measuring the moment. Then he clears his throat. “Is it true?”

Again, I nod.

Trey’s eyebrows go from arched curiosity to rounded shock. He lowers himself to the couch. “I-I waited in my office for her-just like you said. While you and Pam were digging through files, I had all these different ways to keep her busy-fake folders to search through, fake phone records to check-it would’ve been perfect. But she never showed.”

“She knew what we were up to-she knew all along.”

“So Lamb… ”

“Lamb deleted the request from Caroline’s computer, but he didn’t know she was anal enough to keep a hard copy. And the FBI didn’t need them-they had the actual files. To be honest, I think Nora knew where they were. Maybe it was her insurance, maybe it was… maybe it was something else.”

Trey watches me carefully. “It was definitely something else.”

I grin, but it quickly disappears.

“Was she… ” he stutters. “Was it… ”

“As bad as you think, it was worse. You should’ve seen her… when Lamb walked in… he’d been doing it since she was eleven. Sixth grade, Trey. You know what kind of monster you have to be? Sixth-fucking-grade! And when Hartson got elected-Lamb was there full-time! They thought he was doing them a favor!” My voice picks up speed, blurring, rambling, flying through the rest of the story. From Lamb’s gun, to the stained glass; from being grilled in the Sit Room, to Adenauer’s overlong apology, it all comes vomiting out. Trey doesn’t interrupt once.

When I’m done, both of us just sit there. It takes everything I have not to look at the toaster, but the silence is starting to hurt. She’s no longer there.

“So what happens now?” Trey eventually asks.

I head for the fireplace and slowly remove my diploma from the wall.

“They’re scapegoating! Even though you didn’t do it, they’re hanging you out to-”

“They’re not hanging me anywhere,” I say. “For once, they believe me.”

“They do?” He pauses, cocking his head. “Why?”

“Thanks a lot,” I say as I lower my diploma to the floor and rest it against the mantel.

“I’m serious, Michael. With Nora and Lamb both dea-Without them, all you have is a file request with Lamb’s name on it. Where’d they get the rest? Debits in Lamb’s bank accounts?”

“Yeah,” I shrug. “But they also… ” My voice trails off.

“What?”

I don’t say a word.

“What?” Trey repeats. “Tell me.”

I take a deep breath. “Nora’s brother.”

“Christopher? What about him?”

My voice is dry monotone. “He may be in boarding school now, but he was around for junior high. And for every summer.”

The stunned look on Trey’s face tells me this is the first he’s heard of it. “So he… Oh, sick-Does that mean we’ll-”

“The press’ll never hear it. Hartson’s personal request. However she lived, Nora Hartson’s going to die a hero-giving her life to catch Caroline’s killer.”

“So she and Lamb… ”

“You only heard it because you’re a friend. Understand what I’m saying?”

Trey nods his head and gives me the rub. A quick one. More unnerved than upset. Unless I bring it up, that’s the last I’ll hear of it.

Turning back to the wall above the fireplace, I stand on my tiptoes to reach the court artist’s rendition of me at the moot court finals. Trapped behind a huge piece of glass, it’s even bigger than it first appears. Deeper too. It takes me a second to get both hands around it.

Trey rushes to my side, helping me get control of it. “So what’d they do?” Trey asks as we lean it against my diploma. “Fire you or force you to resign?”

I stop where I am. “How’d you know?”

“You mean besides the oh-so-subtle clue of you dismantling your office? It’s a crisis, Michael. Lamb and Nora are dead, and you were sleeping with her. When it gets that hot, this place goes running for shade.”

“They didn’t fire me,” I tell him.

“So they asked you to leave.”

“They didn’t say the words, but… I have to.”

He stares out the window. There’re still a few reporters doing stand-ups on the lawn. “If you want, I can help you with some media coaching.”

“That’d be great.”

“And I can still get you into all the really cool events-State of the Union, Inaugural Ball-whatever you want.”

“I appreciate it.”