Phillip Margolin - Fugitive

“They’ll still go after me after all that’s happened?”

“Werner Rollins did retract his testimony, so they don’t have any direct evidence that you shot Pope. I’ll try to convince the DA that enough questions have been raised to warrant a dismissal.”

“What about all these people who’ve been trying to kill me? Shouldn’t that make them think they’ve got the wrong man?”

“You’re on trial for a murder that happened twelve years ago. There’s no hard evidence that the current rash of murders has anything to do with the congressman’s murder.”

“Come on. It’s obvious.”

“The only thing that’s obvious is that someone is after you. That could be because they think you murdered Arnold Pope Jr. and they want revenge.”

“You mean Arnie’s father?”

Amanda nodded. “I think there’s a good possibility that he hired someone to kill you.”

“Who?”

“I don’t want to say right now, but I’ve seen the list of witnesses Pope is calling at the guardianship contest, so I might know more after the hearing.”

“You think there’s a tie-in between Senior’s attempt to get custody of Kevin, Junior’s murder, and the attempts on my life?”

“I think it’s possible, but I’m open to suggestions. Besides Senior, can you think of someone else who might want you dead?”

Charlie looked nervous. “No. I mean there’s Tuazama, but-like I said-I don’t think he’d kill me until he got the diamonds.”

“So, you can’t think of anyone else?”

“No.”

Amanda opened her attaché case and took out a manila envelope. Inside the envelope was the photograph she’d stolen from Karl Burdett’s file. She took it out and laid it on top of the blanket on Charlie’s bed.

The Honorable Maria Gomez took the bench and the parties in the case of In re Kevin Pope stood until she was seated. Judge Gomez was in her mid-forties. The wiry six-foot jurist had played on the LPGA tour until she gave up golf for law school. Then she’d brought her competitive drive to the legal profession, where she’d been one of the top domestic-relations lawyers in Oregon before the current governor elevated her to the bench. She was a no-nonsense judge who liked to move cases along and she disliked lawyers who were unprepared or wasted her time.

Sitting at one counsel table next to Arnold Pope Sr. was Andrew Curry, a stoop-shouldered, balding attorney with a skeletal build. Curry was nicknamed “the Vampire” because of the ruthless way he practiced law and a bloodless complexion that was the result of long hours spent indoors working on ways to win divorce and custody battles for his clients. Curry wore the nickname with pride. Nobody liked him but everybody recommended him to a spouse who wanted an ex destroyed, destitute, and demoralized.

Frank Jaffe sat across the aisle from Pope and Curry, and Amanda sat next to her father so they could confer. Liam O’Connell was next to Amanda. Kevin was not present, because custody hearings were often wars of character assassination and the accusations of biased witnesses were best left unheard by the child who would have to live with one of the maligned parties.

“Let me see if I understand the background of this case, Mr. Jaffe,” Judge Gomez said. “Sally Pope was Kevin Pope’s mother and Arnold Pope Jr. was his father. Mr. Pope passed away twelve years ago and Mrs. Pope raised her son until her recent death. Mr. O’Connell lived with Mrs. Pope and Kevin for approximately five years before her death. In her will, Mrs. Pope named Mr. O’Connell as Kevin’s guardian and Mr. O’Connell filed a petition requesting me to appoint him Kevin’s guardian.”

“That’s correct, Your Honor,” Frank Jaffe said. “I also want to make sure that you know that it was Mrs. Pope’s specific wish-which she spelled out in her will-that Arnold Pope Sr. never be allowed to be Kevin’s guardian. She was adamant while alive, and in her will, that Mr. Pope Sr. should never have contact with her son.”

“I’m aware of that and I will consider Mrs. Pope’s wishes very seriously when I make my decision. But I’m not bound by them. My main concern is the best interests of the child, Kevin Pope.”

The judge turned her attention to Senior and his attorney. “Mr. Curry, your client filed objections to Mr. O’Connell’s petition seeking guardianship and today I’m going to decide who will be appointed Kevin’s temporary guardian until a full-fledged hearing can be held. Is that correct?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Then it seems to me that Mr. Pope has the burden of proof, since the will asks the court to appoint Mr. O’Connell as Kevin’s guardian.”

Curry stood so rapidly that Judge Gomez had the impression that she had missed part of the transition from seat to feet. It was like watching a film from which several of the frames had been removed.

“Your Honor, I respectfully disagree with your holding. We believe that Mr. O’Connell should bear the burden of convincing this court that he should be appointed Kevin’s guardian. Oregon law recognizes that grandparents have substantial interests in their grandchildren. A sexual partner with no blood ties to the child should not be granted superior rights to a grandparent.

“Furthermore, we take issue with Mr. Jaffe’s position that Mrs. Pope’s rabid and unjustified dislike of my client should play any part in the court’s decision.”

“I appreciate your position, Mr. Curry. I may be wrong on the issue of who bears the burden. If I am, the appellate court will straighten me out. But you brought this petition challenging the will, so I’m holding that you have the burden of convincing me that Mr. O’Connell should not be appointed Kevin’s temporary guardian. Are you ready with your first witness?”

BEFORE THE NOON recess, a child psychiatrist, who had been hired by Senior, testified that he would make an excellent guardian for Kevin. Then Curry called several prominent Oregonians, including one of Oregon’s United States senators, who testified to their belief that Arnold Pope Sr. loved his late son and his grandson and would make an excellent guardian for Kevin. During cross-examination, Frank Jaffe established that each witness was biased by a financial or personal relationship with Senior. He also got them to admit that they knew nothing about Liam O’Connell’s fitness to raise the boy.

As soon as court reconvened after lunch, Judge Gomez told Curry to call his next witness. Tony Rose straightened the jacket of his charcoal black pinstripe suit, adjusted his maroon silk tie, and walked to the witness stand looking every bit the successful business executive.

“Mr. Rose, what is your profession?” Curry asked after the witness was sworn.

“I’m the president of Mercury Enterprises. We manufacture sporting equipment.”

“Your company also sponsors the Mercury training program for our Olympic athletes, does it not?”

“Yes, sir. There are several American athletes who have earned Olympic medals after taking advantage of our training facilities.”

“Can you please tell the judge a little about the activities of Mercury worldwide?”

“That won’t be necessary, Mr. Curry,” Judge Gomez said. “I’m well aware of who Mr. Rose is and what Mercury does. I doubt that there’s a person in Oregon, or the United States for that matter, who can’t identify the Mercury logo.”

“Very well, Your Honor. Mr. Rose, are you acquainted with Arnold Pope Sr.?”

“I am.”

“How long have you known him?”

“More than ten years.”

“What is Mr. Pope’s reputation in the business community of this state?”

“Well, if I might, I think ‘state’ is too narrow. I would say that his reputation for integrity is something people across the nation are aware of.”