The Law of Second Chances

63

Henry and Valentine set out early Friday morning for Castle Hill Lake, stopping first at the local Wal-Mart to buy winter coats. It was freezing cold, and the roads were icy. Valentine turned out to be very good at directions and they found Milton Jeffries’s cabin without too much trouble; it was right on the lake. Unfortunately, the door was locked and nobody was home.

While Henry tried the windows, Valentine walked around to the back porch that faced the lake and did some investigating of his own. Henry caught up with him out on the dock. The lake was frozen, and there were some fresh snowmobile tracks leading from the dock.

“It snowed here last night, so those tracks have to be fresh,” Valentine told Henry. “Which means he left this morning. Who knows where the hell he went?”

“Damn!” Henry exclaimed. “We should have come last night.”

“We never would have found this place last night, Henry, you know that. We’ll just wait.”

“That’s a big lake out there, Valentine. He might be gone for days.”

“Unless he’s got a cabin out there on the ice or a honey on the other side of the lake, he’ll be back today. He’d freeze out there overnight.”

“We’re going to freeze here,” Henry replied.

“Let’s just go find a place to eat and we’ll come back from time to time and check on the place.”

At four o’clock that afternoon Jack met at a downtown office with Pete Ingram, the firearms expert who had analyzed the newfound gun. Jack had anticipated that Spencer Taylor would be present during the conversation. He never expected to be able to question the prosecution’s expert alone. Spencer had to be extremely confident.

Pete Ingram got right to it. “They told me to tell you everything, so here it is. The gun they found is a Glock 17 semiautomatic. All the serial numbers were filed off, so we couldn’t tell where it was purchased or who purchased it. You probably know how we test a gun to see if it was used in a crime, but I’ll tell you anyway.” Jack smiled and nodded encouragement for him to continue. “It’s very simple. We load the gun with a cartridge or bullet of the same make and type as the one found at the scene. We then fire the gun into a soft material, retrieve the slug, and compare it under a microscope with the slug found at the scene to see if the lands and grooves match. I assume you’re familiar with those terms?”

Jack nodded again and said, “Yes, thanks. So what did you find?”

“I could show you the slides, but it’s easier if I describe it. I can tell that the slug from the crime scene is from a Glock. Their grooves are unique, and there’s enough there for me to determine that. But I can’t compare the slugs. The one found at the crime scene is too distorted. Thus, I can’t match that slug to the gun that was found.”

Jack couldn’t believe his ears. The system actually did work. He started to smile but caught himself. Now was not the time to relax. Spencer Taylor might have other surprises up his sleeve.

Henry called Jack that night.

“How’s it going?” Henry asked.

“Not well. They supposedly found the murder weapon yesterday.”

“You’re kidding me! A year later, in the middle of trial, they find the gun? That’s a little convenient, isn’t it?”

“It sure is, but I think we can deal with it. Have you got anything?”

“Are you sure we should do this over the phone?”

“Stick to the ground rules we talked about and we’ll take the chance. I really need some good news.”

“Well, the good news is we found our man. The bad news is, he won’t talk to us. We waited for him to come home all day, and when he finally arrived, he wouldn’t talk to us. This guy is really spooked. He knows something, and I’m not sure what it is. I think we’re dealing with something that’s way over our heads, Jack.”

“We can’t think about that, Henry. Listen, you’ve got until Tuesday. Stay there and keep trying to get him to talk. If you find out anything, get here as fast as you can. At that point, don’t call me or tell me when you’re coming or what you’ve got-the risk would be too great that they’d try to stop you. And keep an eye on that Busby guy. He may be our only hope if nothing else comes up. See you Tuesday morning.”

“I’ll be there.”

Jack called Charlie right away. “Got anything yet?”

“Nothing.”

“Well, we’ve got an extra day. Don’t call me before you come. I don’t want to know when you’re coming or where you’re staying. We can’t trust the phones anymore. I’ll see you in the courtroom on Tuesday morning at the latest, and you can give me anything you’ve got then. It’s the criminal courts building, 10 °Centre Street, eleventh floor. And have Dick and Joaquin escort you-I don’t care what the cost is. All right?”

“We’ll be there.”