The Sleeping Beauty Killer

26

Alex greeted Laurie in his reception area with a lingering kiss. She realized how good it felt to have her body close to his. “Funny. I’m used to going to your office, not the other way around.”

“Sorry to pop in on short notice.” She let Alex lead the way down the hall.

Although technically Alex was a sole practitioner, he shared space with five other attorneys. They had separate assistants, but jointly funded a pool of eight paralegals and six investigators. The result felt like a small firm, though the decor wasn’t what Laurie typically pictured for a law firm. Instead of dark wood, overstuffed leather chairs, and rows of dusty books, Alex had opted for a modern, open, airy feel, filled with sunlight, glass, and colorful art. When they entered his office, he stepped to the floor-to-ceiling windows with views of the Hudson River. “This is the perfect time of day, watching the sun move to the horizon. The sky’s beautiful tonight, filled with pink and gold.”

Laurie always admired the way Alex took the time to appreciate the joys that others took for granted. She was wondering now if she had made a mistake coming here. Maybe she was overreacting. She found herself thinking about Grace’s breezy attitude toward dating. It was a world she did not understand. She had always thought Greg was a once-in-a-lifetime soul mate because nothing between them had ever been complicated. But maybe I have a way of making things harder than they need to be, she thought.

“So to what do I owe this pleasure?” Alex asked.

Now that she was here, she couldn’t lie to him. She just needed to come out with it. “The other night, it seemed like you were trying to avoid talking to me about Casey Carter’s wrongful conviction claim.”

“Did it?” Alex looked astonished. “As I said, I just wasn’t sure how much I should stick my nose in now that I’m no longer working on the show. Once you told me you wanted my opinion, I did my best to give you my assessment based on the coverage I remembered from the trial.”

Something about his explanation sounded defensive, almost lawyerly. “And then you told me not to let Brett pressure me into a rushed decision. And you pointed out that Casey didn’t really have anything to lose, unlike our previous specials.”

“What are you getting at, Laurie?”

“It seemed as though you were giving me reasons to stay away from the case. Why is that?”

Alex was looking out the window again. “I don’t know where all this is coming from, Laurie. I thought the other night at my apartment went really well. It felt good to be with you and your family without work overshadowing everything. You seemed happy when you left. Was I wrong about that?”

“No. But that was before I found out you dated Casey’s cousin.”

“I what?”

“Well, maybe dated is too strong a word. But you went out with Casey’s cousin, Angela Hart, when you were in law school. Is that why you didn’t want me to take the case?”

Alex seemed to be searching his memory.

“Are there really so many women that you can’t remember this one? She was a model, for goodness’ sakes. I think most men would remember that.”

It was a low blow and she knew it. Early on, Alex had assured her that he was no “man about town,” even though he was in his late thirties and had never been married and always seemed to have a beautiful woman on his arm in the social pages. Now she was holding those facts over him.

“A model? Do you mean Angie? Sure, I vaguely remember her. You mean to tell me she’s Casey Carter’s cousin?”

“Yes. She’s the friend of Charlotte I mentioned. And she told me that you met at some law partner’s party in the Hamptons. She was with the Raleigh family.”

She could see the memory coming back to Alex. It really did seem as if he had not made the connection before.

“That’s right. General Raleigh was at that picnic. All of the law students were starstruck. It was a big deal when he took the time to shake our hands.”

“And the sons, Hunter and Andrew?”

“If I met them, I honestly don’t remember. Laurie, I don’t understand what any of this is about.”

“Were you trying to hide the fact that you knew Angela Hart from me?”

“No.” He held up his right hand in a pledge.

“Were you trying to hide the fact that you knew Hunter Raleigh?”

No again, with the pledge. “I don’t even recall meeting him,” he reminded her.

“Is there some other reason you don’t want me working on this case?”

“Laurie, I’m starting to think your cross-examination skills are better than mine. Look, I know how much you care about Under Suspicion. It is your baby, from top to bottom, beginning to end. You and you alone should decide what case you think merits your show’s attention. Okay? I have total faith that you’ll have yet another hit on your hands, no matter what you decide, because your instincts are always spot-on.”

He wrapped her in his arms and kissed the top of her head. “Any more questions?”

She shook her head.

“You know you’re prettier than any model out there, right?”

“It’s a good thing you’re not under oath, Counselor. I’m heading home to make dinner for Timmy. Care to join us?”

“I’d love to, but I’m speaking at NYU tonight. A friend of mine is being inducted as a chaired professor at the law school.”

He kissed her once more before walking her to the elevator. By the time she stepped out in the lobby, a sinking feeling had returned to Laurie’s stomach. She pictured Alex with his right hand up in a pledge to tell the truth. No, he hadn’t meant to conceal a connection to Angela. No, he didn’t remember meeting Hunter. But was there some reason he didn’t want Laurie looking into Casey’s conviction? He never responded to the question, but Laurie’s instincts, the ones that were always spot-on, were yelling the answer: there was something he wasn’t telling her.