Chapter 10: Lonely Days
Michelle found the drive home difficult. She was tired and distracted and Sophie was very fussy.
"What's the matter, Sweet Pea?" she cooed over her shoulder. "Do you miss Daddy, too?"
She stopped once to feed her, but even that didn't seem to make her happy. She was about an hour outside of LA when her phone rang.
"Hello," Michelle said absently.
"Michelle, it's Jack. Are you on your way home?"
"Yeah, I'll be home in about an hour," she answered.
"Alone?" Jack queried.
"No, I'm with Sophie." She knew what he meant.
"Look, Hammond is looking all over for you. He sent men to the office twice. I guess they keep a general watch on you and when you were gone for a couple of days they got suspicious. I just wanted you to know."
"Thanks, Jack. I appreciate it. I'll see you in the office tomorrow."
Hammond was obviously watching her closer than either she or Tony had suspected. She thought about Tony and hoped he got safely back into hiding. She was sure Jack would have alerted his contacts so they knew to take extra precautions.
As Michelle neared her house, she wasn't particularly surprised to see a car parked two houses from hers. It was an unmarked government car; she knew that and waved at the driver as she passed just to let him know she was aware of his presence. She took Sophie into the house and quickly unpacked the bag of Tony's clothes. A suitcase of his clothes, although not evidence that he had been there, was, nonetheless, hard to explain. She put the clothes away and stowed the suitcase with their other luggage. She was grateful that Tony had taken the time last night to wipe the car clean of fingerprints. She made sure that she smudged plenty of her prints on the surfaces so it didn't look as though it had been deliberately wiped clean.
Michelle was only home about 30 minutes when the doorbell rang.
"Well, Brad," she said as she opened the door. "Is this a social call?"
Brad Hammond ignored the remark. "Can I come in?" he asked.
"Do you have a warrant?" she returned. "If not, then you can stand on the porch."
Hammond looked uncomfortable. "You disappeared for a few days."
"I didn't disappear. I was on vacation."
"Why didn't your partners know where you were?" he asked
"I don't have to tell Jack and Chase where I'm going, Brad. I'm a big girl now. I can go where I want."
"The funny thing is, Michelle, you didn't have reservations anywhere. No airlines, trains, ships, hotels, resorts. Nothing."
"I drove my own car and stayed with friends. Is that a crime?" Michelle answered.
"Not unless that 'friend' is your husband," Hammond fired back.
Michelle crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame. She rolled her eyes. "You have no evidence that I was with Tony, Brad."
"And I bet you've got nothing to hide, either. Am I right?" he asked.
"That's right," She answered coolly.
"So you won't mind if I take a look around?"
"I'll ask again, do you have a search warrant?"
"No," he admitted.
"Then you can't look around. What do you think you're going to find, anyway? Latent prints, hairs. I'm a lousy housekeeper, Brad. There are probably prints and hairs from the people we bought the house from three years ago. That doesn't prove anything. This is bordering on harassment. Maybe I should call my lawyer. If you have evidence against me, charge me. If not, get off of my property."
Hammond glared at her, then turned and walked away.
The next few weeks found Michelle in a blissful fog. If her mind wasn't fully occupied it seemed to wander immediately to some special moment at the beach, a touch, a meal together, watching the sunset, Tony playing with Sophie. The next months passed quietly. Tony had been gone a year now. Holidays and birthdays and their third anniversary had all passed without any progress in getting the charges dropped. Michelle was no longer being called on to make personal appearances on news shows; interest in the story had dropped off dramatically. Michelle began to consider her options including the possibility of contacting Tony and going to be with him. The days they spent together had only made her realize how much she missed him and how hard it was to be apart. She watched Sophie grow and ached to know that Tony was missing all of the new things she was doing.
Michelle and Chase were sitting in Jack's office one day discussing client issues. Michelle's thoughts had begun to wander when the intercom on Jack's desk brought her back to reality.
"Michelle," Amy, their secretary said, "Bill Conner is here to see you. I gave him coffee and took him in the conference room. He doesn't have an appointment? Should I show him to your office?"
"Why is her here?" Michelle asked.
"He didn't say. All he would tell me was that he needed to see you as soon as possible."
"I'll go over to the conference room, Amy. Thanks." She heard Amy hang up. "I don't like this," Michelle said to Chase and Jack. "Bill never comes to see me. I always have to go to his office. Do you two mind coming with me?"
"Michelle, anything Bill has to say to you is between you two. We shouldn't be involved," Chase reminded her.
"After all you've done for Tony and me, anything Bill has to say is okay for you to hear. Besides I feel like I need some moral support."
Bill Conner was the defense attorney Michelle had hired when charges were first brought against Tony. Lawyers seemed to rule her life these days, she thought grimly: Marta for advice and public relations and Bill for Tony's defense.
Bill and Tony were old friends. They met years ago when Tony was getting his Masters degree at Stanford and at the same time, Bill was getting his law degree. Tony moved back to LA to work for CTU after graduation and when Bill moved there a year later to work in the Federal prosecutor's office, he and Tony shared a house. They lived together for a couple of years until Bill got married. They had remained friends and Tony was Godfather to Bill's oldest son.
While in the prosecutor's office, Bill was lead prosecutor for a case involving CTU employees who were skimming money. Jack had been the prosecution's star witness, so they were well acquainted with one another, as well. Bill eventually left the prosecutor's office and became a highly sought after defense attorney in Federal cases. Over the years, he had won a number of high profile cases both for and against the government.
Bill stood as Michelle walked into the conference room followed by Jack and Chase. They all shook hands and exchanged greetings.
"Bill, this is a surprise and I don't have a good feeling about it," Michelle said honestly.
"I wish I had good news, Michelle, but I don't think you're going to like what I have to say," Bill said averting his gaze. "Why don't you sit down."
Michelle eased herself into a chair, not sure she wanted to hear what was coming next.
"I got a call from Julia Morelli at the federal prosecutor's office today. Tony has been gone over a year and the only leads they have on him suggest he is in a country with no extradition treaty, but they aren't sure where. They feel they've waited long enough for the authorities to find him or for Tony to turn himself in so they have decided to go ahead with the trial without Tony being present."
"They are going to try him in absentia?" Jack asked.
"That's right," Bill answered. "I don't have to tell you Michelle that without Tony present, we have very little chance of getting an acquittal. I've been working on this case for a year now and I'll tell you, even with him here it would be an uphill battle. But at least if he was sitting in the court room, I might be able to get sympathy from the jury."
Michelle was staring at the floor, numb, barely able to breathe. She had been completely blindsided by this. It had never occurred to her that they would try Tony in absentia. How stupid of her never to think of this.
"Michelle, are you okay?" Jack's voice brought her back to the present.
"Yeah, yeah," she said looking up. "Did they set a date?"
"August 1, that gives us 6 weeks. The way I see this Michelle, Tony has a couple of choices. He can continue to do what he is doing, hiding out wherever he is. The trial will go on, he will likely be convicted, but as long as he stays in countries without extradition, he will be free. Or, he can come back and stand trial. I can't promise him anything if he does that. Or, the prosecutor's office offered him a plea bargain."
"A plea bargain," Michelle repeated.
"Yeah, if Tony will plead guilty to a lesser charge, he will get 15 years in a minimum security federal detention facility within 50 miles of LA."
"Fifteen years!" Michelle exclaimed. "Not a chance, Bill."
"Wait a minute, Michelle, this is not a bad deal. Fifteen years, he's still a young man when he gets out. The facility isn't bad; it's not a hotel, but not bad. It's close to LA; you can see him whenever you want, there are very few visiting restrictions. He can watch Sophie grow up and Sophie can know her father. Not to mention that you can still seek a Presidential pardon. You need to think this over, Michelle."
"No, I don't," Michelle scoffed. She stood and began to pace. "You want him to watch Sophie grow up from a prison cell. You want Sophie to know her father as a convicted traitor."
"Is it better that she has a father who she's never met who's a fugitive?" Bill shouted back. "Frankly, Michelle, this isn't even your decision. It's Tony's. You don't have to admit it, but I know you have a way to contact him." He looked at Jack. "I think you need to get in touch with him and let him make the decision."
"Maybe he's right, Michelle," Jack offered. "I can get the message to him."
"No," Michelle said angrily. She was finally beginning to break down. Her lower lip was quivering and her voice began to shake. "I won't let you do this. He will not plead guilty, not even to a lesser charge. It's wrong." She turned away to compose herself. As she turned back, she said, "Can you request a postponement, Bill?"
"I can request it; I won't guarantee we will get it. The truth is, Michelle, I'm not sure what good a postponement will do. I've had a year to prepare. Even if the judge grants another two months, I can't prepare any better. It's only going to prolong the agony." Bill looked at the floor and spoke softly. "Michelle, I don't lose very often. I don't like to lose but I have to be realistic. I don't think I have ever come up against odds this bad before. I wish I could change things, but I can't."
They decided to meet and finalize the strategy and witness list the next day. After Bill left, Jack, Chase and Michelle sat silently in the conference room. Jack spoke first, "Michelle, you need to contact Tony. I can get a message to him within 24 hours. This is his future; he has to be involved in the decision."
"We've already made a decision about our future, Jack and it doesn't involve any prison time. If I can't get Tony's name cleared by the time Sophie turns two, we're leaving the U.S. to be with him," Michelle announced. "Let the trial happen. Let those bastards convict an honorable man. I don't care. Sophie and I will leave and never come back." Michelle turned and walked resolutely from the room.
