Couples

Chapter 76

"We have to get our plans written down, or we'll never get them done," Lorne asserts, turning his laptop so Lanie can see the display. "Here. I downloaded a template for a simple wedding. All we have to do is fill in the blanks."

Lanie studies the screen. "Some of this is easy, anyway. Kate's my matron of honor. That's a no-brainer. How about your best man?"

Lorne strokes the stubble sprouting on his chin. "Normally, I'd say Benjie Seymour. He's been my best friend since kindergarten."

"How come I've never met him?" Lanie wonders.

"Because he specialized in forensic dentistry and traveled all over the world identifying victims of wars and disasters. He worked on the bodies recovered from 9-11. He's been in Iraq, Afghanistan, India, and even Russia. But two years ago, he took off for Israel. You know that Jewish tradition demands that the dead be buried within 24 hours. The orthodox don't permit autopsies, but teeth can be examined without desecrating the body. And the single teeth found at the site of an explosion can give important clues. Benjie wants to make sure that as many victims of rockets and bombings as possible are put to rest within religious law. And in many cases, he helps identify the non-Jews as well."

"Wow!" Lanie exclaims. "That's heavy work."

"Yes, it is," Lorne agrees. "We stay in touch. He emails me almost every week, sometimes more often. I can tell he feels good about contributing to giving families some peace. But you can see why he couldn't be making any toasts at our reception."

"He could by Skype," Lanie suggests, "if you want him there. And you could have someone else do the regular best man duties."

"Given that he threw our engagement party and that he's married to your best friend, that should be Rick," Lorne figures. "Two blanks down, but we haven't filled in the most important one – the date."

"Alexis is getting married the first week of August, and we don't want our wedding right on top of hers. How about September or October?" Lanie suggests.

"I'm fine with either. Which one do you want?" Lorne asks.

"I think September," Lanie decides. "It will still be warm enough to have it outside, and once we're past Labor Day, we'll be out of the holiday crazies for a while. But they pick up again before Halloween, especially for Rick. That man throws Halloween parties you wouldn't believe."

"After our engagement party, I think I would. But OK." He types in September. "We're making progress."

Lanie surveys the page of blanks still left to be filled. "Yeah, I hope we are."

Lily reaches up for Rick to lift her out of the hotel crib. "Pegins."

He hugs her against his chest. "Not today. We're all going on a boat ride, like 'Little Bear's Little Boat.'"

Lily's eyes widen. "Bear?"

"No, just the boat. It's called Maid of the Mist," Rick explains. "We'll ride on it so we can see the water coming down. We might even see a rainbow."

Lily bobs excitedly. "Rabow!"

"Close enough," Rick acknowledges. "Mama?" Lily inquires.

"We'll let her sleep for a few more minutes." Rick grins. "She played hard last night. But we'll get you changed and check on what the hotel has for breakfast."

"Eat." Lily agrees.

Lana wakes up in Eli's arms. He pulls her close. "That was something."

"The celebration at your campaign headquarters or our celebration afterward?" Lana asks

"Yes," he responds. "But our private celebration was incredible."

Lana stretches toward the bedside table to grab her watch. "I've got to get going. But after today, I have two days off. What does your schedule look like?"

"I have arraignments and prelims both days. And I have Flatt this morning. But court won't take that long. And as hard as the troops are working at my campaign office, I want to spend some time there cheering them on."

"So do I. So, maybe afternoons at headquarters and more evening celebrations?" Lana proposes.

"Sounds good," Eli agrees.

Joe Ross Flatt prowls his cell. His new lawyer should be arriving any moment. Joe was smarter than Kushman. He managed to convert some of his assets into precious stones and leave them with his family retainer. The old man hasn't been worth sh*t in the courtroom for years, but he's loyal as hell to all the Flatts. He converted some of the jewels back into cash – enough to hire an infamous defense attorney. That lawyer was caught taking too many rides on the private jet of a known pedophile and lost much of his client base. But he's still damn good, and Flatt couldn't care less who he befriended. And if his new attorney has a few kinks, Flatt doesn't want to know about them. Morton Andrews still has a license to practice law in New York, and he's got a long record of beating the system. That's all that matters.

Glancing at the defense table, Eli is surprised to see Morton Andrews. Flatt had initially claimed poverty and been represented by a public defender. He must have dug up some money, big money, to hire Andrews. No doubt Andrews can use it. In his circles, few things make a man a pariah, but a close association with a pedophile is one of them.

The bailiff calls "All rise," and Eli can see the revulsion in Markway's eyes as he spots Andrews. But that won't give Eli an advantage. Markway is scrupulously impartial regardless of his personal feelings. That worked for Eli a few times in his less-experienced days when he managed to piss the judge off. He suffered for his legal gaffes but never for any personal ones.

Markway runs rapidly through the preliminaries. "I note the change of counsel. Has the switch in representation resulted in any change to your client's plea, Mr. Andrews?"

"No, Your Honor," Andrews replies. "My client not only continues to plead not guilty, he is not guilty. And I intend to present a vigorous defense."

Markway nods. "I'm sure you do, Mr. Andrews. Mr. Douglas, in light of the change of counsel, do you require additional time to prepare?"

"No, Your Honor. The state has more than sufficient evidence to establish the defendant's guilt, regardless of who serves as his counsel."

Markway stares down at Eli. "As you are well aware, that will be for a jury to decide, Mr. Douglas. But the court can't fault your confidence." He looks toward his clerk. "The trial will be docketed for…?"

The clerk checks his schedule. "We have an opening on November fifth."

Eli groans inwardly. The trial will be starting right before the election. Unfortunately, campaigning to be elected D.A. would not go over well with Markway as an excuse for a postponement."

"November fifth," Markway confirms.

"Your Honor," Andrews inserts, "given that the trial will be several months from now, I request that you readdress the issue of my client's bail."

"What's to readdress, Mr. Andrews?" Markway inquires. "Your client was caught attempting to flee the country. Moreover, your client apparently now has sufficient resources to hire you. Given that, he is an extreme flight risk."

"Then surely home confinement would serve the purpose," Andrews presses.

"Mr. Andrews," Markway retorts, "Rikers is full of men and women who have been awaiting trial for months on relatively minor, non-violent charges because they can't make a few hundred dollars cash bail. Unfortunately, that's the law. Your client is charged with conspiracy to commit multiple murders. Am I supposed to afford him privilege because he is wealthier than his fellow citizens?"

Andrews remains silent.

"I didn't think so," Markway continues. "Mr. Flatt is remanded to the New York State Department of Corrections." Markway's gavel cracks hard against his bench.