Chapter 4

It was getting late in the day but before he went home, Jarrod sent a telegram off to Don Gordon, his contact in the Attorney General's office in Sacramento. He asked Gordon to confirm that Linda Desmond and Adam Desmond were admitted to the bar and licensed to practice law in California, that they practiced in Los Angeles, and at what address. He also asked Gordon to let him know if they were still practicing there or if they had moved.

It wasn't that Jarrod thought Linda was lying to him about who she was, but he wanted to be very careful, and he wanted to have evidence of who she was for the trial. It would be good if he could get a character witness for her, but it didn't seem likely he could do that within a week. He touched base with the grocer and the man who ran the mercantile in town, but they didn't know enough about her to be a character witness. No one in Stockton except Dr. Merar seemed to know her at all.

Jarrod got home in time to gather with the family for drinks before dinner. Everyone was there, although Heath was dressed up in a suit and tie. "Going out, are you?" Jarrod asked as soon as he came in the door. Then he said, "Polly Pierce again?"

Heath had been seeing the young woman who took over running the ladies' shop in Stockton for Mrs. Cryar, who had been battling illness lately. Heath said, "Polly Pierce again."

"They've been seeing a lot of each other," Audra said. "I know Polly is smitten with our brother."

Jarrod poured himself a scotch, smiling. People around here were still walking on eggs a bit when it came to discussing the possibility of one of the men taking a wife. It had been nearly two years since Jarrod had been widowed, but it was still a sore spot – maybe not as much as it had been, but it was still there, despite his attempts to reassure everyone that he was healing.

"She's a nice girl," Jarrod said. "You should invite her to dinner here sometime soon."

"Before the end of the month, I already told him," Victoria said.

Jarrod gave her a smile.

Nick asked, "Are you gonna be around for a while, or are you off to San Francisco anytime soon?"

"I got a new client today," Jarrod said. "I have a murder trial here next week."

"A murder trial?" Audra asked.

"The woman who murdered her husband?" Victoria said. "Sadie at the Women's League said they were going to ask you to take the case."

"Yes, Linda Cain," Jarrod said, not yet ready to disclose her real name or anything else about her.

"Does she have a defense?" Nick asked.

"I think so, but you know I can't get into that, Nick," Jarrod said.

"I was wondering about her," Victoria said. "None of us even met her or her husband. They didn't seem all that interested."

"I never saw him around town," Heath said, "or her."

"Something seemed wrong about that," Audra said.

Jarrod said, "I hope I'll be able to clear some things up at the trial, but let's not get into it now. Heath is gonna need to be running along, and I'm sure he doesn't want to waste our time together talking about my new client when he could be telling us more about Polly Pierce."

"I can't say I've got a lot to tell yet either," Heath said.

"But maybe soon?" Victoria asked.

Heath smiled a little. "Maybe soon."

XXXXX

It was much later that Victoria came down from her room, in her robe and ready for bed but distracted by the light still on in the library that would reflect off the trees next to the house and into her bedroom. Jarrod was at the desk in the corner. He'd been there since shortly after dinner. Even Heath had come home and gone up to bed, and Jarrod was still making notes of some sort.

"I won't look over your shoulder," Victoria said as she approached.

Jarrod hadn't heard her coming. He closed the pad he'd been writing in. "I won't tempt you. It's late. You should be getting to bed."

"So should you," Victoria said.

"I had to do some thinking and planning, and look up a couple things," Jarrod said. "I don't have much time to get ready for this trial."

Victoria noted he had more than one law book open in front of him. "Are you looking for precedents?"

"Yes, but I'm not finding any," Jarrod said. "I don't think there are any that would cover this situation."

"You've taken cases that had no precedents before."

"Yes, but not a murder case."

"Is there any chance she'll plead guilty?"

Jarrod gave her a slight smile. "You know I can't discuss it, Mother."

"I'm sorry," Victoria said. "I just wish I could help you in some way."

"There may be," Jarrod said. "There just isn't yet, but if some way arises, I will let you know."

"Maybe I should become a lawyer, now that women are permitted."

Jarrod nearly choked, that she should come up with that particular thought. For a moment, he wondered if she knew more about Linda Cain/Desmond than he realized.

Victoria caught his reaction. "I'd make a good partner," she said with a smile.

The smile was innocent enough that Jarrod just took it all for coincidence. "You would, indeed," Jarrod said. "But until you pass the bar, I'm afraid you'll just have to remain my mother and not my law partner. I'll go to bed in a few minutes, I promise."

She leaned over and gave him a kiss. "Good night, Jarrod."

She left, but she paused in the hall as if she were listening back his way, and Jarrod caught the sight of her shadow doing it.

Jarrod recognized that Victoria Barkley always did have an uncanny way of reading people – better than his own way – and she was particularly good at reading her children. He made a mistake when he told her there was no precedent for this case. That made her more interested than she might otherwise be.

Jarrod decided he was going to have to be more careful.

XXXXXXX

In the morning, Jarrod received a telegram from Don Gordon in Sacramento. He confirmed that Linda Desmond and Adam Desmond had been attorneys with their own firm in Los Angeles for nearly two years. There had been no complaints lodged against them. They recently closed that office and the bar had not yet been notified that they had settled elsewhere.

Jarrod knew that any newspaper article about Linda Cain killing her husband Adam Cain would not trigger anyone in Sacramento to get into the file there on Linda and Adam Desmond. He decided to ask Linda about it and get her permission to notify the bar of her whereabouts, but he wanted to get a few other things together first.

He hadn't talked much to Dr. Merar out of Linda's earshot, so he went to Dr. Merar's office to do that. Dr. Merar was out delivering a baby though. His wife Iva said she'd have him come to Jarrod's office when he got back.

Jarrod went over to the jail then but he didn't go in to see Linda right away. First, he had questions for Sheriff Madden. He asked the sheriff to describe what he found when he went to the Cain home when Adam was shot.

"Nothing really surprising," the sheriff said. "Linda was in the bedroom. Adam in the bed. Both of them covered with blood. The gun beside Adam on the bed."

"What did she say to you at the time?" Jarrod asked.

"She said she shot him. I asked her why, but she wouldn't answer. Doc Merar came only a couple minutes later and I had him look at her because she wasn't talking, but she wouldn't say anything to him either. He stayed and examined the body while I brought her back here and locked her up."

"Did she ask for a lawyer?"

"No. She hardly said anything at all. She was in a trance like but Dave Strickler insisted she had to be arraigned within 24 hours and the judge let her represent herself. All she said was 'not guilty.'"

Strickler was the district attorney now. "Did Strickler try to question her?" Jarrod asked.

"Yes, but she wouldn't talk," Sheriff Madden said. "If she's been talking to you, I'm kinda glad. Are you gonna talk to her about changing her plea?"

"No," Jarrod said.

"You know if she doesn't, she could hang."

"I know that," Jarrod said, "and so does she."

"You think she has a defense, don't you?" the sheriff said.

Jarrod didn't answer. He couldn't answer. "Has she had a chance to visit the wc and clean up this morning?"

"Yes. Iva Merar came by and brought her some clean clothes, too."

"I'd like to spend some time with her now. May I?"

"Sure," Sheriff Madden said, and led him to the cell block.