Rage of Angels

Rage of Angels Page 17

The front page of The New York Times carried two stories of interest, side by side. One was an announcement that Jennifer Parker had obtained an acquittal for a woman accused of slaying her husband. The other was an article about Adam Warner running for the United States Senate.

Jennifer read the story about Adam again and again. It gave his background, told about his service as a pilot in the Viet Nam War, and gave an account of his receiving the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery. It was highly laudatory, and a number of prominent people were quoted as saying that Adam Warner would be a credit to the United States Senate and to the nation. At the end of the article, there was a strong hint that if Adam were successful in his campaign, it could easily be a stepping-stone to his running for the presidency of the United States.

In New Jersey, at Antonio Granelli's farmhouse, Michael Moretti and Antonio Granelli were finishing breakfast. Michael was reading the article about Jennifer Parker.

He looked up at his father-in-law and said, "She's done it again, Tony."

Antonio Granelli spooned up a piece of poached egg. "Who done what again?"

"That lawyer. Jennifer Parker. She's a natural."

Antonio Granelli grunted. "I don' like the idea of no woman lawyer workin' for us. Women are weak. You never know what the hell they gonna do."

Michael said cautiously, "You're right, a lot of them are, Tony."

It would not pay for him to antagonize his father-in-law. As long as Antonio Granelli was alive, he was dangerous; but watching him now, Michael knew he would not have to wait much longer. The old man had had a series of small strokes and his hands trembled. It was difficult for him to talk, and he walked with a cane. His skin was like dry, yellowed parchment. All the juices had been sucked out of him. This man, who was at the head of the federal crime list, was a toothless tiger. His name had struck terror into the hearts of countless mafiosi and hatred in the hearts of their widows. Now, very few people got to see Antonio Granelli. He hid behind Michael, Thomas Colfax, and a few others he trusted.

Michael had not been raised - made the head of the Family - yet, but it was just a question of time. "Three-Finger Brown" Lucchese had been the strongest of the five eastern Mafia chieftains, then Antonio Granelli, and soon...Michael could afford to be patient. He had come a long, long way from the time when, as a cocky, fresh-faced kid, he had stood in front of the major dons in New York and held a flaming scrap of paper in his hand and sworn: "This is the way I will burn if I betray the secrets of Cosa Nostra."

Now, sitting at breakfast with the old man, Michael said, "Maybe we could use the Parker woman for small stuff. Just to see how she does."

Granelli shrugged. "Just be careful, Mike. I don' wan' no strangers in on Family secrets."

"Let me handle her."

Michael made the telephone call that afternoon.

When Cynthia announced that Michael Moretti was calling, it brought an instant spate of memories, all of them unpleasant. Jennifer could not imagine why Michael Moretti would be calling her.

Out of curiosity, she picked up the telephone. "What is it you want?"

The sharpness of her tone took Michael Moretti aback. "I want to see you. I think you and I should have a little talk."

"What about, Mr. Moretti?"

"It's nothing I'd care to discuss on the telephone. I can tell you this, Miss Parker - it's something that would be very much in your interest."

Jennifer said evenly, "I can tell you this, Mr. Moretti. Nothing you could ever do or say could be of the slightest interest to me," and she slammed down the receiver.

Michael Moretti sat at his desk staring at the dead phone in his hand. He felt a stirring within him, but it was not anger. He was not sure what it was, and he was not sure he liked it. He had used women all his life and his dark good looks and innate ruthlessness had gotten him more eager bed partners than he could remember.

Basically, Michael Moretti despised women. They were too soft. They had no spirit. Rosa, for example. She's like a little pet dog who does everything she's told, Michael thought. She keeps my house, cooks for me, fucks me when I want to be fucked, shuts up when I tell her to shut up.

Michael had never known a woman of spirit, a woman who had the courage to defy him. Jennifer Parker had had the nerve to hang up on him. What was it she had said? Nothing you could ever do or say could be of the slightest interest to me. Michael Moretti thought about that and smiled to himself. She was wrong. He was going to show her how wrong she was.

He sat back, remembering what she had looked like in court, remembering her face and her body. He suddenly wondered what she would be like in bed. A wildcat, probably. He started thinking about her nude body under his, fighting him. He picked up the telephone and dialed a number.

When a girl's voice answered he said, "Get naked. I'm on my way over."

On her way back to the office after lunch, as Jennifer was crossing Third Avenue she was almost run down by a truck. The driver slammed on his brakes and the rear end of the truck skidded sideways, barely missing her.

"Jesus Christ, lady!" the driver yelled. "Why don't you watch where the hell you're goin'!"

Jennifer was not listening to him. She was staring at the name on the back of the truck. It read Nationwide Motors Corporation. She stood there watching, long after the truck had disappeared from sight. Then she turned and hurried back to the office.

"Is Ken here?" she asked Cynthia.

"Yes. He's in his office."

She went in to see him. "Ken, can you check out Nationwide Motors Corporation? We need a list of all the accident cases their trucks have been involved in for the past five years."

"That's going to take a while."

"Use LEXIS." That was the national legal computer.

"You want to tell me what's going on?"

"I'm not sure yet, Ken. It's just a hunch. I'll let you know if anything comes of it."

She had overlooked something in the case of Connie Garrett, that lovely quadruple amputee who was destined to spend the rest of her life as a freak. The driver may have had a good record, but what about the trucks? Maybe somebody was liable, after all.

The next morning Ken Bailey laid a report in front of Jennifer. "Whatever the hell you're after, looks like you've hit the jackpot. Nationwide Motors Corporation has had fifteen accidents in the last five years, and some of their trucks have been recalled."

Jennifer felt an excitement begin to build in her. "What was the problem?"

"A deficiency in the braking system that causes the rear end of the truck to swing around when the brakes are hit hard."

It was the rear end of the truck that had hit Connie Garrett.

Jennifer called a staff meeting with Dan Martin, Ted Harris and Ken Bailey. "We're going into court on the Connie Garrett case," Jennifer announced.

Ted Harris stared at her through his milk-bottle glasses. "Wait a minute, Jennifer, I checked that out. She lost on appeal. We're going to get hit with res judicata."

"What's res judicata?" Ken Bailey asked.

Jennifer explained, "It means for civil cases what double jeopardy means for criminal cases. 'There must be an end to litigation.'"

Ted Harris added, "Once a final judgment has been made on the merits of a case, it can only be opened again under very special circumstances. We have no grounds to reopen."

"Yes, we have. We're going after them on discovery."

The principle of discovery read: Mutual knowledge of all relevant facts gathered by both parties is essential to proper litigation.

"The deep-pocket defendant is Nationwide Motors. They held back information from Connie Garrett's attorney. There's a deficiency in the braking system of their trucks and they kept it out of the record."

She looked at the two lawyers. "Here's what I think we should do..."

Two hours later, Jennifer was seated in Connie Garrett's living room.

"I want to move for a new trial. I believe we have a case."

"No. I couldn't go through another trial."

"Connie - "

"Look at me, Jennifer. I'm a freak. Every time I look in the mirror I want to kill myself. Do you know why I don't?" Her voice sank to a whisper. "Because I can't. I can't!"

Jennifer sat there, shaken. How could she have been so insensitive?

"Suppose I try for an out-of-court settlement? I think that when they hear the evidence they'll be willing to settle without going to trial."

The offices of Maguire and Guthrie, the attorneys who represented the Nationwide Motors Corporation, were located on upper Fifth Avenue in a modern glass and chrome building with a splashing fountain in front. Jennifer announced herself at the reception desk. The receptionist asked her to be seated, and fifteen minutes later Jennifer was escorted into the offices of Patrick Maguire. He was the senior partner in the firm, a tough, hard-bitten Irishman with sharp eyes that missed nothing.

He motioned Jennifer to a chair. "It's nice to meet you, Miss Parker. You've gotten yourself quite a reputation around town."

"Not all bad, I hope."

"They say you're tough. You don't look it."

"I hope not."

"Coffee? Or some good Irish whiskey?"

"Coffee, please."

Patrick Maguire rang and a secretary brought in two cups of coffee on a sterling silver tray.

Maguire said, "Now what is it I can do for you?"

"It's about the Connie Garrett case."

"Ah, yes. As I recall, she lost the case and the appeal."

As I recall. Jennifer would have bet her life that Patrick Maguire could have recited every statistic in the case.

"I'm going to file for a new trial."

"Really? On what grounds?" Maguire asked politely.

Jennifer opened her attache case and took out the brief she had prepared. She handed it to him.

"I'm requesting a reopening on failure to disclose."

Maguire leafed through the papers, unperturbed. "Oh, yes," he said. "That brake business."

"You knew about it?"

"Of course." He tapped the file with a stubby finger. "Miss Parker, this won't get you anywhere. You would have to prove that the same truck involved in the accident had a faulty brake system. It's probably been overhauled a dozen times since the accident, so there would be no way of proving what its condition was then." He pushed the file back toward her. "You have no case."

Jennifer took a sip of her coffee. "All I have to do is prove what a bad safety record those trucks have. Ordinary diligence should have made your client know that they were defective."

Maguire said casually, "What is it you're proposing?"

"I have a client in her early twenties who's sitting in a room she'll never leave for the rest of her life because she has no arms or legs. I'd like to get a settlement that would make up a little bit for the anguish she's going through."

Patrick Maguire took a sip of his coffee. "What kind of settlement did you have in mind?"

"Two million dollars."

He smiled. "That's a great deal of money for someone with no case."

"If I go to court, Mr. Maguire, I promise you I'll have a case. And I'll win a lot more than that. If you force us to sue, we're going to sue for five million dollars."

He smiled again. "You're scaring the bejeezus out of me. More coffee?"

"No, thanks." Jennifer arose.

"Wait a minute! Sit down, please. I haven't said no."

"You haven't said yes."

"Have some more coffee. We brew it ourselves."

Jennifer thought of Adam and the Kenya coffee.

"Two million dollars is a lot of money, Miss Parker."

Jennifer said nothing.

"Now, if we were talking about a lesser amount, I might be able to - " He waved his hands expressively.

Jennifer remained silent.

Finally Patrick Maguire said, "You really want two million, don't you?"

"I really want five million, Mr. Maguire."

"All right. I suppose we might be able to arrange something."

It had been easy!

"I have to leave for London in the morning, but I'll be back next week."

"I want to wrap this up. I'd appreciate it if you would talk to your client as soon as possible. I'd like to give my client a check next week."

Patrick Maguire nodded. "That can probably be worked out."

All the way back to the office, Jennifer was filled with a sense of unease. It had been too simple.

That night on her way home, Jennifer stopped at a drugstore. When she came out and started across the street, she saw Ken Bailey walking with a handsome young blond man. Jennifer hesitated, then turned into a side street so that she would not be seen. Ken's private life was his own business.

On the day that Jennifer was scheduled to meet with Patrick Maguire, she received a call from his secretary.

"Mr. Maguire asked me to give you his apologies, Miss Parker. He's going to be tied up in meetings all day. He'll be happy to meet with you at your convenience tomorrow."

"Fine," Jennifer said. "Thank you."

The call sounded an alarm in Jennifer's mind. Her instincts had been right. Patrick Maguire was up to something.

"Hold all my calls," she told Cynthia.

She locked herself in her office, pacing back and forth, trying to think of every possible angle. Patrick Maguire had first told Jennifer she had no case. With almost no persuasion, he had then agreed to pay Connie Garrett two million dollars. Jennifer remembered how uneasy she had been at the time. Since then, Patrick Maguire had been unavailable. First London - if he had really gone to London - and then the conferences that had kept him from returning Jennifer's telephone calls all week. And now another delay.

But why? The only reason would be if - Jennifer stopped pacing and picked up the interoffice telephone and called Dan Martin.

"Check on the date of Connie Garrett's accident, would you, Dan? I want to know when the statute of limitations is up."

Twenty minutes later, Dan Martin walked into Jennifer's office, his face white.

"We blew it," he said. "Your hunch was right. The statute of limitations ran out today."

She felt suddenly sick. "There's no chance of a mistake?"

"None. I'm sorry, Jennifer. One of us should have checked it out before. It - it just never occurred to me."

"Or me." Jennifer picked up the telephone and dialed a number. "Patrick Maguire, please. Jennifer Parker."

She waited for what seemed an eternity, and then she said brightly into the telephone, "Hello there, Mr. Maguire. How was London?" She listened. "No, I've never been there...Ah, well, one of these days...The reason I'm calling," she said casually, "is that I just talked to Connie Garrett. As I told you before, she really doesn't want to go to court unless she has to. So if we could settle this today - "

Patrick Maguire's laugh boomed through the receiver. "Nice try, Miss Parker. The statute of limitations is up today. No one is going to sue anybody. If you'd like to settle for a lunch sometime we can talk about the fickle finger of fate."

Jennifer tried to keep the anger out of her voice. "That's a pretty rotten trick, friend."

"It's a pretty rotten world, friend," Patrick Maguire chuckled.

"It's not how you play the game, it's whether you win or not, right?"

"You're pretty good, honey, but I've been at it a lot longer than you. Tell your client I said better luck next time."

And he rang off.

Jennifer sat there holding the telephone in her hand. She thought of Connie Garrett sitting at home, waiting for the news. Jennifer's head began to pound and a film of perspiration popped out on her forehead. She reached in her desk drawer for an aspirin and looked at the clock on the wall It was four o'clock. They had until five o'clock to file with the Clerk of the Superior Court.

"How long would it take you to prepare the filing?" Jennifer asked Dan Martin, who stood there suffering with her.

He followed her glance. "At least three hours. Maybe four. There's no way."

There has to be a way, Jennifer thought.

Jennifer said, "Doesn't Nationwide have branches all over the United States?"

"Yes."

"It's only one o'clock in San Francisco. We'll file against them there and ask for a change of venue later."

Dan Martin shook his head. "Jennifer, all the papers are here. If we got a firm in San Francisco and briefed them on what we need and they drew up new papers, there's no way they could make the five o'clock deadline."

Something in her refused to give up. "What time is it in Hawaii?"

"Eleven in the morning."

Jennifer's headache disappeared as if by magic, and she leapt from her chair in excitement. "That's it, then! Find out if Nationwide does business there. They must have a factory, sales office, garage - anything. If they do, we file there."

Dan Martin stared at her for a moment and then his face lit up. "Gotcha!" He was already hurrying toward the door.

Jennifer could still hear Patrick Maguire's smug tone on the telephone. Tell your client, better luck next time. There would never be a next time for Connie Garrett. It had to be now.

Thirty minutes later Jennifer's intercom buzzed and Dan Martin said excitedly, "Nationwide Motors manufactures their drive shafts on the island of Oahu."

"We've got them! Get hold of a law firm there and have them file the papers immediately."

"Did you have any special firm in mind?"

"No. Pick someone out of Martindale-Hubbell. Just make sure they serve the papers on the local attorney for National. Have them call us back the minute those papers are filed. I'll be waiting here in the office."

"Anything else I can do?"

"Pray."

The call from Hawaii came at ten o'clock that evening. Jennifer grabbed the phone and a soft voice said, "Miss Jennifer Parker, please."

"Speaking."

"This is Miss Sung of the law firm of Gregg and Hoy in Oahu. We wanted to let you know that fifteen minutes ago we served the papers you requested on the attorney for Nationwide Motors Corporation."

Jennifer exhaled slowly. "Thank you. Thank you very much."

Cynthia sent in Joey La Guardia. Jennifer had never seen the man before. He had telephoned, asking her to represent him in an assault case. He was short, compactly built and wore an expensive suit that looked as though it had been carefully tailored for someone else. He had an enormous diamond ring on his little finger.

La Guardia smiled with yellowed teeth and said, "I come to you 'cause I need some help. Anybody can make a mistake, right, Miss Parker? The cops picked me up 'cause I did a little number on a coupla guys, but I thought they was out to get me, you know? The alley was dark and when I seen them comin' at me - well, it's a rough neighborhood down there. I jumped them before they could jump me."

There was something about his manner that Jennifer found distasteful and false. He was trying too hard to be ingratiating.

He pulled out a large wad of money.

"Here. A grand down an' another grand when we go to court. Okay?"

"My calendar is full for the next few months. I'll be glad to recommend some other attorneys to you."

His manner became insistent. "No. I don't want nobody else. You're the best."

"For a simple assault charge you don't need the best."

"Hey, listen," he said, "I'll give you more money." There was a desperation in his voice. "Two grand down and - "

Jennifer pressed the buzzer under her desk and Cynthia walked in. "Mr. La Guardia's leaving, Cynthia."

Joey La Guardia glared at Jennifer for a long moment, scooped up his money and thrust it back in his pocket. He walked out of the office without a word. Jennifer pressed the intercom button.

"Ken, could you please come in here a minute?"

It took Ken Bailey less than thirty minutes to get a complete report on Joey La Guardia.

"He's got a rap sheet a mile long," he told Jennifer. "He's been in and out of the pen since he was sixteen." He glanced at the piece of paper in his hand. "He's out on bail. He was picked up last week for assault and battery. He beat up two old men who owed the Organization money."

Everything suddenly clicked into place. "Joey La Guardia works for the Organization?"

"He's one of Michael Moretti's enforcers."

Jennifer was filled with a cold fury. "Can you get me the telephone number of Michael Moretti?"

Five minutes later, Jennifer was speaking to Moretti.

"Well, this is an unexpected pleasure, Miss Parker. I - "

"Mr. Moretti, I don't like being set up."

"What are you talking about?"

"Listen to me. And listen well. I'm not for sale. Not now, not ever. I won't represent you or anyone who works for you. All I want is for you to leave me alone. Is that clear?"

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"Will you have lunch with me?"

Jennifer hung up on him.

Cynthia's voice came over the intercom. "A Mr. Patrick Maguire is here to see you, Miss Parker. He has no appointment, but he said - "

Jennifer smiled to herself. "Have Mr. Maguire wait."

She remembered their conversation on the telephone. It's not how you play the game, it's whether you win or not, right? You're pretty good, honey, but I've been at it a lot longer than you. Tell your client I said better luck next time.

Jennifer kept Patrick Maguire waiting for forty-five minutes, and then buzzed Cynthia.

"Send Mr. Maguire in, please."

Patrick Maguire's genial manner was gone. He had been outwitted, and he was angry and did not bother to conceal it.

He walked over to Jennifer's desk and snapped, "You're causing me a lot of problems, friend."

"Am I, friend?"

He sat down, uninvited. "Let's stop playing games. I had a call from the general counsel of Nationwide Motors. I underestimated you. My client is willing to make a settlement." He reached into his pocket, pulled out an envelope and handed it to Jennifer. She opened it. Inside was a certified check made out to Connie Garrett. It was for one hundred thousand dollars.

Jennifer slipped the check back in the envelope and returned it to Patrick Maguire.

"It's not enough. We're suing for five million dollars."

Maguire grinned. "No, you're not. Because your client's not going into court. I just paid her a visit. There's no way you can ever get that girl into a courtroom. She's terrified and, without her, you haven't got a chance."

Jennifer said angrily, "You had no right to talk to Connie Garrett without my being present."

"I was only trying to do everybody a favor. Take the money and run, friend."

Jennifer got to her feet. "Get out of here. You turn my stomach."

Patrick Maguire rose. "I didn't know your stomach could be turned."

And he walked out, taking the check with him.

Watching him go, Jennifer wondered whether she had made a terrible mistake. She thought of what a hundred thousand dollars could do for Connie Garrett. But it was not enough. Not for what that girl would have to endure every day for the rest of her life.

Jennifer knew that Patrick Maguire was right about one thing. Without Connie Garrett in the courtroom, there was no chance that a jury would return a verdict for five million dollars. Words could never persuade them of the horror of her life. Jennifer needed the impact of Connie Garrett's presence in the courtroom, with the jury looking at her day after day; but there was no way Jennifer could persuade the young woman to go into court She had to find another solution.

Adam telephoned.

"I'm sorry I couldn't call you before," he apologized. "I've been having meetings on the Senate race and - "

"It's all right, darling. I understand." I've got to understand, she thought.

"I miss you so much."

"I miss you, too, Adam." You'll never know how much.

"I want to see you."

Jennifer wanted to say, When? but she waited.

Adam went on. "I have to go to Albany this afternoon. I'll call you when I get back."

"All right." There was nothing else she could say. There was nothing she could do.

At four o'clock in the morning, Jennifer awakened from a terrible dream and knew how she was going to win five million dollars for Connie Garrett.