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.“What happened next?”“I saw her.Miss Camille.She was lying on the floor.”“Was she dead?”“I don’t know.I guess.” Luis’s squeezed his eyes shut as if to shut out the memory.“There was blood everywhere.”“Did you see anyone else?”“No.Not then.I saw a gun.I picked it up.”“Why did you pick up the gun, Luis?”“I was scared.Whoever shot her might come back.”His tone was defensive and Morgan decided to leave the “why” questions for later and stick to the basic facts.“Then what happened?”“Mr.Burke, he saw me.”“Where was he?”“In the door.He looked at the gun in my hand, then he looked at me.”“What happened next?”“I threw the gun down and I ran.” As if anticipating Morgan’s next question, he continued.“I was scared.I didn’t know what else to do.I hid at a friend’s house.They came and got me last night.”Morgan didn’t need to ask to know that “they” was probably the police.“Did they ask you questions when they arrested you?”“Yes.I told them what I’m telling you.They didn’t care.”She didn’t see any point in asking him more questions, especially since she didn’t have the benefit of knowing the exact proof that would need to be refuted.Morgan offered what she hoped was a sympathetic smile.“No, I don’t imagine they did.I can tell you this, Luis, you have a very good attorney.Mr.Rupley will do his best to fight the charge against you.”“What about you? Will you help me?”Morgan shot Ford a pointed look before meeting Luis’s pleading eyes.“I’ll see what I can do.”*“How can you eat so much this late at night?”“It’s not late, it’s early.” Ford grabbed a fistful of fries off Morgan’s plate to replace his own, which had been consumed within seconds of reaching the table.“Besides, I need my energy if we’re going to get right to work.” He grinned.“I have class in the morning.You, by all means, should burn the midnight oil on behalf of your client.Let me know how it turns out.”His expression was pained.“Wait a minute.I was sure I had you interested enough to work with me on this one.You practically promised Luis you would work on his case.”“I did no such thing.Besides, you boxed me in a corner.What was I supposed to say to the guy?”“Come on, Morgan.Admit it.You’d love to work with me again.”Ignoring his remark, Morgan asked, “Was there a statement in the police report from Teddy Burke?”“I don’t know yet.I’ve been in trial all day and I just got the summary of the report.”“Luis said he was working on the downstairs bathroom.Surely there would have been tools lying around.”“We’ll have to check the police report to see if they checked.Or talk to other employees in the house at the time to see what they remember.”“What in the world do they think his motive was?”“That’s a good question.”“Who’s the prosecutor?”“Not sure.The case is in Judge Thompson’s court, but I don’t think it’s been assigned yet.With a victim from the Burke family, I wouldn’t be surprised if the elected DA gets involved.” As if he could tell Morgan’s resistance was fading, he pressed on.“I heard you’re single now.Some extra work would be good for you.Maybe you could make some new friends.” Ford placed extra emphasis on the word “friends.”“Make up your mind.Either I’m the fierce advocate battling law enforcement or the passion-hungry schoolteacher looking for a good time.I don’t have the energy for both.” Even as she spoke the words, she could feel herself giving in.“Well, when you put it that way…” Ford’s attention returned to his plate, but a moment later, he used his fork to wave a Eureka! in the air.“Actually, I’ve got a great idea.What if you could be a fierce advocate and a schoolteacher? I mean, what if we formed a defense team using the top students in your Advanced Evidence class? What better scenarios could you come up with than the real thing? You’d get to work on this case and your students would get real-life experience.Mr.Chavez would get a kick-ass defense.Justice for all!”“No more coffee for you.Seriously, Ford.I have no idea if I could get permission to run a clinic as part of my class, let alone figure out how to fit it into the schedule.I would certainly need to run it by Yolanda.” Even as she spoke, Morgan’s thoughts belied her words.Something about this particular case intrigued her.She reflected on the vigil for Camille Burke she had happened upon earlier.All those students, gathered to mourn a life cut short.The crowd at the makeshift memorial was small in comparison to the number of voices that would cry out for vengeance when Luis went on trial.Maybe it was the challenge of turning a lost cause into a victory that captured her attention.Whatever it was, she was already casting a trial team from the students in her class and, knowing Parker had to be a part, wondering how in the world they would work together
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