Chapter 19

Blaine

I scanned through the court documents in front of me, unable to fully comprehend what I was looking at. The district attorney was throwing a long list of charges at Josie, from obstruction of justice to murder in the first degree. Anyone who talked to her for five seconds would realize she wasn’t capable of committing crimes like these, but apparently, the state of Florida didn’t agree with me.

Obviously, the first-degree murder charge was the most serious. It was a capital offense. If convicted by a jury, she could be facing the death penalty. She could be facing lethal injection or a life in prison for a murder she wasn’t even part of. I couldn’t understand how the justice system had failed her so badly. I became a lawyer because I believed in the system. I knew if the judicial system was working properly, someone’s innocence or guilt would be brought to light, but this did not feel like the system was working properly. This was a witch hunt.

Every single one of the detectives working the case seemed more interested in pinning this murder on Josie than actually finding out the truth. They weren’t trying to determine her culpability or look for other suspects. They were completely focused on proving she was guilty.

Josie was my sweet and innocent baby. There was no way she was guilty of this crime. She was the most loving woman I had ever met, and she didn’t have connections to anyone in the community where the victim lived, much less the victim herself. There had to be more to the story than what was being presented. Unfortunately, the police had some damaging evidence against her, and although the witness testimony could be explained away since they were so high up in the building, the fact that the murder weapon and victim’s clothing were found in Josie’s trashcan would be difficult to explain. There had to be a mistake here somewhere, and I was determined to find it.

I knew that I couldn’t solve this case on my own, so I had been putting together a team to help with the research and defense. I called Anderson to my office to go over the details and help consult with me on proving Josie’s innocence. I knew it would be hard for him to swallow, but I had never been surer of anything in my life, and I knew that he would respect that. I leaned back in my chair, my mind racing over the details presented so far in the case. Although our firm specialized in financial law, we had some really solid talent and were ready to start diving into criminal defense. I knew my father would have never questioned me on the decision, and I think that Anderson knew that as well, since he didn’t even try to argue us out of taking the case.

Anderson walked to the door of my office and tapped on the doorframe, bringing me out of my swirling thoughts. He was wearing one of his Armani suits, and his peppered hair made him look like Richard Gere. I nodded and tipped my chair forward, motioning for him to come in. He shut the door behind him and sat down across from me, his face twisted in concern.

“I want to say something, and you may not like it,” he said.

“Go ahead,” I replied.

“The evidence is mounting against Josie, and it’s going to be incredibly difficult to prove her innocence without a single soul seeing her that day,” he said.

“Her father saw her,” I reminded him.

“Yes, her gambling-addicted father who has been MIA now for weeks,” he replied. “I want to make sure that you really trust this girl. I don’t think it’s a strange or outrageous question to ask. You’ve only known her for a couple of weeks. Is it possible she just pulled the wool over your eyes?”

“No,” I said, looking down at the documents on my desk. “I know Josie, like really know her. She is the kindest woman I have ever met, and there is no way she did this. I know it, not just in my brain, but in my heart as well. It’s not wishful thinking. It’s just the way it is.”

“All right,” Anderson said with a sigh after watching my face for several moments. “So, let’s get to it. What are we working with here?”

I pulled out everything I had on the case, and Anderson and I went to work, starting to piece together our defense strategy. I could see the concern on his face when he went over the evidence, but I realized how good of an eye he had for details. A fresh pair of eyes was worth its weight in gold. Anderson pointed out that the knife and shirt were found in a trashcan on the curb, not necessarily Josie’s trashcan. And even if it was her trashcan, anyone could have had access to it.

We called the precinct to find out more about that and sent one of our team members over to check it out. If it wasn’t Josie’s trashcan, that could help us prove that someone was trying to set her up. Just as we pulled out our notebooks and started making lists of things to do, my secretary alerted me to a call on line one.

I picked up the phone, looking down at the paperwork as I answered. The voice on the other end of the line was a woman’s. She was quick to respond and started asking me questions about the school teacher that was accused of murder. Instantly, I realized that she was someone from the media. I replied to her with no comment and slammed the phone down on the receiver. The media frenzy was starting already.

“That was the media asking about the school teacher accused of murder,” I said, rubbing my face. “I knew it was coming eventually, but I didn’t think it would be this fast.”

“We’ll get the media crew on it,” Anderson said, pulling out his cell phone.

“Wait,” I said, putting up my hand. “The press is going to have an absolute field day with all of this, especially when you take one look at how fragile and innocent Josie looks. We need to have two approaches. We need to start out by not giving any information to the press. When the media frenzy starts going wild, then we need to approach it and show Josie’s sweet side, which won’t be hard because it’s pretty much the only side she has. We need to play up her lack of a criminal past, her challenging home life, and the fact that she was looking forward to spending the school year with her students. Make her look like the angel that she is.”

“Got it,” he said.

“Is there any way we can keep this out of the press?”

“I can make a couple of phone calls, but unfortunately, it is usually out of our hands,” he said with a grimace. “These things tend to take on a life of their own.”

I nodded in understanding and went back to work, watching as Anderson walked out and called someone on his cellphone. I was glad I had come back to the firm when I did, having gained everyone’s trust back before everything happened. People were willing to follow my lead, just like they had followed my dad. I was lucky to be in the position I was in, though I’d trade with Josie at any moment if it meant she was safe. I looked up as the secretary sent another call through to my office line.

“Hello?” I answered.

“Blaine, it’s Josie,” she said. “It’s my one phone call for the day.”

“Hey,” I said, sitting up and listening intently. “How are you holding up?”

“Okay, I guess,” she said. “They let me stay in my cell because there seems to be a jail cell bounty on my head. Everyone is taking bets on whether I’m a ruthless killer or not. Apparently, the inmates are smarter than the cops, and most of them don’t think that I could kill anyone, not for even a second.”

“Good,” I replied. “I just need you to stay safe. If you need a protective cell, you let me know, and I will make sure they accommodate you.”

“Thank you,” she sighed. “So, they are assembling the grand jury to charge me with murder in the first degree. I’m really scared, Blaine.”

“I know you are, but you are innocent, and we are going to prove that,” I replied. “Just keep doing what you are doing, and I promise this will all go away really soon.”

“The judge is holding a hearing this afternoon to decide whether I am eligible for bail,” she said quietly. “Will you be there?”

“Of course, I will be there,” I replied. “I’m your lawyer. I have to be there.”

There was silence on the other line, and I knew that Josie didn’t know what to say, but she wasn’t ready to hang up. I knew how scared she was, and it was killing me, knowing that there was nothing I could do about it. Focusing on the moment wasn’t going to help her long-term, and I needed to get this defense airtight. I needed to show the jury how much of a witch hunt this was. I also needed to find Josie’s father. He could be a very important part of the whole case. Without him, we were grasping at straws. I couldn’t even fathom what I would do if she were to be found guilty. I didn’t think that a jury would give her the death penalty, but at the same time, crazier things had happened. The press was really important in all of this as well, and the story had to be spun just right to the public in order for Josie to garner their support. These would be the group of peers that would ultimately decide her fate.

“Are you there?” I asked.

“Yes,” she whimpered, obviously struggling not to cry.

Suddenly, shouting erupted in the background of our phone call, and I could hear her shuffling to the side. I hated the fact that she was in there with those people. I hated the fact that no matter where she was, she couldn’t get away from this crazy life that was dragging her down. Everywhere she turned, something stood in the way of her happiness, and it just wasn’t fair.

“I have to go,” she whispered. “I’ll call you tomorrow. Please, find my father.”

“I will,” I said. “And I’ll see you in a few hours at the hearing.”

With that, she hung up the phone, the sound of prison life in the background. I slowly placed the phone back on the base and rubbed my face, leaning my elbows on the desk. Anderson walked back in and sat down in the chair, patting me hard on the back. I took a deep breath and went back to work, trying to figure out how to get through all of this in one piece. There was no way I was going to let Josie spend one second longer than she needed to in that place, and I knew that her safety would be in question as well. I had been in the business long enough to know what kind of women ended up in those prisons, and they were the same kind that would eat Josie up and spit her back out. She wasn’t built for jail, and she definitely wouldn’t end up being one of those girls that hardened up and made it through. I was already worried about her, and she was only in the city jail, not prison.

We kept working until it was time to go to the hearing, passing out assignments to the team and adding things to our defense. This was going to be a seriously tricky case, and although I had full confidence in our abilities, I knew there was no room for mistakes. One wrong move and Josie would spend the rest of her life beyond bars.

I just couldn’t let that happen.