Play Dead

It was about three months later that he was hitching a ride on a helicopter back to Kabul. The chopper crashed in a remote area, and Durelle was killed along with the pilot, a Special Forces officer named Mike Carelli, and two others. One was Captain Gary Winston, an Army surgeon whose tour of duty was up in just three days, and the other was Lieutenant Anthony Banks, a special services officer assigned to assist in Afghani reconstruction. It took a while for the American command to realize that the chopper had gone down, and another significant amount of time to find and reach the wreckage.

By the time search and rescue arrived on the scene, the enemy forces had been there first. The bodies and anything else of value had long since been carted off-at least, that’s what the report said. We now know the truth is that Durelle’s body was never there at all; if it had been, he wouldn’t have made it to the New Jersey Turnpike with a gun in his hand-a gun that was shooting bullets at me.

There are pictures of all the victims in the file, but I never would have recognized Durelle. I got only a brief glimpse of him on the highway, and I’m sure I was paying more attention to the gun in his hand. Also, the picture is at least eight to ten years old.

If Durelle had a family, it’s not listed in these reports, so instead we copy down the names of the others allegedly on the downed chopper, along with any family contacts they had. I have no idea if the others were involved with Durelle in anything criminal, but it’s an avenue we need to pursue.

We leave the base, having gotten all the available information, but disappointed with what we got. I had no reason to expect any kind of smoking gun, but it would have been nice to gain a little insight into what the hell is going on.

There isn’t exactly a lot of insight waiting for us back at the office, either. Keith Franklin has left a cryptic message that indicates he has been keeping his eyes open but has not detected anything unusual about Roy Chaney’s operations at customs.

Karen Evans is also waiting for us, and I can tell that the stress of waiting for a ruling on the new trial is straining even her natural level of exuberance. She’s been visiting Richard every day at the jail, which makes me feel a little better, since I haven’t been getting there as often as I should.

“How’s he doing?” I ask.

“Not great,” she says. “I’m trying to keep him upbeat, but he knows everything’s riding on this. Not knowing when the answer is coming is pretty tough, also. Even for me.”

I nod. “How about the solitary confinement? How’s he handling that?”

She smiles. “I think he likes it, at least for now. He hadn’t made a lot of friends there anyway.”

“I wish I had some news for both of you,” I say.

She nods. “I know… and I don’t want to be a pain, but is it okay if I hang around here more? It feels like if I’m here I’m closer to hearing the good news.”

“What about your dress designing?” I ask.

She shrugs. “I’ve been working on that at night; I haven’t been sleeping much. So what do you say?”

There’s no reason to deny her that request, so I don’t. “Sure. Come by anytime.”

I hang around for a while longer and then head for home. That doesn’t cheer me up a hell of a lot, either, since Laurie is back in Wisconsin. But Tara and Reggie are both there, tails wagging and smiles on their faces, and I reward them for their good mood with a two-hour walk in the park.

When we get back I turn on the television to the local news and then play the message on my blinking answering machine. In this way, the newscaster and the court clerk give me the message simultaneously: A decision has been reached in the Evans case, and it will be announced at nine o’clock tomorrow morning.

I spend the rest of the night fielding calls about the upcoming decision, from Laurie, Kevin, Karen, and an assortment of media types. I profess confidence to everyone outside our team; if we get the new trial, it is best if it appears we had expected nothing less. If we don’t get the trial, then nothing else matters anyway.

Karen professes certainty that the news will be good, though I can’t tell if she believes it or is trying to convince herself. Laurie is supportive and hopeful but really has no more idea about what awaits us than I do. Kevin is typically pragmatic, insisting that we plan our first steps after the new trial is granted. It’s the right approach, because we will have to move quickly to be ready for trial. And if there’s no trial to be ready for, then we’ll still push toward another appeal.

In a lot of ways this is even worse than waiting for a verdict. When the jury reaches a decision, there is the possibility that the client will be free and exonerated. Here we’re just hoping for the chance to get to a jury. So in a way, a bad decision is devastating, but a good decision is just the beginning.