As soon as the door opened, Tracy threw her arms around Barry's neck and kissed him. Then she broke free and grabbed Barry by the shoulders.
"Matthew Reynolds is unreal. I mean, I'd heard he was a grade A genius, but I didn't really believe it until I saw him this afternoon."
"Slow down," Barry said with a laugh.
"I can't. I'm on a fantastic high. You should have seen Geddes. He's such a pompous ass. God, the look on his face as soon as the jurors were out of the room. He went ballistic. It was priceless."
"What happened?"
Tracy grinned wickedly. "What are you willing to do to find out?"
Tracy was loaded with energy and wanted to expend it the same way they had when they missed the last half of Casablanca on Friday night.
"Jesus, I'm involved with a sex maniac. Is this the only way I can get information out of you?"
"Yup."
"I feel like I'm being used."
"Yup."
"And here I thought it was my mind that attracted you."
"Nope," Tracy said as she started taking off her dress.
"Tell me what happened in the goddamn courtroom while I still have the strength to listen," Barry said.
They were lying naked on Barry's king-size bed. Tracy rolled over on her side.
"I guess you've earned the information," she said, smiling impishly.
Then she told Barry about Dr. Shirov's testimony.
"Man, I wish I'd been there," Barry said when she was finished.
"Didn't you know about Shirov?"
"No. This was Matt's baby. He's pulled stuff like this before.
He gets in this zone only he can get to and comes up with these ideas.
If there's a better lawyer in the country, I haven't heard of him."
"Or her," Tracy said, nestling against Barry's chest.
"Excuse me for being politically incorrect," Barry answered as he kissed Tracy's forehead.
"It's all over but the shouting," she said. "Matt destroyed Deems and Dr. Shirov has wiped out Geddes's key evidence. The jury has to have at least a reasonable doubt."
"I never like to get overconfident, Barry said, "but I have to agree with you. It looks like Matt has this one in the bag."
Chapter TWENTY-FIVE
On Wednesday morning, Tracy noticed that no one was sitting at the prosecution counsel table when the defense team entered the courtroom.
The judge's bailiff hurried over to Reynolds as soon as he spotted him.
"The judge wants you in chambers with your client. Mr. Geddes and Mr.
Christenson are already there."
"Any idea what's going on, George?" Reynolds asked.
"Not a clue."
Brock Folmer, the judge whose chambers Judge Baldwin was using, was a Civil War buff. A bookcase with volumes about the great conflict stood next to the door to the courtroom and a table covered with miniature blue and gray soldiers reenacting the Battle of Bull Run sat against the wall under the window. Judge Baldwin seemed lost behind a huge oak desk that stood in the center of the room. In back of him was a complete set of the Oregon Court of Appeals and Supreme Court reporters and the Oregon Revised Statutes. The court reporter was sitting at Judge Baldwin's elbow.
There were three high-backed, brown leather, upholstered chairs in front of the judge's desk. One was empty and Reynolds took it. The other two were occupied by Chuck Geddes and Neil Christenson. Christenson looked nervous, but Geddes looked like he had just won the lottery.
"Good morning, Matt," Judge Baldwin said. "Miss Cavanaugh and Mrs.
Griffen, why don't you have a seat on that couch over by the wall, and we'll get started."
"What's going on, Judge?" Reynolds asked.
"Let's go on the record and Mr. Geddes can tell us. He asked for this meeting this morning."
Geddes lounged in his chair. There was a smug smile on his face. "I want to reopen the state's case," he said.
Judge Baldwin looked a little put out. "That's highly unusual, Mr.
Geddes. We're well into the defense case."
"I'm aware that my request is unusual, Your Honor, but Mr. Christenson has discovered new evidence that changes the complexion of our case."
"And what evidence is that?" the judge asked.
"Evidence that Abigail Griffen also murdered her husband's lover, Laura Rizzatti."
Tracy was stunned and Abbie bolted out of her seat.
"You sick bastard," she started, but Reynolds was up, blocking the judge's view and holding out a hand to his client. "Please, Mrs.
Griffen," he said forcefully.
Abbie caught herself and sank down onto the couch. She was clearly shaken by the accusation. And so, to Tracy's surprise, was Matthew Reynolds.
"Let's everyone calm down so we can sort this out," Judge Baldwin commanded. Geddes had not moved during Abbie's outburst. Reynolds made certain that Abbie was under control, then he turned back to the judge.
"I object to Mr. Geddes's motion to reopen," Reynolds said forcefully.
"The state has rested. Mr. Geddes had months to uncover evidence of this sort, if it exists. The introduction now of evidence of another murder would be untimely. I also believe it would require a mistrial or a lengthy continuance so the defense could prepare to meet this evidence. Both actions would be highly prejudicial to the defense case, which, as the court knows, is in an excellent posture at this point."
Reynolds paused and cast a cutting look at Geddes.
"Frankly, Your Honor, I'm a bit skeptical of the timing of this motion, coming, as it does, right after Mr. Geddes's key witness and key evidence have been discredited."
"Mr. Reynolds's points are well taken, Mr. Geddes," Judge Baldwin said, "but I suppose I have to hear the evidence you want to introduce before I can make a ruling. Why don't you enlighten US."
"Certainly, Your Honor. That's why Mr. Christenson is here.
Neil, please tell the judge what you discovered."
Christenson shifted uncomfortably in his chair and faced the judge.
"Laura Rizzatti was Justice Griffen's clerk at the Supreme Court, Your Honor. She was murdered a little less than a month before Justice Griffen was killed. Mr. Geddes thought it was suspicious that the two murders had been committed so close to one another, but we had no evidence that they were connected, so we assumed that we were probably just dealing with a coincidence.
"Then, Monday night, I remembered that I had seen several credit card receipts to the Overlook Motel in evidence we had taken during a search of Justice Griffen's home office."
Tracy's stomach tightened at the mention of the Overlook.
She saw exactly where Christenson was going and she could not believe it. Until now, the defense was convinced that the prosecutors knew nothing about Justice Griffen's extramarital affairs.
But it was clear that not only did they know about Griffen's trysts at the Overlook, they had drawn an unexpected inference.
"Initially, the receipts meant nothing to me," Christenson continued.
"Then I recalled that the Overlook was a very seedy motel. Not a place where someone like Justice Griffen would normally go. On a hunch, I brought a photograph of Laura Rizzatti to the Overlook and showed it to Annie Hardesty, who is a clerk at the motel. Mrs. Hardesty confirmed that Justice Griffen used rooms at the motel on several occasions to meet women.
She also told me that she had seen Laura Rizzatti with the judge more than once."
Christenson paused to let the implications sink in.
"Then she told me two other facts that I considered important. First, she told me that Miss Cavanaugh and Barry Frame, Mr. Reynolds's investigator, came to the motel well before the trial and learned that the judge was using the motel as a love nest."
"Which will make it difficult for Mr. Reynolds to claim surprise, Your, Honor," Geddes interjected.
"Let's hold off on your argument until I've heard all of Mr.