Chapter 4 Chapter Four

— When Alice Shessel graduated from law school in 1958, she was one of only three girls in her class. After graduation, she began a series of job searches in Portland, interviewing one dull-witted man after another, but no one knew what to do with this skinny woman who wanted to be a litigator.Finally, a large law firm offered her a position in their probate department, but she politely declined.If she can't go to court, she would rather do nothing.Partners in the firm told her that there was no way their clients would accept a female defense attorney; let alone, of course, the reactions they expected from the judge and jury.

Alice Shessel, however, was not overwhelmed by this. She must become a litigator, and if it meant she had to do it all on her own, she would pay the price.Alice finally hung up her little signboard. Four years later, a Greyhound bus crashed into an old hunting vehicle.The hunting vehicle was driven by one of Alice's clients.He is the father of three children. Because of the car accident, he lost his original job at the sawmill, making him a disabled and incapable person.So Alice decided to sue the Greyhound bus company.It's just that she didn't expect that Greyhound's trick was the same as that of the law firm that hired her to work in the probate department.

If the lawyer representing Alice's client wasn't a woman, then Greyhound's lawyers might just put that person in a reasonable position and leave the matter behind; Don't take her seriously.In court, they ignored her existence, and when they whispered to each other, they mostly mocked her.Unexpectedly, the result of the verdict almost fell below everyone's spectacles. The jury ruled that Greyhound Bus Company must pay four million yuan in damages to the plaintiff, and the case went straight to the Supreme Court, making those "male lawyers" There is no way to appeal, and the chance to stand up is lost.

Money can speak, after all, four million yuan was a considerable amount in 1962; and this case also let Alice get rid of the image of a vase, many law firms, including the one she defeated The whole family has put forward quite favorable conditions to win her over. "No, thank you!" Alice still declined them politely.With the legal fees of this successful lawsuit and the new clients that followed, she didn't need the partner's salary at all. What she really needed was other partners to join him. In 1975, Shessel, Randolph and Picard formed the state's top law firm; in addition, Alice also married, became the mother of two children, and in Oregon A seat in the state's appeals court.In a private interview, Alice asked a Justice Department official why there were no women judges on Oregon's appeals courts.When the official explained to her that some political factors prevented the state government from making such an appointment, Alice reminded him that if he was willing to overcome the prohibitions and obstacles, he would accept a female judge in the courtroom. , Then, she will unconditionally support the personnel expenses required for various protest activities, or other necessary assistance.She was determined to fight those male judges at all costs.After seven years of struggle, Alice was finally appointed by the state government and became the first female judge of the Oregon Supreme Court.Now, she is sixty-five years old, and every year there will be some rumors about her retirement. However, Alice Shessel's mind is still clear, and her energy is as strong as ever. The grate left on this seat.

Judge Shessel has an office with an excellent view in the state assembly, which descends gently along the gentle slope of these red brick buildings and connects to the green lawn of Wheeling Meadow University.One afternoon after listening to Matthew Raynor's wonderful court argument, when Trish knocked on the doorpost of Alice's office, she was sitting at the old large desk that had once belonged to Charles McNairy. .McNairy was one of the first justices to sit on the Supreme Court. He had partnered with Wendell Wilkie in 1940 to defeat the Republican Party in the 1940 general election and put Colin Delano Roosevelt in peace. crisis.This old desk, which is already old, is in sharp contrast with the paintings and sculptures arranged by Xuessel in the office.

"Your clerical duties should be almost over, aren't you?" the judge asked as Trish settled down in the chair at her desk. "yes." "So have you found a new job?" "There are several options, but I haven't decided which one I want." "Judge Forby asked me to ask you if you would be interested in taking on a new challenge." "What kind of job?" "Matthew Raynor is looking for a partner." "You're kidding!" "One of his partners recently moved to Paris, so he was desperate to find someone else to join him."

"I can't believe it! Working with Matthew Raynor, that's my dream." "That's not an easy job, Trish! To be a partner in Renault, you have to be prepared to be as tired as a dog every day." "You know, I never worry about hard work." "It's true, but it's been a slavish life at Renault; most of his partners quit within two years." "Thank you for your advice! But if Renault wants me, nothing can hinder my determination to give it a try." "I just wanted to give you a little idea of ​​what kind of place you're going to be. Reynolds lives in his office, and his entire life is filled with lawsuits, working fourteen hours a day, a week. seven days. I know that sounds weird, but I'm not exaggerating! Also, Reynolds doesn't have any social life, he probably doesn't even know what the word 'social' means. Maybe he Also wants you to be by his side as long as he beckons and calls, no matter how late, or on any of your romantic weekends, you have to rush there. I once heard that Matthew only sleeps four a day hours; however, some people say that if you have time to walk around his office, you will find that it is actually brightly lit 24 hours a day.”

"I'm still in high spirits." "There's another thing. Frankly speaking, he never had a female partner." The judge gave a slightly puzzled smile. "I'm not sure if he knows what a 'woman' is?" "I'm sorry! What do you mean by that?" "I don't know why, but he seems to avoid women all the time, as if they're all infected with the plague." "If he's never hired a female partner, why does he have a soft spot for me?" The judge laughed, "He didn't! It's like this. Reynolds once recruited several clerks from us to work for him, but he happened to go to school with Judge Forby that day. He believed in Forby's recommendation. That's it. After that, Raynor called Phoebe, and when he heard we found him a female partner, his voice was still shaking, and Phoebe kept reassuring him that you can't eat people. Yes. So, he wants to talk to you. This is his office number, and his secretary will set up an interview time for you."

Trish took the little piece of paper, "That's great! I don't know how to thank you." "If the negotiation is successful, you can use your good performance to thank me! Maybe he will hire another female partner because of this!" The entire second floor of the Supreme Court building is almost occupied by the library, and the entrance is just beside the cold marble staircase.Next to the door is a service desk and librarian's office separated by a small glass wall.On the side of the office is a grid of personal reading areas, and behind it are rows of bookshelves. As the space in the room goes down, various legal books are displayed horizontally.A balcony hangs high above the bookshelf, and the light projected from above just casts dark shadows on the stacked books.

Laura Resty was sitting in the personal reading area, her whole body was almost overwhelmed by the legal books surrounding her, and she was writing a dossier with her head buried in her pen.When Trish reached out and touched her shoulder, Laura jumped out of her chair in shock. "Do you want to get up and have a cup of coffee and take a break?" Trish asked, "I have some great news for you!" "I'm not free right now!" Laura said, covering the file on the table so quickly that Trish didn't even have time to glance at what she was writing. "Come on! Resting for fifteen minutes won't kill you."

"I really can't leave. The magistrate needs this document soon." "What plane are you picking?" "Nothing special," Laura replied.She tried to act casually, but the strange voice still showed a little flaw, "What did you just say you were going to tell me?" "I got an interview with Matthew Raynor; he needed a partner and Judge Forby recommended me to him." "That's great!" Laura replied, with a forced look of excitement on her face. "Working with Reynolds was a dream of mine, like an arrow in the bow. I just hope now that I can impress him." Justice Shessel said he had never had a female partner Man, that sounds like he never knew how useful women can be." "That's because he hasn't seen you yet." Laura smiled. "I'm sure you'll knock him down with one punch." "Hopefully. If you change your mind and want coffee, I'll be here for another twenty minutes. I've got things to do, too." "Really not. Oh, congratulations!" Trish walked to the other side of the library, stood in front of the New York University law journals she needed, took a copy, sat in the personal reading area and began to take notes.About half an hour later, she walked to Laura's seat again, still unwilling to give up and drag her to drink coffee.She was really excited about this upcoming job interview, and really wanted to have a good chat with someone. Laura is not in her seat.Trish noticed the yellow leather file on the table, which listed three cases.Tracy looked back and forth, but found nothing strange.She really didn't understand why Laura was hiding so nervously.She shrugged, then turned to find her friend. Trish searched along the long bookshelves, looking left and right, until he came to the information area where the relevant reports of the Oregon Court of Appeals were kept.Laura was standing at the end of the row of bookshelves against the wall, and Trish was surprised to find that she was talking to Judge Pip.Trish and Laura had casually talked about Pip several times, and Tracy knew Laura despised him.Trish originally had an impulse to go forward, but the body movements of the two people in front of her forcibly restrained her eager feet. The space between the bookshelves was so narrow that Lola and Pyp were standing almost close to each other.Laura looked bored and annoyed, and kept waving her hands excitedly when she spoke, and Pip was blushing and chattering non-stop, but they kept their voices so low that Trish couldn't hear clearly at all. the content of their conversation.What is certain, though, is that their tone was rather angry.Tracy watched as Laura was forced by the clingy judge to keep shrinking her body until she leaned against the bookshelf.Then Pyp said something more that made Tracy shake her head violently.Then Pyp put a hand on Laura's shoulder.Although she tried her best to break free, she was held tightly by the judge like a little mouse in the cat's claws, unable to move.So Trish decided to walk into the aisle between the bookshelves and appear in front of Piper. "Are you going to drink coffee?" Trish asked deliberately raising her voice. Pyp gave her a blank stare, then dropped his hands. "Lola and I have a case to discuss. I hope you don't mind, Judge." Tracy's tone of voice was deliberately trying to let Pip understand that she had seen what was happening before her eyes.Pyp's face turned red, his eyes were piercing, and he threw two sharp knives at Laura, and then turned his head to look at Trish. "Okay!" After finishing speaking, he walked around Tracy. "Are you okay?" Tracy asked quickly when Pip disappeared from sight. "Did you hear anything?" Laura looked worried. "I didn't hear anything." Although Trish answered like this, she was very puzzled about this question in her heart. "It seems that Pip is violating you. Why, did he make things difficult for you?" "No." Laura's tense emotions still did not relax, "He just wanted to ask me what Bob... Judge Griffin would say about a case." "Do you want me to accompany you to relax? Because you look really bad!" "I'm fine, Trish, really fine. Don't bring it up again." "Come on, Laura. I can really help you if you'll tell me what's bothering you." "How could you help me?" Laura exploded like a landmine, "You don't even know what happened!" "Lola, I..." "I'm sorry, please don't ask again! You will never understand." After Laura finished speaking, she turned sideways and hurried away from Tracy's side.Tracy stared at Laura's fading figure, deeply shocked by her friend's reaction. "Lola wants to see you, Judge," Judge Griffin's secretary told him over the intercom. "Let her in." The judge was busy preparing for the noon meeting, and he hoped that Laura had worked out the tax case the judges were going to discuss.Just as Griffin finished signing a letter, the door opened.He raised his head and grinned, but the moment he saw Laura, the original smile was wiped away.She looked like she was on the verge of tears and collapse. "We have to talk." Laura's voice was trembling. Griffin jumped up and walked around the table, "What's the matter!" "Everything!" Laura replied, "Everything!" Then, she started crying. The meeting room of the Oregon Supreme Court is quite spacious and magnificent. Some simple furniture and several historic glass-doored bookshelves surround the large conference table. The portraits looked down angrily.The chief judge, Furby, was sitting firmly at the front seat of the conference table with his sleeves curled up and his tie loosened; Alice Shessel was on his right side, bending down to put down the coffee cup and the stack of documents in her hand; And the gray-haired, dignified Vincent Rafflek sat on Phoebe's left. Rob Griffin staggered through the door and almost bumped into Mary Kayleigh, who was lighting a cigarette. "I'm sorry!" Griffin hurriedly apologized. Kayleigh was wearing a loose, sleeveless forest green dress with bangs brushed back all the way across her forehead.She gave Griffin a suggestive smile. "It's okay, it's okay!" Kayleigh said.However, as soon as she caught sight of the expression on Griffin's face, her smile disappeared.Kayleigh touched Griffin's forearm, and he stopped. "What's wrong?" Kelly asked in a low voice. Griffin shook his head, "It's fine." Kayleigh quickly turned sideways, skillfully blocking the view of the other judges with her back. "Tell me what happened," she pressed. Griffin turned his eyes and looked to the side, while Kailei was relentlessly staring at people.When Griffin looked back at her, confusion and apprehension were written all over his face.However, just as he was about to blurt out the matter, Arno Piper pushed the door open and walked in. "Your wife looks awful, Bob!" he said, honestly. "Poor thing! You must keep thinking of her dominance." Griffin paled, and Kayleigh stared at Pyp with wide-eyed amazement, as if he were a worm Kayleigh found in a lettuce salad.Just when the atmosphere was a little frozen, Frank Areggi rushed in, holding a lunch bag bought at the deli across the street. "I'm sorry, everyone! My men have delayed things. Did I miss anything exciting?" "Take it easy," said Frank Phoebe, laughing.Alleghi sat down next to Vincent Rafflek, took out a large jelly candy from his brown paper bag, and stared into Raffleck's eyes. "Well, here we are. Now we can begin!" said Judge Forby. "We'll talk later," Mary Carey told Griffin. Phoebe laid out piles of documents in front of him. "I was going to start with your case, Frank, but now you've got a weird mouth. So how about starting with your case, Vincent? What's up with that State and Franklin case you've got?" To what extent?" Judge Shessel asked Tracy to make a summary of the probate case in the morning, but she was so distracted by what happened in the library just now that she couldn't calm down and focus on the matter in front of her. work.At five o'clock in the evening, she decided to sneak out and finish the summary after dinner. Trish's garden apartment is located on the second floor of a two-story complex, about half a mile away from the courthouse.Although she is a top student in the law school, she is a woman who is not good at managing her family.Her apartment, which opens directly from the front door into the living room, has been disorganized for a week, newspapers and letters strewn across the sofa.Trish seldom watches TV, so her small black-and-white TV set is neglected by her in a corner, almost covered by layers of thick dust.As for Tracy's beloved rock-climbing equipment, it was well taken care of, but she also kept it next to the TV for a while. The apartment was rented as a fully-furnished house, and the only thing that Tracy personally created and planned was the photo gallery that faithfully recorded her various achievements in sports.In one photo in the living room, Trish stands on the runway in front of the front auditorium, with a hand lightly on the shoulder of a hunched girl beside her, both in Yale tracksuits, who had just run After finishing the 1,500-meter race in the Ivy League intercollegiate sports meeting, he looked exhausted, but he was full of triumphant joy. In another photo, Trish is climbing a snow-capped mountain.She was wearing a heavy snowsuit with a hood on her back, and she was waving a snow chisel at the camera.As for the photo in her bedroom, Tracy is hanging upside down on the rocky face of Smith Ridge, which is quite steep in eastern Oregon. ―Stepping into her apartment, Trish couldn't wait to shake off her neat suit on the bedroom floor, quickly changed into sportswear, put on jogging shoes, and followed the After the planned circuit, she started her seven-mile jog. While running, Trish was still thinking about the accident that he encountered in the library.She really didn't understand Laura's reaction.Laura didn't like Magistrate Pyp at all, so why was she protecting Pyp like this after Pyp was giving her so many glances?Perhaps, there are other very different explanations for what you see in front of you.But no matter how much Trixie thought about it, he couldn't come up with a reasonable idea.There must be something sinister and crooked invading Laura's life.Tracy still remembered the last time when Laura was studying Dim's case and she bumped into her. Laura's pale and terrified face made her feel that something was wrong. Annoyed, and Trish's private observation of her these past few days, all the suspicions entangled in Tracy's heart could not be relieved.However, what is it that makes Laura so worried and palpitating? After taking a rest and taking a shower, Trish casually ate some Caesar salad mixed with small shrimps, plus two slices of thick cheese bread, and threw the dirty dishes into the sink, and then decided to walk across the campus of Wheeling-Medie University to return to the courthouse building.During the day, the green grassland and the shady old trees make the Wheeling Meadow campus really a pleasant place to wander; however, in the evening, especially during the deserted summer vacation, the university suddenly becomes It becomes a desolate desert, and the standing street lamps clearly illuminate the hiking trails on the campus.Tracy stopped for a moment, submerging herself in the dim yellow street lamps.The temperature dropped sharply, and the cool breeze coming towards her inevitably made her shiver a few times.Halfway through the walk, Trish suddenly felt as if someone was moving in the shadow of the building in front of him.She felt a shudder, staring through the dim light.The cool wind swept the leaves and rustled.Trish pestered for a while, then continued to walk, and smiled slightly at her overly nervous reaction just now. At 7:30, when Tracy walked into the building of the Supreme Court, there was no one in the building, and the empty building had a slightly sinister atmosphere.However, Tracy often works the night shift here, so she doesn't take it seriously.The offices of the clerks are lined up in the Supreme Court building facing the capital, and there is a large space between these offices and the post office. In the space, there is a conference table, and the table is scattered. Staplers, plastic cups, paper plates, and various legal books. There are two or two seats around the table, and none of them are in good repair.A computer and the only printer were placed in the recess behind the desk, and scattered around were some messy bookshelves, filing cabinets, and a reclining chair.Trish walked past the conference table, walked down the small hall, went straight to her office, found out the probate information she needed to make a summary, turned off the lights in the clerk's office, and walked upstairs to the library. Articles in law journals had mentioned some interesting cases, and Trish wandered among the bookshelves looking for them.Reading these led her to other cases, one after the other, so engrossed in her that when she was about to start writing the abstract, she was surprised to find that it was almost ten o'clock, and she hurriedly cleared the papers on the table. Notes and materials, and turn off the lights and leave.The echo of footsteps filled the stairwell, and one could not help but create an illusion, as if there were other people active in the building at this moment.Tracy laughed at herself, thinking of her nervousness when she passed the Willing-Medi campus earlier, she thought it was ridiculous.She didn't know what evil she had fallen into? Tracy pushed open the door of the clerk's office area and stopped in shock.She was pretty sure she had turned off all the lights just before going upstairs to the library, but right now the lights in Laura Resty's office were on.Someone must have entered the building as she went up. "Lola?" Trish called inside.No one answered.Tracy tensed her nerves and listened carefully, hoping that there would be some voices from inside telling her that she was not alone here.But there was still silence all around.She peeped into Laura's office, and suddenly found that the drawers of Laura's filing cabinet were opened one by one, all the materials were scattered all over the place, and even the copies of the files were flying everywhere.Someone sneaked in while Trish was upstairs in the library. Tracy quickly picked up the phone and informed Laura.The door of the secretary's office area was suddenly closed with a "bang", which scared Trish into a cold sweat.She froze for a moment, shook her head, rushed to the door, and opened it.No one is in the corridor.She ran to the back door again and looked out through the glass window.There was no one in the parking lot either.Trish tried to calm herself down.She wondered if she should call the police and tell them what happened here.However, what went wrong here?Laura herself may be the main cause of all this, after all, her behavior these days is really strange and suspicious for no reason.The door seemed to be closed again, but Trish still didn't notice anyone in the building or in the parking lot after all. Trish's hair stood on end all over his body, and his muscles tensed.She couldn't afford to spend one more minute in the empty courthouse.She decided to leave her notes and come back tomorrow morning to complete the summary she was supposed to write.Trish turned on all the lights in the secretary's office area and walked towards her office.As she walked past the conference table, out of the corner of her eye she seemed to see something under the table.Tracy stopped to take a closer look, and found a woman's leg lying in the light, while other parts of the body were hidden in the shadows.Tracy knelt down to look at her body.The woman's body curled up, as if trying to break free from the attacker's claws, blood oozing from the curly hair at the back of her head.Her head was tilted to one side, and those unsettling dead fish eyes happened to be staring straight at Trish.Trish gasped, her legs limp.She knew that she should feel the pulse and breath of that person, but at this moment, she couldn't reach out to touch Laura's slender wrist no matter what.However, her intuition told her that it wouldn't make any difference whether she felt her pulse or not. Police investigators at the scene told Trish to wait in her office.Her office is small and cramped, and the walls on both sides can be touched just by opening her arms.A small notice board on the wall at the front edge of the desk pinned a chart of the cases she was responsible for.A metal filing cabinet stood beside the table by the window, with an old electric fan on it, and beside the computer on the table, there were many materials and case copies scattered around. A slender lady in a powder blue shirt, loose black pants, and a light blue windbreaker walked in with an identification card in her hand.She looked bleary-eyed, as if she had just been violently dug out of a deep sleep, her blue eyes were bloodshot, and her fluffy blond hair was disheveled. "I'm Heidi Blick, an investigator from the Sharon Police Department." In Bleecker's other hand is a mug of hot coffee with the "McDonald's" logo on the container.She handed it to Trish. "Can you drink?" "Thank you!" Trish replied exhaustedly. Blick sat down beside Trish, "Is she your friend?" Trish nodded. "Discovering this corpse must have given you quite a shock." Tracy took a sip of the paper cup in her hand.The coffee was so hot that it felt like a fire was burning in your mouth.But she didn't care at all, but she could relax a little bit from the torment and pain she was suffering mentally. "What are you doing here so late?" "I'm clerking for Judge Shessel, who's working on a complicated probate case. She wants me to do some legal briefs for her, tomorrow morning." "When did you start working?" "About half past seven." "Where do you work?" "The library upstairs." "So did you hear or see anything unusual?" "No. When you're upstairs in the library, you can't hear anything downstairs." Investigator Blick took notes on the pad in her hand, and she asked, "Is Laura a clerk too?" Trish nodded, "She works under Judge Griffin." "What does Laura usually do for Judge Griffin?" "Help him study the case before the trial, draft some opinions, and read for him some pleadings that were ignored by his partners in the appeal court." "Could her death be related to the case she was handling?" "I can't imagine it because we don't know anything that's not on the public record." "Can you go into more detail?" "Okay! Let's put it this way: Suppose you break the law, or lose a lawsuit, and think the verdict was unfair. Maybe you think the judge allowed evidence she shouldn't have, or misled the jury. No clear explanation. Either way, you can appeal. During the appeal process, you can ask the appellate court to make a ruling to see if the previous judge was negligent. If the judge was really negligent, and it was serious enough to endanger The result of the verdict, in this way, the Court of Appeals will ask the case for a new trial. "The court reporter will take down everything that happened at the trial. If you appeal, the court reporter will give you a verbatim transcript of the courtroom, and the appeal must be followed. If in Any confession after that will not be admitted by the appeals court because it is not on the public record of the court." "So, then, there's no secret to what the appellate judge is considering, right?" Blick said. "Sometimes parts of the record are sealed. But that's rarely the case. And the opinions signed by the judges on the case and what they said in the meeting on the case must never be made public. However, this is not the same as Laura. What does it matter?" "Then why was Lola's office searched like that?" "I don't know. Ordinary thieves will not be interested in those legal materials and case copies, unless some lawyers or judges involved in special cases will take their ideas." "What about the missing jewels?" "Lola isn't going to be rich, and I've never seen her wear anything that would kill her." "You can think about it, who wants to harm her? Does she have a boyfriend, or an ex-husband who is malicious to her?" "Lola is single. As far as I know, she hasn't had any boyfriends. She's very private, so there may be people or things I don't know about. But..." Trish paused. "What?" Brick asked. "I feel strange." "What's weird about it?" "Can our conversation be classified?" "Generally speaking, if it involves the arrest of a suspect, our records must be presented to the defendant. But we will try to keep it as confidential as possible." "I don't know if I should say..." "Tracy, your friend was killed, if you know something that can help us catch the murderer earlier..." Trish tells Detective Blick about all the weird behaviors of Lola in recent days, including what happened between Lola and Judge Piper in the library. "It probably doesn't make any sense," Tracy concluded. "Lola never mentioned that Piper was on a case, but it was all too obvious that he was flirting with Laura." "Well, thank you! If I mentioned this to Judge Piper, I would never tell him the source. You can think about it again. Is there anything else that will help solve the case?" Trish shook her head wearily. "Okay! You really helped a lot, but you seem to need a good rest. I will send someone to take you home. If necessary, I will come to talk to you." Blick said , while handing Trish a piece of her business card, "If you think of anything else..." "I'll definitely call you. Except, I think, I've said all I need to say. I really can't imagine anyone trying to kill Laura." Trish waited outside the house.Officers are checking her apartment.She was so tired that she had to lean against the wall to prop herself up.Until now, she still couldn't accept the fact that Laura, whom she had only talked to a few hours ago, was no longer alive. "No problem, ma'am," said the inspector.Trish didn't hear the police officer stepping out of the apartment, so she was taken aback by this sudden sentence. "I'll check the other rooms. But remember to keep the locks on and keep an eye on the door. I'll be patrolling the neighborhood for a few hours, just in case." Trish thanked the officer and locked it up as he had warned.What she needs most right now is a good night's sleep, but she doubts whether she can sleep well. When she stepped into the bedroom, the first thing she noticed was the blinking light on the answering machine.She slumped on the bed, and then pressed the button of the answering machine.Laura's voice came from the answering machine, which made Tracy terrified. "Tracey, I'm in trouble. I have to talk to you. It's 9:05, please call me back as soon as you can. I have to..." While Laura was leaving her message, Trish heard the doorbell ring loudly in Laura's room, followed by a pause, and then Laura continued to finish her message. "Please do call me! I really don't know what to do! Please!"