Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen

"There's good news, and there's bad news," Barry Flem reported excitedly to his boss as Raynor stepped through the front door. "Which one do you want to hear first?" "Good news." Renault walked slowly, talking with Barry as they walked towards the office. "Christenson has arranged for us to look at the specific evidence, and he will bring it to the conference room of the District Attorney's Office at ten o'clock on Friday morning." "Okay. What's the bad news?" "Guedes has gone to Judge Baldwin for a witness protection order on Dim. So, they can't give us the guy's address."

Renault looked stunned and angry, "That's ridiculous!" "Yeah! But Geddis managed to convince the magistrate to make such an unreasonable order. Also, the witness statement has been sealed, so we have no way of knowing what Geddis made up." I'll convince Baldwin with his rhetoric. Still, I'll try to get the address." "No matter how much work it takes, we've got to get it. We've got to talk to Tim. He's the key to the whole case; I'm pretty sure he's the one who designed Abby." "Why did he do that?" "For revenge, of course, because Abby sent him to death row."

"I know that's Mrs. Griffin's claim, but it's really unreasonable. He's just escaped death, and he can't go out and take the risk and kill Judge Griffin. Is it necessary?" Matthew thought for a moment. "Could it be that someone paid Tim to kill Judge Griffin and put the blame on Abby?" he asked Barry. "Of course it's possible. But why?" Matthew shook his head. "I don't know either. We need to understand Judge Griffin's background better." Then, Matthew was silent for a while, while Barry patiently waited for him to speak again.

"Barry, check to see if Tim has an account at the bank. If he's actually being paid to kill Griffin, it's going to be a lot of money, and he'll probably put some of it in the bank." Barry laughed loudly, "What are you kidding! A guy like Dim won't deal with banks unless he wants to rob a bank." Renault responded with a very patient smile to Barry, "You made me silent!" "I mean it. Oh! Just to tell you before I forget, Neil Christensen slipped up in a private conversation with me and said Geddes was going to fix you up .” "Oh?"

"The day he arrested Mrs. Griffin, you thoroughly humiliated him and then managed to get Mrs. Griffin out, and Gaddis was furious at you for including the Chief Attorney in the mix. So , He stated that he will never make any concessions to us, and he is determined to prosecute this case with the death penalty. In addition, he will try his best to suppress us in every process of handling the case." "That's it?" Renault smiled slightly, as if he was immersed in the joke that only he understood, "Okay, let's go back to work." Renault turned around abruptly and walked away.When Fram was about to return to his office, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.It occurred to him that when Tim was arrested for the murders of the Harlins, he had wanted Raynor to represent him.Barry was pretty sure they talked at least two or three times before Matthew decided to decline to defend Tim; so he figured there might be an address and phone number for Tim or his associates in the files.Seizing this thought, Barry quickly walked towards the back of the house.There was a rickety ladder down to the basement of the wet mattress where they kept their old archives.

Trish's office was near the door to the basement, and she was at her desk, diligently doing her work. "Hi!" Barry greeted her. Trish didn't move, she was concentrating on the words on the computer. "Come back to your senses, Trish!" She turned her head now. "Looking at the Griffin case?" Barry said, pointing to the computer screen. "No! This is the case in Texas, part of the brief. The Supreme Court just issued a bit of an opinion, and there are a few sentences in it that are quite useful, so Matthew has given me some additional tasks to organize this debate. resign."

"Are you going to spend the whole weekend working here?" "I'll probably be here on Saturday. As for Sunday, I don't have any plans at the moment." "I'd like to go to Griffin's cabin on Sunday to take some photos. How about going for a walk to the beach with me?" "I don't know. Logically, I should be serving in the city, so that Matthew can't find me." "Matthew can't die without you for a day. Come on! There is a very beautiful place not far from that wooden house. I'll take you to have a look." Barry reaches out and frames his eyes, like a movie director measuring a scene.

"Imagine, we can wander among the lush forests, wandering on the green grassland, the grassland is like a painter's palette, full of colorful wildflowers, how beautiful! And then tired, We sat on the corner of the cliff, looking at the blue ocean with waves." Trish was amused, "And then?" "We could have a picnic. I've got a fantastic bottle of Merlot champagne I'm saving for special occasions. What do you think?" Trish glanced at the pile of papers on the desk, and then did a quick calculation with her fingers. "Okay! But I have to think of a reason to scare our boss."

"Tell him that you just want to assist me in the investigation." Barry disappeared as soon as he finished speaking. Tracy was in a daze, with a smile on his face.He's such a charming guy.They've gone for a few runs together, and it's been a lot of fun each time.So far, he's been acting like the perfect gentleman with a good sense of humor.But Tracy decided that before he made it clear, she would never put more emotion into it, so as not to fall into a situation where she couldn't extricate herself.Maybe this romantic picnic would be a good start. However, regardless of whether there will be any progress between them, Tracy knows that she will be intoxicated by the pleasant seaside scenery.The fresh air and the warm sun seemed to have gradually abandoned her since she started working as Matthew's assistant.She wasn't complaining, because she had prepared for all of this as early as the beginning of taking this job: besides, it had always been her wish to work for Matthew Raynor.But, in any case, the trip to the sea would provide her with a temporary escape from the legal book she had been in for a whole week.

Two addresses are registered in Charlie Deem's file.The first address was the apartment where Dim lived when he was arrested for the Harlins murder, and Dim hasn't been back there since; Until his case was dismissed.That apartment has now been sublet to someone else because the landlord has no idea of ​​Tim's whereabouts. The second address is in a suburb north of Portland.Through the window next to the driver's seat, Barry Fam could vaguely recognize the house number of a low one-story house on the side of the street in the dimming light. The chain-like fence surrounded the surroundings, and the gray and white paint had already been mottled and peeled off.The yard was overgrown with weeds and looked as if it had been abandoned for weeks.The metal door number on the gate also lost a number, leaving only the remaining three house numbers.

Barry pushed open the gate of the yard and stepped on the rock slab path to enter.Deafening hot music came out of the room, the squealing electric guitar, the chaotic rhythmless drumming, mixed with the hoarse voice roaring.Barry knew right away that it was "James Pearls."He rang the bell twice, and knocked on the door several more times.The noise in the room subsided slightly.Barry then knocked on the door again. "Knock what, here it comes!" The woman in the room shouted angrily towards the outside. The curtains of the living room were drawn open.Barry took a step back, looking serious, trying his best to look fearless.A moment later, the front door opened, and a slender, barefooted, blond woman in a waist-length bikini top stood by it.The soft and yellow sunset outside the house shone on the girl, sculpting her figure more exquisitely, and dazzled Barry's eyes for a while, mistakenly thinking that the woman in front of him was just a teenager. "Who are you?" The woman's tone was provocative. Barry took out his identification card, "My name is Barry Flamm, and I'm Matthew Raynor's investigator. He's a lawyer." "How about it?" "Are you Angela Quinn?" "What?" She cocked her hips against the doorpost.This gesture seems to be deliberately distracting him and interrupting his work.Barry couldn't linger on her for too long, because those slender and smooth legs, as well as the nipples looming on the bikini bra, would make him unable to control himself and dream about things. "We tried to get in touch with Charlie Diem. A few years ago, Mr. Diem went to Lawyer Renault, and he left this address and phone number. Are you Angela?" Barry saw a terrified look in Angela Quinn's blue eyes. "I don't know where Charlie is now." Angela hurriedly wanted to close the door after she finished speaking. "Wait. You're his girlfriend, aren't you?" "Look, sir, I'm going to cut a long story short. I worked as a dancer at Ginger's. Charlie used to hang out there a lot, so we were friends for a while. But it wasn't long before he got caught out for killing the kid. And was arrested." Angela shook her head, as if she couldn't believe it. "Charlie wrote me a few letters from death row. I was a fucking bitch and wrote him back once or twice because no one wanted to talk to him; and since then, I don't remember I have seen his face again. Oh, no, I was wrong, when he is released, he will come to me first, and I will let him stay. But he has already left, I don’t even know that he is now Where will it be hidden?" "If you hate Tim so much, why did you keep him here?" Angela laughed, but there was no paradox in the laughter. "Sir, you must not know Charlie very well. He's the kind of person who can't hear the word 'no'." Angela shuddered. "That bastard has only been here for a month. It's already a month It's been a long time. I wish I never saw him again." "When did Charlie leave, do you remember?" "About two weeks ago!" "So, have you heard about the Supreme Court justice who was blown up in his car?" Barry saw the frightened look in his eyes appear again. "What exactly do you want to know?" Angela suddenly became wary. "Mr. Reynolds, my boss, is representing the man accused of killing the judge. Charlie is a witness in the case, and we would like to speak to him about his testimony." "I told you, I don't know where he is." "Didn't Charlie tell you anything about the judge's murder?" Angela looks like she's in a "should I say" struggle. "Only God knows this matter, you know me." Barry gave her a comfortable and trustworthy smile. "Why should I trust you?" The smile on Barry's face faded in an instant, "Listen, Angela, I know exactly how dangerous Dim is, and I don't want you to be in danger too. I inquired about this, just to use it as a pawn." Just for background information. Tell me, did Charlie ever talk to you about Judge Griffin's murder?" "No, he didn't say a word. But that night, as I was getting ready to go to work, he was watching the news coverage of the incident and seemed interested; he even asked me Newspapers, what to read about the murder. Now that I think about it, Charlie left here after that night." "Haven't you guys been in touch since he left? Did he really not call again? Didn't you send him clothes or something?" "No. To tell you, I don't know where he is." "Well, thank you, you really did me a favor. Here's my business card. If he contacts you, please let me know where he is, I'd appreciate it." "Okay!" Angela closed the door casually.Barry stood there wondering.He didn't know how long it would be before that business card would be thrown into the trash. Charlie Deem sits smoking slowly on the back porch of a farmhouse in Clackamashire, watching the wind-blown grass waves sway to and fro.Everything about this farm was exciting and pleasant, but it was nothing to Charlie.For two years, being locked in a cell the size of a broom cupboard and wearing handcuffs and anklets twenty-three hours a day had taught Dim how to pass this idle and boring life. Skimming the grassland in front of me, there is an acre of cotton field next to it. Behind the cotton field is a low hill, and the orange-red sunset is gradually sinking behind it. Charlie felt quite content.His plan is progressing, slowly but surely.Now, he lives in a free house, and someone delivers pizza and burgers on time.He really had nothing to complain about. As soon as Charlie walked out of the Oregon State Penitentiary, and before he hooked up with Yura, he met and reconnected with some of the people who worked for Otiro.Although Yula has made some changes in the way of doing business, the most important part of it, that is, the river used to smuggle cocaine, remains the same as when Dim was in charge of the river in the past.Here's an example: Interstates have rest stops where delivery trucks heading straight from Mexico to Seattle stop to give drivers a chance to rest their legs.When the drivers were resting, a few black figures would suddenly jump out, pick up some goods that were not listed on the delivery list from the car, and then quickly escape into the darkness.However, just like this evening, one of his nanny brought the news: several smuggling cases were solved at the rest station in just one night, many people were arrested, and a large number of coca tests were seized.It's all thanks to Dim.The D.A.'s gratitude to him was evident in his steak dinner tonight. Charlie took out another bit of the drug and rolled it into a cigarette.As long as he thinks of Yura's inexplicable embarrassment when he sees the drug trafficking organization he has worked so hard to disintegrate bit by bit, he can't help laughing.Soon, not long before, the cops would have caught the big fish that Beulah was afraid of going to jail.There was a guy with a radio among them, and every word Yura said, every order he gave, would be woven into a net, and they would be locked in it, so they would be hanged by the rope. .Then the great jury is about to start meeting.It will take some time to wait, but Charlie can wait. The only thing he can't wait is to testify in court against Abigail Griffin as soon as possible.He really wished that the day would come early, and he would see that woman completely collapsed because of his testimony.For two years, the bitch had been in his sexual fantasies all the time.If he'd been paid a dollar for every rape he fantasized about, he'd be rich enough to live in a fancy villa on the French Rivinara by now.Of course, if he could see Mrs. Griffin crawling back and forth in that gray dungeon where he spent countless hours and slowed down the minutes and seconds, it would give him far more pleasure than being alone with her. A night of passion together. Perhaps, Charlie would write a letter to Abby, send a postcard from afar, and let Abby know that he missed her all the time.He imagined that Ai Ruhua's beauty was gradually aging and withering in the prison, her dark and healthy complexion turned pale due to lack of sunlight, and her figure became more and more emaciated.But this is not enough, he wants to see this bitch's soul crumbled and scattered, and her original proud look will fade away with the endless sobbing, followed by a vast With both eyes, Zhenri stared at the unchanging gray wall.Thinking of this, Charlie couldn't help showing a smile on his face. He glanced at his watch and stood up abruptly.At seven o'clock, "Dangerous Games" began.It's his favorite game show.He squeezed out the butt of the cigarette and threw it into the weeds.With free pizza to eat, his favorite TV show to watch, and this carefree country quiet, life is wonderful.