Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen

When David got home, Sandra was waiting for him. "Good evening, dear." He held her in his arms and thought: My God, she is so cute.Which idiot said that pregnant women are not beautiful? "The baby kicked again today," Sandra said excitedly, taking David's hand and placing it on her belly. "Can you feel him?" After a while, David said, "No. He's a naughty little rascal." "By the way, Mr. Crother is calling." "Crowther?" "The real estate agent. The deed is ready for signing." David suddenly felt his heart sink. "Oh."

"I want to show you something," Sandra said eagerly, "don't go away." David watched her hurry into the bedroom and thought: What should I do?I need to make up my mind. Sandra returned to the room with several samples of the blue wallpaper in her hand. “We’re going to do the nursery blue, we’re going to make the living room of the apartment blue and white – your favorite colours. Which colored wallpaper do you like, light or dark?” David forced himself to concentrate. "Light colors look good." "I love it too. The only problem is, the rug will be dark blue. Do you think they coordinate?"

I cannot waive partnership.I've worked too hard on this already.It means so many things. "David. Do you think they should match?" He looks at her. "What? Oh, yes. Do as you please, dear." "I'm so excited. It's going to be beautiful." If I don't get a partnership, there's no way I can afford it. Sandra looked around the small apartment. "Some furniture here can still be used, but I'm afraid we're going to need a lot of new things." She looked at him anxiously. "We can afford it, can't we, dear? I don't want to live beyond my means."

"Yes." David said absently. She leaned against his shoulder. "It's like a whole new life, isn't it? Baby, partnership, and a duplex penthouse. I was passing by today. I wanted to see the playground and the school. The playground is beautiful. It has slides, Swing and climbing play cube. I want you to come see it with me on Saturday. Geoffrey will love it." Maybe I can convince Jin Kaide that this will be a good thing for the company. "The school looks nice. It's just a few blocks from our apartment, and it's not too big. I think that's important."

David listened to her and thought: I can't let her down.I can't take her dream away.Tomorrow morning I will tell Kim that I will not be taking on the Paterson case.Paterson will have to find someone else. "We'd better get ready, dear. We're going to Quiller's at eight o'clock." This is the time to tell the truth.David felt himself tense. "There's something we need to talk about." "What's up?" "I went to see Ashley Paterson this morning." "Oh? Tell me about it. Is she guilty? Did she do those horrible things?"

"Yes and no." "Speaking like a lawyer? What does that mean?" "She did those murders . . . but she wasn't guilty." "David!" "Ashley has a condition called multiple personality disorder, where she has split personalities, so she does things without knowing she's doing them." Sandra stared at him. "How terrible." "Two other personalities. I heard them." "Did you hear them?" "Yes. And they're real. I mean, she's not faking it." "And she doesn't even know they exist?"

"not at all." "So is she innocent or guilty?" "That's for the courts to decide. Her father won't talk to Jess Queller, so I'm going to have to find another lawyer." "But Jess is perfect. Why won't he talk to him?" David hesitated. "He asked me to defend her." "But of course you told him you couldn't." "certainly." "and after?" "He just won't listen." "What did he say, David?" He shook his head, "It doesn't matter." "What did he say?"

David replied slowly: "He said that when I trusted him and put my mother's life in his hands, he saved her; now, he is trusting me and putting his daughter's life in mine. hands, he is asking me to save her." Sandra studied his face. "Do you think you can?" "I didn't know that Kim was so open that he didn't want me to take the case. If I did take it, I'd be out of partnership." "Oh." There was a long silence. When he opened his mouth, David said, "I have a choice. I can say no to Dr. Paterson and become a partner in the firm, or I can advocate for his daughter, possibly taking an unpaid leave of absence." , and then, see what happens next."

Sandra listened quietly. "There's someone better qualified than me to handle Ashley's case, but for some damn reason her father won't let anyone else do it. I don't know why he's so stubborn about it, but that's what he is. If I take this The case won't qualify as a partner, and we'll have to forget about moving. We'll have to drop a lot of plans, Sandra." Sandra said softly, "I remember you telling me about him before we got married. He was one of the busiest doctors in the world and yet he found time to help a penniless young man." .He was your idol, David. You said that if we had a son, you would make him a Steven Paterson."

David nodded. "When do you have to make a decision?" "I'll see Jin Kaide first thing in the morning tomorrow." Sandra took his hand and said, "You don't need that much time. Dr. Paterson saved your mother's life. You're going to save his daughter's life." She looked around and smiled. "We could always refurbish the apartment in blue and white anyway." ※※※ Jess Queller is one of the best criminal defense attorneys in the nation.He was a tall, stocky man with an earthy air that the jurors recognized.They felt that he was one of them, so they all wanted to help him.That's one reason he rarely loses cases.Another reason is that he has a camera-like memory and a quick mind.

Instead of vacationing in the summer, Quiller spends his time teaching law classes.David was one of his students many years ago.When David graduated, Queller invited him to join his criminal law firm.Two years later, David became a partner.David loved doing criminal law and did it well.He also pledged that ten percent of his cases were for the public good.After becoming a partner for three years, David abruptly resigned to practice corporate law at Kingston, Turner, Ross & Ripley International. ※※※ David and Quiller remained close friends over the years.They, and their wives, eat together once a week. Jess Queller has always had a soft spot for tall, ladylike, otherworldly blondes.Later he meets Emily and falls in love with her.Emily was a stocky woman with prematurely gray hair.She is from a farm in Iowa.She was the exact opposite of every other woman Quiller had been dating.She is a conservative and pragmatic person.They seem to be an incongruous couple, but their marriage is strong because they love each other deeply. Every Tuesday, the Singers and the Quellers dined together and then played a very complicated poker game called "Liverpool." When Sandra and David arrived at the Quellers' beautiful Haines Street home, Jess greeted them at the door. He gave Sandra a hug and said, "Come in. We've chilled the champagne. It's a big day for you guys, isn't it? New duplex penthouses and partnerships. Or partnerships Eligibility and duplex penthouses?" David and Sandra looked at each other. "Emily was making a celebratory dinner in the kitchen." He looked at their faces. "I thought it was a celebratory dinner. Did I miss anything?" David said, "No, Jess. It's just that we might have a... a little problem." "Come in. A drink?" He looked at Sandra. "No thanks. I don't want the baby to get into bad habits." "He's a lucky guy to have parents like you," Quiller said enthusiastically.He turned to David. "What shall I bring you?" "Okay," said David. Sandra walked toward the kitchen. "I'll see if I can help Emily." "Sit down, David. You look serious." "I'm in a dilemma," David admits. "Let me guess. Duplex penthouse or partnership?" "Both." "Both?" "Yes. You know about the Paterson case, don't you?" "Ashley Paterson? Of course. What does that have to do with you?" He broke off. "Wait a minute. You told me about Steven Paterson in law school. He saved killed your mother." "Yes. He wanted me to defend his daughter. I tried to refer the case to you, but he wouldn't hear anyone but me defending his daughter." Quiller frowned. "Does he know you're no longer doing criminal law?" "Yes. That's what makes this so strange. There are dozens of lawyers who do a lot better than I do." "Does he know you've been a criminal defense attorney?" "yes." Quiller said cautiously: "What does he think about his daughter?" What a strange question, David thought. "She means more to him than anything in the world." "Fine. Suppose you take her case. What's the downside?" "The downside is that Kim doesn't want me to take it. If I take it, I feel like I'm going to lose my partnership." "I see. And that's the point of that duplex penthouse?" Davy said angrily, "That's the key to my whole goddamn future, and I'm so stupid for doing something like this, Jess. I mean real stupid!" "Why are you so angry?" David took a deep breath. "Because I'm going to do it." Quiller smiled. "Why am I not surprised?" David wiped his brow. "If I turned him down and his daughter was convicted and executed and I did nothing, I... I would feel ashamed in the world." "I understand. What does Sandra think of this?" David forced a smile. "You know Sandra." "Yeah. She wants you to do it." "right." Quiller leaned forward. "I'll do what I can to help you, David." David sighed. "No. That's part of my agreement. I have to deal with this alone." Quiller frowned. "That doesn't make sense at all." "I know. I tried to explain that to Dr. Paterson, but he wouldn't listen." "Have you talked to Jin Kai about this?" "I'm going to see him tomorrow morning." "What do you think is going to happen?" "I know what's going to happen. He's going to advise me not to take the case, and if I insist, he's going to put me on unpaid leave." "Let's have lunch tomorrow. 'Rubillian,' one o'clock." David nodded. "it is good." Emily came in from the kitchen wiping her hands with a rag.David and Quiller rose to their feet. "Hi, David." Emily hurried to him, and he kissed her on the cheek. "I think you're hungry. Dinner's almost ready. Sandra's helping me in the kitchen. She's a real sweetheart." She picked up a tray and hurried back to the kitchen. Quiller turned to David. "You mean a lot to Emily and I. I'm going to give you some advice. You need to get rid of your baggage." David sat there without saying a word. "That was a long time ago, David. And it's not your fault what happened. It could happen to anyone." David looked at Quiller. "It happened to me after all, Jess. I killed her." ※※※ This is an illusion of deja vu.Start all over again.again.David sat there, transported back to another time, another place. This is a free public interest case.David to Jess Queller: "I'll handle it." Helen Woodman is a lovely young woman accused of murdering her wealthy stepmother.There had been several violent public altercations between the two, though all evidence against her was incidental.When David went to meet her in prison, he was convinced she was innocent.Every time we meet, he gets deeper and deeper emotionally.In the end, he violated a cardinal rule: Never fall in love with a client. The trial process has been smooth.David refuted the prosecutor's evidence point by point, and he won the jury over his client.But unexpectedly, a disaster happened.Helen's alibi was that she was at the theater with a friend at the time of the crime.Her friend, under questioning in court, admitted that the alibi was a lie, and then came another witness who said he saw Helen in her stepmother's apartment at the time of the crime.Helen's credibility was gone.A jury found her guilty of first degree murder and a judge sentenced her to death.Davy collapsed suddenly. "How could you do that, Helen?" he demanded. "Why are you lying to me?" "I didn't kill my stepmother, David, when I got to her apartment, I found her lying on the floor, dead. I was afraid you wouldn't believe me, so I... I made up the story about that at the theater. " He stood listening, a sarcastic look on his face. "I'm telling you the truth, David." "Really?" He turned around and rushed out. That very night, Helen committed suicide. A week later, an ex-convict was caught stealing and confessed to killing Helen's stepmother. The next day, David left Jess Queller's office.Quiller tried to talk him out of it. "It's not your fault, David. She lied to you, and..." "Here's the point. I let her tell a lie. I didn't do my job. I didn't check to see if she was telling me the truth. I wanted to believe her, and because of that, I killed her. her." Two weeks later, David began working for the international law firm of Kim Kard, Turner, Ross and Ripley. "I will never again take responsibility for another man's life," David once swore. But now, he was defending Ashley Paterson.