Defending Jacob(103)
“Thank you. Please hold while I connect you. Have a nice day.”
A click.
“Hallo?”
“What is it?”
“What is it? I thought you was gonna come down and visit me again.”
“I’ve been a little busy.”
He mimicked me, “Oh, I been a little busy. Relax, would ya? I’m just shittin’ ya, you dope. Wha’d ya think? Hey, come on down, junior, I’ll take ya out fishin’! I’ll take you fishin’—you know for what? For fishes!” I had no idea what this meant. Some prison slang, presumably. Whatever it meant, the joke was funny to him. He roared into the phone.
“Jesus Christ, you talk a lot.”
“No shit, ’cause I got no one to talk to in this f*ckin’ place. My kid never visits me.”
“Was there something you wanted? Or did you just call to chat?”
“I want to know how the kid’s trial is going.”
“What do you care?”
“He’s my grandson. I want to know.”
“His whole life you never even knew his name.”
“Whose fault is that?”
“Yours.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you think that.” A pause.
“I heard my name came up in court today. We’re following the whole thing here. It’s like the World Series for cons.”
“Yeah, your name came up. See, even sitting in prison, you’re still screwing your family over.”
“Oh, junior, don’t be such a pisser. The kid’s gonna get off.”
“You think so? You figure you’re a pretty good lawyer, Mister Life-Without-Parole?”
“I know a few things.”
“You know a few things. Pff. Do me a favor, Clarence Darrow: don’t call here and tell me my business. I’ve already got a lawyer.”
“Nobody’s telling you your business, junior. But when your lawyer talks about bringing me in to testify, that makes it my business, now, don’t it?”
“It isn’t going to happen. That’s all we need is you on the stand. Turn the whole thing into a circus.”
“You got a better strategy?”
“Yeah, we do.”
“What is it?”
“We’re not even going to put on a case. We’ll put the Commonwealth to its burden. They have— What am I even talking to you about this for?”
“Because you want to. When the chips are down, a kid needs his old man.”
“Is that a joke?”
“No! I’m still your father.”
“No, you’re not.”
“I’m not?”
“No.”
“Then who is?”
“Me.”
“You don’t have a father? What are you, a tree?”
“That’s right, I don’t have one. And I don’t need one now.”
“Everybody needs a father, everybody needs a father. You need me now more than ever. How else are you gonna prove that ‘irresistible impulse’ thing?”
“We don’t need to prove it.”
“No? Why not?”
“Because Logiudice can’t prove his case. That’s obvious. So our defense is simple: Jacob didn’t do it.”
“What if that changes?”
“It won’t.”
“So why’d you come all the way down here and ask me about it? And test my spit? What was that all about?”
“Just covering my bases.”
“Just covering your bases. So the kid didn’t do it but just in case he did.”
“Something like that.”
“So what’s your lawyer want me to say, then?”
“He doesn’t want you to say anything. He shouldn’t have said that in court today. It was a mistake. He was probably thinking he’d run you up there to testify that you never had anything to do with your grandson. But I already told you, you’re not coming anywhere near that courtroom.”
“You better talk with your lawyer about that.”
“Listen to me, Bloody Billy. I’m going to say this for the last time: you don’t exist. You’re just a bad dream I used to have when I was a kid.”
“Hey, junior, you want to hurt my feelings? Kick me in the balls.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means don’t bother calling me names. It don’t bother me. I’m the kid’s grandfather no matter what you say. Nothing you can do about it. You can deny me all you want, pretend I don’t exist. Doesn’t matter. Doesn’t change the truth.”
I sat down, suddenly unsteady.
“Who’s this guy Patz your cop friend testified about?”
I was pissed and confused, agitated, so I did not stop to consider. I blurted, “He’s the guy who did it.”
“That killed this kid?”
“Yeah.”
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“How do you know?”
“I’ve got a witness.”
“And you’re gonna let my grandson take the hit for it?”
“Let him? No.”