Save Your Breath (Morgan Dane #6)(46)

A petite redhead of about thirty opened the door. “Can I help you?” She wore black slacks and a black blazer over a white blouse.

“We’re looking for Mr. Hansen.” Morgan handed her a business card. “Are you his wife?”

“No. I’m the housekeeper. You should leave a message at Mr. Hansen’s office.” The redhead moved as if to close the door.

Lance placed one boot in the opening. “This is an emergency.”

Morgan put a hand on Lance’s arm. “We apologize for disturbing Mr. Hansen at home. But as my associate just said, this is an emergency. A woman is missing, and she might be tied to one of Mr. Hansen’s old cases.”

“You’ll have to wait here.” The redhead frowned down at Lance’s boot, which prevented the door from closing.

Lance withdrew his foot. “Sorry.”

The door closed. Another gust of cool wind blew across the open field. Morgan drew the edges of her jacket together as they waited. Several minutes passed before the door opened again, and a man of about forty stepped outside.

He zipped a puffy down vest over a blue crewneck sweater that looked like cashmere. “I’m Mark Hansen. My housekeeper said it was an emergency.”

“Thank you for speaking with us,” Morgan said before Lance could jump in. “A woman is missing.”

“Let’s walk.” Hansen started walking across the manicured lawn. “I don’t allow my profession anywhere near my family.”

“I understand. I feel the same way.” Morgan took a position between the two men.

Lance fell into step beside her. “This is about the Cliff Franklin case.”

Mark hesitated midstride. “That case is several years old. I don’t know how it could be related to a current missing persons case.”

“The woman who is missing is Olivia Cruz,” Morgan said. “Do you remember speaking with her about the Franklin case?”

“Yes. Now that you mention it, I remember speaking with her on the phone.” Hansen shoved his hands into the pockets of his down vest. “She wanted some background on the case. I don’t recall everything that was said.”

In Lance’s opinion, I don’t recall was lawyer code for I don’t want to tell you.

“You were assigned the Franklin case?” Morgan asked.

“That’s correct.” Hansen kept his gaze on the horizon. “Judge Miller felt the public defender’s office was too overwhelmed to give the case the amount of time and energy it required. He asked me to handle it.”

“How did you feel about the assignment?” Morgan asked.

Hansen lifted a shoulder. “You know how it is. The case required a large number of man-hours, but the extra publicity was good for the firm.”

“You lost,” Lance pointed out. “How is that good publicity?”

Hansen shot him a look. “The prosecutor’s case was strong. I advised Mr. Franklin to plea bargain. There was a question on one of the search warrants. Not enough to get the evidence thrown out, but enough to give me a little leverage. I could have gotten Franklin a twenty-five-year sentence. He could have been paroled in seventeen years.”

“But he refused.” Morgan brushed the hair out of her face.

“Yes. He insisted he was innocent, so we went to trial.” He shrugged. “I discredited witnesses and argued that everything discovered in the property search should have been disallowed, but the judge did not agree.”

Morgan’s mouth pursed, as if she was considering how to phrase her next question. “What about the chain of evidence issues with the hair samples?”

His eyes widened, but he recovered his poker face in a heartbeat. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

But did he?

Morgan kept her tone neutral. “The hair samples taken from Franklin’s trunk were not properly logged when they were taken into evidence. Chain of custody was not maintained. These were the very samples that matched the victim’s DNA.”

She let the implication hang.

This was the evidence that convicted Cliff Franklin.

Mark said nothing for a full minute. Lance was impressed with his smooth expression, but behind his flat eyes, he could see Mark’s thoughts churning.

Finally, he stopped walking and met her gaze directly. “I would have to review the case before I could comment on your assertion.”

Annnnd now he sounded like a lawyer on the defensive.

“This never came up in your conversation with Olivia Cruz?” Lance didn’t bother trying to sound neutral. His voice dripped with disbelief.

“I don’t recall my entire conversation with Ms. Cruz.” Hansen’s words were clipped and precise.

“Are you sure?” Morgan asked. “It seems a piece of information that stunning would stand out.”

“I’ve already commented on that.” Hansen turned back toward the house. “Is there any way I can help you locate Ms. Cruz?”

“You tell us,” Lance challenged. Instead of leaving Morgan between him and Hansen, Lance smoothly moved into position on his opposite side, so that they were flanking him. He wanted Hansen to feel pressured. “Where were you at two o’clock in the morning on Friday?”

Hansen pulled out his phone. “I was in Rochester overnight on business. I didn’t get home until noon on Friday.”