The Perfect Alibi (Robin Lockwood #2)(46)

“Carrie told me she didn’t know that Rex had done that, and she pulled my coat over my face as soon as she saw the TV cameras.”

“Did Carrie or Roger say anything else?” Robin asked.

Doug nodded. “Yes, they did. They said that I should tell my lawyer to get the reports from the crime lab. Especially the one about the DNA evidence.”

“Interesting.” Robin made a note. “They seemed to be bending over backward to be nice to you.”

“That was my impression.”

“Look, I know you know this, but I’m going to tell you that anything you say to me is confidential and warn you not to talk to anyone, including the other prisoners, Marsha, or anyone in law enforcement. You’re a lawyer and you’ve given this advice to your clients, but now you’re a defendant, and the pressure to unburden yourself—to try to convince others that you’re innocent—is going to be overwhelming.”

Doug smiled. “Don’t worry, Robin. I’m upset, but I do have my wits about me.”

Robin smiled back. “Good. Can you tell me about your relationship with Frank? I’ve known you two for a while, but I don’t know you very well.”

Doug told Robin about his dismal academic record at West Virginia University, his attendance at the law school at Sheffield College in Arkansas, his infatuation with Oregon, and the depression he suffered when his attempts to get a job in Portland failed.

“I’d hit rock bottom, and I was ready to pack it in and go back home. That’s why I was quietly getting drunk on a barstool in the Cascade Tavern when Frank sat down on the stool next to mine. There was a basketball game on the tube and we started talking about it.”

Doug smiled as he remembered that first meeting. “Have you ever met someone and immediately hit it off? After a few minutes, I felt like I’d known Frank my whole life. When he found out I was a lawyer, he told me about opening his own firm and how tough it was to break through financially. But he said things were looking up and he was starting to get some decent clients.

“I told him my tale of woe, and he told me that he had an extra office in his space and could use some help. I told him I wouldn’t be able to pay the rent. Frank said he’d hire me, pay me a small salary, and let me keep a percentage of what I brought in. I had nothing to lose, so I said I’d give it a go. Other than marrying my wives, it was the smartest move I’ve ever made.”

Robin grinned. “Your story sounds like a love affair.”

Doug laughed. “In a way, it has been. We’ve been there for each other at every step of the way for twenty-odd years.”

“So why are you suspected of killing Frank?”

Doug looked completely lost. “The only thing I can think of is that I don’t have an alibi.”

“That can’t be all there is.”

“How much do you know about my case?”

“Other than that Frank was killed in his law office, not much.”

“Then you don’t know that I have amnesia for the week of the murder.”

“What do you mean?”

“I remember going to Seattle to negotiate a settlement in a case, and I remember landing in Portland. I also have a vague memory of talking to Frank in his office about Blaine Hastings being free on bail. But that’s it until I was found by the police wandering around downtown about a week after Frank was killed.”

“You can’t remember anything?”

Doug shook his head. “Believe me, I’ve tried, but there’s nothing there.”

Robin asked Doug to tell her everything he remembered after he was brought to the hospital. Doug told her that he’d remembered his name and recognized Marsha. His house seemed a little strange at first, but he felt comfortable there now. When he returned to his office, he’d studied his cases and recalled details. But he had not recovered any memories of the events surrounding Frank’s murder, with one exception: he thought he might have told Frank that Blaine Hastings had been released on bail.

Robin made a note to talk to an expert on amnesia.

“I think this is enough for now. You’ll be arraigned tomorrow. I’ll set a bail hearing then. I want you out of jail if that’s possible. Get me a list of character witnesses and anything else you think will help convince the judge to set bail. I’ll also get you a copy of the discovery. When you’ve studied it, call me and we’ll brainstorm.”

“I told Marsha to write you a check for your retainer. How much will it be?”

Robin told him, and he said he would be able to pay her.

When they were finished discussing business, Robin reached across the table and laid her hand on top of Doug’s. “You have a very good reputation in the bar. Use your lawyer smarts. I want you thinking like an attorney, not a defendant. Got that?”

“I do. And I appreciate the way you’re treating me.”

Robin smiled. “I’m treating you the way I treat everyone who has been accused of a crime they didn’t commit.”





CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN


There was a big smile on Rex Kellerman’s face when he walked down the corridor toward the courtroom of the Honorable Sylvester Greenwood. What better revenge could he have on Marsha Armstrong than to send her husband to death row, where she could watch him languish for years?