Love Irresistibly (FBI/US Attorney #4)(24)
“I had the defense attorneys sweating. Literally.”
“Nice. By the way, Paul called to touch base with you,” she said, referring to the office’s media representative. “He said his phone’s been ringing off the hook for the last thirty minutes.”
“Thanks, Demi.” Cookies and coffee in hand, Cade went into his office and settled in at his desk. He returned Paul’s call, and briefed him on the arraignment. As soon as he hung up, Demi appeared in his doorway.
“Let me guess. Another cookie?” Cade said.
“Actually, the reception desk called while you were on the other line,” she said. “You have a visitor. A Mr. Zach Thomas.”
“Do I know a Mr. Zach Thomas?”
“Not sure. He says he’s here because he has some evidence related to a case.” Demi lowered her voice. “The receptionist mentioned that he’s a teenager. And apparently, he’s been acting a little odd. When she asked for a photo ID to sign him in, he got nervous and said he doesn’t carry one. She wants to know if you’d like her to say that you’re unavailable for the rest of the day.”
Cade understood the receptionist’s cautiousness—security was tight in the federal building. But he assumed this Zach Thomas was the same kid he’d bumped into earlier, and he was curious to find out why a teenaged boy would be interested in meeting with him. “Tell reception it’s okay. I’ll come out.”
When Cade walked into the reception area, he saw the kid standing off to the side with his hands shoved into the pockets of his zip-up hoodie.
He went over, hand outstretched. “You must be Zach Thomas. I’m Cade Morgan.”
Fifteen or sixteen years old, the kid had a firm grip, although his palm was a little sweaty. “Sorry again about bumping into you earlier.”
“Trust me, I’ve taken a lot harder hits. My secretary said you wanted to speak to me about a case?”
Zach nodded. “Yeah, I have some, um, information. But I was hoping that we could, like, talk in private?”
Man, this kid was nervous. Quickly, Cade mentally scrolled though all his open cases—which, off the top of his head, wasn’t an easy thing to do considering he currently managed about fifty of them in various stages of the litigation process. He tried to come up with one in which a sixteen-year-old kid might have evidence.
Then his jaw tightened. About a month ago, he’d gotten a conviction against a forty-year-old west suburban man, a junior high school gym teacher who’d secretly used his phone to videotape male students undressing in the locker room. The teacher had shared the images online with a circle of his Internet buddies who referred to themselves as the “Boy Lovers.” Cade had flat-out refused to discuss a plea agreement—he didn’t negotiate with people who produced and distributed child p**n ography—and had taken the case to trial and gotten a guilty verdict on every count. The defendant’s sentencing hearing was scheduled to take place next week, and Cade was determined that the ass**le would serve every day of the thirty-five-year maximum allowed under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
This kid, Zach—if that was even his real name—seemed older than junior high age, but perhaps he was a former student of the defendant’s who’d read about the trial in the news and wanted to share some information in advance of the sentencing hearing.
Cade’s gaze softened at the thought. “Sure, we can talk in my office. Follow me.” He led Zach through the corridor and gestured to his office door. “Have a seat.” With a quick glance at Demi, he signaled that she should hold any calls that came in. Then he shut the door behind them and sat down at his desk. “So,” he began casually, careful not to go into cross-examination mode, “what case would you like to talk about?”
Zach exhaled. “This is really awkward.”
“Take your time,” Cade assured him.
“I wasn’t sure I could go through with this. When they started asking me all those questions at the front desk, like my name and the purpose of my visit and for some kind of picture ID, I sort of panicked. I’d decided to bail, but on the way out I bumped into you and it seemed like, I don’t know, a sign or something.”
Cade cocked his head, catching something Zach had said. “So you recognized me?”
“Well, yeah. You’re Cade Morgan.”
Cade smiled at the slightly reverent way Zach said his name. “I take it you’re a football fan.” Either that, or he was strangely fascinated with criminal prosecutors.
“I get that from my dad—he’s big into football, too.” Realizing that the next move was his, Zach shifted in his chair. Then his eyes fell on the bag on Cade’s desk. “Cookies. So that’s what smells so good in here.”
Clearly, Zach was stalling, but Cade went with it. No sense pushing the kid; he needed to do this, whatever it was, on his own time. “Help yourself. I got suckered into buying twelve of them.”
Like any teenaged boy offered something to eat, Zach didn’t hesitate. He reached for the bag and looked inside. “Cool, there’s one with M&Ms.” He pulled out the cookie and inhaled it in one bite.
Cade smiled. “Those are my favorite, too.”
For some reason, this seemed to strike a chord with Zach. He swallowed the cookie, his expression turning more sober. “I lied about my name. Actually, Zach Thomas is my first and middle name. I was afraid you wouldn’t agree to see me if I gave the receptionist my last name.”