Free The Attorney by Steve Martini Page B

and kudos from the men on the dock. Somebody hands him a beer still foaming out of the long neck of the cold bottle. It is only midmorning, early for a beer, but these guys have probably been out on the water since dawn.
    It's not until Jonah turns to take the bottle that he sees me. He points to the fish and makes big eyes, then realizes I'm not here for sport.
    He hands the knife to somebody else and steps away, working through the crowd of backslapping men like a politician, shaking hands, accepting felicitations with grace from some fairly drunk men. Jonah's gaze never leaves me as he works his way through the crowd. He's trying to read any message in my expression, wondering if I've found Amanda.
    When he reaches me, he doesn't waste time. "You've got some news?" he says. "You found Amanda?"
    "No, but we need to talk."
    "What's wrong? Has something happened to her?"
    "No. At least not that I know of. We're still looking. It's something else." This brings a palpable sigh of relief, like an electrical charge leaving his body. He takes a swig from the bottle in his hand, then realizes I don't have one.
    "Charlie, get a beer for my friend here." One of the crew members on the stern is into a cooler before I can stop him.
    "No, thanks."
    "Forget it, Charlie."
    "I've just come from a meeting with Zolanda Suade." His expression turns dark. "What did she tell you? Did she admit coming to my house?"
    "She didn't deny it."
    "Good. I think that's good, don't you?" He takes another drink.
    "She's on the warpath. Making some very ugly charges." He looks at the bottle, at the boat, at everything on the dock except me.
    "She's a crazy woman. Certifiable," he says. He's not interested in what she had to say. "I'm glad you could make it down here. You sure you don't want something to drink?"
    "No."
    "Got all kinds of pop. Root beer."
    "Nothing."
    "Would you like to see the boat?" Suddenly he wants to take a tour.
    "Jonah, we need to talk."
    "Did you ever see a fish that big?" I shake my head.
    "Neither have I, before today," he says. "It's El Nmo. The warm water's pushed everything north. Hell, last year I woulda had to go down to Cabo to even have a chance at anything like that. Gonna have it mounted," he says. "Hang it on the wall. Gonna need a bigger wall." He laughs, a kind of nervous chuckle as if he knows where I'm going.
    "Why didn't you tell me that Jessica had accused you of rape?" The jovial expression on Jonah's face fades. He offers a deep sigh, looks at me sheepishly. "It's not something you want to talk about. Not with anybody. Besides, there was nothing to it. More lies from my daughter.
    The cops knew that. They didn't bring any charges. Hell, they didn't even investigate."
    "Still, it would have helped to know about it. If you want my help, I need to know everything."
    "It was a lie. I just didn't think it was important."
    "Did the cops open a file?" He looks at me as if he doesn't have a clue.
    "Did they conduct any kind of investigation?"
    "What? Investigation? They talked to me. They talked to Mary.
    I imagine they looked at Jessica's record."
    "Did they question Amanda?"
    "No." His expression makes it clear that the mere thought that his granddaughter could be questioned about such things is offensive.
    "What did you tell them? The cops."
    "The truth. That it was a lie. Jessica brought the charges after the custody case. It was clear what she was trying to do. The cops knew it.
    There was not a shred of evidence."
    "Did they question anybody else? Anybody besides Jessica, you, and Mary?"
    "I don't know. What does this have to do with anything?"
    "Suade is using it as justification," I tell him. "Stirring the embers."
    "What do you mean?"
    "I mean she's about to go public with everything Jessica told her. She's getting ready to issue press releases telling the world you committed incest with your daughter ..."
    "And?"
    "Claiming that you molested Amanda." He's looking straight at me as I say it. No flinching. "It's a