Free Murder in the Supreme Court (Capital Crimes Series Book 3) by Margaret Truman Page B

sir.”
    Fifteen minutes later, and after Bill’s help with his shoes and jacket, Conover stood by Joan’s desk while she assisted him on with his overcoat. “Would you like me to walk down with you?” she asked.
    “No.”
    She handed him his crutch and he slipped his forearm into its metal sleeve. “I want those opinions ready to be circulated when I come back.”
    Another of his secretaries, Helen, wished him a safe and pleasant trip. He thanked her, then said, “Mrs. Conover will be coming by to pick up theater tickets that are being sent over this afternoon. Please see that she gets them.”
    “Of course, sir.”
    Both secretaries watched him slowly and painfully leave the room.
    “Poor man,” Joan said aloud.
    “It’s awful to see him in such pain,” Helen said.
    “I sometimes think of Justice Douglas when I see him,” Joan said.
    “I do, too, especially when his wife comes in.”
    Joan shook a finger in the air and said emphatically, “The
only
thing they have in common as far as
that’s
concerned is that they ended up with young wives. Justice Douglas’s wife was a lady, a tremendous and loyal help to him before he died. I wish I could say the same for Mrs. Conover.”
    Helen started to say something but Joan cut her off. “Enough of this. Justice Conover’s personal life is his own business. I just hope this dreadful thing with Mr. Sutherland doesn’t open up that can of worms. Come on, let’s get going on those opinions. If they’re not on his desk when he gets back from Dallas we’ll all be looking for jobs at Foggy Bottom.”

CHAPTER 14
    “I’m delighted you could get free for lunch,” Susanna Pinscher said to Laurie Rawls after they’d met inside the front door of the American Cafe’s Capitol Hill branch on Massachusetts Avenue. Susanna had called Laurie to set up an interview and suggested lunch. The clerk declined lunch, then called back the following day and accepted.
    They were seated at a blond wooden table in a corner. Susanna settled into her chair and looked across at her young luncheon guest. She’d liked Laurie Rawls from the moment they met. There was an openness and brightness about her, a wide-eyed inquisitiveness. She wore no makeup to mask her translucent, fair skin that gave off the same healthy glow as her short, straight brown hair. She was dressed in a pleated gray flannel skirt, a dusty rose blouse that buttonedto the neck and a blue blazer with the crest of her alma mater, George Washington University.
    “I was surprised when you called back and agreed to lunch,” Susanna said after ordering a white wine for herself and a kir for Laurie.
    “Why? Because I’m a suspect? The fact is, Miss Pinscher, I’m interested in you. You’ve obviously succeeded in a field I’d like to get into. I thought lunch might be helpful for
me
.”
    Susanna liked her candor. “Well, the Justice Department isn’t very glamorous, but it does have its interesting moments…”
    “I’m sure.”
    “As I assume the Supreme Court does for you.”
    “I love clerking there. Some of my friends are clerking other places, but being in the nation’s highest court is… well, it’s kind of awesome.”
    “I understand you’ve been assigned to Chief Justice Poulson since Clarence’s murder. It must have been tough… I mean losing someone you’ve worked closely with, and in such a violent way…”
    “Yes.” She took a long, deliberate drink, put down her glass, picked up a menu. “I’m famished. What do you recommend?”
    “Some days the meat pies are good, and—”
    “I think I’ll have a California salad.”
    “I’ll stick with turkey. Another drink?”
    “Thank you, no, but you go ahead.”
    Susanna ordered another wine, and said to Laurie, “How well did you know Clarence Sutherland?”
    Laurie hesitated a beat before saying, “About as well as anyone else on the Court, I guess.” It was delivered too offhandedly, Susanna thought. Laurie added, “Clarence could