Redress of Grievances (6 page)

Harriett
wished Alex hadn't brought up her partner but knew it was simply a statement of
fact.

"I
wish I could stay longer, Harriett. I wish we both could," Alexis said
softly still gazing at the lake.

"Next
time," Harriett said patting her on the shoulder.

In
one last grand sweep, Alex wrapped her arms around Harriett and drew her into a
lingering, needy kiss. Alexis Dunne was a quiet woman, not given to bursts of
passion or enthusiasm, but there was something so spontaneous about the kiss
that it caught Harriett by surprise. As she released Harriett to get in her
car, Alex touched the younger woman's face and said, "I love you, Harriett
Markham."

"I
love you, too, Alex," Harriett said quietly. It was all she could do to
get the words out of her mouth. In three years, it was the first time Alex had
spoken those words outside the bedroom.

Alex
stopped with one foot in her car and smiled at Harriett.

"By
the way, you're not the least bit submissive when we make love, and I thank God
for that."

Harriett
left the cabin two hours later.

Chapter
Five

AT
SEVEN-FIFTEEN Monday morning, Harriett stepped off the elevator and walked
toward her office. No matter how early she arrived at her office, Eleanor was
always there first. Harriett had been tempted to stay at the office all night
to see whether the nightly janitorial crew packed Eleanor in a box somewhere at
night and unpacked her in the morning. Or maybe it was that Eleanor knew
Harriett always arrived early on Mondays.

"Morning,
Eleanor," Harriett said as she approached her secretary's desk. "See
if you can get Clarence Wilkes on the phone. If we don't have the number, call
Accounting. They should have it. We'll need to set up a separate file for them
anyway. Then contact Todd Connor at the DA's office, and tell him Winston and
Dunne has accepted the Wilkes case, and we'll send a courier over to their
office in about an hour to pick up whatever they have on the case."

"Anything
else, Ms. Markham?" Eleanor asked almost eagerly. To Harriett, Eleanor
seemed like an old racehorse chomping at the bit to join in another race every
time Harriett took on a new case.

"I
want to see what the police and DA have put together first, but you might ask
Wayne Graham to stop by if he has a chance."

That
would make Eleanor happy, too. Harriett suspected that Eleanor had a thing for
Wayne Graham, an independent investigator on retainer with Winston and Dunne.
Most of his work consisted of eavesdropping on the unfaithful, but every now
and then, a case that required real investigation presented itself. Wayne had
left the Dallas Police Department when they refused to return him to active
duty after he had been wounded apprehending a suspect, and Harriett had
represented him in a lawsuit against the police department. He had used his
settlement to open his own business and would do almost anything for her. Based
on Harriett's recommendation, several large law firms had used his services over
the last five years. She loved talking to Wayne. There was something about him
that reminded her of her father, although in a much cruder version.

Coffee
was already brewing in the coffeemaker when Harriett sat down behind her desk
and opened her briefcase. She glanced over the notes she had taken during her
brief interview with Jared Wilkes and began jotting down a series of questions
she wanted to ask his parents. In the midst of her thinking, the intercom
buzzed. Without looking up from her notes, Harriett reached across her desk and
picked up the receiver.

"Yes,
Eleanor," Harriett answered as she continued writing.

"Mr.
Wilkes is here to see you," the secretary announced.

Harriett
glanced at the clock on her desk. Seven forty-five.

"Show
him in," she said, setting her pen down.

Clarence
Wilkes strode into her office before she hung up the phone. He was a massive
figure, which seemed to match what Harriett had heard about him. A former truck
driver, he had grown tired of working for other people and started his own
transport company, which now rivaled older, more established haulers. The key
to Wilkes's success had been his treatment of the drivers who worked for him.
He could be a tyrant if he caught drivers using drugs or alcohol and imposed
drinking rules similar to the ones for airline pilots. Drivers for Wilkes
Transport earned above scale money and were provided with an extensive benefit
package. In the years since he began his operation, Clarence Wilkes had never
been cited for any labor or transportation violations and was the recipient of
dozens of citations from state and national organizations. His reputation was
that of a straight to the core type of man who didn't tolerate obfuscation
well. Within seconds of entering her office, Wilkes was ready to get down to
business.

"Dunne
tells me you're willing to take Jared's case. That right?"

"Yes.
I've spoken to your son but won't be receiving the specifics from the police
and district attorney until later today, Mr. Wilkes. After I know what they
have as far as evidence is concerned, I'll determine the best course of action
for Jared's defense."

"It
doesn't matter what they have as evidence, Jared will be pleading not
guilty."

"I'm
afraid that will be up to Jared and me, Mr. Wilkes. He is the client."

"And
I'm the wallet who's going to pay your fee," Wilkes snapped. "You'll
be taking instructions from me."

"No,
I won't, and if that's what you're expecting, then I recommend you find another
attorney."

For
a minute Clarence Wilkes and Harriett Markham stared at each other, each
waiting for the other one to blink. Finally Wilkes smiled slightly.

"You're
not from Dallas, are you?" he asked.

"Anson,"
she said.

"How'd
someone as feisty as you get saddled with an uptight company like this
one?"

Harriett
began to relax a little. "Like you, Mr. Wilkes, I try to seek out the
best."

Wilkes
leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. "I suppose you've already
checked out my background, Ms. Markham. Same as I did yours. These big city
corporate types make me nervous, but I trust you. You do whatever you think is
best for Jared. Boy's always been a pain in my ass, but I can't believe he did
what they're claiming he did."

"How
is your relationship with Jared?"

Shrugging
slightly, Wilkes replied, "He looks at me and sees a well used, bottomless
wallet. I doubt he sees anything more. We've never been what you'd call close,
but he is my son. My wife and I have to believe in him."

"I
don't think his case will have a negative effect on your business."

"I
couldn't care less. I didn't start my business to become popular, just rich.
And I've done that. It won't be long before I'll be ready to hang it up
anyway."

"Will
Jared be taking control of your company?"

Wilkes
laughed. "There's not a chance in hell that will ever happen. I've made
arrangements to turn the company over to my board of directors with a
recommendation for a new CEO. There is a provision that will assure the
continued care of Jared and his mother, of course. But neither of them will
ever have control of Wilkes Transport."

Harriett
wasn't sure how to respond to what Wilkes had said and decided not to pursue
it.

"My
son is a nice looking kid with money. Always had the fastest car and money to
do whatever he wanted. He wasn't abused or deprived in any way. We took him to
church on Sundays and sent him to the best schools. My wife and I have been
better than average parents, but Jared still turned out bad. The only hope I
have for him now is that he will eventually grow up emotionally as well as
physically and become a productive adult. Despite what I know he's done in the
past, these crimes seem to be uncharacteristic, even for him."

"Does
Jared have a steady girlfriend?"

"Yeah.
Sylvia Jennings, but I don't know why she stays with him. She's a nice girl.
Probably better than he deserves."

"I'll
need to speak to her. Do you have an address or phone number for her?"

"I've
got it at the office. I'll see that you get it today."

Wilkes
stood up and when Harriett shook his hand, his grip was firm, yet gentle.

"I'll
do the best I can for Jared, Mr. Wilkes," Harriett said.

"I
appreciate that, Ms. Markham."

From
that day on, Harriett didn't see Clarence Wilkes again.

Chapter
Six

SYLVIA
JENNINGS WAS a pretty twenty-three year old intern with a Dallas advertising
agency and had been dating Jared for nearly two years at the time of his
arrest. In an effort to get a clearer picture of Jared Wilkes as a person and a
man, Harriett arranged an interview with Sylvia in a conference room of Winston
and Dunne. There was something wholesome looking and quiet about Sylvia when
Harriett first met her, and she seemed an unlikely match for Jared.

"I
appreciate your willingness to meet with me, Miss Jennings. Would you object if
I called you Sylvia?"

"Of
course not. I'll do whatever I can to help Jared. I went to see him yesterday
and he looked so pathetic."

"Well,
maybe this will all be over soon. Tell me about your relationship with
Jared."

"We
met a couple of years ago at a party thrown by a mutual friend, and we've been
together pretty much since then."

"Are
you living with him?"

"No.
I have my own place, but I spend the night at his place, or he does at mine
fairly often."

"Has
he ever asked you to move in with him?"

"Once,
but I have an office in my apartment and do a lot of my work there in the
evenings. There really isn't enough room at his place for my drawing table and
stuff. Plus, I can be pretty messy at times."

"How
long have you and Jared been intimate?"

"Is
that important?" Sylvia said, somewhat defensively.

"It's
not my intention to embarrass you, Sylvia, but because of the nature of the
charges against Jared, the subject of his sex life will play a significant role
in his trial."

"We
didn't sleep together for a while, just heavy petting, that kind of thing. A
more intimate relationship developed gradually."

"Were
you aware that Jared was sleeping with other women?"

Sylvia
appeared to examine her hands for a moment. "I think I suspected it, but I
never made an issue of it. I could have been doing the same thing, and I
wouldn't have told him."

"These
girls he's accused of raping were all in their teens. The youngest was only
sixteen. When you were with him, did he ever demonstrate any particular
interest in younger women?"

"A
lot of these teenage girls go to bars with fake IDs and pass themselves off as
being older."

"I
know, but Jared has admitted that he had sex with each of the dead girls. Does
that bother you?"

"Of
course, it bothers me," Sylvia answered, her eyes flashing.

Turning
her eyes away from Harriett, she said, almost to herself, "It doesn't say
much for my sex appeal, does it?"

"Did
you know any of the girls who were killed?"

"I
might have seen them, but I never formally met any of them. The clubs were
usually very crowded when Jared and I went out. I didn't spend a lot of time
observing the other women."

"When
you and Jared were intimate, did he ever do anything that you thought was
unusual?"

"You
mean did he ever want me to do something kinky?"

"Kinky
probably isn't the correct word. Couples do a lot of different things when
they're intimate. Did he ever ask you to do anything, or did you let him do
anything that seemed a little out of the ordinary or made you
uncomfortable?"

Sylvia
blushed and seemed to be looking for the right words.

Finally,
she answered in a softer voice. "He asked me to get on the floor on my
hands and knees a couple of times, so he could enter me from behind."

"Did
he force you to do that, or were you willing?"

"Jared
never forced me to do anything. In fact, I refused the first time he mentioned
it."

"How
did he react to your refusal?"

Sylvia
shrugged, "We just did it the regular way. He didn't say much."

"Was
he unhappy?"

"He
might have been disappointed, but he seemed to get over it."

"Has
he ever tried to strangle you while you were making love?"

"God,
no!" Sylvia said. "For the most part, Jared is a very gentle
lover."

"No
whips or leather?" Harriett smiled.

"That's
ridiculous!" Sylvia laughed.

"Has
he ever asked you to play out sexual fantasies with him?"