Last Night (32 page)

Dr. Winston continued, explaining about Lillian's high blood pressure and the arrangements Dana had made so the older woman could live at home. She tried to gauge the effect of the doctor
'
s words, knowing intuitively that Hwang, not Pinsky, would decide her fate, but it was impossible to read the older man
'
s expression.

"Dana became a substitute daughter to Lillian,
"
Dr. Winston concluded. "She loved Dana, truly loved her. I would have been stunned if she
'
d left anything to her own daughter. She appeared like a bolt out of the blue last week just to wheedle money out of Lillian.
"

"Thank you for coming,
"
Binkley choked out the words, and the doctor left with a reassuring smile at Dana.

"There isn
'
t any merit to this charge,
"
Hwang concluded, and Pinsky rubber-stamped his colleague's assessment with an enthusiastic nod.

"
We
ll
, the daughter says—
"
Binkley sputtered.

"I read the statement.
"
Hwang raised his voice for the first time. "
The daughter makes lots of accu
sations. What does the lawyer
'
s statement say?
'

Pinsky spoke up. "Lillian Hurley had never willed her home and small savings account to her daughter. Before she changed the will last year, all the money was to go to the Society to Preserve Hawaii's Native Plants and Flowers."

"True, but—
"

"But nothing,
"
Hwang said, cutting off Binkley. "What
'
s the next charge?
"

Dana was positive her sigh of relief could be heard all the way to Diamond Head, but no one in the room seemed to notice it. Relief quickly became anger, though, as she watched Binkley fumble with the second file folder. Undoubtedly Big Daddy was behind this, but he
'
d found a willing puppet.

"
I
…
uh
…
didn
'
t
…
uh
…
get the evidence I was expecting,
"
Binkley said.
"
We may have to postpone this review until—
"

"Why don
'
t you tell us the charges?
"
Dana interjected. She didn
'
t want this hanging over her head a minute longer than necessary.
"
Perhaps I can help.
"

"
Good idea,
"
Hwang added.
"
Let's see if we can clear this up now.
"

"
I have information that Ms. Hamilton was involved in a murder
"

"
May we see the statements?" Hwang asked, and Binkley grudgingly handed them each a single sheet of paper that Hwang read in an instant.
"
An anonymous tip? You insisted on a review with nothing more than an anonymous tip? That's ridiculous. People are always angry with judges. They
'
ll say anything to get them in trouble.
"

"
I spoke with the caller myself. The information sounded reliable.
"
A mottled flush crept up Binkley
'
s neck.
"
I was supposed to get additional evidence, but it hasn't arrived yet.
"

"
It
'
ll never come, because I was never involved in a homicide,
"
Dana informed the men.
"
The anony
mous tip is about something that happened to me
when I was fourteen. Obviously, the person doesn
'
t have all the facts.
"

Dana paused a moment, not quite comfortable discussing this with these men. She
'
d hardly been able to tell the story to Rob. She didn
'
t have a choice; her future was at stake.
"
When I was fourteen a man lured me to a shack and raped me. My sister tried to rescue me, only to have him attack her. I stabbed him—so we could escape—but I didn
'
t kill him.
"

She leaned forward, her eyes on Hwang
'
s. "Hank Rawlins is a vicious criminal who's in pris
on in Mis
souri for raping a ten-year-old child. I would have done anything to spare her the pain, the suffering. It
'
s a crime a victim lives with forever."

"
My God,
"
Pinsky muttered, shaking his head sadly.
"
I know just what you mean. My wife was raped several years ago. We
'
re still going to counseling.
"

Hwang scalded Binkley with a disgusted look, then snapped his briefcase shut.
"
I don
'
t know why you called for a review.
"

Dana couldn
'
t resist.
"
I do. My sister is divorcing Thornton Coltrane
'
s son. He
'
s furious with us. He
'
ll do anything to ruin my career.
"

Hwang glared at Binkley.
"
Did Coltrane contact you?
"

"
No,
"
he responded a little too quickly.

"
I have ways of checking, you know. If you
'
re lying I
'
ll have you reviewed—and be a witness.
"
Hwang
'
s long fingers drummed his briefcase as he waited for an answer.

"He called when he heard about the will,
"
Binkley conceded, "and encouraged me to go ahead with the review—now—when Dana was being considered for superior court. I wouldn't have done it, of course, had I not thought the charges against Ms. Hamilton—
"

"
Judge Hamilton," Hwang corrected, standing.
"
I
'
m reporting that these charges against Judge Hamilton were frivolous, entirely without merit.
"
Pinsky rose, telling Binkley,
"
I
'
ll be reporting to the governor that you should be reprimanded. Not only have you used trumped-up charges against Judge Hamilton, you
'
ve failed to mention the petition.
"

"
What petition?
"
Hwang asked, echoing Dana
'
s thoughts.

Binkley shuffled through a stack of files.
"
Here, I was just about to show it to you.
"
He handed a folder to Hwang.
"
I sent out an inquiry letter, asking about Ms.—Judge Hamilton
'
s performance. This came to my office this morning.
"

Pinsky smiled at Dana.
"
Everyone that
'
s anyone in the legal community signed a petition saying you were a fine judge—the best.
"

"
Really?
"
Dana gasped. She
was
paranoid, certain that everyone looking at her was condemning her, when they
'
d actually been supporting her.

"
Sure,
"
Pinsky said with an encouraging smile.
"
The DA started it. He said you were the best prosecutor he ever had and that you were an even better judge.
"

Hwang tucked the petition into his briefcase. "Your name
'
s on the list for superior court. I
'
m going to make certain that the governor sees this.
"

"Thank you,
"
she managed to say. She was overwhelmed by the rapid turn of events. Usually the wheels of justice moved as slowly as a postal worker on Valium, but not this time.

Even more surprising was the support of her colleagues. She
'
d been worried about nothing, imagining all sorts of things. She was liked and respected. Relief flooded her, making her feel weak and shaky. And incredibly happy. She could hardly wait to tell Rob.

"Come on." Pinsky guided her to the door, and Dana couldn
'
t help thinking that Rob was right. There were plenty of good men around. Adam Pinsky
'
s wife was fortunate to have married such a sensitive man.

Dana admitted that she was guilty of having a closed mind. People were people; some were good and others were bad. She hadn
'
t looked for the good men like Garth Bradford, Adam Pinsky, Collis Hwang. And Rob Tagett.

Back in her office, Jason and Puni were asleep in her chair, but Dana was greeted enthusiastically by Vanessa and Garth.

"I was expecting Rob,
"
she said, still hugging Vanessa.

"He had to leave,
"
Garth said.

"
Before he saw me?
"
she asked, and Garth solemnly nodded.
"
Is something wrong?
"

Garth hesitated, then said in a troubled undertone,
"
I think he's worried about his son.
"

29

T
he sun, stalking the day
'
s last clouds across the horizon, slowly disappeared into the sea as Dana drove toward Rob's home on the north shore. She rolled down her window, welcoming the stiff breeze. The air here was as warm as it was in Honolulu, but the stronger breeze swept farther inland, bringing a salt mist that she could taste on her lips and feel in her hair.

It had taken her longer than she
'
d expected to take the tidal wave o
f calls from colleagues congrat
ulating her on the results of the review. Then she
'
d had to complete several probation reports and prepare the arraignment calendar so her new secretary could input it into the computer.

Should she have called Rob before coming? she wondered, pulling into his driveway. Garth said Rob had gone home, and Dana knew that Zach wasn
'
t with him. His mother had taken him to Maui to visit her friends. This might be their only chance to be alone for some time.

Why had he left before the review was even over? Garth said he
'
d called Rob on his car phone the minute he knew the results—even before she
'
d come back to her office—but it still bothered her that Rob hadn't waited. Was there truth to what Zach had said? Was Rob considering getting back together with Ellen?

"
There it is again,
"
she muttered to herself.
"
Distrust rears its ugly head.
"
She turned off the motor, then gripped the steering wheel.
Rob had faith in you. He went all the way to Gomper
'
s Bend to prove it. He needs support now. He
'
s terrified of losing his son to drugs.

Those fortifying words in mind, she marched along the path toward the front of the house, which faced the beach. Rob was on the deck, stretched out on a chaise, a bottle of Primo beer in one hand. Surely he
'
d heard her footsteps, but he didn
'
t turn to face her. Instead he kept his eyes on the horde of surfers riding the high-cresting waves, backlit by the setting sun. Then she noticed the fresh bruise on the rise of his cheek.

"
Rob, you
'
re hurt.
"

"
Nah. I bumped into something.
"
He turned and put down the bottle.

Instinctively she knew he
'
d found one or both of the
mokes
who
'
d attacked them and settled the score, but she didn
'
t challenge him.

"
Garth told me about the review
…
and the petition. Congratulations.
"

She detected distance in his tone, preoccupation.

A nervous flutter in her chest, she looked around.
"
I wanted to thank you in person for checking on Hank Rawlins. I don
'
t know why it didn
'
t occur to me to do that years ago. Now I won
'
t have to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder.
"

He unenthusiastically patted the chair next to him, inviting her to sit.
"
Don
'
t make it more than it is. I did some routine investigating. That
'
s all.
"

She dropped into the chair beside him, suddenly feeling exhausted and at a loss for words. This was a side of Rob she hadn
'
t seen before, and she realized she didn't know him as well as she
'
d thought. Tentatively she said,
"
Zach came to see me.
"

"
Really?
"
Now she had his full attention.
"
When?
"

"
He dropped by late last night.
"

"
To check you out.
"
Rob chuckled.
"
A chip off the old block.
"

She tried to joke.
"
You had maroon hair too?
"

Rob gazed at her, his blue eyes reflecting the dying embers of the sunset, seeming unusually intense.
"
No, but I went for good-looking women."

Dana could have told him Zach hated her on sight, but didn't. Rob, it seemed, had enough to worry about without this.

"Did he happen to say what he was doing today? I haven
'
t been able to reach him.
"

"
Last night he told me that his mother was taking him to Maui to visit her friends.
"

"Great! Naturally, she didn
'
t bother to leave me a message.
"

His tone indicated nothing but contempt, almost prompting Dana to ask where she stood. But she didn't. A growing awareness that something was wrong kept her silent.

R
ob watched the last flicker of light disappear into the sea, the sun setting on paradise. After Garth had told him that he would be arrested, Rob had made up his mind not to see Dana. He planned to throw everything he had into this fight, and he didn
'
t want Dana caught in the crossfire.

More than anything, she wanted to move up the judicial ladder. The review had backfired—big time. Instead of disgracing her, it had rallied the legal community to her side. When the governor saw the petition he was certain to appoint Dana to that superior court vacancy.

It might be days or even weeks before the governor acted. If Dana
'
s name became associated with the most notorious criminal in the islands, her chances would be ruined. No way would he let that happen.

He
'
d thought that leaving before she came out of the review would have discouraged Dana and made her question his interest in her. But this wasn
'
t the old Dana. The wo
man sitting beside him was some
one new.

A wild card.

That thought frightened him. He didn
'
t want her involved in this mess. If Big Daddy was out to frame him, he wanted to fight him on his own terms. Only
a fool would refuse to admit that Big Daddy wielded power in the islands. Dana had escaped this time, but she might not again.

Rob could see now that he wasn
'
t going to be able to put her off by ignoring her. It was going to take a helluva lot more than that. He was going to have to get rid of her. That meant he would have to hurt her.

He ventured a glance at Dana and saw her hair fluttering in a cat
'
s paw of wind. The sassy precision cut needed a trim, and close inspection revealed her blonde roots. She looked younger than usual. And nervous.

He couldn
'
t blame her; he was behaving like an insensitive prick. What choice did he have? Like sharks spotting blood in the water, the media would eat him alive. And ruin Dana
'
s career too, if he wasn
'
t careful.

"I
'
ve made an appointment for you and Zach with Dr. Ho for counseling,
"
she told him. "Monday at two.
"

"
Great.
"
Come Monday he would be in jail. He was going to have to talk to Zach, hope he'd listen, then send him home with Ellen. And pray his son could stay out of trouble.

"
Zach will be fine, you'll see,
"
Dana said gently.

Her look was so sympathetic, so concerned that he had to brace his hands against the chaise to keep himself from leaping up to hug her. And ask her to stick with him through this mess.

Dana rose.
"
I
'
d better go. I
'
ve got a cat waiting to be fed.
"

She sounded as uncomfortable as hell, and it was his fault.
"
You scored a big victory,
"
he heard himself say. "I
'
m proud of you. Why don
'
t you feed your cat, and I
'
ll pick you up at eight-thirty and take you out to celebrate.
"

The grateful smile she beamed at him hurt worse than any of the
mokes'
punches. "I
'
ll be ready.
"

R
ob drove up to Dana
'
s curb.
What in hell are you doing?
he asked himself for the hundredth time.

He turned off the ignition and silently acknowledged the truth. He had to let Dana go, but he wasn't ready quite yet. He wanted to take her to a restaurant where they could talk. Being alone was too tempting. If he touched her, kissed her, he'd never let her go. Tonight they
'
d enjoy the evening, then he
'
d tell her. What he was going to say exactly, Rob had no idea. But he
'
d think of something. He always did.

"
You coward. You
'
re just postponing the inevitable,
"
he told his reflection in the rearview mirror. But he couldn
'
t help himself. He couldn
'
t stay away from her.

Dana answered his knock and he grinned quickly to hide his surpris
e. She wasn't dressed to go any
where. Instead she wore white shorts and a blue blouse knotted at the waist. Her hair was damp around the edges from the shower.

"
I picked up steaks,
"
Dana said breathlessly.
"
I
thought it would be
more fun to barbecue here…
and talk.
"

Uh-oh. Just what he didn
'
t want—to be alone with her. And temptation. She grabbed his hand and pulled him inside.

"
Open the wine while I toss the salad.
"

He followed her to the kitchen, where a marmalade cat looked up suspiciously from her bowl for about a half second before deciding he was of no interest. Rob grabbed the bottle, thankful to have something to do.

"
Tell me about the review. I want to hear every detail.
"

Dana launched into the story, also seeming grateful to have a safe topic of conversation. He listened intently, imagining her poise under such pressure and hearing the relief underscoring every word.

"Collis Hwang took the petition to the governor. Hwang thinks I still have a good chance of getting that superior court appointment,
"
Dana concluded.

"
I
'
m betting on it,
"
Rob responded, and she blessed him with a melt-your-heart smile that left no doubt that this was her fondest dream, assuring him that leaving her was his only option.

"
I
'
m not counting on being appointed,
"
she told him.
"
It
'
s enough just to get out of that blackmailer
'
s clutches. Now I can get on with my life.
"

Rob poured the chardonnay into glasses.
"
Binkley admitted Big D
addy contacted him about the in
quiry, but he denied that he was the one who told him about Hank
'
s so-called murder, right?
"

"
Yes. Binkley claimed an anonymous caller tipped him.
"
Dana waved the paring knife she was using on the carrots.
"
I
'
m certain it
'
s someone Big Daddy had call.
"

"
We still don
'
t know who the blackmailer is.
"

"
Does it matter? Thanks to you, I don
'
t have anything to hide.
"
Dana left the salad and walked toward him. "Vanessa is free, and Jason
'
s safe. What more could we want?
"

He tried to smile, wishing he could share her happiness. But rape charges hung over him, threatening to take Dana and his son. He
'
d called several contacts on the force, trying to see what evidence they had against him. No one knew—or would tell him—anything.