to the FBI, but not about what’s in the box. Do I think that overall he’s hiding something ‘problematic’?” He paused for a moment and looked out over Lake Michigan. Its slate-gray surface was broken into choppy waves capped by dirty white foam, harbingers of an approaching storm. “I doubt it. He doesn’t seem like the type who would murder the man who used to own the box or something like that. I’d say Dr. Ivanovsky is a pretty good guy, but he’s also pretty eccentric. And for some reason he doesn’t want to tell me everything about this case.”
“You’re a good judge of character,” commented Noelle. “If you think he’s clean, he probably is.”
“He’s probably clean, at least as far as this case goes. My guess is that he somehow got wind that there’s something valuable in that box. Maybe he knows what it is, maybe not. I’ll bet Nicki Zinoviev didn’t know, but he needed cash right away and he isn’t all that bright. So he sold the box to Dr. Ivanovsky without looking inside. Later, he realized that wasn’t a good idea and went to the bank to look in the box. Did he see a couple of cheap watches and some junk? No. He saw something a lot more valuable. Something he doesn’t want to tell the judge about. Maybe something that has the FBI interested in this case.”
“Do you think it has anything to do with Dr. Ivanovsky being a germ-warfare expert?”
Ben kicked a stone down the path. “Good question. That’s another thing I’m going to look into. I doubt that’s what it is, though. I mean, why would anyone put Soviet germ-warfare stuff in a bank box in Chicago? Also, Ivanovsky didn’t put anything in the box, and he’s the only one we know of here who has anything to do with germ warfare.
“From what Ivanovsky told me, Zinoviev’s brother was a smuggler, not a bioweapons scientist. He probably stashed something in the box—maybe extremely valuable jewelry—and died without telling his brother about it. But he told someone, and ultimately Dr. Ivanovsky heard about it. I’ll bet his Russian pension isn’t that generous, and he plans to supplement it by selling whatever’s in the box.”
“And that makes you uncomfortable,” commented Noelle. “I can see why.”
“Yeah, the whole thing makes me uncomfortable.” They came upon the stone again, and Ben kicked it hard this time, taking out his frustration on the chunk of limestone. “I’m not sure I can keep representing him under these circumstances. I’m not concerned about breaking any legal ethical rules here, but I don’t just want to do what’s ethical. I want to do what’s right. As a Christian lawyer, is it okay for me to help my client get a treasure that may well be the product of some crime?”
“Well, aren’t you just speculating that it would be illegal or immoral for him to own whatever’s in the box? You won’t know one way or the other until you open it.”
“True,” said Ben. “Besides, the only real alternative I’ve got is to withdraw from the case and let this Zinoviev guy win. Even if the box is full of stolen diamonds or something, it’s not like I have a choice between giving them to Dr. Ivanovsky and giving them to the true owner. As a practical matter, I have to choose between giving them to the thief’s brother and possibly giving them to an old treasure hunter.”
“And if you find anything suspicious when you open the box, you can call the police then.”
“I suppose,” said Ben, though he didn’t relish the idea of calling the cops on his own client. “It’s not like I haven’t had clients with secrets before. It just bugs me when I’ve got a case where all the pieces don’t add up as a result. It’s hard to be an effective lawyer when that happens.”
“But you can keep working on the case, right?” Noelle asked a little anxiously. “I mean, we did accept Dr. Ivanovsky’s retainer, and . . . um, we’re not really able to give any of it back.”
Ben rolled
“You’re a good judge of character,” commented Noelle. “If you think he’s clean, he probably is.”
“He’s probably clean, at least as far as this case goes. My guess is that he somehow got wind that there’s something valuable in that box. Maybe he knows what it is, maybe not. I’ll bet Nicki Zinoviev didn’t know, but he needed cash right away and he isn’t all that bright. So he sold the box to Dr. Ivanovsky without looking inside. Later, he realized that wasn’t a good idea and went to the bank to look in the box. Did he see a couple of cheap watches and some junk? No. He saw something a lot more valuable. Something he doesn’t want to tell the judge about. Maybe something that has the FBI interested in this case.”
“Do you think it has anything to do with Dr. Ivanovsky being a germ-warfare expert?”
Ben kicked a stone down the path. “Good question. That’s another thing I’m going to look into. I doubt that’s what it is, though. I mean, why would anyone put Soviet germ-warfare stuff in a bank box in Chicago? Also, Ivanovsky didn’t put anything in the box, and he’s the only one we know of here who has anything to do with germ warfare.
“From what Ivanovsky told me, Zinoviev’s brother was a smuggler, not a bioweapons scientist. He probably stashed something in the box—maybe extremely valuable jewelry—and died without telling his brother about it. But he told someone, and ultimately Dr. Ivanovsky heard about it. I’ll bet his Russian pension isn’t that generous, and he plans to supplement it by selling whatever’s in the box.”
“And that makes you uncomfortable,” commented Noelle. “I can see why.”
“Yeah, the whole thing makes me uncomfortable.” They came upon the stone again, and Ben kicked it hard this time, taking out his frustration on the chunk of limestone. “I’m not sure I can keep representing him under these circumstances. I’m not concerned about breaking any legal ethical rules here, but I don’t just want to do what’s ethical. I want to do what’s right. As a Christian lawyer, is it okay for me to help my client get a treasure that may well be the product of some crime?”
“Well, aren’t you just speculating that it would be illegal or immoral for him to own whatever’s in the box? You won’t know one way or the other until you open it.”
“True,” said Ben. “Besides, the only real alternative I’ve got is to withdraw from the case and let this Zinoviev guy win. Even if the box is full of stolen diamonds or something, it’s not like I have a choice between giving them to Dr. Ivanovsky and giving them to the true owner. As a practical matter, I have to choose between giving them to the thief’s brother and possibly giving them to an old treasure hunter.”
“And if you find anything suspicious when you open the box, you can call the police then.”
“I suppose,” said Ben, though he didn’t relish the idea of calling the cops on his own client. “It’s not like I haven’t had clients with secrets before. It just bugs me when I’ve got a case where all the pieces don’t add up as a result. It’s hard to be an effective lawyer when that happens.”
“But you can keep working on the case, right?” Noelle asked a little anxiously. “I mean, we did accept Dr. Ivanovsky’s retainer, and . . . um, we’re not really able to give any of it back.”
Ben rolled
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