Before I get too involved in this case, I'd like to hear your version of the encounter. If you can spare a minute, please call me."
She left her cell-phone number, as well as her office number.
Luke's hand hovered over the handset. Ms. Bixby sounded open-minded, as if she hadn't yet decided to go after him. But he couldn't pick up. The best defense lawyer in Sacramento had warned him against talking to her.
After he was sure she'd hung up, he called McCreedy.
"It's Luke Trussell," he said when his attorney came on the line.
"Hello, Captain Trussell. How are you today?" McCreedy responded.
It was easy to be pleasant when you weren't the one on the hot seat, Luke thought. "Anxious."
"How can I allay your fears?"
"I'm not sure you can. Ava Bixby, from The Last Stand, just called."
"You didn't give her any details, did you?"
"None. I didn't even answer."
"Good."
Luke kept twirling his keys. "Why is that good? She said she wants to hear my side, and I'd really like to tell her."
52
"It's a trap. She's hoping to catch you in a weak moment, get you to say something that can be used against you later. Trust me, Captain Trussell, she's called a victims' advocate for a reason."
But McCreedy was dispensing advice based on a false premise--that Luke might be lying. Most defendants lied, didn't they? They couldn't be honest, not if they expected to stay out of prison.
"This case is different," he argued. "I'm not like most of your other clients. I have nothing to hide, so I don't see how it can hurt to talk to Ava Bixby."
"Al my clients are innocent until proven guilty. And you could do a world of damage."
"But if I didn't rape Kalyna, how can anything I say hurt me?"
"Depending on her level of motivation, Ms. Bixby could misinterpret a comment or two, or even misrepresent what you said."
"But if I don't respond, she'l assume the worst. Anyone would."
"No, she'l assume you have good representation," he said. "Because you do."
At that point, Luke gave up trying to convince McCreedy. He was paying the man for a reason. He needed to trust his advice.
Fifteen minutes later, driving to the gym, he was telling himself he'd done the right thing. But it didn't make any difference. He couldn't stop thinking about Ava Bixby and her message, so he turned around and went home. He wanted to learn more about The Last Stand, and he was too impatient to put it off a couple of hours.
Tossing his keys on the counter as soon as he walked through the door, he went directly to his computer.
Google provided a whole list of links on the charity, mostly newspaper articles citing how various individuals from the organization had found missing persons, helped convict sex offenders and murderers, protected abused spouses.
The praise lavished on them made Luke nervous. McCreedy had said they were "dogged" that seemed to be true. But would they go after an innocent man with the same dogged determination they'd go after a guilty man? Would they bother to notice the difference?
One link that came up went to the official Last Stand Web site--
53
TheLastStandVictimsCharity.com. There, he saw their mission statement posted on the home page: To help victims of violent crime find justice, safety and peace of mind.
It sounded noble. Several other paragraphs detailed the need for such an organization and made a plea for financial support. There was even a way to donate directly through the site via a secure server.
Luke would probably have given them a couple hundred bucks had he stumbled upon the site at another time, but right now he was afraid his money would end up being used against him.
Surfing through a few of the other pages, he pulled up information on the staff. According to what was posted, only three people, all of them women, worked full-time in the Sacramento office. Unfortunately, the Web site didn't include pictures of these "directors," as they were called, but he found a short bio on each one. Ava had been born and raised in
She left her cell-phone number, as well as her office number.
Luke's hand hovered over the handset. Ms. Bixby sounded open-minded, as if she hadn't yet decided to go after him. But he couldn't pick up. The best defense lawyer in Sacramento had warned him against talking to her.
After he was sure she'd hung up, he called McCreedy.
"It's Luke Trussell," he said when his attorney came on the line.
"Hello, Captain Trussell. How are you today?" McCreedy responded.
It was easy to be pleasant when you weren't the one on the hot seat, Luke thought. "Anxious."
"How can I allay your fears?"
"I'm not sure you can. Ava Bixby, from The Last Stand, just called."
"You didn't give her any details, did you?"
"None. I didn't even answer."
"Good."
Luke kept twirling his keys. "Why is that good? She said she wants to hear my side, and I'd really like to tell her."
52
"It's a trap. She's hoping to catch you in a weak moment, get you to say something that can be used against you later. Trust me, Captain Trussell, she's called a victims' advocate for a reason."
But McCreedy was dispensing advice based on a false premise--that Luke might be lying. Most defendants lied, didn't they? They couldn't be honest, not if they expected to stay out of prison.
"This case is different," he argued. "I'm not like most of your other clients. I have nothing to hide, so I don't see how it can hurt to talk to Ava Bixby."
"Al my clients are innocent until proven guilty. And you could do a world of damage."
"But if I didn't rape Kalyna, how can anything I say hurt me?"
"Depending on her level of motivation, Ms. Bixby could misinterpret a comment or two, or even misrepresent what you said."
"But if I don't respond, she'l assume the worst. Anyone would."
"No, she'l assume you have good representation," he said. "Because you do."
At that point, Luke gave up trying to convince McCreedy. He was paying the man for a reason. He needed to trust his advice.
Fifteen minutes later, driving to the gym, he was telling himself he'd done the right thing. But it didn't make any difference. He couldn't stop thinking about Ava Bixby and her message, so he turned around and went home. He wanted to learn more about The Last Stand, and he was too impatient to put it off a couple of hours.
Tossing his keys on the counter as soon as he walked through the door, he went directly to his computer.
Google provided a whole list of links on the charity, mostly newspaper articles citing how various individuals from the organization had found missing persons, helped convict sex offenders and murderers, protected abused spouses.
The praise lavished on them made Luke nervous. McCreedy had said they were "dogged" that seemed to be true. But would they go after an innocent man with the same dogged determination they'd go after a guilty man? Would they bother to notice the difference?
One link that came up went to the official Last Stand Web site--
53
TheLastStandVictimsCharity.com. There, he saw their mission statement posted on the home page: To help victims of violent crime find justice, safety and peace of mind.
It sounded noble. Several other paragraphs detailed the need for such an organization and made a plea for financial support. There was even a way to donate directly through the site via a secure server.
Luke would probably have given them a couple hundred bucks had he stumbled upon the site at another time, but right now he was afraid his money would end up being used against him.
Surfing through a few of the other pages, he pulled up information on the staff. According to what was posted, only three people, all of them women, worked full-time in the Sacramento office. Unfortunately, the Web site didn't include pictures of these "directors," as they were called, but he found a short bio on each one. Ava had been born and raised in
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