Mountain Top(293)

“First, Oscar Callahan told me you were a young woman of exceptional conviction and personal courage. Nice sentiments, but I had no idea how firmly rooted those qualities are in your character. Fearlessness in the face of intense pressure can’t be taught; it is forged in the trials of life. Second, I never dreamed that a summer clerk would take representation of a client so seriously that she would risk losing a job and damaging her entire career to maintain zealous though misplaced advocacy. I have no doubt that you will someday be an outstanding lawyer. Third, you have earned the right to know why I want to talk to Mr. Jones.”

“It doesn’t matter what you say—” I began, aware I was being manipulated.

“Tami! Let him finish,” Zach interrupted.

“And I don’t mind Zach and Vince staying if those are the terms you set for me. Why don’t we all sit down?”

Without waiting for an answer, Mr. Carpenter pulled up a chair and sat across from Moses. My mind reeling, I sat on the bench beside Moses. Mr. Carpenter gestured with his hand, and Zach and Vince sat down. The older lawyer looked at Moses.

“Mr. Jones, I’m going to tell you some things, but I don’t want you to say anything to me without Ms. Taylor’s permission.” He looked at me. “Is that agreeable?”

Mr. Carpenter was a cagey man seeking a way to gain control of the situation through flattery and deceit.

“No sir. Talk to me first.”

Mr. Carpenter’s jaw tightened, but he kept his composure. “Very well. My father was a businessman here in Savannah. People described him as ‘colorful,’ which is a euphemism for a criminal who has enough money to buy his way into respectability.”

The senior partner’s candor shocked me.

“Many years ago while I was in college, his niece, a little girl named Lisa Prescott, disappeared and was never found. Our family always suspected foul play, but the police never found her body or identified a suspect. Through some of his criminal connections, my father heard a rumor that Mr. Jones knew something about Lisa’s disappearance. According to information in a file kept by my father, Mr. Jones was questioned at least once but denied knowing anything. Now you know why I took such an interest in this case. Moses Jones isn’t a name easily forgotten, and when Sam Braddock and I pulled out the old records, we realized the connection. We didn’t even know if Mr. Jones was still alive.” He looked directly at Moses. “We’re all getting older, and once and for all, I want to know the truth.”

Moses turned to me. “What you be thinking, missy?”

Mr. Carpenter’s matter-of-fact recitation of the facts threw me completely off guard. His approach bore none of the threatened pressure.

“What are you going to do if Moses doesn’t want to talk to you?” I asked, stalling for time.

“Keep working on what my father started. That’s more important than anything he could tell me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Not only did we lose Lisa; her parents died a year later in an automobile accident. The double tragedy was the catalyst for change in my father’s life. He stopped being ‘colorful’ and moved into legitimate business activities in which he made a lot more money than he ever did on the shady side of the law. Lawrence Braddock helped him go straight. Together, they set up the Lisa Prescott Foundation.”

“Foundation?” I asked in a subdued voice.

“Yes. Lisa’s mother, Ellen, was my father’s baby sister. Her husband didn’t have any surviving family, and everything passed to my father under their wills. He didn’t touch a penny of the money, but established a charitable foundation that has given away millions to children’s causes in Georgia and South Carolina. Sam Braddock and I have served on the board of the foundation for more than thirty years.”

“Why didn’t you tell me anything about this?”

Mr. Carpenter raised his eyebrows. “Why should I? You were representing Mr. Jones in a trespassing case.”

“But why did you want to talk to Mr. Jones alone?”

“I wanted to push him hard for the truth.” Mr. Carpenter rubbed his hands together. “However, that won’t happen since his attorney has demonstrated a tenacious ability to frustrate my efforts at communication.” “Do you believe Mr. Jones was responsible for Lisa’s disappearance?”

“I don’t know; the notes in the file mention a rumor that Mr. Jones found her body. The rest is a mystery I’d like to solve. Will you allow me to question him?”

I looked at Zach and Vince. Neither one spoke. I turned to Mr. Carpenter. “Only if it is considered an ongoing part of the attorney/ client relationship between Mr. Jones and Braddock, Appleby, and Carpenter.”