Dead to Rights by Jack Patterson (fiction book recommendations .txt) 📕

phone. “I’ve got enough problems as it is, like I need a new one to keep me awake at night.” But he finally relented. “Hello?”

“Cal Murphy?” asked the woman on the other end in a timid manner.

He stared at the phone number again before putting it back up against his ear. “Yes.”

“My name is Marsha Frost, and I work with The Innocence Alliance. We work to get innocent men and women off death row and back into society where they belong.”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Frost, is it?”

“Yes.”

“I’m getting ready to go on a trip. I don’t have a lot of time right now. Can we talk about this later?”

“I know about your trip, Cal. It’s precisely why I am calling. I was wondering if you could do us a favor.”

CHAPTER 3

CAL PARKED BENEATH THE SHADE of a towering oak bordering the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison parking lot and stepped out of the vehicle. The muggy air combined with the early July heat led him to loosen his tie almost immediately. He locked the car and waited for Kelly.

“Don’t you miss the south?” he said as he took her hand.

She smiled and shrugged. “My hair doesn’t, that’s for sure. But I can’t wait to get a glass of sweet tea somewhere.”

“As long as it’s paired with pulled pork barbecue, I’m with you.”

Striding toward the visitor’s entrance, Cal felt Kelly’s grip tighten. The barbed-wire fence that encircled the grounds and the ominous armed sentries who paced around in towering guard posts felt every bit as intimidating as designed to do. Cal pulled on the glass door leading into the security screening area, holding it open for Kelly.

“We need to get back here more often,” she said, patting him on the chest as she walked by. “You’ve become genteel on me all of a sudden.”

Cal smiled and followed her inside.

After they cleared security, they were met by Isaiah Drake’s lawyer, Robert Sullivan. In Seattle, Sullivan was well known for his high-profile clientele and winning cases that faced seemingly insurmountable odds. Opposing lawyers rarely managed to get a conviction against him. And when they did it, the ruling was often symbolic or a slap on the wrist at best. However, Drake’s case was Sullivan’s lone blemish, at least among his most famous defendants. Not only was it a failure from the fact that Drake was deemed guilty, but Drake was the first major professional athlete to be sentenced to death in American history. A handful of other stars had committed murder, but none drew such a harsh punishment.

In interviews years after the conviction, Sullivan concluded that Drake would’ve been better served by a defense attorney from the area, someone the jury didn’t look on with suspicion. Hal Golden was the prosecutor in the case and was regarded favorably according to all the news reports at the time. And Sullivan was viewed as the big city lawyer who drew suspicion. Cal, who remembered following the trial as a kid, always thought Sullivan came across as slippery if not slimy when he was on television. Perhaps Sullivan’s fake tan or perfect teeth that appeared to glisten when he smiled led not only Cal but the general public to distrust Sullivan. However, Cal felt differently upon meeting Sullivan for the first time.

Sullivan offered his hand while smiling warmly at Cal. In an instant, the suspicion Cal felt toward Drake’s lawyer vanished. In less than a minute, Cal was wishing he could befriend Sullivan.

“Thank you, Mr. Murphy,” Sullivan said before turning toward Kelly, “and Mrs. Murphy. You both look stunningly refreshed after traveling here from the west coast.”

Kelly blushed and smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Sullivan.”

“Please, call me Robert.”

“And call me Cal.”

“Of course, of course. So, tell me why The Seattle Times is suddenly interested in interviewing my client. I’d always been under the impression that the Emerald City’s favorite football player went from hero to pariah the moment the judge read the verdict and swung his gavel.”

“I’m not about to dispute that assessment,” Cal said. “As you well know, it’s not easy to turn the tide of public perception. But I think there is some growing sentiment among people in the city who are starting to question whether Isaiah Drake actually committed the murder he was convicted of, especially as his appeals dwindle and the date of his execution draws closer.”

“We haven’t exhausted all our appeals yet,” Sullivan countered. “There’s still hope.”

Cal shrugged. “Maybe, but he doesn’t stand much of a chance without some heavy hitters making some noise.”

“And you consider The Times to be a heavy hitter?”

“They’re not the only ones examining the possibility that Isaiah Drake’s conviction was a wrongful one.”

“Oh, really? I’d like to know who else is on board.”

“I happen to know that The Innocence Alliance is considering taking on his case.”

“That’s news to me.”

“It hasn’t been made public yet, and they’ve asked me to help them make a determination about the viability of the case.”

“Based off this interview?”

Cal nodded. “Yes, and among other things.”

“Well, let’s hope that he’s far more convincing to you than I was when I presented my case to the jury.”

***

CAL STOOD THE MOMENT the hulking fallen idol entered the room. Drake gripped Cal’s hand firmly, forcing the reporter to suppress a grimace. Drake looked Cal in the eye and shook Kelly’s hand as well before settling into the chair across the table from them.

Kelly discreetly captured some shots of Drake while he and Cal exchanged pleasantries. The dim fluorescent bulbs overhead flickered occasionally, creating an ominous atmosphere. In his mind, Cal could almost hear other photographers from The Times complaining about the poor lighting, but not Kelly. She’d make the best of any situation, especially one involving facial close-ups. It was her specialty, and Cal had little doubt her pictures possessed the potential to overshadow Drake’s story. That, however, would depend on what the death row inmate had to say about the case and that fateful night more than twelve years ago.

Cal shifted