The scream pierced the night air of the city by the bay. Several people opened their doors, awakened in the middle of the night by that scream, to peer out into the darkness trying to see who and what had caused that scream. But they saw nothing. Most of them closed their doors returning to bed thinking they may have dreamed the whole thing.

"Help me!" she yelled as she ran away from the body and the room. "I need help! He’s dead!"

The high-pitched cries of a woman in trouble broke the nighttime silence of the city of San Francisco. This time as the people opened their doors to look; they saw a shadowy figure running down the middle of the street. No one could make her out but they all knew it was a woman from the panic stricken high tones they had heard. She was wearing a cornflower blue silk dress with white lace and black velvet ribbons as she ran. No one noticed that the right sleeve of that dress was torn off in some kind of a struggle. She was so afraid that she hadn’t noticed the chilly night air that was all around her. She just wanted to escape this nightmare that had descended upon her.

"I’m sorry miss," an officer said as he stopped her after hearing her coming. "You will have to come with me. You evidentially have a problem and we need to discuss this calmly at the police station to see exactly what is going on. If there has indeed been a death, we have to know where and why."

"I need help," she replied looking like she had seen a ghost and grabbing him by the arm trying to take him with her. "Please. You must help me."

"I will," he told her trying to guide her toward the police station instead. "I need to get your statement. Can you tell me exactly what happened?"

"But he’s dead," she said very avidly again trying to pull him to follow her. "I think I killed him."

At her words the young officer stopped and she was forced to stop as well. She had not wanted to stop here in the middle of the street. She wanted him to accompany her back to hotel room to see if indeed he was dead. She was not sure anymore. Everything had happened so quickly. All she remembered was she had seen a body on the floor. The police officer looked at the woman closely. He couldn’t tell by her expression if she was telling the truth or if she was just a crazy from one of the insane asylums close by. But how did she escape? He had a lot of questions and not enough answers. But he was bound and determined to find out before this night was gone.

"Who are you?" he asked looking at her but not recognizing her. "Do you live around here?"

"I am Sandra Johanson," the woman answered still looking very frightened.

She had finally stopped trying to lead this man to that room. She stood there looking at him wondering what was going to happen to her. Wondering if he would believe her story or think that she was just a crazy female.

"Please, you must come with me," she said again trying to get him to go. "He’s dead and I need help."

"And what were you doing running down the middle of the street in the middle of the night?" he asked trying his best to stay calm in the midst of chaos. "None of this makes any sense. I want you to come with me so we can straighten all this out."

"I didn’t mean too," she said not listening to him. "He started coming toward me and I tried to keep him away. I must have picked up something and struck him with it. I don’t remember for sure."

"Are you married?" he asked trying to learn what he could from her. "Was it your husband?"

"No we weren’t married," she answered looking at him. "We were thinking about it prior to this happening. But tonight he became so angry. I have never seen him that mad. It frightened me. The look in his eyes as he came toward me."

"I see," he said still trying to guide her to the police station. "There are several things that don’t make sense in all this. I need you to come with me. It’s only routine but I need to ask you some more questions about exactly what happened."

"I work for Adam Howard and he has a young man working for him that I think is a lawyer," she replied babbling thinking she might need an attorney and not knowing any except the young man who worked for her boss. "I think I need him. That is if he is a lawyer. To tell you the truth I’m not sure of anything right now."

Sandra was at her wits end. She was so confused about the entire evening. It seemed to be a blur of activity. But she was not sure about anything as she walked trying to remember exactly what had happened with Paul. How did such a wonderful evening turn into a nightmare?

"What’s his name?" he asked again trying to learn what he could from her. "I will be happy to let him know what has happened as soon as I’m able to piece it together myself. Please understand that I’m not going to hurt you. You must trust me. I am here to help. Just tell me exactly what happened and I will know what to do."

"Jarrod," she answered hesitating. "Barkley I believe. I’m really not sure. So much has happened."

"Does he live around here?" he asked not recognizing the famous last name. "I’ve never heard of an attorney named Barkley here in San Francisco. Are you sure he lives around here? Maybe you read about him in the newspaper or heard about him from others."

"Yes," she answered. "But I’m not sure where. Mr. Howard would know. Please. I need him. He’s my only hope if indeed he is a lawyer. You must help me."

"You just come along with me," he said continuing to guide her to the station. "He will arrive shortly I promise."

"Good," she replied finally relaxing a little and allowing him to escort her to the police station.

The young officer shook his head thinking to himself that this woman really had escaped from the insane asylum. He doubted any of her babbling was the truth. She had probably heard the name Adam Howard. He doubted she had ever worked for him. But he knew if he didn’t get her incarcerated, he would hear it from his superior.

Jarrod Barkley had returned to San Francisco after the disastrous events that took place in Carson City almost four months ago. He still shuddered at the thought of what he had to endure just because he wanted to make an impression on Adam Howard. Those long days lying in bed praying that he would survive long enough to put those men away. And he had. The three men that had held him prisoner for three days in that mine along with beating him, had been captured almost a month later in Sacramento where they had tried to do the same thing and were going to be tried for kidnapping and attempted murder. They had been brought back to Carson City and jailed until the trial began. Jarrod would have to return to Carson City to testify against them but he felt he was up to the task. After all, he had survived their attack and now he wanted to show everyone that he was truly a Barkley. Adam had welcomed him back to San Francisco, happy to see that he was completely recovered.

Adam had taken Jarrod to see the apartment that afternoon after they had lunch at one of the classier restaurants. Jarrod was very impressed with the apartment. To him, it was a very expensive apartment but he wasn’t one to complain especially after Adam had bought it for him.

Jarrod looked at the beautiful Monique and couldn’t take his eyes from her. She was absolutely gorgeous. She had dark hair that flowed down her back and she also had the prettiest face to go with the rest of her beauty.

All he could do was stare. Adam knew why Jarrod couldn’t talk and he smiled at his partner.

Jarrod was very relieved when he got the words out of his mouth. He couldn’t understand why he was so nervous around her but he was.

It wasn’t a huge apartment but it wasn’t a small one either. It was on the bottom floor with the entrance to the main street. It had two bedrooms, kitchen and a sitting room. Jarrod took the apartment and moved in. In a smaller room that Adam hadn’t mentioned it having, he set up an office so he could work at home when the need arose.

"Yes sir," Jarrod told him.

"Inspector," the young officer said as he escorted the hysterical woman into the office, "I ran into this young lady who keeps telling me that he’s dead. And that she thinks she killed him. It’s so confusing that I thought the best thing to do was bring her here and we could hopefully straighten all this out. I tried to find out from her exactly what happened but all I got was babbling."

"What in the world are you talking about Krebbs?" Inspector Dan Scott asked as he sat behind his desk. "How many times have I told you to handle these problems on your own."

"I’m sorry sir," Krebbs answered looking slightly embarrassed. "But I’m not sure how to handle it. I can not get the straight facts."

Scott was a twenty-year veteran of the San Francisco Police Department and he always tried to run a top-notch police force but sometimes he would get an officer like Ben Krebbs who could screw up everything. Sitting as calmly as he could, he looked at the young man.

"Would you mind explaining exactly what is going on?" he asked the young officer. "You come in here with a young lady who you say was running down the middle of a street in the dark. Have you been drinking on the job?"

"Well," Krebbs answered, "No sir. I haven’t drunk anything. It’s the truth. I saw this lady running down Main Street screaming to the top of her lungs. She keeps saying that he’s dead and so far I’ve been unable to find out who he is."

"Miss," he said looking at Sandra, "maybe you had better explain."

"I was visiting my boyfriend at his hotel room," she began a bit nervously. "We got into a terrible argument."

"What was the argument about?" he asked trying to get as many facts as he could.

"Paul," she answered shaking a little as she spoke. "That’s his name. Paul Davis. We’ve been seeing each other for over two years. He’s a salesman for a book company in Nevada. Carson City, Reno or Virginia City. I’m not sure which."

"All right," he said trying to prod her to continue. "What happened next?"

"We were arguing," she replied trying to remember the events of earlier that night. "We had gone out to celebrate his new promotion and I guess we got a little carried away with the liquor. Anyway, when we went back to his room, he tried to attack me. And in the process he ripped my dress."

Sandra showed him her dress with the right sleeve missing. It had indeed been pulled off in a rough manner.

"I grabbed something off his desk I think and he tried to take it away from me," she said continuing. "I guess I ended up plunging whatever it was in his stomach. I dropped whatever it was and ran away. I guess I shouldn’t have panicked but everything happened so fast."

"Where is he now?" he asked trying to find out if indeed there was a dead body.

He had his doubts but this woman seemed to think there was a dead body.

"Lying in his room on the floor," she answered. "I was so frightened. All I could think of was getting help. So I ran."

"Have you been to the room Krebbs?" he asked looking at the officer hoping he wouldn’t embarrass the inspector or the police department with his handling of this case. "That’s the first order of business when someone reports a mysterious death. You ascertain where the alleged body is and then you go there to see if indeed there is one. I don’t know why you can’t remember that. I’ve preached it enough times in the past that you should have it memorized by now."

"No sir," Krebbs answered feeling slightly embarrassed at forgetting the inspector’s cardinal rule. "I didn’t know I was supposed to."

"How do you know there has been a murder if you don’t have a body?" he asked shaking his head. "Go check it out. Meanwhile the young lady will stay here with me. And I will try to find out as much as I can about what happened."

"He’s in the Stansbury Hotel on Beeker Street," she said looking up at him. "Room 16."

"Right," Krebbs replied looking at her.

Krebbs hesitated before leaving the inspector’s office.

"Something else?" he asked noticing that Krebbs hadn’t moved.

"Yes sir," Krebbs answered. "I just wanted to say how sorry I am for not following procedure. I guess I was stunned to see this woman running down the street and then babbling about a death. I did try to gain as much information as I could from her. I will put it all in my report."

"All right," he said nodding. "I forgive you this time. But the next time you will regret forgetting. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," Krebbs replied and left the office.

"Miss," he asked turning his attention back to Sandra, "do you have anyone who can stay with you? I can’t release you unless I have someone who will be responsible for you and see that you return to clear all this up?"

"Just my boss and his aide," she answered looking at him.

"Who is your boss?" he asked. "He might be able to clear some of this up. Although with the way all this happened I’m not going to hold my breath."

"Adam Howard," she answered looking at him very frightened. "And his lawyer is Jarrod Barkley. At least I think he is an attorney. Right now I’m not sure of anything."

"Some of the Stockton Barkleys?" he asked impressed. "I am very familiar with Adam Howard. I’ve known him for the past fifteen years at least. Good man. Hard worker. But I didn’t know that he had a Barkley lawyer working for him. Of course, I haven’t seen Adam in several months. I’ve been too busy to get out and see him. And he hasn’t been here either in a while. I guess he’s been just as busy."

"I believe so," she answered. "Jarrod’s only been here a few days. He’s supposed to work for Adam for a while. And am I ever glad if he is a lawyer."

"Are you afraid that you will need an attorney Miss Johanson?" he asked looking at her. "I mean we haven’t got a body yet and we don’t even know if anyone has died. I think you’re jumping the gun a little."

"I believe you will find one when you go to the hotel room," she answered. "It was a terrible accident. If only he hadn’t tried to come after me. I’m still not sure of the reason for that. Everything happened so fast."

"After Adam has been notified and Krebbs returns from the hotel with his report," he said looking at her, "you might be able to go home. I won’t know until all this can be sorted out. In the meantime I’m going to have another officer escort you to a room where you can wait. You’re not under arrest at this point. I’m only holding you until all this can be worked out."

"I want you to know I didn’t mean to hurt Paul," she replied looking very upset. "I wanted to marry him and spend the rest of my life with him. But tonight he became so aggressive. I still don’t understand why."

"How long have you been seeing this man?" he asked while he waited for the officer to come to escort her to the interrogation room.

"A little over two years," she answered. "I met him at a dance right here in San Francisco and we starting seeing each other. He is or rather was a book seller from Nevada."

"How old was he?" he asked trying to learn everything he could about the dead man if there really was a dead man. "I’m not prying but I need to know as much as I can about the dead man. Did he have any family that you are aware of?"

"Around thirty," she answered trying to remember. "I think. He never mentioned anything about family. Of course, I never really asked."

"Krebbs should have all that information when he returns," he said smiling. "Can I get you a cup of coffee?"

"No thank you," she replied. "I had enough at dinner."

"Listen," he told her trying to stay calm for her benefit, "I’m sure this will be cleared up quickly and you can go home."

"Inspector," she asked looking at him frightened, "what’s going to happen to me? Especially if you find Paul dead? Am I going to be arrested?"

"I don’t know yet," he answered. "If there is indeed a dead body then we will need to figure out whether or not he was murdered."

"Murdered!" she cried. "I didn’t murder him. I was trying to defend myself."

"Like I said we won’t know what has happened until Officer Krebbs returns with his report," he said as calmly as he could.

Sandra knew she was in very big trouble. She just prayed someone would be able to get her out of this mess before it was too late. The officer arrived and escorted Sandra to a room with only one window. It had a long table with several chairs around it. She sat down, put her head in her hands and cried.

Adam heard a loud rapping on his front door at two o’clock in the morning.

"Who in the world could that be?" he asked as he rose from the bed. "It must be the middle of the night."

Not wanting to wake his wife, Cora, asleep next to him, he eased out of the bed, picking up his robe, which he put on along with his slippers and walked to the door. His houseman, John, was already gone for the day. When he opened it, there was a police officer standing on the other side. Adam was shocked and the shock showed on his face.

"What is going on?" he asked not understanding. "Is there something wrong officer?"

"You have a secretary named Sandra Johanson?" the officer asked as he looked at a small pad in his right hand. "She is approximately five feet four inches tall with long brown hair, bluish green eyes and a rather high pitched voice."

"Yes," he answered still not understanding. "She works for me. What’s the problem? Has something happened to her? Is she all right?"

"She’s at the police station," the officer said shifting slightly. "She is being held in connection with the death of a man she said she accidentally killed, Paul Davis."

"She what!" he cried. "I’ll be right down to see her. I don’t believe that she could kill anyone let alone a man she was going to marry."

"I was just sent here to inform you about what had happened," the officer said starting to leave. "I will tell the inspector to expect you."

Closing the door, Adam hurried back upstairs and quickly changed. He couldn’t believe that Sandra had somehow gotten herself involved in a murder. She was a sweet girl who had moved to San Francisco from San Diego a couple of years ago. She was a very bright girl who had done an excellent job for him as a secretary/receptionist.

"Adam," his wife asked looking up at him, "what is it?"

"Sandra is at the police station," he answered not believing what he had been told. "She said she killed her boyfriend. I’m going over there to see if I can somehow straighten this out."

"What!" she cried sitting up in bed. "You have to help her. She’s got no one else here that can."

"I am," he said as he dressed. "I’m going to get Jarrod. I think she’s going to need a lawyer. He’s going to get his first case whether he wants it or not."

"He’s not even tried a case yet," she replied looking at him. "How in the world can you turn over a possible murder case to a boy? You need to go to that prominent set of attorneys that are always getting people off. They can help you more than an untried boy can."

"In the first place," he told her, "he’s not a boy. He is a grown man as well as being a lawyer. And although he’s never had a case before I believe in him. I wouldn’t have hired him if I didn’t trust him. I’m sure he can help Sandra. I’m going to pick him up on the way to the station. I’ll be back as soon as I can. But maybe you’re right. He may not be what I need. But then again who knows? He might be just the bulldog lawyer I need. Either way, I know I’m going to have to convince him to take the case. And I may have to resort to an underhanded way to accomplish it."

"What do you mean underhanded?" she asked totally in the dark.

"I mean I may have to push Jarrod into it," he answered. "He’s going to say he’s not ready but I believe that he is and I can use unorthodox tactics to get him to agree. But that’s not for you to worry about."

"Adam," she said looking at him. "I believe in you. You believe in Sandra."

"I do," he replied and left.

Adam left his house deciding to take the buggy instead of a horse. As he made his way toward Jarrod’s apartment he thought about what his wife had said.

"I’m sure Jarrod would do a terrific job," he said going over everything in his mind. "But he is untried. How is he going to become a good lawyer if he never gets a case in the first place? But can I put the life of a young woman in his untried hands?"

Adam rode up in front of Jarrod’s apartment still arguing with himself and when he knocked on the door of Jarrod’s apartment, he saw a light come on inside. After a few minutes, the door opened revealing Jarrod in a robe standing bare foot.

"Adam," he asked wiping the sleep from his eyes, "is something wrong? It’s four in the morning."

"Yes," Adam answered. "I think Sandra has been arrested for murder. An officer came to my home, telling me that Sandra is at the police station and she has asked for you and me."

"What!" he cried. "Who was she supposed to have killed?"

"Her boyfriend," Adam said remembering what the officer had told him. "Paul Davis. You remember him. He stopped by the office once to pick her up."

"The tall guy with the reddish hair," he replied thinking back to that day. "Yes. I’ll change and be right with you. Do you know how he was killed?"

"Jarrod," Adam told him, "I want you to defend her."

"I can’t," he said looking at Adam. "I’ve never had a case before. I’m not ready. I could end up getting her hanged."

"I don’t think you will," Adam replied trying to coax Jarrod into defending her. "You need to start somewhere."

"I’m not ready," he told him still believing in his own mind that he was not the lawyer Adam needed for Sandra. "I’ll talk to her until you can get her a lawyer who can get her acquitted."

"At least you have agreed to talk to her," Adam said shaking his head. "And that’s a start. But I’m still going to try to change your mind."

Adam watched Jarrod disappear into the apartment.

"I knew he would decline the offer of defending her," he said to himself. "Now all I have to do is make him take it. And I know that I can. After all I learned from the best."

Jarrod disappeared inside his apartment where he changed. As he thought about the circumstances he was walking into, he knew he wasn’t the lawyer that Adam needed.

"I’ll just tell him the truth," he said to himself. "That’s all I can do."

When he walked out of his apartment a short time later, Adam was still waiting. He readied himself for the argument he would get from Adam, but he knew it was for the best.

"Adam," he said as he climbed inside the buggy and Adam drove away toward the police station, "I think you’re making a mistake asking me to defend Sandra. In the first place, this is a murder investigation. I’m not qualified. And in the second place, I’ve never even been in a courtroom except during classroom court sessions. I’m not the man you need. Get her someone who is self assured and knows what he’s doing."

"But Jarrod," Adam replied trying to convince the young man. "I think you are that man."

"I mean it Adam," he told him. "I’m not your man. She could be found guilty and she would blame me and I would blame myself. No. You need someone who has handled these types of cases before."

"Will you at least talk to her until I can get her an attorney?" Adam asked hopefully.

"Yes," he answered. "I will be happy to speak to her while you make arrangements to hire her an attorney."

"That’s all I’m asking Jarrod," Adam said nodding. "There is a firm of top notch attorneys here in San Francisco. In fact, they hired a new man not too long ago. Springer, I believe is his name."

Jarrod looked at Adam with shock on his face. When Adam noticed Jarrod’s expression, he spoke.

"You recognize the name don’t you?" he asked wanting to know what Jarrod knew about the man. "What do you know about any of those attorneys?"

"Yes," Jarrod answered. "I went to law school with Nathan Springer. He was a power hungry student who didn’t care how he won a case. He’s a good attorney I guess but he sometimes uses underhanded ways to win. If you do hire someone from that firm, stay away from Nat. You may not like the way he handles the case."

"I’ll talk to him after we talk to Sandra," he said looking at Jarrod to see his expression.

"Adam," Jarrod said, "I’m not telling you who to hire or who not to. "But Nat is looking for accolades. And in the process of getting those, Sandra could be hurt in more ways than one. Nat only looks out for himself. If he can get a case with a lot of potential accolades, he’ll take it. It will make him more important than he already is. That’s what he strives for. To be the best and he doesn’t care how he does it."

"Jarrod," he asked him, "you don’t like Springer much do you? From what you’ve just told me, you have a strong dislike for the man. It’s not jealousy is it?"

"He’s all right as a person," Jarrod answered. "But as an attorney, he just has some ways that I don’t approve of. Let’s put it this way. I wouldn’t do anything underhanded to win a case. And I’m not jealous of him. I wish him the best of luck with his law career. But he has always told me I came from a back woods town and that I wouldn’t make it as a lawyer there. I want to prove it to him and to myself but not at Sandra’s expense."

"I see," he said nodding.

They arrived at the police station and walked inside. Adam walked up to the large desk where an officer sat. He looked up as they walked inside.

"You need something?" he asked glaring at Adam and Jarrod.

Jarrod already didn’t like this man. He judged him to have a chip on his shoulder. He watched as Adam spoke to the officer.

"I need to see Sandra Johanson," he said as forcefully as he could. "She was brought in here earlier. Something to do with someone getting killed."

"You mean the crazy lady," the officer replied laughing. "The one who said she didn’t mean to kill a man and ran away. Sure she’s here. And if you ask me she’s going to be staying until they can lock her up."

Adam reached across the desk, grabbing the man by the front of his shirt. He pulled the officer so that their two faces were less than a foot apart.

"Listen here buddy," Adam said with anger and conviction, "you watch the way you talk about my secretary or you’ll be wearing this desk around your throat."

Jarrod realized that Adam might actually strike the man so he walked behind Adam trying to reason with him.

"Take it easy Adam," he said as he tried to pull his partner away from the officer. "If you hit him, you’ll be locked up and who will help Sandra? Let’s just see if we can see her and take it from there. She’s our first priority."

Adam glanced behind him at Jarrod finally releasing his grip on the officer’s shirt. The man looked at Adam with blind fury but he didn’t pursue the matter further. Adam knew he was beginning to wear Jarrod’s refusal to take the case down. He knew with a little more prodding, he would talk Jarrod into it. Or at least he hoped so.

All the desk officer said was, "Go through those two doors, down the hall on the left, last door."

Adam and Jarrod hurried toward Sandra.

Officer Ben Krebbs had arrived at the hotel room of Paul Davis. He had verified from the clerk on duty at the front desk that Paul Davis was indeed registered here and that Sandra had been in his room.

"Sure," the clerk said looking at Krebbs, "I remember her. Pretty girl. I never understood why she didn’t marry the man. They were always together when he was in town."

"How often was that?" he asked.

"Every couple of weeks just like clock work," the clerk answered. "Always had to have room 16."

"What was so important about room 16?" he asked trying to understand everything that had happened that night.

"I’m not real sure," the clerk answered. "You would have to ask him."

"I’m afraid that might be impossible," he said looking at the clerk. "If he is indeed dead."

"Dead?" the clerk asked. "Not in my hotel. I’ve never had any problems here in the twenty-five years I’ve been here."

"You may now," he answered. "I’ll know more after I examine the room."

Officer Krebbs walked up a flight of stairs to room 16. The door to the room was standing wide open and sitting in a chair on the other side of the room was a man. Krebbs walked over to the man and when he touched him, the man fell forward to the floor and that’s when he saw the letter opener in the man’s back. There was a trickle of blood leading from the middle of the room over to a chair where he had found Paul Davis. There was no way that Davis could have stabbed himself. He knew this was a good case for murder and since the girl had told him she had stabbed the man, he knew she would be held for murder.

"This looks like a murder scene," he said as he continued to search.

He found the man’s wallet in a jacket pocket hanging from a chair on the other side of the room but no money was inside of it. He would have to find out if Davis had any money as whether he was robbed or not. A large crate was sitting in the middle of the floor with the lid pried off. When he walked over to it for a closer look, he noticed that there were several books on the floor. To him that seemed a might odd. But he had no idea how they had gotten there. He looked inside the crate, noting that there seemed to be something missing. There was a hole in the middle of the crate surrounded by books. But whatever had been there was gone now. He had motive. He knew from what the girl had said that she was inside this room. He knew he had her for murder. But the court would have to decide if it was a planned murder or something else. Now to go tell the inspector, Krebbs left the hotel heading back to the station to file his report.

Adam and Jarrod were led back to the Inspector Scott’s office.

"I am Sandra Johanson’s employer," Adam said as he walked into the office followed by Jarrod. "My name is Adam Howard. Now what in the blazes is going on?"

Adam hadn’t noticed the man sitting behind the desk. He didn’t realize that he knew him until the inspector spoke.

"Adam," the man replied as he stood up from behind his desk. "It’s good to see you. I’m sorry I hadn’t gotten around to seeing you lately. It’s been so hectic around here lately with all these new recruits who think they already know everything. It’s enough to make a man gray. I really didn’t think she even knew you let alone worked for you."

"She does and she’s innocent," Adam told him. "Dan, is this your case? I didn’t realize you were handling murders. They must have given you a promotion. Now where is she?"

"She’s being held here until we know exactly what happened," the inspector said looking at Jarrod. "Who are you?"

"I’m Jarrod Barkley," he replied stepping forward. "I work with Mr. Howard. He thought she might possibly need an attorney although I’m not the attorney she needs."

"I see," Scott told him, turning his attention back to Adam. "Your secretary was apprehended running down the middle of the street screaming at the top of her lungs that he was dead. We still haven’t been able to get a credible story out of her."

"I would like to see her," Adam said shaking his head. "There has to be a logical explanation for what’s happened. And I intend to find out what."

"That can be arranged," Scott replied standing up again. "She is in one of the interrogation rooms. I thought that would be better for her then locking her up until we get the report from the hotel. You can speak to her in there. You might consider getting her a good lawyer. I think she’s going to need it."

Inspector. Scott escorted Adam and Jarrod to another room that had a large table with several chairs around it. Before Adam entered the room, he motioned for Jarrod to go on inside.

"Jarrod," he said as he stopped outside in the hallway, "you go on in. I’ll be there in a minute."

"Right," Jarrod replied walking inside.

Sitting in one of the chairs was Sandra. She was very quiet and looked to be quite upset. When she saw Jarrod, she burst out crying and trying to tell him what happened.

"Oh Jarrod," she said crying rushing into his arms. "I didn’t mean to do it. It was an accident."

"Calm down Sandra," he replied coming to a stop as he held her until she stopped shaking. "Just tell me what happened."

"It all started..." she replied beginning to tell her story.

Adam looked at his friend.

"Dan," he said as he looked at the inspector, "I need your help with something. If it works, Sandra already has a lawyer."

"You mean him," Scott replied pointing toward the room where Jarrod and Sandra was. "He’s just a boy. How is he going to help her?"

"I know what I’m doing," he told Dan. "And I think I know a way to get him to accept it. Will you help me?"

"Yes," Dan said nodding.

Adam explained what he wanted to do.

Meanwhile, inside the interrogation room, Jarrod was seated in a chair listening to Sandra tell her story. Adam and Dan walked in during her explanation but they didn’t say anything.

"I was wearing this dress with a string of pearls that I must have lost in the struggle with Paul after we returned to the hotel room. But I’m getting a little ahead of myself," she said and then continued.

"After dinner," she said coming back to the present, "we went back to his hotel room."

"I realized that he was crazy with some kind of rage," she said explaining what happened next. "He had had too much to drink for one thing and he lunged at me grabbing my right sleeve and tearing it. I had to do something so I saw a letter opener on his table. I picked it up to scare him into leaving me alone."

"But he just became more enraged," she said shaking slightly. "Paul grabbed for the letter opener and we struggled. In trying to get it out of his hands, it ended up going into his stomach. I dropped it when I saw the blood on his shirt. The only thing at that point

I knew to do was run. I didn’t even know if he was dead. So I ran away."

Jarrod both listened to her story. It sounded feasible to them. Then Jarrod and Adam both tried to make her feel better.

"It’s all right," Adam replied after she stopped speaking. "It was an unfortunate accident."

"I’m afraid it was anything but that," Inspector Scott told them from behind.

Officer Krebbs was standing beside of him. He must have come in during Sandra’s explanation of exactly what had happened earlier in the evening. Adam and Jarrod both turned to look at them.

"What do you mean?" Adam asked not understanding.

"Krebbs just told me what he found in the hotel room," Scott answered. "First of all, the deceased was sitting in a chair instead of on his back in the floor. Second, the letter opener was not in his stomach but in his back. It’s not likely that he could have stabbed himself in the back. There was a trickle of blood that left a trail across the room. I’m afraid that the young lady will have to remain here under arrest for murder."

"But it didn’t happen that way," she cried trying to explain. "It was an accident. I left him on the floor, not in a chair. And the wound was in his stomach not his back. Why won’t anyone believe me?"

"You admitted yourself that you had killed him," Krebbs said looking at her. "From what I saw, it’s a clear case of murder."

"No!" she cried.

"Easy Sandra," Jarrod said trying to calm her down. "It’s all right. When you get into court, your lawyer will be able to free you."

"How can you say that?" she asked looking at him. "I’m going to be tried for murder. I didn’t do it."

"I know you didn’t," Jarrod answered. "Just let Adam and me handle this. You just take it easy until we can get you out of here."

"Hurry Jarrod," she pleaded. "I’m very frightened. I have never been inside a police station before."

"We will," Jarrod said as he and Adam left Sandra.

Another officer led Sandra to a holding cell further down the hallway. She was indeed very afraid but she knew she had to do as they asked. Maybe Jarrod was right. Hopefully, her lawyer could clear her of the murder charge.

As Adam and Jarrod walked out of the small room, Inspector Scott stopped turning to look at them.

"She will stand trial for murder," he said matter of factly. "And she will be convicted. The facts show that he was murdered. The best thing her attorney could do is have her plead guilty and save the court the cost of a trail."

"It’s not over yet," Jarrod replied looking at Scott. "Whoever her lawyer is will find the evidence to acquit her."

"What’s the matter counselor?" Scott asked looking at the young attorney. "You too busy to take on the case?"

"No," Jarrod answered trying not to be goaded into accepting such a high profile case. "I lack the experience needed to handle a murder case. And I don’t want to do anything that would get her convicted. If I had the experience I would gladly take the case. That’s the reason and not that I’m afraid."

"I see," Scott said looking at Jarrod. "You certainly aren’t like your father. He wouldn’t stand by and watch someone go to the gallows. Especially if he could free her. He would do something about it if he were a lawyer and not a pompous businessman."

As the inspector called Tom names, Jarrod became slightly upset.

"You are entitled to your own opinion," he said but he wasn’t happy. "You don’t even know him. He’s the kindest man I know."

"I know him well enough to know that he raised a sorry excuse for a son," Scott answered. "I bet he feels really sad when he thinks about all the money he spent on you only to find out he had raised a coward."

" How would you know how I feel?" he asked looking at the inspector. "I know when to accept a case and when not to accept. You just like to bully someone around. Well, it won’t work on me. My mind is made up."

"No wonder he sent you to us," Scott replied smiling. "He didn’t want to be embarrassed by a coward like you, too afraid to take on a case that I know he could win. But no. You have to tell everyone that you aren’t ready. The real reason is you’re too afraid."

Jarrod was trying to hold his temper in check but this man for some reason wasn’t going to leave him alone. He tried to reason with the inspector again.

"Look," he said trying to be as calm as he could, "I just told you that my mind is made up. Why don’t you go and arrest a murderer or something?"

The inspector shook his head.

"You are a coward," he said again this time smiling as he said it. "I don’t understand how you can stand there and let that poor girl hang. What kind of lawyer are you?"

"I’m not going to take on this case because I’ve not had enough experience in court," Jarrod replied with more conviction. "And that’s the last time I’m going to say it."

He was starting to get very angry with this man. Why was the inspector pushing so hard for Jarrod to take on this case? Had someone put him up to it? Jarrod wasn’t sure .And he knew he had to hold his temper in check. But the man wouldn’t stop pushing him.

"I suggest you just get out of here," he said pointing toward the door. "We don’t even need you around here. What a shame too. That father of yours will never live this down. His own flesh and blood turning to mush because he’s afraid."

That did it. Jarrod had heard all he wanted to from this man. He reached over grabbing the inspector by the front of his shirt. He looked him in the eye and Jarrod’s blue eyes were blazing.

"Jarrod," Adam said trying to get Jarrod to listen to him, "let him go. You’re only going to be locked up yourself. Don’t take it too hard. He’s not really insulting your father. Or you for that matter."

"But Adam," he replied still angry, "I can’t let what he said about father go without answering his challenge. Father wasn’t the only one he insulted. And what do you mean that he didn’t really mean it? What’s going on?"

Jarrod released the inspector and turned to look at Adam. He wasn’t sure what was going on between the two men but something was. Adam was smiling at him. And for that matter so was the inspector.

"Think about it son," Adam told him. "What would your father say? Jarrod, you are a capable lawyer. Sandra needs you. Please take the case and prove her innocent."

Jarrod looked at Adam then at the inspector. He knew what they had done.

"You did this on purpose," he said realizing the truth. "You pushed me to my brink. You really think she wants me to defend her. I appreciate the faith you have in me but as I said before I don’t have enough experience."

"We did," Adam replied trying to understand why Jarrod was so hesitant. "But you were the one who wouldn’t even listen to me. I wanted you from the start. And when I heard you talk about that Springer I knew I wanted you even more."

"Yes," Scott told him. "Adam and I did this on purpose but you came awfully close to winding up under arrest yourself. And I would have been within my rights to lock you up."

"Now Dan," Adam told him trying to calm the situation. "You know perfectly well you did that on purpose to get a rise out of Jarrod too. And I thank you. You were perfect as the villain."

Inspector Scott nodded at Adam.

"I had to know whether you had it in you to prove this girl innocent," he said nodding. "You have all the tools from what I’ve heard. But you lacked the motivation."

"I had to get a rise out of you to get you to take Sandra’s case," Adam answered. "So I asked Dan to insult you and your father. I knew that would do it. There wasn’t anything personal meant. I just had to make you mad enough to take the case. That’s all."

"You did that on purpose?" Jarrod asked not believing what he was hearing. "I can’t believe this. My own partner resorts to insults to get me to accept a case. How could you? Haven’t I proved myself to you?"

"Yes," Adam answered. "I’m sorry Jarrod. But I had to make you take this case. I don’t want another attorney. I want you. And now that you’ve calmed down, you can now accept and let’s get to work on getting Sandra out of here."

"You do?" Jarrod asked. "I don’t think I like your methods but it was a good act. I was really believing the inspector had it in for me."

"Yes," Adam answered. "Will you defend Sandra?"

Jarrod stood there looking at the inspector and Adam. He still couldn’t believe what they had done to him. Finally, he nodded his head.

"Yes," Jarrod said agreeing to take the murder case. "I’ll take the case. I don’t guarantee that I’ll be the best trial lawyer but I’ll give it a try. And if I can, I will prove her innocent."

"That’s a relief," Adam replied smiling. "Now I know she’ll have the best."

Jarrod doubted that but he didn’t say anything. Now started the real work. He would have to investigate this death to see if there were any other people who had a motive.

Jarrod and Adam were informed that Sandra would have to stay at the police station until her inquest, which was set for Wednesday morning.

"I’m sorry Adam," Dan said as they sat in his office. "I can’t release Sandra Johanson to you until after the inquest. There is a problem with the knife wound. Officer Krebbs says it was in his back and she says it was in his stomach."

"Can’t you set bail?" he asked trying to understand the reason behind it.

"Judge Winegarden has decided not to set bail until after the inquest," Dan answered. "You should have her out before the trial."

"I hope so," he said looking at his friend. "I don’t understand any of this. Sandra isn’t a murderer. She was just provoked and stabbed him before she realized she had."

"Adam," Jarrod replied looking at his boss, "I can understand how you feel. Sandra did have a very unbelievable story. And her story didn’t go along with the facts. Now, I’m not trying to say she’s guilty. But I can see the district attorney’s side."

"Jarrod," he told his partner, "I don’t believe any of this. It’s like a nightmare that won’t end."

"I can feel for you Adam," Dan said looking at his friend. "But she has to stay. You are free to visit her if you wish."

"I guess I should to let her know that I haven’t abandoned her," he replied standing up. "I’ll see her now."

"All right," Dan told him signaling for another officer to escort Jarrod and Adam to Sandra.

Adam was very quiet as they walked. Jarrod tried to make him feel better. But he knew the case against Sandra was a good one and he would have to be on his toes if he had any chance of winning.

"It’s for the best Adam," he said as they walked to the visiting room. "I’ll go to the hotel room and start my own investigation after we’re through. After that and after the inquest, I’m going to go to Nevada to see if I can look into Paul Davis’ background."

"Do you really think he might have set this up to frame Sandra and someone finished him off?" Adam asked speculating. "I mean if he had wronged someone like a partner maybe or someone else."

"I don’t know for sure," he answered having already considered both possibilities. "I want to see that hotel room and then check out his past. I am betting that the information I am seeking to free Sandra is in either that room or in Nevada. It’s just a matter of sorting through it to find that information."

"How long will you be gone?" Adam asked as they arrived at the door to the room. "I mean with her inquest set for next week, you won’t have a lot of time."

"Not more than a few days," he answered stopping to look at Adam. "I should be able to find out what Paul Davis was really doing. And if he was doing something illegal. There were some items in Sandra’s story that leads me to believe that Davis wasn’t who he said he was. And I have to find out for sure."

"What do you mean by that?" Adam asked not understanding what Jarrod meant. "Are you telling me that you don’t believe her now?"

"I feel sure that there’s more to this whole incident than what Sandra told us," he answered. "I will know more later. After I return from Nevada."

"Are you all right with going back to Carson City?" Adam asked knowing that was a very sore subject to Jarrod.

"Yes," he answered knowing what Adam meant. "I’ll be fine. I should be back no later than Friday. That’s four days away. I’ll send you a wire the first day to give you some idea how long I will be."

"I wish I could go with you," Adam said looking at Jarrod. "But I better stay here. I still have a lot of work to do. You be careful and I’ll see you no later than Friday. And I will look for that wire. At least I will know that you are fine."

"All right," he replied as they walked into the visiting room.

Sandra was sitting at one of the tables. Both Adam and Jarrod could tell that she hadn’t slept. As they reached the table, she looked up at them.

"I understand I can’t leave," she said as quietly as she could.

"That’s right Sandra, "Jarrod replied trying to comfort her as he sat down. "The judge will hear the facts at the inquest and then he will set bail. Your inquest is scheduled for Wednesday morning at 10 o’clock. Until then you will have to stay here."

"Jarrod this is so hard," she told them. "I am so scared."

"I know you are," Adam said speaking for the first time. "But you are strong Sandra. You show them that you won’t let this minor setback get you down. Jarrod is going to free you once he returns from Carson City."

"Are you going to Carson City to check into Paul’s background," she asked.

"Yes," Jarrod answered. "I feel that I have to. I have to see if he had another line of work other than selling books."

"Jarrod," she said looking at him, "I dated Paul for over two years. Don’t you think I would have known if he was involved in something illegal?"

"You may not have," he replied. "Paul could have hid his real agenda from you and told you he sold books. If he only sold books, then why was he murdered? You see what I’m getting at."

"You believe that Paul was mixed up in something and he used me?" she asked.

"No," he answered trying to explain. "I mean that he could have sold books at one time but he had to be involved in something else to get him killed."

"Jarrod is right," Adam said looking at Sandra. "Paul wasn’t the man you thought he was. Maybe it was best that you had that argument last night. You found out that he had at least one secret."

"I understand," she replied nodding. "But it’s hard to believe that he wasn’t the nice young man I always thought he was."

"I know," Adam told her. "But right now just concentrate on getting out of here."

"I will," she said trying to smile. "I want to thank you two for helping me and believing in me."

"I know you Sandra," Adam replied smiling. "You have worked for me for a long time. You are no more a killer than I am."

"We’ll be back to go over your story after I have a chance to see that room," he told her standing up.

"Try not to worry," Adam said as they left the room

Jarrod headed for the hotel room while Adam went back to his office. He figured that room would help him understand exactly what had happened last night when Paul Davis was murdered. He had Sandra’s story and he had the police story. What he had to figure out was which story was the truth. When he walked in, he saw the door standing open and two officers were placing the body on a stretcher. Jarrod stopped to look at Paul Davis’ body.

"You looking for something mister?" one of the officers asked when he saw Jarrod. "This room is off limits until we can check the crime scene."

"I’m Sandra Johanson’s attorney," he answered. "I have a right to have a look at the crime scene. You know that?"

"Yes," the other officer told him. "Look around all you want. We have to get this body out of here. It’s not a pretty sight the way he was killed but they have a suspect and I hope she gets the book thrown at her."

"You are judging her roughly aren’t you?" he asked as he looked at the young officer. "She could be innocent you know. In fact, I plan to prove that."

"How?" The officer asked. "You don’t have much of a case."

"Officer Krebbs stated that the body was sitting in a chair," he answered. "Sandra Johanson isn’t a big woman and it would be very difficult for her to move a man the size of Paul Davis from the floor to a chair."

"If he was even on the floor," the officer said looking at Jarrod. "It doesn’t really matter. I’m not the one you have to convince."

As they started to leave with the body, Jarrod stopped them.

"Can I have a look at that body?" he asked. "I have a right since she is my client."

"Yeah," the other officer answered. "But don’t touch it."

"Why not?" he asked not understanding.

"Orders from the inspector," the officer answered. "I’m not to let anyone touch the body."

"I understand," he said but he wasn’t happy about it.

Jarrod lifted the sheet that covered the dead man. To his surprise, he saw no evidence of blood on the shirt front of Davis’ body but there was indeed blood on the back. One of the officers had lifted the body so Jarrod could see the wound that had killed him.

"Was the door open or closed when you arrived?" he asked the officer who seemed to be in charge.

"It was open when I arrived," the officer answered. "So was the crate over there. Several books were on the floor and something was missing from inside. Oh yeah. I found beads from a necklace on the floor. You going to really defend that woman? She is a little off in the head."

"I don’t think so," he said looking at the officer. "You just saw her after she was terrified by whatever happened in this room. Now I have to determine what happened and then prove it."

"You really think you can do that?" the officer asked doubting Jarrod could prove the girl innocent.

"Yes," he answered. "Now if you will excuse me, I need to look around.

He examined the entire room. He walked around looking at everything and then jotting down notes in a small pad he had pulled from his pocket. Then Jarrod looked at the crate. The lid had been pried off. He could tell that several of the nails were bent like someone was in a hurry to open it. It looked to him to like something was missing from the middle of the inside of the box. He made more notes as he examined the murder scene.

"Do you know where the letter opener was?" he asked turning back to the officer.

"In the dead man’s back," the officer answered. "I found him in a chair instead of on the floor like she said. The opener was still in his back."

"I see," he said, as he was ready to leave. "Thank you."

Jarrod went back to the police station to talk to Sandra again. He needed to clear up some points before he left for Carson City. When she was escorted inside the small room with the table, she looked very frightened.

"Am I going to be released now Jarrod?" she asked hopefully. "Please tell me you’ve found evidence to clear me of this murder charge."

"Not yet," he answered. "There are a few things that don’t add up. I need to ask you a few more questions."

"What?" she asked concerned. "I’ve told you everything that happened. What more could you want?"

"You say that Paul’s body was on his back on the floor," he said looking at her expression. "Where in the room exactly?"

"That’s right," she replied nodding. "He fell backwards after I stuck the letter opener in his stomach by mistake. We were standing in the middle of the room from what I can remember. Although I still can’t be sure. It happened so fast last night. One minute we were celebrating and the next he was dead. I didn’t mean to hurt him. But he was trying to attack me and I had to defend myself. So I picked up the closest thing, the letter opener from a small table in the room close to the bed. And when he came toward me after ripping my sleeve off, I tried to push him away and the letter opener was in that hand."

"Was the door to his room open or shut when you ran out?" he asked wanting to verify facts.

"Let me think," she answered trying to remember. "I remember leaving it open when I left the room. And then I ran trying to get help for Paul."

"Did you see a large crate in the room?" he asked. "It was in the middle of the room."

"Yes," she answered. "It was closed and I remember asking Paul what was in it. He acted very nervous about that crate like there might have been something inside of it that he didn’t want me to know about."

"Just as I figured," he said looking at her. "Here’s what the room showed when I went there. Paul was sitting in a chair with a letter opener in his back. There was a trail of blood from the middle of the floor over to the chair. There wasn’t a speck of blood on the front of his shirt and I was unable to get a look at the man’s stomach to see if there was a second wound. The officers forbid me from touching the body. I need to see that body to see if indeed there is a second wound. Because if there is, then someone else was in that room after you left and that person or persons killed Paul."

"Why not?" she asked not understanding.

"The officer wouldn’t let me because they were moving the body and because the inspector had forbid it," he answered. "I intend to get a look at it before the trial. It’s just possible that he had made enemies over the years and someone might have come in there to get even. It could be that whatever was in the middle of that crate had something to do with it. Maybe they saw Paul on the floor and took something out of that room. They could have easily moved him to the chair and plunged the letter opener into his back. It’s also possible that he wasn’t dead when you ran out but the wound in his back killed him. I am running into a wall not knowing which way to turn."

"What about the missing blood?" she asked.

"Like I said," he answered, "he might have been alive enough to get up from the floor. He could have even gone over to the water basin, which I didn’t look at, to wash the wound out. Then he changed shirts after wrapping the wound when he was surprised by someone he either knew or was working with him or for him. It’s just speculation. But I really believe that there was someone else in that room after you left."

"Why go to Nevada?" she asked.

"To find out his background," he answered. "It’s just possible that Paul Davis was mixed up in something illegal as I told you before. And his partner or partners could have killed him framing you in the process. They could have gotten into an argument over money or something else and then it escalated into murder. And when they noticed the wound in Paul’s stomach they made it look like a murder knowing that whoever had stabbed him the first time would be the one to get caught."

"I can’t believe Paul would be mixed up in something like that," she said thinking about the man she had once loved. "He was so kind and caring."

"Except for last night," he replied looking at her. "That was the only time wasn’t it?"

"He’s always had a temper," she told him. "But he had never carried it that far before. We would argue about money, job or marriage but in the end we would make up and everything would be fine until the next time."

"How many times has he lost it around you?" he asked needing to know everything he could about the man. "This could be valuable in trying to learn just what kind of man Paul was. If he did lose his temper often we use that to our benefit by saying that he could have made someone else just as mad and they killed him."

"Not many," she said trying to remember. "Most of the time Paul was wonderful. He took me out to eat often especially after he returned from Nevada. And he had a lot of money too. I thought that was a bit odd since he sold books. No one can read that many books. The only times he got angry was when I got too close to the crate."

"The crate?" he asked thinking about the box in the room. "There must have been something in there he didn’t want you to know about."

"Yes," she answered. "He told me it was some of his books but he was always watching me to make sure I stayed away from it. I asked him once to see inside and he got real upset. He told me that I was never to mention that crate again. And he had a look on his face that really frightened me. Like he was willing to kill me if I didn’t leave that crate alone."

"I see," he said writing down notes. "Did he mention where in Nevada he worked out of?"

"Yes," she answered. "One time he said that he had to go back to Carson City to see a Mr. Radcliff about some more books. He would make a trip there every week just like clockwork. I thought that was odd too but I didn’t dare mention it to him for fear that he might do something to me."

"Radcliff?" Jarrod asked writing down the name. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she answered. "He said that Mr. Radcliff had an office on Main Street in Carson City. And that he ordered books almost every week so Paul had to go back every week to pick up the new shipment. But he always brought back that same crate. He only brought one too. As many times as he went, you’d think he’d have more books than one crate full."

"I’m going to go to Carson City to check with this Radcliff," he replied rising from the table. "Maybe he can clear up some of this mystery. You just take it easy and try not to worry. I believe I’ll have enough evidence to clear you of murder."

"Oh thank you Jarrod," she told him trying to smile. "You be careful yourself. I’m afraid this man Radcliff might want to hurt you."

"I’ll be careful and once we get this inquest over," he said smiling, "I’ll get you out on bail and then I’ll leave for Carson City."

Jarrod left the police station. As he walked home, he went over what he had learned at the hotel and from Sandra. One thing was for sure, someone was lying and it was up to him to figure out who and why.

On Wednesday morning, Jarrod and Sandra were sitting in the courthouse. Sandra was very quiet and very scared.

"Jarrod," she said looking at him, "I can’t stay in that cell any longer. I am very scared. Please get me out."

"Calm down," he replied. "I’m going to do that. Just have faith in me."

"I do," she told him. "I do."

The judge entered and the inquest started.

"Doctor," the district attorney said walking to stand in front of the witness chair, "you have examined the body of the deceased, Paul Davis."

"Yes sir," he replied. I have."

"What did you find?" the DA asked.

"I found two different stab wounds on the body," he answered.

"Where were they?" the man asked.

"One was in his back," he answered. "That is the one that killed him. The other one was a very small wound in his stomach. It wouldn’t have caused death. It was more like a small skin prick."

"Doctor," the DA asked, "are you positive that Paul Davis was murdered?"

"Yes sir," he answered.

"Your honor," the DA said looking at the judge, "I feel that I have shown that the defendant, Sandra Johanson killed Paul Davis by plunging the letter opener into the man’s back. Further, that she ran from the room after the murder."

"Counselor," the judge asked, "do you have any questions for the doctor?"

"Not at this time your honor," he answered.

Sandra looked at him with horror on her face.

"However," he said turning back to look at the judge, "I would like bail set for my client. Both myself and her employer, Adam Howard will guarantee that she will be present when the trial begins."

"Your honor," the DA remarked, "I don’t think she should be freed. I think she will flee if given the chance."

"She won’t because this is her first offense your honor," he said. She doesn’t have a prior record and she confessed to the crime of her own free will. She is also ready to stand trial to clear her name. I will guarantee she will not flee."

"Mr. Morton," the judge replied looking at the DA, "do you have any objections?"

"Not if Mr. Barkley can guarantee that she will not run."

"Mr. Barkley," the judge told him. "Anything else?"

"I can guarantee she will stay," he said looking over at the DA. "Her employer is going to pay bail if it is granted and be responsible for her until the trial."

"Mr. Morton," the judge asked, "anything else?"

"No your honor," Morton answered.

"I have no problem with setting bail," the judge replied. "Bail will be set at $50,000. The trial will begin one week from Monday. Court adjourned."

"That’s a pretty high bail Jarrod," Adam told him as he walked to the table where Jarrod and Sandra were.

"Not really," he said looking at Adam. "She was in the room with Paul. She admits to stabbing him. From his point of view there is motive."

"Are you trying to defend her or trying to convict her?" Adam asked wondering which side Jarrod was on."

"I’m going to defend her," he answered. "But I have to look at it from every angle."

"I know," Adam said helping Sandra to her feet. "Well, young lady, why don’t we see about getting you out of here?"

"Yes sir," she replied smiling at him. "Thank you Mr. Howard."

"Remember Sandra," he told her looking at her, "you’re not out of the woods. I still have to come up with enough evidence to free you. That’s why I’m leaving for Carson City this afternoon."

"Do you really think you can find enough evidence to clear her?" Adam asked as they left the courtroom after Adam paid the bail.

"Yes I do," he answered. "Now you keep a close eye on her. And Sandra, don’t you worry. I’ll have the evidence when I return."

"I hope so," she said trying to smile.

Jarrod went back to his apartment after leaving the courthouse. He quickly packed a few clothes and left on the late afternoon train for Carson City.

Jarrod arrived in Carson City the next day. The entire trip he had spent going over and over his notes looking for anything that would help him figure out exactly what had happened in that hotel room. There had to some connection but right now he couldn’t figure out what.

As the train rolled into Carson City, he remembered being here four months earlier but he had a job to do. He had to forget what he went through at the hands of those three men. Even thought he would have to come back here to testify later, he had to concentrate on Paul Davis and on this murder trial along with freeing a woman who he in his heart felt was innocent. But the biggest problem would be proving it.

He went to the same hotel and saw the same clerk. And he was still as lazy as the last time he was here. In fact, Jarrod believed that the man might have actually helped those men get him. He wondered how they knew in advance that he was coming out to the mine. It was almost like they had been dispatched to stop him. But he couldn’t worry about that now. He had another job to do.

"Good afternoon," he said as he walked up to the desk. "I don’t know whether you remember me but I was here several months ago. I had a run in with some not so friendly men at a mine not too far from here."

"Yeah," the clerk replied nodding. "I remember you. What do you want now? I thought you would have learned a lesson from the first trip."

"I need to see a Mr. Radcliff," he told him noticing the expression on the man’s face. "I was told he has an office on Main Street."

"Yeah," the clerk said not wanting to say any more. "Down on the right. What do you want with him? He hasn’t done anything wrong."

"Thank you," he replied looking at the man. "You think he’s guilty of something? I just wanted to talk to him about a problem in San Francisco."

"So," the clerk told him, "you here for a reason?"

"I just told you why," he said realizing the man knew more than he was saying. "So you can go tell the man, you need to get your facts straight. I am here because a man named Paul Davis was murdered in San Francisco yesterday and his girlfriend has been arrested. I’m her attorney. Now if you will excuse me, I need to talk to this Radcliff because Paul Davis supposedly worked for him."

"Yeah," the clerk replied. "Paul worked for him. I always rented him the same room every time he came to town. He would stay a couple of days, pick up a new crate of books and then leave."

"New crate of books every time he was here," Jarrod told him. "Was he selling that many books?

"I don’t know," the clerk said. "I only know what I saw."

"I appreciate the information," he replied picking up his bag and leaving the hotel.

Jarrod was very anxious to talk to this gentleman. Sandra had said that Paul always returned with the same crate and this man just said that he got a new crate on every trip. This murder investigation was turning into a mystery in Jarrod’s opinion. As he walked down the street, he noticed that the office of Henry Radcliff was a very eloquent one. From his own point of view, the man had done very well for himself. He doubted that this man could really help him but he had to check every lead out. The man sitting behind the desk in that office was a tall, thin man with brown hair and a beard. He rose from his chair and walked around his desk.

"Can I help you?" he asked holding out his right hand to Jarrod. "I believe you are new in town."

"Yes," Jarrod answered shaking his hand. "My name is Jarrod Barkley and I’m an attorney. I would like to ask you about Paul Davis."

"What about him?" he asked looking at Jarrod. "He done something wrong?"

"Did he work for you?" Jarrod asked trying to find out all he could from this man.

"Yes," he answered not wanting to give anything away. "Sold books."

"I see," Jarrod said making more notes in his small pad. "Did you know he was murdered in his hotel room in San Francisco yesterday? His girlfriend of two years was arrested in connection with that murder. She told me that Paul came here every week to get more books."

"No," he replied but Jarrod could see that the man was lying. "I don’t get to see any new papers until they are several months old."

"Are you sure?" Jarrod asked again knowing that he had struck a nerve with this man.

"Look," he said getting upset, "I don’t know what you want here but I’m a busy man. I have people to see and sales to take care of. So if you’re through, would you please leave?"

"I am representing the woman accused of murdering Davis," Jarrod replied. "She was his girlfriend and I believe that she is innocent. I also believe that Davis wasn’t who he pretended to be. From the size of the opening in the crate sitting in his room, I’d say he was keeping something from being seen. Maybe a small press of some kind to make counterfeit money. It’s just a guess but I have a strong feeling there was more to Paul Davis then just selling books."

Radcliff realized that Jarrod knew the truth. He also realized that the man would have to be dealt with but he had to be careful. The name Barkley was as well known here as it was in California. He would take care of this meddlesome lawyer just as soon as he could.

"I don’t have any idea what you are talking about," he told Jarrod knowing that this man knew the truth. "I suggest you leave now. I’m very busy and I don’t need to be bothered by someone like you."

"I won’t bother you any longer," Jarrod said realizing that this man could be trouble. "I’m sorry I took up your valuable time."

But he had to find out the truth to free Sandra. He left the office walking back to the hotel where he would get a room for the night. And tomorrow he would have another talk with Mr. Radcliff. If he was successful, Paul Davis’ past would be revealed before he left here.

As soon as Jarrod had left his office, Radcliff called two of his other employees from the back room where they had been listening.

"Grayson," he said calling to his two best men, "Bingham, get in here."

The two men walked out of the back room. They had heard most of the conversation and knew that this lawyer could mean trouble.

"You heard?" he asked them. "I believe this young lawyer is going to have to be dealt with harshly. He knows too much and he could put the rest of it together. I can sense that he is smart enough to cause trouble for us. And we can’t allow that to happen. I’ve worked too long and too hard to get this set up. And I won’t have it ruined by some eager lawyer out to prove himself. We need to dispose of young Mr. Barkley."

"Yes," Grayson answered. "What do you want us to do? We can kill him and dump his body where it won’t be found. Or we can keep him hid until you are ready to use him."

"Take care of young Mr. Barkley," he said smiling. "But I don’t want him killed out right. He has to be kept away from that courthouse. You set it up so that Davis’ girlfriend would be arrested and charged with his murder. Now we don’t want some lawyer to ruin that. And with that name, he’s too well known to have his body show up around here dead. I need to get him away from here so he won’t jeopardize all this hard work we’ve done. If he tells the law or finds any more evidence, we’ll be out of business. Take him somewhere where he won’t be found and dispose of him but remember don’t kill him yourselves."

"What do we do with him?" Bingham asked. "If you don’t want him killed, then what?"

"Dump him in the desert," he answered thinking of a plan to get rid of Jarrod. "Leave him there to die and no one will ever know that he was even here. I can take care of the hotel clerk so he won’t tell that Barkley was here. The only thing they will know is that he disappeared one day never to be seen again. And all our problems will be solved. We got rid of Paul because he was becoming too greedy. Now we get rid of this lawyer so the girl will be convicted."

"Sure thing," they said and left the office.

Jarrod walked back toward the hotel slowly trying to work everything out in his mind. He was tired from being up half the night and then coming here only to run into another wall. This was a heck of a way to start a law career.

"I know that Sandra is innocent," he said aloud as he walked. "But how do I prove it? I have to find out what Radcliff is hiding. Could it be that this man is a counterfeiter? I mean, his expression suddenly changed when I mentioned counterfeiting. If he is, then a press was in that crate."

Jarrod didn’t see the two men that followed him for a short distance. His mind was on Sandra and the case.

"There he is," Bingham said as they caught sight of Jarrod. "There is a side street up ahead of him before he gets to the hotel. We can make it to that side street along the back of the buildings and catch him there."

"Right," Grayson replied turning down one of the side streets and behind the general hardware store.

They made it to that side street a good five to ten minutes before they saw Jarrod.

"I’ll wait right here," Grayson said as he leaned up against one of the walls near the street. "I’ll grab him from behind, pull him into here and then you knock him out."

"Sure," Bingham replied as he pulled his pistol from his holster. "It will be a pleasure to give this lawyer the biggest headache he’s ever felt. And no one will ever know that he was here in the first place. He’ll just be a missing person."

"You just like your job too much," Grayson told him smiling.

"And why shouldn’t I?" Bingham said smiling. "I am good at it."

Jarrod walked past the street and before he knew what happened, someone grabbed him from behind pulling him into the side street.

"What the..." he started to say as he was pulled and grabbed from behind.

He momentarily got a look at one of the men before the other one cold cocked him on the head and he went down in a heap.

"Good," Grayson said as they looked down at Jarrod. "We’ll load him into the wagon for his one way trip to the desert."

"Yeah," Bingham replied also looking down at Jarrod, "we’re going to enjoy dumping his body out there without any water. He won’t last a day."

"Don’t get too excited," Grayson told him. "He may know survival techniques. But they won’t do him any good. With that headache he’s going to have, he won’t be able to think clearly and that will be his end."

"You’re right," Bingham said smiling. "We better get him out of here before someone sees us."

"I’ll get the wagon," Grayson said as he left the side street heading toward one of the corrals where they had a wagon waiting.

The other man stayed with Jarrod. He knew from the way he had hit this man that he would be unconscious for a long while. And when he did wake up, he would be stranded forever in that cursed desert for the rest of his short life. The two men got rid of the bag Jarrod was carrying by tossing it behind some discarded crates and loaded him into a wagon.

"He’s not light," Grayson said as he struggled to get Jarrod into the wagon. "You wouldn’t think he’d be that heavy."

"We’ll just roll him out when we get out there," Bingham replied trying to help his partner. "He’s dead weight now. Here let me help you get him in."

They finally got him loaded and then they then headed for a place in the desert that was far enough away from civilization so that no one would find him. They stopped at an area that showed no trees or shelter of any kind about an hour later.

"This should be as good a place as any," one of them said as he stopped the wagon. "I don’t think he will be able to summon any help before he dies out here in this searing heat."

"Yeah," the other one replied pulling Jarrod from the wagon and dumping him onto the sandy ground. "We better get back to town and tell Radcliff his problem has been taken care of."

The other man nodded as they rode away leaving an unconscious Jarrod to survive in this god for saken desert. The sun beat down unmercifully on Jarrod’s unconscious body lying in the open. Would he survive or would he die out here all alone?

The two men arrived back in town and went straight to Radcliff’s office. They were smiling as they walked into the office.

"Did you dispose of that lawyer?" he asked as the two men walked into the office. "No one will be able to find him I hope."

"Yep," Bingham answered. "He won’t be found and if he is, he’s got a headache that will last for a long time."

"Good," he said smiling. "Now we can proceed with our plans."

The three men went to work on making more counterfeit money to flood both Nevada and California.

When Jarrod awoke some twelve hours later with a pounding headache, he was lying on dirt on his right side. He rolled over on his stomach pulling his knees up under him. He managed to get to his feet but his head was pounding. He had to stand there just a few minutes until the dizziness subsided some. He looked around at his surroundings and realized that he was in the desert. He wasn’t sure how he had gotten here.

"How did I end up here?" he asked out loud. "I remember getting grabbed from behind and then nothing until now."

The last thing he remembered was walking down the street toward the hotel in Carson City and being pulled into a side street from behind. He figured he must have been hit on the head and that would explain the headache. Now he was stranded in the desert. He didn’t have a clue as to how he had ended up here but he knew he had to start moving or die right here. The air was cool being it was night but just as soon as the sun came up he knew the temperature would start to climb. He looked around for any sign of rocks or trees that he could rest under until his head stopped its pounding, but didn’t see any. He started walking but he wasn’t sure which way to go. He knew he had to get back to town so he could be there for Sandra’s inquest, which was scheduled for the first of next week. But in his present situation, he doubted he could get out of here for days. If he could get out of here at all. He wasn’t sure exactly which way to go so he followed the moon hoping he would run into someone who would be willing to help him. He knew enough about desert survival to know that he needed water. He could deal with the lack of food, but he really needed water so he wouldn’t dehydrate. He eyed some cactus trees in the distance the way he was walking so he made a point of keeping them in sight. At least they might be able to give him some water. But he wasn’t positive that they were cactus trees. He knew his mind could be playing tricks on him because of the headache but he had to try or die right here.

As the night turned into the first rays of a new day, he was barely able to stay upright. He was so thirsty. All he wanted was a drink of precious water. But he didn’t see any. The cactus trees he thought he had seen the night before were either hallucinations or something else entirely. He was barely able put one foot in front of the other one because his headache was still there and getting worse with every step he took but he continued to walk. He knew if he stopped, he would probably never get up on his feet again. He still wasn’t sure which way to proceed but he kept going and hoped that someone would find him.

"I don’t understand it," Adam said as he sat in Dan Scott’s office at the police station. "Jarrod should have been back today. He told me that he thought he could wrap up things in Carson City in one day or no more than a couple. I should have received word from him telling me he was going to stay over. He promised he would wire me."

"Calm down Adam," he replied looking at his friend. "He probably just got busy and forgot to send it."

"You don’t understand," Adam told him. "Jarrod was in Carson City four months ago. And he was almost killed. I ended up having to inform his parents of his disappearance then. How do you think they’re going to react when I tell them he’s missing again? In the same city. It’s like a bad dream."

"You’ll have to tell them," he said trying to smile. "If he doesn’t get back here for the inquest, they will appoint an attorney for that girl."

"I’m afraid of that," Adam replied. "Someone who doesn’t care that Sandra is innocent. Someone who just wants to make a name for himself at the cost of that young girl’s life. It’s not fair Dan. Sandra didn’t really do anything wrong and now the man who was going to prove it is missing. I think it’s all tied together somehow. But I don’t know how to find out."

"You had better let that boy’s parents know what’s happened," he told Adam. "They need to know so they can try to find him hopefully before it’s too late."

"You’re right," Adam said nodding. "I’ll go home, put some clothes together and head out to Stockton as soon as possible."

"Adam," he replied standing up, "you know I believe Sandra is innocent. But I don’t count in this. Jarrod does and now that he’s missing, Sandra’s life hangs by a thread."

Adam nodded realizing that Dan Scott was right. He had to find Jarrod before it was too late. He dreaded telling Tom and Victoria Barkley but he knew it had to be done and he had to do it in person. He went home to pack and explain everything to Cora.

"Adam," his wife asked when he came home early from work and started packing for a trip, "what’s wrong? You look like you just lost your best friend."

"Cora," he answered stopping for a minute to look at her, "I think something has happened to Jarrod."

"What now?" she asked rolling her eyes. "It’s been nothing but trouble since you hired him. Why don’t you just get rid of him?"

"Cora," he answered still looking at her, "I think he has potential. I believe he has the drive inside to become a top-notch lawyer. But he can’t if he is missing or worse."

"Go look for him," she said sarcastically. "Or do you have any idea where he is? Adam, when are you going to stop trying to help everyone around you? That boy is going to have to make it on his own. Just because you made some stupid promise to a dead man doesn’t mean that you have to go off to inform his parents that he’s missing."

"I am going to find him," he replied determined to locate Jarrod in spite of what his wife said, "and bring him back where he belongs. This whole situation is crazy. First, Sandra is accused of murder and now that I have persuaded Jarrod to represent her, he disappears. Something is very wrong."

"I know you will," she told him smiling. "You really believe he is worth it don’t you?"

"Yes I do," he said smiling. "Jarrod has a lot of potential. He will be a heck of a trial lawyer providing he is found alive."

"I’ll see you when you return," she replied kissing him. "You think he could be dead?"

"Thank you for understanding," he told her returning the kiss. "I really don’t know at this point but I have a feeling that he stumbled onto something in Carson City and it may have cost him his life. Although I hope not."

"You’ll find him," she said smiling. "I have faith in you."

Adam packed a bag and caught the first train for Stockton. This news he would definitely deliver in person.

"I pray that I’m not telling his parents that Jarrod is dead," he said shaking his head.

By the next night, Jarrod thought he saw water but he was becoming delirious. He crawled toward the water only to discover that it was just more sand. When he tried to drink it, he nearly choked on the sand. He knew he couldn’t trust what he saw to be the truth. And his head was still pounding in rhythm with his heart as he tried to keep moving.

"Father," he said out loud but it was barely a whisper, "help me. I need you. Nick. Please find me."

Jarrod knew he had to keep trying to get home. He was getting slower and slower as he tried to reach those trees still in the distance. His throat cried out for some cool water but there wasn’t any around here that he could see. He was barely able to stay on his feet as he trudged on in the sand.

Then Jarrod thought he heard horses and that meant people. Someone who could help him. Someone who could give him the much needed water he could taste in his dry, parched mouth. He stopped and waited; trying to see who it was in the distance. But all he saw was a cloud of dust. As the sound got closer, he looked up to see two men riding his way. He was so relieved. Now he would be able to get water and maybe a ride back to town wherever it was. He was so turned around that his sense of direction was all messed up. He tried to motion to them to come his way. But he was so weak and barely able to flag them down.

The two men saw the lone figure standing in the middle of nowhere. And they decided to have a little fun with whomever it was trying to get their attention.

"Look Floyd," one of them said looking at Jarrod, "he’s out here in this heat all alone and without water."

"You lost or something?" Floyd asked as he rode up in front of Jarrod.

"I need water," Jarrod said but it was barely audible. "Please."

"I bet you would like some wouldn’t you?" Hank asked also looking at Jarrod and holding up his canteen for Jarrod to see. "You look so weak and tired."

"Hank," Floyd replied smiling, "he don’t need no water. He needs a swift kick in the teeth."

Floyd rode over close to Jarrod, reaching out with his booted foot, kicked him in the face under the chin. The jolt of the kick sent Jarrod falling backwards to the hard dry ground. He tried to shake off the black spots that threatened to overtake him just as Floyd dismounted walking over to him; Floyd lifted his head up by the hair. Looking into his eyes, Jarrod saw something that scared even him. He saw a hatred. The kind of hatred that told him these two men weren’t going to help him. He tried to get away from them but in his weakened condition he wasn’t able.

"You want help boy," he said smiling. "I’ll give you help. You won’t have to worry about dying from thirst. You will die from the beating I’m going to give you. I’ve been looking for someone to beat up and you’ll serve the purpose very nicely."

"No," Jarrod replied trying to get away from him. "I just want to get out of here. Someone left me here two days ago. I don’t remember everything but I do remember getting hit on the head. Please could you spare just a drop of water?"

"Too bad," he told Jarrod as he pulled back his fist and shot it right into Jarrod’s face.

Jarrod couldn’t feel the abuse he was forced to take after just a few blows. He was on the verge of passing out but Floyd wouldn’t stop. He was also so weak that he couldn’t even defend himself. It was as if the man took pride in seeing just how much punishment he could dish out. Luckily, for Jarrod, the abuse didn’t last too long. The two men became bored with him.

"Floyd," Hank said as he watched his friend continuing to abuse Jarrod, "let’s go. This isn’t much fun and the boy isn’t going to last too much longer. We can ride into Virginia City and find a couple of girls to have some fun with."

"All right," Floyd replied as he punched Jarrod one last time.

Floyd mounted up and the two men rode off laughing as they went. Jarrod watched them ride away even though he felt blood running down his bruised face. He couldn’t stand up any longer because of the abuse he had suffered so be began to crawl. He couldn’t even get his knees up under him. So he tried to drag himself along to try to reach help. His head started to pound and he knew his time was short. Jarrod was burning up both inside with a high fever and out from a heat stroke. His face hurt from the attack. Finally, after trying to maneuver across the wide desert, he passed out in the blazing sunlight. The desert began to heat up as the day went on and Jarrod lay quietly in the sand. Would help reach him in time? Or was he going to spend eternity here until his bones were found.