“I can’t even imagine what you went through. I read about it. You were awfully close. They had you strapped in and had even started the process, hadn’t they?”
“Yeah,” Henry said as he downed his beer and picked up the fresh one the bartender had already set down for him. “Jack said he almost lost me.”
“I thought you were going to lose me today, Henry.”
“So did I, Danni. So did I.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
The following Monday at 9 a.m. sharp, Jack and Julian were at the state attorney’s office waiting to be ushered into a meeting that had been set up late Friday.
“Mr. Tobin and Mr. Reardon,” the receptionist said, “would you please follow me?”
Jack and Julian, who was dressed in a blue suit just like his attorney, followed the woman to a large conference room. She opened the door for them and ushered them inside. Danni was there along with a tall woman and a husky man. Danni came around the table and shook hands with Jack and Julian. She was all smiles as she introduced the other two people.
“Jack and Julian, this is Apache County State Attorney Jane Pelicano and Oakville Chief of Police Sam Jeffries.” Everybody shook hands and Jane Pelicano motioned them to be seated. She was now in charge of the proceedings.
After the arrest and subsequent conviction of the serial killer, Thomas Felton, Jane Pelicano, the prosecuting attorney, and Sam Jeffries, the head of the task force formed to apprehend the killer, were the two most popular people in the county. Jane used that newfound fame to successfully run for the position of Apache County state attorney. Sam became a double-dipper. He retired from the Sheriff’s Department and took the position as chief of police in Oakville. He was now Danni’s boss.
Jane opened the meeting.
“We have asked you both here today because we have made some decisions regarding your case, Julian, and we wanted to talk about those decisions before we made a public announcement. Since this case involves the university’s sports program as well as yourself, Julian, it has gotten a great deal of publicity. We want to make sure we tie up all the loose ends appropriately so that we are all on the same page, so to speak.”
Jack was not sure where this was going. If they were just going to drop the charges, what was the need for a meeting? He decided to start asking questions.
“Are you going to drop the charges?”
“Yes,” Jane Pelicano answered.
“What else is there to talk about?”
“We’d like your client to sign a release, releasing the police department, the City of Oakville, and the State of Florida from any and all claims arising out of this investigation. This is not normal procedure, but since there has been so much publicity already, some of it not favorable to your client, we thought it would be best.”
Ah, Jack thought. There’s the rub. They’re thinking about their own necks. Now that he knew the game, he decided to work for some concessions.
“That’s not a problem. However, we would like your announcement to say that you have completed your investigation and Julian Reardon has been completely exonerated. He is totally innocent.”
“I’m not sure we can go that far, Mr. Tobin,” Chief Jeffries said. “But we can work on some language with you.”
“I’m sure you can but I like my language ‘completely exonerated’ and ‘totally innocent.’ It kind of goes along with releasing the police department, the City of Oakville, and the State of Florida from ‘any and all claims arising out of the investigation,’ doesn’t it?”
“We’re not charging your client. Isn’t that enough, Mr. Tobin?” Chief Jeffries persisted.
“Let’s put it this way. You want a release since you think you may have some exposure because of the adverse publicity my client has endured. We are willing to give that to you, but we want a statement that removes the stigma caused by that adverse publicity. That’s only fair.”
Jeffries looked at Jane Pelicano and shrugged. Jack could tell they wanted to get this over with. Danni just sat there and looked pretty. This was a political decision and she was not a part of it.
“Okay,” Jane said. “We will agree with your language in exchange for the release if we can get it all done today. Time is important to all of us. We’d like to put this to bed.”
Jack chuckled to himself. He’d gotten everything he wanted, but the state needed to feel that they had the final concession.