A Time for Mercy (Jake Brigance #3) - John Grisham Page 0,107
and carried it out perfectly. His defense was not about his mental state, it was about sympathy from the jury. It will all come down to the jury, as always.”
“And how do you make the jurors sympathetic?”
Jake glanced over his shoulder. Hanna and Mully were fast asleep. Softly, he said, “The pregnant sister.”
“And the dead mother?”
“The dead mother will be a powerful element and we’ll use it continually. However, she wasn’t dead. She was still breathing, with a pulse, and the prosecution will make much of that. The kids should’ve known that Josie wasn’t dead.”
“Come on, Jake. Two kids absolutely terrified, probably hysterical because their mother was unconscious and not responsive, once again beaten by a brute. It seems to me that was quite reasonable to believe she was dead.”
“That’s what I’ll tell the jury.”
“Okay, what’s the third scenario? A hung jury?”
“Yes. A few of the jurors are sympathetic and refuse to go along with capital murder. They want something less, but the majority digs in and wants the gas chamber. Deliberations could be a free-for-all as the jury completely deadlocks and hangs itself. After a few days Noose has no choice but to declare a mistrial and sends everybody home. Drew goes back to his cell and waits for the retrial.”
“And how likely is that?”
“You tell me. Put yourself on the jury. You already know the facts. There aren’t many of them.”
“Why do you always put me on the jury?”
Jake chuckled. He was guilty, again. “A hung jury would be a big win. A guilty verdict is more likely. A not-guilty-by-reason-of-insanity is a long shot.”
Carla watched the hills pass. They were on an interstate, somewhere in Georgia, and she wasn’t finished. She turned around again and checked on Hanna, then said, softly, “Josie promised you there will not be an abortion, right?”
“She did, reluctantly. Plus, it’s too late.”
“So there’ll be a baby in September, assuming nature cooperates. And Kiera seems to be doing well and seeing a doctor.”
“Yes, we’re paying for some of that.”
“And she has agreed to an adoption.”
“You were there when she did. Josie is demanding it. She knows who’d end up raising the kid and right now she can barely feed Kiera and herself.”
Carla took a deep breath and looked at her husband. “Have you thought about adopting the child?”
“As a lawyer?”
“No, as a father.”
Jake almost gasped, and there was a slight jerk on the wheel. He looked at her in utter amazement, shook his head, and said, “Well, no, I have not thought about it. Obviously you have.”
“Can we talk about it?”
“What don’t we talk about?”
Both turned to check on Hanna.
“Well,” Carla said, in that tone that meant that the discussion they were about to have would be complicated. Jake stared straight ahead and ran through his own quick list of complications. “We talked about adoption years ago and then, for some reason I can’t really remember, we just stopped talking. Hanna was a toddler. The doctors had told us that we were lucky to get pregnant with her, after some false starts, and that it would not happen again. We wanted at least one more, maybe two.”
“I remember. I was there.”
“I guess we just got busy with life and became content with an only child.”
“Very content.”
“But the baby will need a good home, Jake.”
“I’m sure they’ll find one. I do several private adoptions a year and there’s always a demand for babies.”
“We would have the inside track, Jake, don’t you think?”
“I think there are at least two big issues here. Most important, are we as a family ready to expand? Do you, at the age of thirty-seven, want another baby?”
“I think so.”
“What about Hanna? How will she react?”
“She’ll absolutely adore a little brother.”
“Brother?”
“Yes. Kiera told Meg two days ago that it’s a boy.”
“And why wasn’t I informed?”
“It’s girl talk, Jake, and you’re always too busy. Think about it, Jake, a little boy with a big sister almost ten years older.”
“Why am I suddenly thinking about diapers and walking the floor at night?”
“They outgrow that. The worst part of having a child is giving birth.”
“I rather enjoyed it.”
“Easy for you to say. Now we can avoid all that.”
They were quiet for several miles as both plotted their next moves. Jake was reeling and trying to organize his thoughts. Carla had planned the attack and was prepared for any resistance.
He seemed to relax, and then he smiled at his adorable wife. “When exactly did you start thinking about this?”