The Tenth Justice - Brad Meltzer [49]
“That’s fine. By the way, I’ll assume you haven’t spoken to Eric yet?”
“Nope. We’re meeting tonight at eight to have it out.”
“Ben, do me a favor. Go easy on him.”
“I’m fine. I’m completely calm.”
“Yeah, but did you hear what I said? Go easy on him. He’s still your friend.”
“Listen, I have to go,” Ben said, stretching. “I have to work on these opinions.” Hanging up the phone, Ben pulled his chair up to his desk. He opened the brown folder marked “Russell decision” and pulled out his first draft. Staring at the pages, he wondered if Osterman’s clerks really swayed opinions to their own agenda. No way, he thought. That story has urban myth written all over it. Lisa’s phone rang. He reached across the desk and picked it up. “Hello, Justice Hollis’s chambers.”
“Hi, I’m looking for a Lisa Schulman. Do I have the right extension?”
“You do.” Ben pulled the phone toward his own desk. “She just stepped out for a minute. Can I take a message?”
“Can you tell her Diana Martin of The Washington Post called her, and if she could give me a call back that’d be great.”
Puzzled, Ben said, “I guess she has your number?”
“No, no. She doesn’t even know me. Let me give it to you.”
After writing down the number, Ben hung up the phone and sat back in his chair. For the next half hour, he stared at the pages of the Russell decision.
At three o’clock, Lisa returned to the office. “We’re done,” she sang as she entered the room, throwing a manila file folder on her desk. “He loved it! Oshinsky is O’history!” Taking one look at Ben, she asked, “What?”
“I have a message to give you. Diana Martin of The Washington Post called. She wants you to call her.”
“Ben, I can expl—”
“Don’t bother,” he said, throwing Diana’s number on her desk. “I won’t believe it.”
“Ben, don’t be so damn stubborn.”
“Why not? All my other friends picked today to dick me over. Why can’t I be a little bit stubborn? In fact, I think I’m entitled to be a full-fledged jerk today.”
“Well, you’re doing a great job of that. And let me ask you a question: Why were you even answering my line?”
“Don’t even think of turning this one around,” he said, jumping from his seat. “Your phone rang; I picked it up. Period. What’s your excuse?”
Lisa looked at her feet. “I was worried that you would be crazy if I didn’t get a phone call from the Post, so I had a friend of mine make that first call to me and I pretended it was the reporter. I was trying to make you feel better.”
Ben fell silent. “You really did that for me?”
“I did it because I pity you,” she said with a smile.
“That’s not a bad excuse.”
“C’mon, you can’t be mad.”
“You’re lucky this time,” he said, pointing at Lisa. “Next time you try to be nice, I’m gonna really get pissed.”
At seven-thirty, Ben packed up his briefcase and left the office. Walking downstairs, he thought about his forthcoming confrontation with Eric. If he has no explanation, he’s dead, Ben thought as he swiped his card through the security door on the first floor. Even if he has an explanation, he’s dead. As he passed the marble statues in the Great Hall, Ben heard the security guard at the front entrance mumble something into his walkie-talkie. When the guard got out of his seat, Ben wondered what was wrong. Slowly, he approached the entrance. The guard looked at his clipboard. At the last second, Ben decided to turn around. Heading back the way he came, he swiped his card through the security door he had just left, reentering the north wing of the Court. He hurried toward the unmanned side door that exited to the north side of the building. As he approached the door, he heard the echo of footsteps behind him. Only the guilty run, he thought, remembering the advice from his criminal law professor. As he approached the exit, he once again prepared to swipe his I.D. card. Forcing it though the machine that would let him reach the exit, he was surprised when he didn’t hear the usual click of access. Again he tried the card. Nothing.
“Ben, can we speak with you for a moment?”
Ben jumped. Turning around, he saw a man