by Anne Hunter staff writer
Adam Lee, brother of criminal defense attorney Montgomery Lee, was arrested in his home in the upscale Peachtree Battle neighborhood of East Atlanta. Adam Lee is charged with the murder of his wife, Rachel Lee. Mrs. Lee’s body was discovered by her husband Oct. 3 in their home. Mrs. Lee died as a result of repeated blows to the head. It was initially believed these fatal blows were inflicted by the couple’s mentally retarded son, Albert Lee, who has a history of violent behavior. Montgomery Lee, in a move that many legal analysts call highly unusual, is defending his brother. Neither brother could be reached for comment. Also highly unusual, it has been reported that Leo Hewitt will be handling the prosecution for the district attorney’s office. Mr. Hewitt gained notoriety three years ago for his mishandling of key evidence in the trial of child killer Frank Guaraldi. Mr. Guaraldi was subsequently freed only to be caught less than a month later with the corpse of a young girl. The district attorney’s office denies any involvement of Mr. Hewitt in the Lee case.
Bob Fox crumpled up the paper and tossed it in the waste-basket. “Un-fucking-believable. What were you thinking, Paula?”
“Anne Hunter doesn’t have a clue as to what goes on in this office. I let Leo ask a couple of questions on my behalf.”
“A couple of questions?”
“What can I say? I’m just an old softy. He asked me what I was working on, and I told him about the case I was building against Lee. He begged me to let him help out. What could I say?”
“Judging from past experience, you should have said no.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“Ahh, hell, Paula, I don’t care if you gave Leo a taste. We can’t hold him down forever. But I’ve got to be totally honest with you. What distresses me is that you went behind my back on this thing.”
“I know.”
Paula sat across from Fox in his office. His neatly trimmed, nearly white hair, in addition to his name, had earned him from the press the nickname “the Silver Fox.”
“I want you to know that the effort you’ve put into this case hasn’t gone unnoticed. Yes, I know, it’s time to forgive and forget, but one thing you must never forget is who you work for.”
“You’re right.”
“I know I’m right.” His career was only now beginning to recover from the blemish of Leo Hewitt and the Guaraldi fiasco. The fact that Leo had never gone public with Bob’s refusal to admit the hotline tapes of the Conners woman into evidence was not lost on Bob Fox. He was well aware that Leo could have told the press that Fox had demanded that the tapes be illegally destroyed. These little facts had tempered his view of Leo. Leo had accepted his role of scapegoat. Of course, had he gone to the media with tales of wrongdoings and dirty deeds, Bob would simply have denied any knowledge of the tapes and Paula would have backed him up, because Paula was a team player and Paula knew where to stake her loyalties, which was why Paula was sitting across from him now. But Leo’s willingness to take the burden of blame was not lost on Bob. The wounds had healed, and retrospect showed that there was blame enough for everybody. Of course, Leo could never again be given a position of trust, but he was willing to let the man be forgiven, and if Paula wanted the same thing, he’d give it to her.
“You made this case, and I know it. Who do you want backing you up in court? Anybody you want.”
“Anybody?”
“Name your man. If Leo’s who you want, just say so. I defer to your judgment. I told you, I’m ready to forgive and forget.”
Paula thought carefully before she spoke, her mouth drawn into a tight, neat line. “I’m not. I can forgive, but I can’t forget. I don’t believe Leo can be trusted. Sure, he makes a fine errand boy when I’m building a case, but I want someone I can trust backing me up in the courtroom. You say name my man? Okay. I name you.”