Law of Attraction Read Free Page B

spark betweenthem. Now Nick Wagner was just one of a hundred lawyers she had a case against. She would have no problem treating him just like any other defense attorney.
    Anna’s phone rang, and she stepped to her desk to pick it up. “Hello?”
    “This is security calling from downstairs. A Mr. Nicholas Wagner is here to see you.”
    Her heartbeat sped up—which wouldn’t have happened if it was any other defense attorney.
    Damn.
    •  •  •
    “Come on in. Have a seat.” Anna gestured to Grace’s desk chair and pulled a box of 911 tapes out of the way.
    “I like what you’ve done with the place,” Nick said, stepping over a pile of Grace’s shoes.
    “We were going for a postmodern, deconstructionist look.”
    “If this was any more deconstructed, you’d need a FEMA trailer.”
    She laughed. They both sat down and faced each other across the cluttered office. “Seriously, to what do I owe the honor of this visit?”
    “I just wanted to touch base with you, since we’re going to be working together on this Davis case.”
    “Not together, exactly. More like against each other.”
    “Maybe so.” He smiled. “But still, I wanted to check in. It was a rough morning. For everyone.”
    “Everyone except D’marco Davis.” Anna’s words were sharper than she intended.
    “I know prosecutors don’t believe this, but a day in the central cellblock is no picnic. It’s a filthy, dangerous place. And now D’marco’s behind bars for the next few months, at least until trial. I’d say that’s a pretty bad day.”
    “I doubt a few more months in prison will mean much to a thug like him.”
    “He’s a human being, Anna. He just hasn’t had all of the advantages you and I have had.”
    “Oh, come on.” Anna thought about the trailer home her family had moved into after they lost the house. What advantages did Nick imagine she’d had?
    “There’s another side to the story, you know,” Nick said. “You saw how aggressive Laprea got this morning in the courthouse, just from seeing me. She could’ve started the fight with D’marco.”
    “Oh come on. I’ll bet D’marco didn’t have a scratch on him, did he? She’s tiny! How much of a threat could she be to him?”
    “All I’m saying is, she’s no angel. She’s got a criminal record that shows she can be violent.”
    Anna pulled D’marco’s file out of the cabinet and handed Nick a printout showing Laprea’s criminal history. “She had a couple minor arrests when she was a teenager. No convictions. Then she graduated high school and got a steady job. She’s raising two kids with her mother’s help—but not much help from D’marco. I wouldn’t have a job if everyone in D.C. lived like Laprea Johnson. On the other hand, look at your client’s criminal record.”
    Anna held up the thick rap sheet. D’marco had a string of drug-related arrests. He was on probation after serving a year in jail for armed drug dealing. He’d also been arrested for a series of escalating assaults on Laprea—but never convicted.
    “Well.” Nick sighed. He kicked clear a spot on the floor, stretched out his long legs, and laced his hands behind his head. “What are we going to do about this?”
    Anna liked the way he said “we.” Like they were a team, working to find the answer to a tough problem together. She shook off the thought. There was no “we” here. She and Nick were in as adversarial a position as two people could be. Especially because she felt more invested in cases like Laprea’s, where the woman was a longtime victim of abuse but kept going back to her abuser. Men like D’marco just got more violent. If he wasn’t stopped, D’marco might very well kill Laprea.
    “Your client could plead guilty,” she suggested.
    “Can’t do that. He’s on probation for that drug case. So if he gets convicted of assault, he’ll get all the backup time in the old drug charge. In effect, he’ll serve six years for a crime that carries less