Murder One by William Bernhardt Read Free Book Online

… you aren’t planning …”
    But there was no time. “Christina Ingrid McCall, National Moot Court, Law Review, Order of the Coif.”
    In the blink of an eye, Jones, Paula, and Loving were on their feet, whooping and hollering at the top of their lungs.
    Ben wondered if the dean was watching. “Why are you doing this?” he growled under his breath.
    “Don’t you get it?” Loving hissed between hoots. “We’re her family.”
    He was right, of course. Ben pushed to his feet and pounded his hands together. He even whooped a little.
    After the ceremony, the group gathered at the office at Two Warren Place for a postceremony celebration. Jones had ordered champagne, chilled and ready when they arrived. Paula had made brownies and Loving picked up some exquisite bacon cheeseburgers from Goldie’s.
    “A toast,” Jones said, hoisting his glass in the air.
    “Another one?” Ben asked. By his count, they’d already had about three bottles of toasts, and they were all starting to wobble a bit.
    Jones ignored him. “To our own Christina,” he said. “She’s been the world’s best legal assistant for years. Now she’ll be the world’s best lawyer!” He hiccuped. “Excluding the Boss, of course.”
    “Of course,” Ben said. Boy, she’d been a lawyer for what, an hour and a half? And already he was an afterthought.
    “I think she should give a speech,” Loving said. With his bow tie unstrung and dangling from his neck, he looked like a cross between a lounge singer and his bouncer. “Speech! Speech!”
    Christina flushed, either with champagne or embarrassment. “I am not giving a speech.”
    “Hey, if you’re gonna be a lawyer, you’re gonna have to give some speeches.”
    “All the more reason not to give one now.”
    “Well then I will,” Ben said. He raised his glass. “A short one, anyway. I’ve been delighted to work with you for some time now, Christina, but I’ve never been prouder of you than I am today.”
    Christina’s eyes sparkled.
    “Congratulations, kiddo—you’re a lawyer now.”
    She shook her head. “No, not yet. I have to be tested by fire. In the courtroom.”
    “You’ll get your chance.”
    “Hey, is this a private party, or can anyone guzzle your champagne?” Major Mike Morelli, Tulsa P.D.’s chief homicide detective, strolled into the office wearing his trademark trenchcoat. “Way to go, slugger.” He gave Christina a hug.
    “Thanks, Mike.”
    “You bet. Just don’t get too many major criminals off the hook right away, okay? My job’s hard enough as it is.” He leaned over next to Ben. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
    Ben sat up. “Sure. You mean—?” He jerked a thumb.
    Mike nodded. “Don’t want to disturb the revelry.”
    Together, they made their way to Ben’s interior office. He’d been at this location for more than a year now, but it was still as barren as the day he moved in—the result of a combination of tight finances and lack of interest. He had a desk and two chairs, a file cabinet, a framed diploma, and that was about it.
    They each took one of the available seats. “So what’s up?”
    “Just wanted to warn you, Ben—I’m going to be gone for a little while.”
    “Gone? Why?”
    “Got an undercover assignment. And I don’t know how long it will take. So you’ll have to find someone else to watch Xena with you and pretend that we admire it for its sophisticated scripts.”
    “Nothing dangerous, I hope.”
    Mike shrugged. “Who knows? Did you read about the murder last night?”
    Ben nodded. A corpse found in a swing at LaFortune Park. Hard to overlook.
    “We think we’ve got a line on the killer. Which took some doing, since we can’t even ID the victim. It’s a faint trail, but worth chasing. And will probably take a while. So I wanted to give you the heads-up.”
    “Thanks, I appreciate that,” Ben said, but he sensed there was more to this than he’d gotten so far.
    “You might also mention it to Julia. If you