Cruel Justice by William Bernhardt Page B

suck. The crying stopped immediately.
    “Success,” Ben said softly.
    “Hurray,” Christina echoed. “And see how he’s looking at you? You’re his hero now.”
    “Well, gosh,” Ben said. “That’s swell. Now all we need to do is get Julia back here as soon as possible.”
    “About that …” Christina held a slip of paper between her fingers. “I found this in the diaper bag.”
    Christina held up the note and Ben read it aloud while he fed the baby: “ ‘Dear Ben: I’m sorry to do this to you, but I don’t know who else to turn to. You know how screwed up I’ve been. This graduate-school program in Connecticut is a chance to get my life back in order. Maybe my last chance. But they’ll never take me if I have a baby. I’ll be pulling emergency-room duty for days at a time—day care won’t cut it. A single mother simply cannot do this. Terry hasn’t spoken to me since the divorce. He never visits Joey. Claims he doesn’t think the baby is his, which is just a stupid excuse to justify not paying child support. I don’t even know where he is now. I couldn’t get hold of Mother. You were my last chance.
    “ ‘Take care of my little baby.
    “ ‘Ninny-poo.’ ”
    Christina folded the note and put it back in the diaper bag. “Ninny-poo?”
    Ben’s eyes seemed to turn inward. “That’s … just a silly nickname. What I used to call Julia when we played together as little kids. You know, just three or four years old.” He shook his head. “Haven’t thought about that in years.”
    “I thought you and your sister never got along.”
    “We—” Ben paused. “Well, we didn’t. I mean—” He frowned. “Never mind. We have urgent business to address. I can’t possibly keep Julia’s baby for her, especially if I decide to handle this trial next week. Jones, call my mother.”
    Jones’s eyebrow arched. “Is it Christmas already?”
    “Ha-ha.” As everyone in the office knew, Ben’s mother was a wealthy matron who lived in Nichols Hills, one of the most upscale neighborhoods in Oklahoma City. None of them had ever met her, but Ben usually described her as “frosty” or “disapproving.” She had repeatedly offered to help Ben out of his financially strapped circumstances, particularly after his father died and left Ben zippo, but Ben steadfastly refused to take her money.
    “See if you can track Mother down. Maybe she can help. After all, the kid’s her only grandchild.”
    “I’ll do it.”
    “Good. Then start trying to find Julia.”
    “Aye-aye, Boss.”
    “Where’s Loving?” Loving was their nails-for-knuckles private investigator. “I haven’t seen him around today.”
    “He’s working on a case of his own.”
    “Know what he’s doing?”
    “Not exactly. But today’s entry on his desk calendar says, ‘Make Guntharp’s life a misery.’ ”
    “I pity poor Guntharp.”
    “Yeah. Me, too.”
    “Well, ask Loving to come into the office first thing tomorrow morning. We’ll have a team meeting. By then I should know whether we’re taking this murder case.”
    “Should I be here, too?” Christina asked.
    “Actually … I’d appreciate it if you would come by my apartment tomorrow morning before work.”
    Christina beamed. “Because you think I’m so magnifique it will brighten your whole day?”
    “Actually … I’m concerned that Joey may need to be fed again.”
    Christina’s smile collapsed. “And I’m sure he’ll wait patiently until morning before he brings that to your attention. Boy, have you got a lot to learn. By the way, gentlemen—when was the last time you changed the baby’s diaper?”
    Ben and Jones exchanged another look.
    Christina groaned. “Maybe you two had better start taking notes.”

12
    T HE MAN IN THE red wig wasn’t entirely sure how the fight began. He had been following Abie since he left school, waiting for an opportunity to make his first move. While he watched and waited two boys approached Abie from the other side of