Crossing the Line
By Ayesha Haqqiqa
March is a deceptive month. Spring beckons one day, and the next brings back a blast of winter. Jack McCoy shivered as he walked briskly from the courthouse to his office at Hogan Place. He’d misjudged the weather, and had only worn his suit today, and now it was freezing rain. He pulled his jacket closer around him as he raced into the building.
“You really should have worn a topcoat,” Barbara McClusky said as he walked past her in the hall on the way to his office. He turned and looked at her smile, which was enough to warm him up at least twenty degrees. “I have further information on the Cannon deposition,” she continued as she came up to him, folder in hand. “It seems that Ms Cannon very handily forgot a few facts that the police have uncovered. You should be able to murder her on cross.”
“That’s what I like about you, Barbara,” Jack said, giving her a grin. “You anticipate my actions and everything ready for me. You’re the best assistant I’ve ever had.”
“I’m also the only assistant you’ve had, if you don’t remember,” she said jokingly. “But of course, that marks you as a rising star. Most ADAs have to wait at least ten years to get as far as you’ve come in five.”
“Well, there’s Ben Stone.”
“Yeah, around the bullpen you’re called the MASH unit.” Barbara grinned.
Jack raised his brows. “And what does that mean?” he asked.
“Motivated Attorneys Smashing Homicides,” she said, moving closer. “Personally, I think you look a lot like Hawkeye.”
“Sure,” Jack said, not stepping back. “The only similarity between that fellow and me is that we both have dark hair.” He was enjoying the banter, but relished their closeness more. “He’s a bit of a Romeo, and lately I’ve been a monk.”
“That’s only because Shelly Kates decided to stay on her side of the aisle for romance,” Barbara said. She looked in Jack’s eyes. “I think she made a terrible mistake, giving you up for Jason Henderson.”
Jack stepped back; the conversation had taken a decidedly uncomfortable turn. “Well, as you recall, she works for his law firm. I’m sure that he indoctrinated her in the notion that dating a prosecutor was crossing the line. Though we’ve never sat across from one another in a courtroom, it could happen, and a relationship would be a conflict of interest.”
“My, my! I was just making an observation, Jack,” Barbara said, looking askance. “I didn’t need a brief on it!”
“Sorry,” Jack said formally. He hadn’t realized until that moment how much losing Shelly had upset him. He turned to go.
“Wait.” Barbara put her hand on his shoulder, and a thrill went up his back. He turned and looked at her. “It’s me who should apologize. Really, I didn’t mean to make you feel bad, Jack. Hey, remember last month when I broke up with Harry? I must have cried on your shoulder at least a dozen times!”
He looked at her. “Ours is a difficult profession,” he said, “when it comes to romance and attachments. We can focus on our attachments, or focus on our work, and with us, work wins every time.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” she said. She shook her head. “Well, speaking of work, I have some plea bargains to make. I’ll be back in about an hour—shall I come by and see what’s up on the Cannon case?”
Jack nodded. “That would be good, “ he said. He made his way to his office and placed the folder on his desk. The place wasn’t as large as the grand offices of the Executives, but it was a huge step up from the cubicle he had shared with Shelly Kates when he first arrived. He took off his damp coat and hung it on the clothes rack. Shelly had finally convinced him to keep a change of clothes at the office, and now he was grateful for it. He shut his door and closed the blinds and removed his trousers. He put on his dry suit and immediately felt better.
Yes, that was what had been bothering him, he told himself. Not memories of his short-lived affair with Shelly Kates. She and Jack had become very friendly after his first big triumph, when he and Ben Stone had convicted Andrew Rupert of murder. Shortly after the Rupert case, Shelly had taken an offer from Henderson and Turley, a big law firm specializing in defending fat cats with fatter purses, and she and Jack had begun to drift apart.
And now she was going out with Jason Henderson; she’d probably marry him. But how could he be upset? How could he feel lonely? He had all this work, important work, to do for the People. He buried himself in the deposition, crowding all other thoughts from his mind.
And that’s how Barbara found him when she came back an hour later. He was hunched over his desk, sleeves rolled up, and tie askew, frowning at the paper. He looked up when she came into the room.
“How solid is the police evidence that Johanna Cannon had a secret interest in her brother’s nightclub?”
“Cragen and Greevey say its solid. They have witnesses that say Michael Cannon paid his sister regular installments every week, always 10% of the club’s receipts.”
Jack shook his head. “That won’t hold water in court,” he said. “Cannon’s lawyer can say his client was loaning the money to his sister out of filial affection. There has to be hard evidence.” He looked at the clock. “Go to Judge Davis. He hates it when people lie under oath. Show him the discrepancies and get a search warrant for Johanna Cannon’s financial records. Get Cragen and Greevey to serve the warrant today. Have them bring the records here. With any luck, we’ll find a paper trail that will prove her connection to the club.”
“And if not?” Barbara asked.
Jack smiled wanly. “Then we pull an all-nighter, looking for a molehill in the mountain. It’s got to be done—she’s on the stand tomorrow.”
Barbara nodded and left.
Impeaching Johanna Cannon was vital to the case. Michael Cannon was on trial for arson and murder, so the stakes were high. His club, which was failing financially, had fallen victim to a fire that was obviously set. The janitor on duty had died of smoke inhalation, upping the indictment to Murder One with a chance Cannon would go to the electric chair. That’s when his sister Johanna had come in. In her deposition, she insisted she had not had any dealings with her brother for over a year. But on the night of the fire, he had shown up at her house unexpectedly in the wee hours of the morning, and poured out his woes. She said he had hit her up for a loan, but that she was reluctant. Convincing her had taken all the rest of the night, so she said. But there were no other witnesses to the meeting, no one who saw Michael come—or go. It would give Jack great pleasure to be able to prove that Johanna had lied.
There was no paper trail. This didn’t surprise Jack, not really. If Johanna Cannon was smart enough to come up with an alibi for her brother, she would try to make sure no one knew of their joint ownership of the club.
“Looks like an all-nighter,” he sighed.
Barbara seemed unconcerned. “We’ll find it in here somewhere,” she said, pointing to the stack of papers. “And if there’s no indication in the bank account, the LUDS should give us a clue.”
Two hours passed, then three. Jack, absorbed in his work, forgot about eating, forgot about drinking the coffee that Barbara had made around ten thirty. They worked in silence, sitting closely side by side, sharing the light of the table lamp as evening turned to dusk and dusk to night.
“I have it,” Barbara said quietly a little before midnight. She handed a paper to Jack. “See this series of calls? This is from six months back, but the same pattern repeats every month thereafter. Johanna is calling this number—“she pointed, “which is the private number of the club. If she wasn’t involved, how would she know it? It’s unlisted.”
Jack dropped his papers. “That is excellent circumstantial evidence,” he said. “Now, that time frame corresponds with—“ he riffled through the papers,” the time when Johanna set up a corporation, Jcannon. Investments, securities. And it seems to have been doing quite well.” He looked at Barbara and grinned.
“I think you’re going to nail her tomorrow,” she said, leaning closer to him. Jack felt the warmth of her breath on his cheek. He leaned over and kissed her. They lingered over it, neither one willing to stop. Finally, gasping, they broke away, looking at each other in surprise.
“I don’t know about you, Jack, but I liked it,” Barbara said in a low voice. She stood up. “Care for an encore? If we stand up, we can do it right.”
Jack rose, and they embraced. This kiss was deeper and more intense in its passion. Jack looked into her eyes when they were done, saying, “I’m hungry. How about you? We can leave the stuff here and go someplace to eat.”
“My place,” she breathed. “But let’s put the papers away for safekeeping.”
“Oh yes,” Jack said, suddenly remembering their importance. As quickly as he could, he placed the important documents in his desk drawer, which he locked. Then he came up to his assistant and grabbed her by the waist. “One more for the road,” he growled, taking her in his arms once again. It didn’t occur to him then that he was crossing the line, doing just what Jason Henderson had done with Shelly Kates.
It didn’t really come home to him until a few months later, when he and Barbara were discussing a case during another late night session.
“This is just too frustrating,” Jack said, running his hands through his hair. “The police can’t come up with any solid evidence. The case is too weak to go to trial as it is, but I know Evans is guilty!” He looked at his assistant irritably. “Well, Barbara, what are you going to do about it?”
She looked at him. Her face was pale, and it was obvious she wasn’t feeling well. “What am I going to do about it? I can’t pull a rabbit out of a hat. In this case, there just isn’t enough evidence to convict.”
“There was enough to indict,” Jack argued. “I was assured that there would be corroborating evidence before we took this to trial.” He looked at Barbara angrily. “I’m disappointed in you. This isn’t your best work, this isn’t even good work! What is wrong with you? We’ll have egg all over our faces when we dismiss the indictment!”
“Better to dismiss now than when jeopardy is attached,” Barbara said. She sat down and lowered her head.
“That’s true,” Jack said, his anger subsiding. He went over and put his arm around her. “Maybe you’d better take a few days off. You haven’t been looking well lately.”
“So you’ve noticed,” she said, looking up at him with eyes bright with tears. “I wondered when you would. Lately, you’ve been more Jack McCoy boss than Jack McCoy lover. You visit my house, then leave in the middle of the night, before we get a chance to talk.”
“Then let’s talk now,” Jack said, giving her a squeeze. “What’s the matter?”
“The matter is that I am pregnant, Jack, with your child. What are you going to do about it?” she said softly.
Jack looked at her, stunned. There was only one thing to do. “We’ll get married as soon as possible,” he said. “I’ll go to Father Mallory tomorrow and—“
“And what, Jack? Ask him to intercede so I can keep my job?” She really started crying now. “I love you, and will be your wife, but I love the law, too. What will happen to my career?”
“It won’t be shattered,” Jack said with more assurance than he felt. He patted her hand. “We’ll get married, and then you apply for a transfer—“
“Yeah, Jack, sure,” she said as she shook her head. “I wish I’d thought more—about the consequences—before we began our affair. I wish—“
“I love you,” Jack said, taking her in his arms and kissing her. “Together, we’ll get through, I promise.” But in his mind, he, too, was regretting crossing the line.