In Practice

(To read from the beginning, click here)

The old Victorian house behind the office had always fascinated Katie. It was one of many “painted ladies” in the Haddonfield area with its ornate detailing and lively paint scheme. But unlike other houses in the area, it appeared to be unoccupied.

Katie could see the house clearly from her office window and had often wondered if anyone could possibly live there. The school bus that seemed to be perpetually full of screaming children never stopped there. She never saw any trucks make a delivery or anyone puttering about in the yard. That in itself was puzzling - the yard was overgrown with old rosebushes and honeysuckle vines. It was pretty in a wild, English garden sort of way. But no one in Haddonfield had English gardens. They were all proper Victorian gardens straight out of the Philadelphia Flower Show. Beautifully dressed women in floppy hats and overpriced garden gloves spent hours in their yards pruning the bushes, and preening about in front of each other. But not at this house. It was here that Jim and the Hershbergers stopped.

“Here we are,” he announced.

“Here?” Katie asked, still confused. None of the four of them had spoken a word since they left the office.

“Yes, here.”

Jim didn’t make house calls. It wasn’t his thing. Katie had always figured he liked the sense of power doing things on his own terms - in his own office with his own cushy chairs. That’s why this whole scenario seemed particularly bizarre.
As they walked up towards the front door, it turned even more bizarre: there were several yards of police tape around the perimeter of the porch. Just police tape. There weren’t any police cars, no flashing lights, nothing like she’d seen on “Law and Order” at home.
“The decedent, uh, apparently committed suicide,” said Jim quietly.
The Hershbergers looked away as if the notion was too awful to contemplate.
“John’s phone number was on a note by the bed, so the police notified him immediately. There appears to be no next of kin available.”
Okay, Katie thought, that explains how John got involved. But it didn’t explain why they were actually at the house. Lawyers never made these kinds of visits. She stared at Jim, waiting for more information, something that would make some sense, explain why they were here.
“John identified the body for the authorities earlier today but he’s concerned about the home remaining open with no one to watch after it. There is a tenant upstairs…” his voice droned off.
“Actually, the tenant was the one who first notified the police,” Jim finished quickly. “The smell. Apparently the body had been in the house for awhile…” his voice trailed off.
Oh gross, thought Katie. But what…?
“The police have suggested that counsel be present while John and Rachel look around a bit and then lock up the house. After all, it is technically a crime scene, of sorts, while they finalize the reports and so. So if you could, uh, stick around…” he said, his voicing trailing up.
Katie could see the flicker of amusement in Jim’s eyes. He thinks this is funny. She bit her lip.
“Sure,” she said. “All in a day’s work, huh?”
Jim gave her a quick smile.
“Great,” he said. “I’ll see you at the office a little later.”
“Yeah,” said Katie. “I’ll see you later.”

Technorati Tags:
law, law school, Philadelphia, novel