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Dan was barely through the door when a ten-year-old girl raced toward him.
“Dan!” She wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.
Camila gave him an arched eyebrow. “Should I be jealous?”
“No.” He crouched down till he was eye level with the girl. “Happy birthday, Esperanza.” He handed her a gift wrapped in bright pink paper that matched her dress. “This is for you.”
She took the package, looking excited beyond words. “A present? For me?”
“It is your birthday party.”
“Is it Hello Kitty? Is it something with Hello Kitty?”
He frowned. Camila laughed. “I told you not to be so predictable.”
“But it was so cute...”
Esperanza took him by the hand. “I’ll put this with the other presents. Come inside. We’ve already started playing games.”
He followed her lead. “Pin the Tail on the Donkey? Musical Chairs?”
“Dan, I’m ten years old!”
“Well...yes...”
“We’re playing Never Have I Ever.” In the living room, he found six girls sitting in a circle while an Amazon Echo played boy band music. He wasn’t sure which group—they all sounded alike to him. And standing by the punchbowl was his friend Jazlyn Prentice, assistant district attorney for Pinellas County—and adoptive mother. Baby blue party dress. Red eyes. Loose gait. Had she spiked the punch?
“Never Have I Ever?” he asked.
“Oh whatever,” Jazlyn said. “It won’t take long. They haven’t ever done anything. And if they have to take a drink—it’s prune juice.”
“Still enjoying motherhood?”
“I’m not sure enjoying is the right word.” She allowed herself a small smile. “But it’s the best decision I ever made.”
Dan had represented Esperanza—and her then-guardian—during a previous case. Esperanza was slated to be deported after the US revoked Protected Status for El Salvadorian emigres, but he managed to get the girl citizenship and even better, convinced Jazlyn to adopt her.
“I hear you trounced our new hire in court this morning,” Jazlyn said.
“The judge dismissed the charges. Your hire didn’t have much to do with it.”
“All I know is he came back to the office, crawled behind his desk, and curled up in a fetal ball. I think he may be catatonic.”
“First time in court?”
“Yup. And it was a crushing defeat.”
“Adversity is good for the soul. My client should have been assigned a public defender—175 times. If he had, this situation wouldn’t have arisen. But the court says they can’t afford to assign lawyers in misdemeanor cases, so Henry got the revolving-door treatment. Mr. K called last night and asked me to take the case, just to put a stop to it.”
“I think Brad Phelan feels like you put a stop to him.”
“It wasn’t his fault. The police officer lied. I would suggest you be careful about using him as a witness in the future.”
“Voight may have exaggerated—”
He cut her off with a shake of the head. “He lied. Deliberately. And I detected no remorse. He’s dangerous. The kind of officer who damages the reputation of the entire force.”
“I’ll make a note.” She turned to Camila. “How is the mayor of our fine city doing?”
“Keeping my head above water. That’s about all I can expect at this point.” Camila had recently been framed for a horrible multiple murder, but Dan had managed to not only exonerate her but finger the true culprit. “Not everyone is happy about my return to public office. But not everyone was happy when I arrived in the first place.”
“You’re still running for the open Senate seat, right?”
Camila hesitated, tucking her hands inside her jeans pockets. “I haven’t made an official announcement yet, but...since I’m among friends...count on it.”
“I’m very glad.”
“What about you? The rumor mill says DA Belasco plans to run for mayor. Which means there will be a vacancy that no one is better qualified to fill than you.”
“I have given it some thought. I would hate campaigning, but if I were elected, I could make some positive changes. It’s no secret Belasco has made a mess of things. Tarnished the whole system. He’s too tied to the city’s big money. We’ve become dependent on plea bargaining, charging people on thin evidence because we know they’ll cop a plea to lesser offenses rather than risk a longer sentence. And the racial balance of our defendant roster is embarrassing.”
“Tell you what—you endorse me and I’ll endorse you. Girls rule.”
They shook on it. “Deal.”
Jazlyn turned to Dan. “Hope you’re not feeling left out.”
“Feeling lucky to know so many strong intelligent women.”
“I wasn’t at all sure you’d find time in your busy schedule for a little girl’s birthday party. Not enough wind for kitesurfing?”
“Nonsense.” He glanced at the girls sitting in a circle. The one facing him asked if anyone had ever swallowed a Tide pod. “Anything for Esperanza. That little girl changed my life. For the better.”
She squinted a bit. “You’re still a bit of a mystery to me, Mr. Pike.”
“Me? I’m an open book.”
Jazlyn and Camila both laughed out loud.
“What? I am.”
Camila covered her mouth. “Sure. An open book with mostly blank pages.”
“Honey, I have no secrets from you.”
“Maybe. But you’re not volunteering anything, either.”
“You know everything about me there is to know.”
“I know as little as you’ve bothered to reveal. You grew up in Florida. You went to law school and became arguably the best—certainly the flashiest—criminal defense lawyer in town. You left the big firm and joined that wacky outfit run by Mr. K—a pseudonym for a boss you’ve never met. And you do this crazy thing with your tongue—”
“Whoa. Let’s not get too personal here.”
“Just wanted to see if I could get a reaction out of you.”
“And he has a passion for justice,” Jazlyn added. “Which I admire. Even if it is usually a thorn in my professional side.”
“I’ve earned that passion.” He saw no need to repeat what they already knew. His father was wrongfully convicted of murder when he was young, then died in prison when Dan was just seventeen. He’d spent most of his adult life making sure others weren’t railroaded in the same way.
“So who are you, Daniel Pike?” Jazlyn asked.
He took a step back. “Is this a birthday party or a therapy session?”
“Yes. Deflecting the question with a joke. One of your favorite tactics.”
He glanced toward the girls. “Esperanza looks like she’s struggling to come up with a question. You think they’ve asked about sexting yet?”
Camila slapped his arm. “Dan! They’re ten!”
“And every one of them has a cell phone.”
“And once again,” Jazlyn said, “you’ve managed to change the subject.”
“I just don’t want Esperanza to lose the game at her own party.”
“Well,” Camila said, “suggest something other than sexting.”
“Never have I ever gotten a sleeve tattoo?”
“No one’s going to drink on that one.”
“Never have I ever done a risqué TikTok?”
“No one will know what you’re talking about.”
Jazlyn tilted her head. “Unless it’s been on the Disney Channel. And it probably has.”