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Dan watched in silence as the marshals took David away, back to his world of coveralls and fatty food and constant danger. The sadness in his eyes, the abject terror, were unmistakable. He was already at death’s door, and now he would get to spend his final, painful days behind bars.
They had failed him.
Which would hurt in any case, but never more so than now, because like Ben, he’d become convinced that David was innocent.
They returned to Gary’s office, their new home away from home. Dan slumped into a chair, head in hands. “We blew it. We totally blew it.”
Maria wrapped her arms around him. “You lost. You didn’t blow it. No lawyer wins every case.”
“We should’ve won this one.”
“Ben, talk to him.”
Ben’s head jerked up, as if she were retrieving him from a deep reverie. “What? Oh. No, thanks. I’m with Dan. We blew it.”
“The judge didn’t want to set the verdict aside.”
“We should’ve convinced him. Made him feel he had no choice.”
Christina jumped in. “You’ve lost cases that should have gone your way before, Ben.”
“Have I ever been happy about it?”
She smiled a little. “No.”
“And this time, we blew an innocent man’s last chance. He’ll never get a new kidney and he’ll die in prison. Soon.”
“You did your best.”
“Did I? I know there’s something I haven’t figured out. But what is it? It involves...someone. I...don’t seem to be able to recall names as quickly as I once did. Stupid.”
“That’s not stupidity, Ben. That’s getting older.”
Ben ignored her. “It triggered something when the judge mentioned...it starts with an ‘H...’”
Dan rolled his eyes.
Maria tried to guess. “Hancock. Hart. Harris. Holden.”
Ben snapped his fingers. “No. Haydn.”
“Claudia’s favorite composer. And apparently a fave of Professor Herwig, too.”
“And mine,” Ben added. “Haydn has many underappreciated piano pieces. Victim of his own success. He wrote symphonies so well that other deserving works slip through the cracks. I think his work for the piano rivals Chopin’s. His preludes are considered the definitive piano show pieces.”
Dan didn’t know nor care about classical music. But if this mental diversion distracted Ben from the awfulness of what had happened, fine. “There’s a piano downstairs. Maybe you could play a little Haydn for us.”
“Not in the mood.”
“Do you have to be in the mood to play the piano?”
“Of course. Piano is about interpretation. Energy. Feeling every note. All music is, I suppose.”
“I used to play a mean kazoo,” Maria said.
Ben continued, as if he were talking to himself but talking out loud. “Haydn is best remembered as a prolific composer of symphonies. Everyone has heard them, even if they don’t know it. He’s famous—”
All at once, Ben’s lips parted. “OhmiGod. OhmiGod.”
A crease formed between Dan’s eyes. “Was is it?”
Ben held up a finger. As in, let me think.
Christina’s eyes narrowed. “Ben, I’ve seen that look on your face before. You’ve thought of something.”
He spoke, tentatively at first, in barely more than a whisper. “I...I think I know who killed Claudia. And...I know how it was done, too. How the safe was opened.”
“Ok. Spill.”
Ben slammed his palm down on the tabletop. “We need to get out of here.”
“Why?”
“To recover the violin.”
“You know where it is?”
“I think so. And it probably won’t be there long. It can’t be played in public right now, but it could be sold on the black market, a deal I suspect has already been arranged. Most Amatis are either in museums or private collections. It could disappear for as long as it needs to before the new owner acknowledges it. So we need to move fast. If we find the violin, we find the murderer.”
“And how do you know this?”
Ben allowed a small smile. “We were told. During the hearing.”
Dan’s neck tightened. “I’m pretty sure I would remember that. Where the violin?”
Ben was already halfway across the room. He grabbed the keys to their rental car. “It’s easier to show you.”
Christina stepped in front of him. “Is this going to be dangerous?”
“Why would you think that?”
“Because for decades I’ve watched you plunge foolishly into danger and barely survive.”
“I’ll take Dan with me.”
“I’d rather you took a big dog. Or a big stick. And why are you assuming Dan wants to plunge into danger with you?”
Dan shrugged. “I mean, hell, we’ve come clear across the country together. Might as well finish the hero’s journey.”
Ben nodded. “Saddle up, pardner. Looks like we’ve got one more roundup before we ride off into the sunset.”