"Please, Judge," Baker said. "Not now."

"So what do you want?" the judge said.

"I want a little time. All were asking is that you recess the trial for a week. We should get our lab results back from Knoxville by then. If Testers blood is in Barlowes car or if we find a murder weapon, were going to dismiss the charges against Mr. Dillards client, provided shell cooperate with us, and arrest Barlowe for Testers murder."

Fat chance of Angel cooperating. They didnt have enough evidence to convict her in the first place, and I couldnt think of a single reason why shed want to help them.

The judge looked at me. "Any objection, Mr.

Dillard?"

"No, Judge. If theres a chance theyll dismiss against my client, Im not opposed to giving them a week."

"All right." Judge Green pointed his finger at Baker. "Ill give you some time. But if theres still a charge pending next Monday, were finishing this goddamned case."

July 24 3:00 p.m.

The judge didnt tell the jury or anyone in the courtroom why he was granting a weeks recess; he just told them to come back next Monday.

Angel wanted to know what had happened. I told her Id be over to the jail to explain it to her as soon as I could. The jurors filed out, and as the courtroom began to clear, Erlene Barlowe walked up to me.

Shed been sitting outside in the hallway with the rest of the witnesses. Junior Tester hadnt moved from his seat.

"Whats going on, sugar?" Erlene said.

"The police say they have some new information in Angels case. The district attorney asked the judge for a continuance so they could develop some evidence. He gave them until next Monday."

Landers was walking out of the judges office, where hed apparently been holding court with Baker. When he saw Erlene he made a beeline for us.

"Dont leave town," he said, pointing his finger at Erlene. "Your ass is mine now." He turned and walked out the door.

"What was that all about?" Erlene said.

"They dont tell me anything," I said as I started to walk away. I wasnt about to tell her she was more than likely going to be in custody sometime in the next week. With my luck, shed disappear and Id wind up with an obstruction charge. "I have to go over to the jail to see Angel and let her know whats going on. Ill talk to you later."

Before I left the courthouse, I took the elevator upstairs to Deacon Bakers office.

"Interesting dilemma," he said when I walked in.

"For you," I said. "Im still in the same boat. Innocent client."

"Lets stop beating around the bush," Baker said.

"Bottom line, if theres anything in that car that links it to Testers murder, were going to charge the redhead. Ill dismiss against your client if shell agree to help us."

"Erlene is her only friend in this world. I doubt shell be eager to rat her out."

"She was with her, Dillard. She knows what went on in that room."

"You cant prove that."

"Will she want to take that chance? Barlowe may have something to say about her when she finds herself facing a first-degree murder charge."

"All Erlene has ever said about Angel is that shes innocent."

"And if her lips are moving, shes lying."

"Youre stuck, Deacon. The jurys been sworn in Angels case. If you dismiss, you cant try her again because the jurys already been sworn. Double jeopardy. If you come back and resume the trial, youre going to lose, even with my sisters testimony. Do you know what Im going to do to her on the witness stand?"

"I was planning to make it a point to be in the courtroom for her cross-examination," Baker said with a smirk. "Wouldnt want to miss it. At least run my proposal by your client. Go over there and tell her Im offering to dismiss a first-degree murder."

"Ill talk to her, but dont get your hopes up."

When Angel came into the attorneys room at the jail, I was surprised to see her still wearing her clothes from court.

"The guards are searching my cell block," she said.

"Im still in holding. I guess they werent expecting me back so soon."

"Strange day, huh?" I said.

"Whats going on?"

"Its good and its bad. The TBI found a red Corvette in a barn out in Unicoi County this morning.

The barn belongs to Erlene, and apparently so does the car."

Angel gasped, and I watched her closely. Her face turned pink and her bottom lip was trembling. She sat there, shaking and saying nothing. I reached into my briefcase and brought out some tissue. Id been carrying it ever since that first visit at the jail. I handed some to her just in case, reached across the table, and put my hand over hers.

"Angel," I said, "the district attorney now thinks Erlene killed Reverend Tester. He wants to dismiss the case against you, but theres a catch. He wants you to tell him what you know about Testers murder."

A faraway look came into her eyes, as though she wasnt really taking in what I was saying.

"Angel? Did you understand me? He wants to dismiss the case against you. Theyre probably going to arrest Erlene for Reverend Testers murder."

"They cant do that!" she burst out, and then laid her head on the table and started crying. I moved to the chair next to her, put my hand on her shoulders, and began to rub.

"Take it easy," I said. The door was two inches of steel and the walls were concrete block, but her sobs were loud. I didnt want the guards coming in and asking questions. "Talk to me," I said. "Its all right.

Talk to me. Whatever it is thats bothering you, you can tell me. Im on your side no matter what."

She suddenly sat up, wiped her eyes, and became very still. She looked at me pitifully.

"Can I trust you?" she said in a small voice.

"Of course you can. You know you can."

"Can I really trust you?"

"Ive been here for you all along. Whatever you tell me, I promise I wont tell a soul. Ive already explained attorney-client privilege to you."

I could see her make the decision. And having made it, she sat up straight and squared her shoulders, as if a great burden had been lifted.

"I did it, Mr. Dillard. I killed him. I cant let them blame Miss Erlene."

Id mildly suspected it since the day I talked to Tom Short, but I hadnt wanted to believe it. Even AN INNOCENT CLIENT

31.

now, even though the words had passed her lips, I didnt want to believe it. I took her hand, knowing that if I continued, if I asked her about the details, everything about our relationship, and my entire strategy if the trial continued, would change.

"Think about what youre saying," I said. "Were winning this trial. If you tell me you killed him, it changes a lot of things."

"You want to know the truth, dont you?"

"Im not sure."

I looked at her smooth young face and my heart went out to her. Something told me that if shed killed Tester, the circumstances might justify it.

"Im sorry, Angel. Yes, I want to know the truth.

What happened?"

She bit her lip and shuddered.

"Can you tell me about it?"

She nodded slowly.

"Okay, but I dont want you to get hysterical. I dont want anyone else to hear, so you have to keep control of yourself. Can you do that?"

"I think so."

"Go ahead."

She took a deep breath and squeezed my hand so hard that her fingernails dug into my skin.

"Everything I told you before was the truth except for the last part. Miss Erlene didnt just ask him to leave when he got so drunk and was bothering me and making a fool of himself. She asked me if Id help her with something. She said she wanted to teach the preacher a lesson. She said all Id have to do is ride with her to the mans hotel room and shed take care of the rest. I told her Id do it."

"What happened next?"

"Miss Erlene went over to talk to him, and he went out into the lobby for a couple of minutes. When he came back, she told me to get my coat. Miss Erlene went back into her office for a couple of minutes, and then we went out and got in her car. We followed him out of the parking lot to the hotel. Along the way, she told me the man thought I was coming to his room to have sex with him. Then she handed me a small bottle of scotch. She told me when we got to the motel, I was supposed to go into his room and offer him a drink first thing. Miss Erlene said she put something in the scotch so when he drank it, it would knock him out. As soon as he was passed out, I was supposed to run back to the car and get her. I think she was planning to take his money."

"Something obviously went wrong," I said.

She put a fist to her mouth and whispered, "Yes."

Her eyes looked distant. It was the same expression Id seen when she told me about the oatmeal incident.

"We got to the motel and I got out of the car and went up the steps with him. Miss Erlene waited in the parking lot. I walked into the room and he closed the door behind me. I took the bottle of scotch out of my purse and asked him if hed like a drink. He took the bottle out of my hand, set it on a table, and when he turned back around he said he didnt bring me there to drink. He had this awful look on his face, like he was possessed or something. Then, before I knew what was happening, he hit me in the face. He hit me so hard it knocked me onto the bed. It almost knocked me out.

"I remember him taking off all his clothes, then he pulled off my panties . . ." She paused and took a deep breath. "He rolled me over on my stomach and he put his thing in my, in my . . ." She pointed to her bottom.

"He sodomized you?" I said.

"What?" She didnt know what the word meant.

"Never mind. Can you keep going?"

"It was like it was happening to someone else,"

she said. "Like I floated to the ceiling, and I watched him do it from there. It was the same thing that used to happen when Father Thomas did things to me. I remember he was cursing and preaching at the same time, calling me names, and then he took his thing out of me and went over and grabbed the bottle of scotch and took a long drink. He started to stagger and he sat down on the bed. It was like he didnt even know I was there anymore.

"There was a knife on the table. I guess it was his.

I remember watching myself walk over and pick it up. It was one of those folding knives. He was already snoring. I opened the knife and walked back to the bed and I just started stabbing him. I stabbed him until I couldnt stab him anymore, until I couldnt lift the knife. And then I think I just walked out the door. I didnt even put my panties on."

"Do you remember what Erlene did?"

"I think so," she said. "I remember she came running up to me on the stairs and she put her coat around me and took the knife out of my hand. She put me in the car and asked me what happened, and I tried to tell her. I saw her go back up to the room, but I dont know what she did in there. She took me home and took me into the backyard and washed all of the blood off of me with a hose. She said she didnt want any blood in her shower. Then she took me inside and said she had to leave for a little while.

She was gone for a long time."

"Did you and Erlene talk about it afterwards?"

"Not much," she said. "She just told me she was sorry about everything but at least he wouldnt ever hurt another girl, and she told me never to mention what happened"any of it"to anybody. Then when the police started coming around, she told me not to talk to them. She told everyone that worked at the club not to talk to them. When they came to arrest me, she told me to tell them I wanted a lawyer."

"You didnt mention cutting off his penis, Angel.

Do you remember doing that?"

"I didnt do it," she said.

"Are you sure?"

"I didnt do it. Id tell you if I did."

I believed her.

"Telling me what happened was the right thing to do," I said.

"Am I going to have to stay in jail for the rest of my life?"