Title: SMOKE AND MIRRORS Author: AJ Beres Author's Note: Disclaimer: Nobody belongs to me. I think that's quite evident. I worship David Kelley, a GENIUS! That's all for my disclaimer rambling, I think. Summary: Bobby takes on a new client - Bryce Hammond, an idealistic young Sheriff from a small Colorado town, who has been accused of setting of multiple homicides. Lindsay and Bobby are growing closer, and Bobby his haunted by his past, present, and what could be his future. This is part of a series - This first one is… well… let's call it off-beat. Much of the series will be normal, The Practice stuff, like you'd see on the show, but this one's KIND OF out there. It does set the stage for something that ties into an old McDermott movie, though. Interested? I hope you are. E-Mail me with HONEST feedback (preferably some that doesn't involve curse words at how bad the story is : ) ) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bobby, Jimmy, and Rebecca, sat around the T.V. in a triangular pattern, watching intently as things unfolded on the screen. "And once again today's top story… The Boston spree killer has been taken to a Massachusetts maximum security prison… we don't yet know the identity of the accused but soon hope to have that information for you…" Bobby clicked the mute button on the television controller. "Rebecca, I want you to put a call in to that prison. Ask them to set up a meeting with the accused. Tell them we're their lawyers. Page Eugene, Lindsay and Ellenor, and then meet down there yourself. I want everybody on this one. This is our top priority," Bobby directed, as he motioned Jimmy towards the door, at the same time grabbing his coat. MASSACHUSETTS MAXIMUM SECURITY PRISON CELL BLOCK 5, CELL #3 9:30 PM "Who are you?" the man asked from the corner of the cell, settled on the uncomfortable bed. "Bobby Donnell," he said, extending his hand. "That name mean something?" the man asked. Bobby ran his hand through his hair, grinning slightly at the uncooperative nature of the man; not that Bobby blamed him, he was accused being a mass murderer, accused of killing *SIXTEEN* people. He'd have to be blunt, he decided. "My associates and I are here to offer you our law services," he said plainly, throwing Eugene and Lindsay a quick glance. "I… I don't have much money, as I figure you would imagine," the man said. He stood up, ringing his hands and pacing the cell. "What kind of work are you in, sir?" Jimmy asked. He stopped pacing for a moment and gazed towards Jimmy. He looked away for a moment, then back to him. "Sheriff," he said finally. "Can you tell us your name?" Jimmy pushed on, hastily. The man stopped, finally coming into the light. Bobby got his first real look at him. He was about 6'2 with jet black hair, and deep brown eyes. He rubbed his unshaved face. Eugene leaned towards Ellenor, "Stop drooling, girl." Ellenor, now self-conscious of her actions, quickly put a hand to her lips and in what she hoped was a smooth motion wiped the saliva off. "Bryce Hammond," the man finally offered, "Are you telling me you came down here and offered to defend me - and you didn't even know my name?" "The FBI and the Police wouldn't reveal the name to the press," Eugene interjected. "Mr. Donnell!" a guard called from outside the cell. Bobby turned quickly. "Yes?" "He's being transferred," the guard told him. "Where to?" Bobby asked the guard, hands in his pockets. "I'm not sure yet, Mr. Donnell, I'll give your office a call tomorrow morning. They usually don't give out that information until the transfer's been done," the guard concluded as he turned away. Everyone stood in silence for a few moments after the guards had taken Bryce from the cell. Bobby ceased staring at the wall and turned to his associates. "He's innocent," he said plainly, walking out of the cell, the rest of the group in tow. Bobby walked through the lobby of the complex at a remarkable pace, which gave the rest of the group trouble keeping up with him. As he exited the building, he came to a dead halt. He turned to them, a glimmer no one had seen in Bobby before. He seemed personally motivated, and in a large way. Jimmy looked at Bobby quizzically. After studying him for a moment, he decided to press on. "Hey, Bobby… there's something you wanna tell us right about now?" he asked. Bobby wiped his face, before coughing slightly into his fisted hand. He decided at that moment that he wouldn't tell anybody about his falsely accused cousin. It would only complicate things and make them question his judgment. He certainly wasn't about to stand for that. He couldn't. He had to set the tone for this case. Bobby looked at his watch - 9:40. He sighed, considering for a few moments. "OK," Bobby started, completely ignoring Jimmy's attempt to get him to speak his mind, "Ellenor, Eugene, Rebecca, tomorrow, I want you guys to start doing some digging. Find out anything you can about Hammond. His family, friends, and anyone who would want to frame him. Jimmy, Lindsay, I want you to do some digging into his life too - medical records, police records - all of that. Everybody understand?" They all looked him with comprehending expressions. They knew their jobs now, and they'd do them. Bobby knew that. If anything, they were reliable. With a quick, firm nod, Bobby dismissed them all. "Everybody go home and get a good night's sleep." Everyone turned away from Bobby in seek of cabs. Bobby leaned up against the front of the building, staring forward. Why did Hammond remind him so much of his departed cousin? Was it just that everything was to remind him of Jack, or was there really something similar? Thoughts of what Jack's final moments might have been like ran through his mind. Was it really the release he was looking for? Bobby had tried for so long to convince himself of foul play, but, Jack just couldn't take the sting of his wife's death. That was all it was. There was no grand scheme to eliminate him. He wished there were, though, because then, this would have, perhaps, been easier to live with. A voice brought Bobby out of his thoughts. "Bobby!" Lindsay was standing in front of him, wearing a look soaked in concern and puzzlement. "What is it, Lindsay?" he asked. She paused for a moment… "Are you all right?" "Yeah," he lied, "Why?" "I called your name about 5 times," she said matter-of-factly. "Oh, sorry, what was it you wanted to tell me?" he asked, trying to cover-up his I unattentivness to reality. Lindsay decided she'd let it go for now, though later she'd get back into the subject with him. Bobby breathed a sigh of relief, under the impression she hadn't noticed how jittery he was. "I was just wondering if you wanted to share a cab," she explained. "Oh, umm, that's OK, Lindsay… I was gonna go back to the office," Bobby replied. "You told all of us to get some sleep, Bobby. What about you?" Lindsay continued, now a bit annoyed about Bobby's constant overworking of himself. "I just want to get a head start on this case, that's all," he said, wanting dearly to end this conversation before Lindsay picked up on anything. It would only jeopardize the case. Lindsay decided to give up for the moment, and, with a slight nod, turned away to go call for a cab at the street corner. * * * * * * * Lindsay was the first to work that day, or so she thought. Shoving her key into the lock, she realized that the office door was already unlocked. She opened the door. That's definitely strange, she thought to herself. There was one light on, steaming from Bobby's office. Lindsay walked towards his office slowly. She pushed open the cracked door and looked inside. Bobby was uncomfortably sitting in his chair, his head resting atop his hand on the desk. She frowned, half expecting to find him like this when she came in. She shook her head. Why did he do this to himself? Looking at his stilled body, she realized just how much she missed him - missed being with him. And she remembered why she was still there. Bobby found himself… everywhere. He saw his transition in life the past couple of years… Had he changed? Maybe he had… there were so many things that had happened. Bobby was in a corridor with five doors. He opened the first door, and saw himself bursting through a door opposite of where he was standing. "You just gave life to a person you know could be innocent!" he'd yelled at Judge Zoey Hiller, to which she'd replied, "How dare you…" Bobby was fond of this memory - he often thought that this in itself gave him at least some character… The scene changed, and he was back in the corridor again. Bobby opened the next door. The scene changed to Lindsay crying, and he could here Rebecca in the background saying, "The verdict came back on the drug dealer." He'd walked into the room, sat down, and - stroking her shoulder, quietly asked "Did you win again?" And so, she nodded her answer - she'd won. The drug dealer had been set free and it made her sick. He was back in the corridor. Through the next door… "Are you a liar, Mr. Winslow?" "Objection," Bobby had said, standing. "Sustained!" "No further questions," Helen said, sitting back down in her seat behind the wood table. The scene switched again, but not back to that corridor. He was still in the court room. He could here a number of people consecutively saying "Guilty." It was still the Winslow trial, but now… now he saw something he hadn't, couldn't before. The wife's face carried… suppressed satisfaction on it. The scene changed again. Back to the corridor. He opened the door to the fourth room. Jimmy was on a hospital bed, in a limbo. He could hear what was going on around him, but was unable to regain consciousness. Jimmy had signified a gun with his hand. And then everything had been turned loose. Bobby catapulted the man through the window, Bobby's grip on the man's leg the only thing keeping Jimmy's assailant from death. The corridor again; and the final room… He opened the door. He hadn't spoken in his dream, but this was too personal. He couldn't watch this. He saw him sign it - the suicide note. He picked the gun up off the table. "No… Jack… please, no. Don't make me watch this. Please," Bobby pleaded, but Jack couldn't hear him. He was in the past, and so was what Bobby was witnessing. Jack raised the gun, the barrel parting his lips. His finger rested on the trigger, and Bobby could here Jack's faint whisper… "Its time to find out what's real and what's not." And with those final words… Jack Hunt put a bullet in his mouth. Bobby awoke violently, his harm swinging around wildly, catching his desk lamp, sending it shattering to the ground. His head came up in the air, tears streaking down, and then he saw Lindsay. She was grabbing his arm, calling his name. He began to settle - her touch bringing a certain calmness into him. "Lindsay," was all he could manage to say. "Bobby, everything's fine… nothing to worry about," she said soothingly, still grasping his arm, "Are you all right?" Bobby nodded slowly, deliberately. "Yeah, I'm OK, Lindsay. I'm OK," he said, bringing the back of his hand roughly against his eyes in disgust. Letting go of his arm, she perched herself on the corner of his desk. "You didn't go home last night?" she asked him. He sat up, trying to suppress a shiver, as he answered "No… no, I didn't." "When did you get to sleep?" "Sometime between 3 and 4." She nodded. "Anything you'd like to talk about?" "There's… something I need to tell you…" She leaned forward in anticipation of his next words. "A couple of months ago… my… my cousin was accused of killing his wife down in Philadelphia… After the media and police hunted him wherever he went for almost 2 weeks, and his wife's family turned against him… he… he put a bullet in his mouth," Bobby told her, surprised that he found himself reaching out. Lindsay was equally surprised that she found her hand on the back of his neck in an attempt at comfort. She stroked the back of his hair for a second, and then returned to let her hand rest at the base of his neck. "I'm sorry, Bobby." He looked up at her, holding his hand over hers. The phone rung. Once, then twice, and Bobby moved from his hunched position to pick up the phone as Lindsay removed her hand from his neck. "Donnell and Associates… Yes, this is Bobby Donnell…… OK… Yes…… Yes, I understand… OK, Thank you very much……. I understand sir, thank you. Good bye." With that, he set the phone back down. "Hammond's been asking for me for two hours," he explained to Lindsay, "He said that he wanted to see me alone." Lindsay nodded, "All right… Just be sure to tell me what he said whenever you get back." He nodded silently, giving her a short smile as he left his office, then the firm's office entirely… He left the building, got into his car, and drove off. MASSACHUSETTS TEMP. PRISON FOR THE TRIAL BOUND 8:05 AM Bobby entered the cell quietly. He looked towards the figure lying atop the bed. "Hello, Bobby," he said quietly, "Thank you for coming down." "Does this mean you're interested in our defense services?" Bobby asked. He shifted to a more conformable position on the bed, while Bobby took a seat on the bed, opposite of his in the cell. "Have you lead a good life, Bobby?" Bryce asked him. Bobby looked up, startled a bit by the line of questioning. He decided to go along with it for now… "I think I've done more good than bad." "But you put the guilty back out on the street, Bobby. Its a 10:1 ratio in my mind. You get to save one innocent man for every 10 guilty ones…" he said. Bobby replied, "Are you one of those innocent?" Bryce let out a short laugh, "You do evil just about every day - putting the guilty back on the streets makes you almost as evil as they are. Don't you think, Bobby?" Bobby didn't reply, unsure of what to say. "Ah, but Bobby… there's evil in all of us - you just happen to make a living off yours…" he continued, "Ah, but everyone's different. Everyone has something they need, or need to do to survive. Life is like an hour-glass. But, when you exorcise your evil, the sand goes much slower… Are you feeling me, Bobby?" "No," he replied simply. "Have you got family, Bobby?" Bryce asked. "No." "Anyone you care for a great deal?" "Of course." Bryce nodded. "They say these are the people that make us who we are… but… life, people, everything… it's all meaningless, until God shows his face." He smiled and laid back. "Good bye, Mr. Donnell." Bobby slowly stood. He walked to the barred cell door, and motioned to the guard at the end of the long, narrow corridor. "By the way, Bobby, sorry about your cousin," Bryce said. Bobby froze. How had he known about Jack? He was barely able to keep from shivering at that comment… it sounded too… wicked… for his liking. The guard opened the cell door, and Bobby stepped out, wanting to be gone from this place, wanting to know what in the hell had just happened. THE OFFICE OF ROBERT G. DONNELL AND ASSOCIATES 10:30 AM "He won't talk to anybody," Lindsay told Jimmy as he sat down. "He didn't say anything about the Hammond case… nothing at all?" Jimmy asked, obviously very compelled. "Why do you think we're all getting the silent treatment?" Rebecca asked. "I don't know, Rebecca. I don't know." Ellenor stood and walked to Bobby 's office door, knocking on it loudly. "Hey, Bobby?" "I'm working," he said from inside the office. Bobby was busy, but it certainly wasn't with work. He sat silent on his couch, pondering. "Until God shows his face…" What had he meant? And how had he known about his cousin? This was all very odd. None of it made sense - not in the slightest. Hammond had changed vastly in less than 12 hours - his whole demeanor. Had he been putting on a show for the rest of the firm? Had he known Bobby would jump all over the case. HOW did he know about his cousin? Did he know more about him? Bobby wanted answers, not questions, but he'd sat there all morning and all afternoon, finding nothing but more questions. 8:05 P.M. "Donnell and Associates," Rebecca spoke into the phone receiver, "Mr. Donnell is unavailable at this time. I'm sorry, but… oh… I see… yes… yes, I will. Thank you. Good bye." Rebecca looked up, everyone in anticipation of what she had just heard, of what news she might have for them. "Hammond's gone from his cell. Nowhere to be found," Rebecca informed. "He escaped?" Jimmy asked in shock. "Looks that way, Jimmy," Rebecca said, "but that's all." "What else is there?" Eugene asked. "They found an audio tape in his cell… it was labeled: for Bobby Donnell only…" Lindsay and Jimmy looked at each other, wondering… wondering. Eugene was pounding on Bobby's door. "What is it?" Bobby asked, coming to the door this time, and opening it for Eugene. "Bobby, Hammond's escaped and they found a tape in his cell that's labeled accordingly too his wishes for you to be the receiver of the tape," Eugene explained. "Bobby, what the hell happened this morning?" Rebecca asked. "I've gotta get down there. I'll talk to you all later," Bobby said, already out the door without his coat. MASSACHUSETTS TEMP. PRISON 8:35 P.M. "Mr. Donnell," a man called towards Bobby. Bobby walked towards him, "Yes, you have a tape for me?" He handed the small audio-cassette tape to Bobby. "We haven't listened to it yet, but we've made copies - for precautionary reasons." Bobby nodded. "Of course, I understand completely." With that, Bobby was on his way out of the building, towards his car, anxious to hear the tape, to hear Bryce's message, or what he assumed would be. "Hey, Chief," someone yelled from behind the man. "What is it?" "We just tried all of the tapes, they're all junk… its like they've been scrambled… like the first tape is copy protected." The Chief scratched his chin. * * * * * * * Bobby was on the highway when he finally brought himself to push the play button on his car radio. He was fidgety, not sure if he wanted to go back. to the office, not sure if he'd want to after listening to the tape. It was as if there was a war within him. "You don't know what you're feeling, do you Bobby? You have no idea what its like to hear the last screams, watch people gasp their last pathetic breath, to be left standing there alone. I relive the last screams. And then, then it begins again. Patrolling, stalking… and once I memorize their schedules, they're mine. You see Bobby, its like a door; a door between two realities - good… and evil. I cross over to the side of darkness. I possess them, I become a part of them, like I'm now a part of you. I become the angel of sorrow… and Bobby, you'll never catch up with me… you'll never catch up with me, until God shows his face… until God shows his face." * * * * * * * Bobby found himself at a Church. He knelt at the pew, his emotions grabbing hold of him, Hammond's words ringing in his ears… and so he wept; wept for Jack, wept for himself; he quietly wept.