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as the guard left.
    A good defense attorney never asked that question because of the limitations it put on the defense if a client confessed guilt. But the news of Christine’s death had stunned Amanda and she had forgotten to act professionally.
    Tom shook his head. He looked exhausted.
    â€œI don’t know. The police were all over my house when I came home. They took me to my bedroom. Christine . . .”
    Tom paused and wet his lips. “She was lying on my bed. Her face . . .”
    Tom shook his head again, and that gesture convinced Amanda that her client was innocent. She guessed that Tom had seen horrible sights as a soldier and would be this moved only by the unexpected, violent death of someone he knew and cared for.
    â€œWhy was Christine at your house?” Amanda asked.
    â€œI don’t know.”
    â€œAnd she was murdered?”
    When Tom looked up, anger animated his expression.
    â€œShe was beaten to death. Her face was pulp. When I get out of here, I will find the person responsible and make them wish they had never been born.”
    â€œTom, do not say anything like that to anyone but me. Do you understand?”
    Tom’s features hardened, and he did not respond. Amanda understood his anger and didn’t press the point.
    â€œWhere were you before you came home?” she asked to change the subject.
    Confusion replaced anger and Tom lost focus.
    â€œTom?”
    â€œIt was a setup.”
    â€œWhat was a setup?”
    Tom looked at Amanda. “Everything. It was around seven, I was reading, and the phone rang. The caller said he was Albert Roth. He said he was an associate at the firm and Randall Spaulding wanted me to come back to the office.”
    â€œWho is Randall Spaulding?”
    â€œHe’s a junior partner.”
    â€œDo you know him?”
    â€œI know who he is but I’ve never done any work for him.”
    â€œWhat about Roth? Do you know him?”
    â€œNo, I’d never heard of him, but there are so many attorneys in the firm that I wasn’t concerned.”
    â€œWhat did they want you to do?”
    â€œThat’s the thing. When I got to the office, Mr. Spauldingwasn’t there. I used the office directory and got his home number. He said he had no idea who Albert Roth was and denied he’d asked anyone to call me. Then I looked for Roth in the directory. No one by that name is listed.”
    â€œSo, whoever murdered Christine lured you downtown so they could put the body in your bedroom.”
    â€œAnd plant heroin in my basement.”
    â€œThe police found heroin in your house?”
    â€œI have never used or sold heroin, Miss Jaffe.”
    Amanda had occasionally been conned by clients, but she was pretty good at spotting a lie. If she had to bet, she would bet that Beatty was telling the truth.
    â€œDo you have any idea why someone would murder Christine and frame you?”
    â€œNo . . .” Tom paused. “Well, there was one thing. When you called me to tell me that my case had been dismissed, I went to Christine’s office to tell her the good news. I walked up. The door to the stairwell is at one end of a long corridor and Christine’s office is about midway. When I walked into the hall I saw Christine leaving Dale Masterson’s office. She looked upset. Before I could get to her she shut her office door, so I didn’t go in. Instead, I asked Brittney, Christine’s secretary, to call me when she thought it would be a good time to talk to Christine.
    â€œLater, Brittney called and told me to come up. Christine was happy that the case had been thrown out, but I could see something was worrying her. I asked her why she was upset. She told me that the firm was trying to get Global Mining as a client. She thought something funny was going on with the firm’s booksand she wanted me to help her look into it. She said she thought someone high up in the firm was juggling figures to