Page 10 of A Walking Shadow

“Okay. Do you want me to start analyzing the arguments and doing the case research?”

“I do, but your first assignment after you get that instrument from Daniel is to find out everything you can about Gray Simmons. He works out of a firm in Peters Township called the Sinclair Law Group.”

“You want me to research all his published cases?”

“Yes, get copies of his cases and any press reports about them, but I also want you to learn everything you can about him as a person.”

Ellie’s pen stopped moving. “What?”

“I realize it’s an unusual request, but this is an unusual case.” Sasha paused. “Did you know Prescott & Talbot has a private investigation firm on a retainer?”

She shook her head. “I had no idea.”

“They do. We don’t. When we want to look into the background of a witness—or in this case, opposing counsel—we do it ourselves.”

This wasn’t strictly true. By ‘we’ she meant Naya Andrews because Naya could find anything on anyone. But Naya was a name partner and running a burgeoning transactional practice. She didn’t have time to play PI anymore. One of the things Sasha had to do if she didn’t want to be so tired all the time was learn to delegate. Just because Naya might be able to do it faster and better didn’t mean she could go to Naya, just like she couldn’t keep writing all her own briefs and checking all her own citations. And Ellie wasn’t going to learn how to do it unless she did it.

“Okay, so where do I start?”

Sasha gave her credit for asking instead of pretending she knew what she was doing.

“Start by asking Naya to take twenty minutes to walk you through the most effective and efficient way to do background research on a person. And take copious notes.”

“Anything else?”

“Just one thing. Don’t call Daniel’s studio. It will roll to voicemail and he won’t listen to it until his classes for the day are over. I’ll give you his cell phone number.”

She picked up her cell phone to get his number and noticed that Daniel had texted her. She opened the thread.

“Oh, he sent some pictures from the boot camp,” she told Ellie. She pulled up a group photo and read the message attached to it.

“This is Boone,” she said, pointing to a tall, rangy man in the center of the photo.

She was about to enlarge the picture to focus on Boone, but Ellie’s eyes passed over John Boone and landed on the man directly to his right. Her face went white.

“Ellie, what’s wrong?”

“I saw him this morning.”

“Boone?”

“No, him.” She lifted a finger and pointed toward the man next to Boone. “He was in the alley.”

“Our alley?”

“Yep.”

“You’re sure?”

Ellie met her eyes. “I’m positive. Why? Who is he?”

She turned her laptop around so Ellie could see the screen and clicked on the tab for the Sinclair Law Group. “That’s Gray Simmons.”

“What?” Ellie gaped.

“Close the door.”

After Ellie did as instructed, Sasha gestured for her to sit back down.

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