Danny walked over, the baseball still loose in his hand.
He nodded once. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
They stood side by side while Davie ran back toward the tree.
From the porch, Margaret called, “Supper’s almost ready if anybody’s staying!”
David looked toward the house and smiled faintly.
“Mama knows exactly how to trap a man.”
Then the smile faded.
“You see Vanished in the Valley today?”
“Hard not to.”
David pulled out his phone and held it up.
A local Facebook page filled the screen. Someone had taken a picture of him leaving Harper & Associates, not long after hiring Eleanor. She stood beside him on the courthouse steps, one hand on the railing, her expression cool and unreadable.
Defense Attorney Represents David Mercer
Below it, the comments were already rolling in.
@mountainmama84: she always defends guilty men
@truecrimejunkie: if she takes his case, she knows he did it
@justiceforcaroline: how much is he paying her to make Caroline disappear twice?
@sylvaspeaks: wonder what he thinks about his attorney dating the district attorney
David’s thumb hovered over that specific comment. His jaw set. “Is it true?” he asked, looking at Danny. “About her and Calloway?”
Danny didn't look away. “Doesn't matter if it is. What matters is if the jury thinks she’s throwing the fight to please her boyfriend.”
@blueridgewatch: she goes all in for her clients apparently
One post had been shared more than five thousand times.
@CarolineDeservedBetter: Funny how Eleanor Harper alwaysseems to end up standing beside men when women disappear.
David locked the screen and shoved the phone back into his pocket.
“I thought this was all over.”
He rubbed the back of his neck.
Danny kept his voice even.
“Best thing you can do is keep quiet. No statements. No ‘setting the record straight.’ No interviews. Let your attorney do the talking.”
David looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“Exactly that,” Danny said, his voice dropping into the flat, clipped tone he used with suspects on the side of the highway. “The internet doesn't want the truth, David. They want a monster. Don't give them a reason to point the finger.”
