Page 44 of Fifty-Fifty

I said nothing.

‘Judge Stone asked you a question, Mr. Flynn,’ said Dreyer, eager to join in with the judge.

‘I heard him. I thought it was a rhetorical question. But if you really want me to answer him, I will.’

Harper tugged at my arm, said, ‘Hi, I’m Harper.’

She was smarter than me, and the judge and Dreyer both took a moment to look her up and down appreciatively.

‘I’m going to steal Eddie away, if you gentlemen don’t mind,’ she said. I could tell she was pissed, and didn’t like the way Dreyer and Stone let their eyes wander over her.

I didn’t like it either.

She pulled on my arm, trying to get me away from the situation.

‘So, Miss Harper, do you think I’d be a worthy successor to Judge Ford?’ said Stone, unwilling to let any perceived criticism slide.

‘Stone, what’s going on?’ said Harry, cutting me off before I said something I could regret.

‘Mr. Flynn was just going to tell us that he believes Judge Stone will be a worthy successor to you, Judge,’ said Dreyer.

Harry said, ‘Eddie’s not that drunk. Not yet. Stone, you wouldn’t be a worthy successor to a shithouse attendant. I know your politics. I know your kind.’

Harry reached out, pointed to the lapel of Stone’s tux. There was a metal pin there. It was small, and I hadn’t taken any notice of it until Harry pointed it out.

A circle with a ‘1’ in the center.

‘Your time’s up, Ford. You had your run. Don’t make me come after you,’

said Stone.

‘Let’s get a drink,’ said Harry, ushering Harper and me away. ‘There’s a bad smell around here.’

As we walked away, I glanced over my shoulder and only then did I notice that Dreyer wore the same pin on his jacket.

We made our way to the back of the room, Harry said his goodbyes to some other judges and lawyers, and we split to an upscale bar on the next block. Harry felt the same way as I did about parties, even his own. The bar was part of a hotel, and we didn’t look or feel too out of place in our penguin suits, while Harper would have looked like a million dollars in any room in that dress.

I got us some beers and Scotch and we took a booth in the corner.

‘What was that pin Stone was wearing?’ asked Harper.

‘It belongs to an organization that changes its name every year or so. It used to be a white-boy gangbanger outfit out of Tennessee. They got political, changed

their names from Nation First, to American Lives First, Men of America, then something else – they split and reformed and split that many times I don’t even know what exactly they call themselves these days. It doesn’t matter. They don’t admit women, Jews, blacks, Hispanics, or anyone for that matter who isn’t white, wealthy and ignorant.’

‘I thought judges couldn’t be that political once in office,’ I said.

‘There are rules. Stone keeps to the letter of the law, that’s for sure. He has his first amendment right to free expression when he’s not on the bench. I just can’t abide the thought of that asshole taking my place. I never thought he would get the appointment – if I’d known, I wouldn’t have left, but by then I’d already put in my papers.’

‘The new hotshot at the DA’s office, Wesley Dreyer, he was wearing one of those pins too,’ I said.

‘I saw that. Dreyer and Stone are tight. Racists are weak, Eddie. They only have strength in numbers. I’m not sure Dreyer believes all the crap that goes with that pin. He’s aligning himself with a powerful judge in whatever way he can. In some ways, that’s worse. Stone is too stupid to recognize his prejudices.

Dreyer doesn’t care, as long as he’s climbing a ladder. Be careful though, they’re a dangerous pair. There’s nothing in the rulebook to prevent Dreyer appearing in Stone’s court. You challenge Dreyer for judicial bias and he’ll hand you your ass,’ said Harry.

We took some time to sip our drinks in silence, and I ordered another round from the waiter.

‘Harper and I have been talking. You don’t have any immediate plans for your retirement, do you?’ I asked.