Lone Witness Read online

  “Well, you know you never need an invitation to come home. And if any of this is too much for you, just give me a call, and I’ll be right there. No matter what time, day or night.”

  “Thank you.”

  She felt tears well up in her eyes. Sophie knew she was a big softie, especially where her father was concerned. He was her rock. And he’d worn multiple hats as she grew up—he’d learned how to braid her hair and had dried her tears when the first boy she had a crush on broke her heart.

  She’d never known her mother, though she bore a strong resemblance to her from the pictures she’d seen. A wave of sadness washed over her. Even though she’d lived her thirty-two years without her mom, the loss was always there.

  “I love you, Sophie. Stay in touch. I want to know how you’re doing.”

  “Of course. Love you too.” She hung up and closed her eyes for a second. The last thing she wanted was to stress out her father, so she was trying to stay composed for his sake.

  There was a loud knock on her door, and she looked up to see her boss, Fulton County District Attorney Keith Todd.

  “Sophie, do you have a minute?”

  “Of course.”

  Keith sat down across from her. “First, how are you doing? I know you had a traumatic night on Friday.”

  She looked into his light blue eyes. “It’s been a trying couple of days, but I’m thankful to be alive. I only wish I could’ve done more.”

  “From what I hear, you did everything by the book and put yourself at risk trying to help. A lot of people would’ve curled up in a ball at the back of the store and hidden. But you jumped into action. You’ve made us all proud. Your actions were very brave.”

  “Thank you.” Keith didn’t offer praise often, so she was warmed by his compliment, even given the circumstances. He had high career hopes that went beyond being the Fulton County DA. At almost fifty years old, he was setting himself up for the next big thing.

  “I want to talk to you about something, so you aren’t caught unaware.”

  Her stomach clenched. “What is it?”

  “You’ll hear more about all of this, especially as the local news breaks today, but I wanted you to hear it from me first.”

  She leaned forward in her chair, sensing something big was coming. “Okay.”

  “The suspect you identified this morning in the lineup for the shooting is a man by the name of Ricky Wade.”

  “All right.” She didn’t know where Keith was going with this. “The name doesn’t sound familiar to me.”

  “Ricky is the younger brother of Juan Wade.”

  That name she knew. “As in the head of one of Atlanta’s biggest gangs? That Juan Wade?”

  “The very same.” Keith ran his hand through his short, sandy blond hair. “So this isn’t going to be a run-of-the-mill prosecution. We’ve got a double homicide linked to a major gang. I don’t have to spell all of this out for you.”

  Her head started to swim. There were a lot of implications. Especially with her being a potential witness.

  Keith cleared his throat. “Having said all that, I’ve decided it makes sense to remove any semblance of bias in this case. I’m assigning a special prosecutor to it.”

  “Who?”

  “Deputy Chief ADA Patrick Hunt from the Dekalb County prosecutor’s office. Do you know him?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve heard the name, but I’ve never met him.”

  “Good. That way we can put to bed any argument about a conflict of interest. I didn’t want one of our own Fulton County prosecutors having to put you on the witness stand. It’s just too close. This will be better for everyone, including you.”

  She looked up to see a tall man standing in her doorway. He had short dark hair and was probably in his mid-to-late thirties.

  “Hello,” he said. “Hope I’m not interrupting.”

  “Patrick.” Keith rose from his seat. “Nice to see you.” He shook Patrick’s hand. “Let me introduce you to Sophie Dawson.”

  Sophie stood and walked around her desk to greet Patrick. “Nice to meet you.”

  “I know this is a difficult time for you,” Patrick said, “but I’ll do everything I can to make this process go as smoothly as possible.”

  “I’ll let you two talk,” Keith said. “Sophie, if you need anything, let me know. And if your workload needs to be adjusted, that won’t be an issue.”

  She appreciated the offer, but the last thing she wanted to do was give up any of her cases. She didn’t want this case against Ricky Wade to impede on her life any more than it had to.

  When Keith had left, Patrick leaned against the corner of her desk. “I don’t know what all Keith told you, but I’d like to hear everything you can tell me about Friday night.”

  “Of course.” It was going to be a long morning. She stared at her empty coffee cup and thought about a refill. “What about the other woman at the scene? The college student?”

  Patrick frowned. “Understandably, she’s a wreck. She hit the deck when she heard the shots being fired. Put her head down and never saw the shooter.”

  “I know she has to be traumatized. It was awful.” Sophie had seen many difficult things during her time as a prosecutor, but she could only imagine what that young woman was going through.

  “She’s seeking counseling.” Patrick paused. “Not to add any pressure on your shoulders or anything, but you’re the linchpin here, Sophie.”

  “Don’t we have the gas station security cameras?”

  He blew out a breath. “We’ve got nothing. Only one of the cameras was working, and it was at the tanks and didn’t capture any useful footage of the shooter. Nothing we can use for identification.”

  Her heartbeat started to speed up as she thought it through. “So it’s literally going to be just eyewitness testimony? My eyewitness testimony?” Her voice cracked.

  “Yeah. And I don’t have to tell you what that means.”

  “Because eyewitnesses are often so unreliable.”

  Patrick nodded. “Plus, on top of that, we’ll have to combat the defense’s argument that you’re biased.”

  “I know what I saw.” She wasn’t going to waver on that.

  “You’re a professional, but you’re not used to being on this side of things. It might turn out to be much more difficult than you think.”

  “I promise I’ll cooperate and won’t try to play Monday morning quarterback.”

  “No, that isn’t what I meant at all. I’m not concerned about you questioning my legal strategies.”

  “What is it, then?”

  Patrick took a deep breath and looked directly into her eyes. “You have a huge target on your back. And Juan Wade doesn’t miss.”

  Chapter

  Three

  Cooper Knight hung back and watched as Sophie Dawson walked out of the Fulton County courthouse. The tall, knockout of a blonde didn’t look like an attorney, but he’d learned years ago as a cop that you should never judge someone by how they looked.

  He’d actually met Sophie once at her birthday party. They were connected through one of his best friends and business partners, Landon James. Landon was marrying Kate Sullivan, who happened to be friends with Sophie. They’d actually gotten engaged at Sophie’s birthday party, which was why Cooper had been invited.

  Sophie had made quite an impression on him that night. So much so that he almost asked for her number, but then thought better of it. He wasn’t looking for something serious and didn’t think it best to casually date one of Kate’s closest friends, given all the interconnections. He liked to keep things simple.

  So he’d decided to play it safe, have a nice conversation with her, and then try to put her out of his mind. But she looked every bit as beautiful today as he remembered. It wasn’t just her beauty that had gotten his attention, though. They’d had a great conversation, and he knew she was a woman with depth. Another reason he’d decided it best not to make a move. Romantic attachments weren’t his
thing. He wasn’t like his buddy Landon. Settling down wasn’t an option for him.

  Since he’d had that brief interaction with Sophie, he made sure not to get too close to her now. He didn’t want her to see him. At least not yet.

  He’d gotten a call last night from Randall Dawson, Sophie’s father. Randall was very concerned that his daughter was apparently the only witness in a double homicide that involved one of Atlanta’s most notorious gangs. Once he’d heard everything Randall had to say, Cooper couldn’t blame him for wanting to make sure his only child was protected. Cooper understood how dangerous the Atlanta gang scene was because he’d worked a two-year stint in the gang unit.

  His orders right now, though, were to stay under the radar. To not let Sophie know he was keeping an eye on her. Randall had told him that if Sophie found out, she wasn’t going to be happy. She valued her independence and wouldn’t appreciate his presence.

  Cooper got into his SUV, planning to tail her to make sure she safely got either home or to whatever destination she was headed. Since he’d received the phone call from Randall, he’d done some background research. Sophie had attended Emory University for undergraduate and law school. Thirty-two years old, single, and fiercely passionate about her career as a prosecutor.

  The most interesting find in his research was that Sophie came from money—serious money that went back generations. Her father was also a highly respected businessman in the community with a thriving commercial real estate company.

  His phone rang and he answered. “Cooper here.”

  “Hey, it’s Landon. I’m calling you back.”

  “Are you alone?” He had to ask Landon something and wanted to make sure his fiancée wasn’t around.

  “Yeah, in the car on my way home.”

  “Listen, I got a new client, and it’s actually Sophie Dawson.”

  “Kate’s Sophie?” Landon asked.

  “Yes, which is why I wanted to talk to you, to make sure you didn’t see the file I created for new matters on our shared site and say anything to Kate.”

  “What’s going on with Sophie?”

  He filled Landon in on everything he knew as he kept his eyes on Sophie’s vehicle, which was about four cars ahead of him.

  “Sounds like Sophie may actually need the security,” Landon said. “I know sometimes we deal with situations where family or business contacts overreact, but you can’t mess around with the gangs. Especially if this is the gang leader’s brother we’re talking about. This is bad news. I don’t like any of it.”

  “I agree.”

  “Do you need any help from me?” Landon asked.

  “Not at the moment, but I wanted to make sure you were up to speed. I don’t know the timetable yet of the trial or whether there’s going to be a plea deal or what. For now, I’m just keeping my eyes on her, and we’ll take it one step at a time.”

  “Whatever you need, just let me know.”

  “I’m so glad you’re part of our team now, Landon.”

  “Me too. It’s like I’m right where I’m supposed to be.”

  Landon had merged his own private investigator business with K&R Security less than a year ago. He had gone through a rough patch after his last army deployment and leaving the military, but was now back on track, thanks in large part to his fiancée. Cooper was so thankful to have his friend back.

  “I’ll keep you posted. Will you do me a favor and let Noah know what’s going on?”

  “Roger that.”

  Cooper ended the call and kept his eyes on Sophie’s black Ford Escape. For being so wealthy, it didn’t appear that she was flaunting it. She could’ve been driving a luxury vehicle.

  He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to come from that kind of money—or any money, for that matter. His parents had barely been able to put food on the table, though a lot of that was because of his father’s transgressions. Being raised by an abusive alcoholic had taken its toll on Cooper. He knew it. He didn’t need a shrink to explain that to him. No amount of therapy would cure him of his past.

  His dad had gotten clean about five years ago, and Cooper was thankful for that. But the damage had been done. And it was irreversible.

  Lord, I don’t want to think about this right now.

  It was a prayer he felt like he’d uttered a million times.

  Deputy Chief ADA Patrick Hunt walked into the courtroom, ready for what he hoped would be a run-of-the-mill preliminary hearing. Unfortunately, so far he was learning that absolutely nothing about the Wade case was run-of-the-mill. Starting with the fact that his only witness to a double homicide was a senior ADA. What were the chances of that? It was going to make his job infinitely trickier.

  He’d been called in from Dekalb, the neighboring county, so the defense couldn’t argue conflict of interest. And once he found out who the defense attorney was, boy, was he glad Keith had asked him to step in.

  Ashley Murphy represented the worst of the worst. Gangs, rapists, drug lords, and other violent criminals. He had no idea how she could sleep at night. Ice ran through her veins.

  He was facing off against Ashley today. It wasn’t the first time, and it wouldn’t be the last. He could only imagine what the gang was paying her. It was a hefty sum, that was for sure, because Ashley didn’t come cheap. She wasn’t representing defendants out of the goodness of her heart, but the desire to pad her pocketbook.

  If all went according to plan in the hearing, he’d put the detective on the stand, get the testimony he needed for probable cause, and go about his business.

  As Patrick walked to his table at the front of the courtroom, he saw that his eyewitness was seated in the back row for purely observational purposes. Today her name would come out to the defense and to the public at large. There was nothing he could do about that, but it would certainly up the stakes.

  He gave Sophie a nod and set his briefcase on the counsel’s table. Ashley Murphy was already at the defense table, jotting down notes on her legal pad. When she made eye contact with him, she set down her pen and walked over. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a bun. She always wore wireframe glasses, but for some reason he was convinced it was just for show to make her look more serious.

  “You’re barking up the wrong tree,” Ashley said.

  “And hello to you too, Ashley.”

  She put her right hand on her hip. “C’mon, Patrick. You know how this dance is done. You’ve got absolutely nothing on my client. This is just a way for you to try, yet again, to make a run at Juan Wade. But it isn’t happening. I won’t let you smear this young man’s good name.”

  Mixed feelings bubbled up inside him. He wanted to shut her down right then and there. But he kept his emotions in check, figuring Ashley would find out soon enough about his witness. She was going to go absolutely ballistic, and there was a side of him that wanted to see that. He knew he shouldn’t think that way, but the utter surprise she was in for when she found out who had witnessed the double homicide would be priceless. Ashley assumed she held all the cards right now, but she was wrong.

  “You’re way off base, Ashley. Why don’t you let us present the evidence against your client first, before you jump to any hasty conclusions that aren’t built on the facts?”

  Her green eyes narrowed. “What’s going on, Patrick? Are you holding out on me?”

  His attitude had tipped her off. “Let’s just get this done, all right?”

  “Fine.” She turned and walked away, looking over her shoulder once more at him.

  Her client, Ricky Wade, was ushered into the courtroom by an officer. He looked even younger than his nineteen years, with a baby face and big brown eyes. Ricky stood about six feet tall with a lanky frame. Patrick wondered if his looks would make the jury more sympathetic. He was clearly old enough to be tried as an adult, but that baby face might prove to be yet another issue for the prosecution. As if he needed another challenge right now.

  Patrick hadn’t let on to Sophie just how difficult he
thought this case might be. She seemed convinced that Ricky was the shooter, but they would have to overcome a series of obstacles to prove that. And that was under the best conditions, without any interference by Juan.

  Patrick pretended to be organizing his papers as he stood and walked around the side of the table, but he couldn’t help hearing Ricky say some foul things to Ashley. Didn’t this kid realize that she was there to help him? It was mind-boggling that Ashley would put up with that kind of behavior. But she didn’t show any signs of distress as she responded in a calm voice and reassured Ricky that she had everything under control.

  It was only a few minutes before Judge Edward Turner took the bench and it was show time. Judge Turner was a middle-of-the-road judge who was known for having a calm demeanor. It took a lot to rile him up.

  “Call your first witness, Mr. Hunt.”

  “The state calls Detective Harley Scott.” Scott was the lead detective on the case, and he would present the evidence needed to get a probable cause order. Scott was a veteran detective and had done hundreds of these hearings.

  Patrick walked the detective through the events of the night of the shooting. “And Detective Scott, you have an eyewitness who will testify to the events that you’ve laid out today?”

  “Yes, sir, I do.”

  Patrick wasn’t going to be the person to name Sophie in open court. He was certain Ashley would ask for the name, so he left it at that and rested. “Your witness, counselor.”

  Ashley walked up to the witness stand and adjusted her glasses. He figured that was one of her nervous ticks.

  “Detective Scott, what is the name of your eyewitness?”

  “Her name is Sophie Dawson.”

  Ashley turned and looked at Patrick, her eyes wide and mouth slightly parted in surprise, before she looked toward the back of the courtroom. “Detective Scott, are you talking about Assistant District Attorney Sophie Dawson?”

  Audible gasps went up throughout the courtroom. It wasn’t a packed house, but given the high profile nature of the case and the gang involvement, there were local media present.