04-09-2026, 11:54 AM
“No, hold all my calls, all of them. If you think it’s one I might want to take, stick your head in the door.”
I sat down at my familiar desk and put my head in my hands, then buzzed Cheryl and asked her to get somebody to go down and get me a Starbuck’s Cappuccino, mostly foam, and then tried to collect my thoughts.
Twenty minutes late my door opened without a knock and I looked up curiously. There was only one person who did that and I didn’t expect him.
Dallas Edwards walked in carrying my Cappuccino and handed it to me across the desk.
He sat down in the chair across from me and we looked at each other curiously for a minute or so. In the meantime I sipped the foam and licked it off my upper lip.
“Are you trying to steal my job?”
“That’s been the plan for the last 10 years. When did you figure it out?”
“It’s pretty obvious, based on the media interest and the calls I’ve been getting. I think some people want to put you in for Sainthood. Others just think I should abdicate, walk away and leave the office to that heroic Angel of Death who has no fear.”
“It is kind of overwhelming. I feel like I’m going down a mountain with no way to stop.”
“Get used to it. Calvin Coolidge and Teddy Roosevelt became public heroes and look what happened to them. You should start practicing your speeches.”
“Not going to bother. Look, Dallas, this is your bag. You’re the guy with the ideas of making a better world, serving the public and all that other crap. All I am is a lawyer who knows how to talk and deliver a final argument. I like what I do and I think I’m pretty good at it. I’d be out of my depth doing anything else.”
“Like they say, if you can learn to fake modesty, you can do anything.” I gulped more steamed milk.
“Do I have to move up my timetable for looking around for another job? Since there won’t be a trial, I could start sending out resumes anytime. At your pleasure.”
He shook his head and looked down at his fingers, which he’d steepled in front on him on my desk.
“No, whether you stay or not is up to you. Maybe you’d be uncomfortable working with me now. I won’t ask you to stay on if things have gone too sour for you to be able to keep working here.”
“Not up to me, Dallas. You told me when this was over you wanted me to move on. Odds are you’re still going to be hurt by this, so what’s changed?”
He stared into my eyes. I felt the old awe come over me for a minute. I’d been a fledgling prosecutor when he had hired me, mentored me and finally gave
me a chance to do something that very few men or women my age and with my experience got to do. He’d been the man I looked up to and tried to model myself after. Even now, I thought that in a lot of ways he was a better man and a better attorney than I’d ever be.
“You know, I hope you know, that it was more about my opinion of the case than pure politics. I really thought there was serious doubt about whether we should be pursuing him. I honestly thought you’d gotten your personal problems mixed up in this case and the thing - with Debbie - had made you harder than you used to be.”
“You know as well as I do the power we wield. We can crush people if we want to, and get away with it. I’d always thought you’d done as good a job as anybody I ever saw in using the power of the office the right way. After Debbie, I really thought you were just pissed at life in general and that was coloring the way you thought and your decisions. Now...”
He looked down at his hands, then back at me.
“I need to know, for my own peace of mind, that you know I wasn’t willing to sell my soul to reach the Governor’s Chair. It wasn’t all political calculation.”
“I know that, Dallas. I knew it was a close call and that an honest man might come down differently than I did. I knew the political end of it bothered you, but it was more than that. If it had been simply that I thought you were trying to cover your ass, protect your run next year for Governor, I would have walked, right then, and gone public, because I couldn’t have kept working for you. But I know you better than that. You forget, I’ve worked for you for 10 years. I know the kind of man you are. You’re more than just another politician.”
“So you want to stick around?” “Until you ask me to leave.”
I finished slurping the rest of the Cappuccino and licked the foam mustache off my upper lip.
He stood up.
“By the way, I’ve already had a preliminary poll run and it matches the calls I’ve had. There are a lot of African Americans in this community who are happy we didn’t let a cop get away with murder, regardless of his color, and what Smith did shooting at his own fellow officers has pretty much eliminated all of the support he had at the Cop Shop. The general public just thinks we prosecute bad guys no matter who they are or where they work, and that’s what they want.
“The only problem I see is that more people are starting to know your name than mine."
But he smiled when he said the last. “So doing good paid off?”
“Looks like it.”
“Who would’a thought?”
He was almost to the door when he stopped and looked back at me.
“A little birdie told me that you rode to the hospital without Debbie, who was there somehow when this was going down, and I think she was kind of wanting to ride with you.”
I nodded.
“And I believe your French girlfriend called you in the hospital. Is she flying back to your side?”
I just shook my head no.
“So you’re in between romantic entanglements?”
“On the administrative chart, where does being nosy about your subordinates’ romantic lives fit?”
“A good administrator is always concerned about his staff being happy and content. A happy and contented staff is a productive staff. Managerial science 101.”
“If it will allow you to rest easier at night, no, I don’t have anybody in my life right now. As far as important relationships go, I’m batting zero for two.”
He put his hand on the doorknob.
“I just thought you should know that a female member of my staff has been very interested in your personal life since your—blowup—with Debbie occurred. She waited patiently for you to get past Debbie only to see Aline des-Jardins swoop in and grab you. Now that you’re between women, I thought you might think about at least asking her out for a coffee or something.”
“Do I know this lady?”
“First. Yeah, any male with normal hormones and equipment would like to be with her. But she doesn’t go out with every male who wants her. Secondly, why the hell do you think? Most women don’t like chasing men. You think she does? Somebody that looks like her doesn’t want to chase a man. And lastly ”
He gave me a small smile.
I sat down at my familiar desk and put my head in my hands, then buzzed Cheryl and asked her to get somebody to go down and get me a Starbuck’s Cappuccino, mostly foam, and then tried to collect my thoughts.
Twenty minutes late my door opened without a knock and I looked up curiously. There was only one person who did that and I didn’t expect him.
Dallas Edwards walked in carrying my Cappuccino and handed it to me across the desk.
He sat down in the chair across from me and we looked at each other curiously for a minute or so. In the meantime I sipped the foam and licked it off my upper lip.
“Are you trying to steal my job?”
“That’s been the plan for the last 10 years. When did you figure it out?”
“It’s pretty obvious, based on the media interest and the calls I’ve been getting. I think some people want to put you in for Sainthood. Others just think I should abdicate, walk away and leave the office to that heroic Angel of Death who has no fear.”
“It is kind of overwhelming. I feel like I’m going down a mountain with no way to stop.”
“Get used to it. Calvin Coolidge and Teddy Roosevelt became public heroes and look what happened to them. You should start practicing your speeches.”
“Not going to bother. Look, Dallas, this is your bag. You’re the guy with the ideas of making a better world, serving the public and all that other crap. All I am is a lawyer who knows how to talk and deliver a final argument. I like what I do and I think I’m pretty good at it. I’d be out of my depth doing anything else.”
“Like they say, if you can learn to fake modesty, you can do anything.” I gulped more steamed milk.
“Do I have to move up my timetable for looking around for another job? Since there won’t be a trial, I could start sending out resumes anytime. At your pleasure.”
He shook his head and looked down at his fingers, which he’d steepled in front on him on my desk.
“No, whether you stay or not is up to you. Maybe you’d be uncomfortable working with me now. I won’t ask you to stay on if things have gone too sour for you to be able to keep working here.”
“Not up to me, Dallas. You told me when this was over you wanted me to move on. Odds are you’re still going to be hurt by this, so what’s changed?”
He stared into my eyes. I felt the old awe come over me for a minute. I’d been a fledgling prosecutor when he had hired me, mentored me and finally gave
me a chance to do something that very few men or women my age and with my experience got to do. He’d been the man I looked up to and tried to model myself after. Even now, I thought that in a lot of ways he was a better man and a better attorney than I’d ever be.
“You know, I hope you know, that it was more about my opinion of the case than pure politics. I really thought there was serious doubt about whether we should be pursuing him. I honestly thought you’d gotten your personal problems mixed up in this case and the thing - with Debbie - had made you harder than you used to be.”
“You know as well as I do the power we wield. We can crush people if we want to, and get away with it. I’d always thought you’d done as good a job as anybody I ever saw in using the power of the office the right way. After Debbie, I really thought you were just pissed at life in general and that was coloring the way you thought and your decisions. Now...”
He looked down at his hands, then back at me.
“I need to know, for my own peace of mind, that you know I wasn’t willing to sell my soul to reach the Governor’s Chair. It wasn’t all political calculation.”
“I know that, Dallas. I knew it was a close call and that an honest man might come down differently than I did. I knew the political end of it bothered you, but it was more than that. If it had been simply that I thought you were trying to cover your ass, protect your run next year for Governor, I would have walked, right then, and gone public, because I couldn’t have kept working for you. But I know you better than that. You forget, I’ve worked for you for 10 years. I know the kind of man you are. You’re more than just another politician.”
“So you want to stick around?” “Until you ask me to leave.”
I finished slurping the rest of the Cappuccino and licked the foam mustache off my upper lip.
He stood up.
“By the way, I’ve already had a preliminary poll run and it matches the calls I’ve had. There are a lot of African Americans in this community who are happy we didn’t let a cop get away with murder, regardless of his color, and what Smith did shooting at his own fellow officers has pretty much eliminated all of the support he had at the Cop Shop. The general public just thinks we prosecute bad guys no matter who they are or where they work, and that’s what they want.
“The only problem I see is that more people are starting to know your name than mine."
But he smiled when he said the last. “So doing good paid off?”
“Looks like it.”
“Who would’a thought?”
He was almost to the door when he stopped and looked back at me.
“A little birdie told me that you rode to the hospital without Debbie, who was there somehow when this was going down, and I think she was kind of wanting to ride with you.”
I nodded.
“And I believe your French girlfriend called you in the hospital. Is she flying back to your side?”
I just shook my head no.
“So you’re in between romantic entanglements?”
“On the administrative chart, where does being nosy about your subordinates’ romantic lives fit?”
“A good administrator is always concerned about his staff being happy and content. A happy and contented staff is a productive staff. Managerial science 101.”
“If it will allow you to rest easier at night, no, I don’t have anybody in my life right now. As far as important relationships go, I’m batting zero for two.”
He put his hand on the doorknob.
“I just thought you should know that a female member of my staff has been very interested in your personal life since your—blowup—with Debbie occurred. She waited patiently for you to get past Debbie only to see Aline des-Jardins swoop in and grab you. Now that you’re between women, I thought you might think about at least asking her out for a coffee or something.”
“Do I know this lady?”
“You see her every time you come up to my office.” A couple of things kept me quiet for a moment.
“Are we talking about-“ “Yes.”
“Dallas...I...we....she...” He just waited me out.
“Okay, Dallas, assuming you’re serious. One, why in the hell would she need to have you run interference for her. Every male in this building would give his left nut, or both, to have a chance at her. She probably is wined and dined every night. She sure as hell doesn’t need me. Secondly, why didn’t she pick up the phone or come by here. And lastly....what about...I mean....you. ”“First. Yeah, any male with normal hormones and equipment would like to be with her. But she doesn’t go out with every male who wants her. Secondly, why the hell do you think? Most women don’t like chasing men. You think she does? Somebody that looks like her doesn’t want to chase a man. And lastly ”
He gave me a small smile.
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