Читать книгу: «First To Fall»

Chapter One: Welcome to Avalon

The dusty road lay empty before him in the fading light. Aiden Connelly rubbed his eyes wearily wondering just how much of his journey was left. Behind him, his little angel, Meegan, slept soundly, oblivious to the dramatic change her life was currently undergoing. His wife stirred in her sleep and Aiden could not help but smile at her tangle of mahogany curls splayed widely around her head. She was usually so immaculate, yet in the throes of sleep she had wrestled around on the uncomfortable seat of the rented car and now resembled a wild woman. This was how Aiden liked his wife, Isla, best. Relaxed, carefree. For so long they had both been so consumed by everything. Even the birth of Meegan had felt like yet another chore, something else to be responsible for, rather than the joy that it should have brought them.

That was why they were here, now. Travelling down an old highway that seemed to be leading them into the middle of nowhere. In reality it was taking them away from it all: the stress, the chaos, the ridiculous pace of the city to a new, quieter life. It was what they needed. Aiden could feel himself becoming a stranger to his family; the hours he needed to spend at the office were increasing daily and he had begun to question his motives in life and the choices he had made. Initially he got into law for the money, but as he progressed through the course he developed a passion for it. Two years working for one of the most prestigious law firms in Chicago was slowly sucking any positive feeling he had had towards his job out of him. He dealt with high-profile cases, they lived in a beautiful penthouse, but Aiden was in serious danger of having no soul.

‘The rat race isn’t for everyone,’ his late father had advised him. ‘Happiness is true wealth.’ It was rather cliché but Aiden could not help but be inspired by the old man’s words. He had grown up in the country, on a farm, and had only happy memories of his childhood. He wanted the same for Meegan. Finding another job was easy considering his previous experience; convincing Isla was the hard part. She loved living in the city, she was always shopping and lunching with friends. As Aiden had pointed out to her, her first love, art, had taken a back seat over the past few years. She had not painted a thing since three summers ago. Admittedly, she had been preoccupied with the arrival of Meegan, but still… Aiden helped her realise that a clean break was what they all needed, surrounded by nature she would undoubtedly be inspired and start painting again in no time.

Dusk was fast turning into night as the headlights of the rented car gleamed upon the approaching roadside.

Avalon – 20 miles

‘Not far now,’ Aiden said aloud.

‘Huh?’ Isla stirred, awoken by his voice.

‘Not far now, honey. We will soon be in Avalon.’

‘Oh good,’ she yawned. ‘I’m really tired.’

‘Tired? You’ve been asleep for half of the journey!’

‘You try sleeping on these chairs; it’s like lying on a rock!’ She snapped her visor down and studied her reflection. ‘Ugh, just look at my hair. Thank God it will be dark when we arrive.’ She turned to check their daughter. ‘Has Meegan been asleep this whole time?’

‘Sure has.’

The couple smiled at one another. It felt good. Aiden dared himself to hope that this was all going to be the start of something wonderful.

Less than an hour later the Connelly family pulled into the driveway of their new home. After driving down what Aiden had assumed was the high street, he had quickly located his new neighbourhood. Avalon was a small, sparse town; he had only spotted one convenience store, along with two churches, a hair salon, a doctor’s surgery and a florist. From various flyers dotted around he had quickly assessed that there was a high school nearby with an impending football match that was obviously of great importance to the community. Given that they didn’t seem to have much else going on this did not surprise him. He had yet to locate his new offices, Cope and May Solicitors at Law, but he had a few days yet before he had to start work so that could wait. Given the size of Avalon he doubted that they would be far away.

‘Well…it’s quaint.’ Isla stood surveying the wooden one-storey property before her. It had certainly seen better days. Like an ageing movie star, if you looked hard enough you could still see the glimmer of something special, that many years ago it had been something magnificent, but now the years had performed their devastating trick and what was once glorious was now faded and lacklustre. Isla imagined that the house had once been a beautiful blue, as bright and wonderful as a summer’s day, but that blue had dulled to a sad shade of grey. The white of the windows had yellowed and the front lawn exposed more dirt than grass. It really was a far cry from the modern, immaculate penthouse she had left behind. It was all she could do not to burst into tears. She hoped that tomorrow things might seem brighter but she knew that in the harsh light of day even more flaws would be exposed to her. This was Aiden’s dream, not hers. But she loved him, and she loved Meegan. In her heart she knew that this had to work, it was their last chance.

‘It certainly has character.’ Aiden wrapped a strong arm around his wife’s delicate shoulders. Instinctively she leant into him.

‘You can paint the house, decorate it inside. Do whatever you like. Just think how great it will feel to be doing something creative again.’

‘And the garden?’

‘Well, now I’m working less I’ll do the garden up a real treat. Get a jungle gym for Meegan, maybe a small pond for you. You’ve always been saying how you would love to have some fish, that you find water soothing.’

Isla smiled, and it was genuine. She could feel the clean air of Avalon filling up her lungs and it felt good. Above her the night sky sparkled and she was amazed at how many stars she could see.

‘I think we can make this work,’ she told her husband hopefully.

‘I know we can, hun. You, me and Meegan, it will be wonderful.’

‘Dada,’ Meegan called from the car, the cool breeze from the open doors awakening her from her slumber.

‘Hey princess,’ Aiden cooed as he lifted her from her car seat. ‘Do you like your new home?’ He turned the tiny toddler to face the house and she rubbed her hazel eyes.

‘Night, night,’ she murmured grumpily, indicating that she wanted to sleep.

‘I second that,’ Isla yawned.

‘Hopefully the movers put everything in the right place.’

Aiden lay in bed counting the cracks on the ceiling. Isla was already fast asleep. The gentle hum of crickets gave a comforting soundtrack to his muddle of thoughts. The house needed a lot of work, the realtor had been very clear about that and he wasn’t lying. The profit they had made on the penthouse would more than cover any costs for maintenance work. Before she had slipped into that oh-so-wonderful world of dreams, Isla had asked him why he had chosen to move to Avalon of all the towns in America. She had drifted to sleep before he could respond, and lying awake next to her, a good hour later, he was still struggling to find an answer.

After three days of intense unpacking, Aiden pulled up outside Cope and May Solicitors at Law. It hadn’t taken him long to locate the modest office since Avalon was so small and it was the only local law firm. Two days previous he had enquired about his future workplace whilst buying groceries and the clerk had been more than helpful, informing him how the business was once run by Edmond Cope and Howard May, but since Howard’s death three years ago Edmond had been going it alone. Apparently he managed fine at first but even a town as small as Avalon has its fair share of legal affairs that needed tending to so, apparently reluctantly, he had advertised for a new partner. This revelation made Aiden a little anxious; Mr. Cope probably had his own way of doing things and would no doubt take all the better cases for himself. Assuming there were any cases at all. Even though he had been there for just a few days, Aiden was already noticing that the pace of life in Avalon was remarkably slow, it was the kind of place where you didn’t bother locking your doors and would happily let your kids play out on the front lawn.

Cope and May was located between Smith’s Pharmacy and Redd Books. In total his journey to work had taken him about ten minutes. Aiden liked the thought of being able to go home for dinner, in Chicago his commute had taken two hours in total. At night he was almost always too exhausted to do anything besides collapse on his bed. Most nights he came home way past Meegan’s bedtime, much to Isla’s annoyance. The past three nights, being there to bath his little girl and read her a goodnight story had been amazing. He had no idea how much he had been missing out on and sacrificing for his job. Even though he knew that working in Avalon would be worlds away from what he was used to, he knew that he was already reaping the benefits. Taking a deep breath he braced himself and walked through the glass front door to the cheerful chimes of a small bell.

‘Good morning,’ a cheerful elderly lady seated at a mahogany desk along the far wall greeted him. Her ashen hair sat atop her wrinkled face like a giant choux bun. Her small frame was adorned with a tight, crisp, white shirt and her glasses hung down from a chain around her neck. The words ‘prim and proper’ sprang to Aiden’s mind.

‘Well good morning, I’m Aiden Connelly.’

‘Ah, Mr. Connelly. How lovely to meet you! I’m Betty Hales, I’ve been secretary here for the past twenty years. Oh, it is most exciting to have you here working with us. Please, do take a seat, I’ll let Edmond, Mr. Cope, know that you are here.’

Aiden obliged and settled himself on one of the two battered leather couches that occupied the waiting room. There was a coffee table littered with magazines, ranging from Horse and Hound to Vogue, all clearly out of date. The hardwood flooring was surprisingly tasteful and the walls were painted a calming pale shade of green. Aiden guessed that the room had recently been decorated, leaving the ancient-seeming furniture, including the leather couches, one of which he was rapidly sinking into. He hoisted himself up using the arm into a less comfortable-looking position.

‘Oh, Mr. Cope.’ Betty had pressed the intercom on her desk. ‘I have Mr. Connelly for you.’

‘Send him in.’

‘In you go then, dear. Best of luck,’ she smiled. Aiden nodded and lifted himself up from the absorbing couch and entered the door beside Betty’s desk, which he assumed was the office as the only other door in the room was marked ‘lavatory’.

The main office was a large room, painted in the same soothing green as the waiting area. Two large desks with computers occupied a majority of the space and numerous filing cabinets lined two of the walls. The desk nearest to the door was immaculate whilst the other was awash with papers and files. A man hastily got up from the cluttered desk and quickly smoothed down his blue shirt.

Edmond Cope was getting on in years. As his hairline decreased his waistline had expanded until now he was basically bald and quite rotund. It was common knowledge that he enjoyed his drink; if Aiden played his cards right he would learn of the generous amount of liquor the old man kept in his desk drawer. It had been common practice for himself and his old partner, Howard May, to indulge in an afternoon tipple when work was slow. Since Howard’s death, the afternoon tipple had increased to occasionally include mornings too. Three years was a long time to be in an office alone and Edmond was a sociable man. He loved nothing more than entertaining his large family at his equally large home. In all honesty he had opened up the position for a new partner out of loneliness rather than necessity. When he read Aiden’s profile he could scarcely believe his luck: a young hotshot lawyer wanting to work in Avalon? With his pending retirement looming he was hoping that Aiden may well indeed be someone who could take over the business. But this was all jumping the gun somewhat. Edmond stuck out his podgy hand and Aiden shook it enthusiastically.

‘Edmond Cope, welcome, welcome!’

‘Thank you, Mr. Cope.’

‘Please, Edmond, Mr. Cope was my father! Your desk is there, my boy, do take time to familiarise yourself with it. The computer is all set up, she may not look it but Betty is a whiz with technology!’

Aiden smiled but was inwardly flinching at the ‘my boy’ comment.

‘I would give you a tour of the place but there isn’t much to see. There is the waiting area where Betty is, the toilets and here, the epicentre of it all! I expect you are used to much bigger places but this serves us all right.’

‘Bigger is not always better.’

‘True, true. So…’ Edmond was still standing in the centre of the room, his ample chest puffed out in an attitude of grandeur. ‘Cope and May has been serving the legal needs of Avalon for a good thirty years come this fall. I myself founded the company, along with my dear friend and colleague Howard May, God rest his soul. We went to college together you see, studied law, wanted to make a change and that. We thought about going to work in the city but were perhaps too attached to our families and whatnot to leave. But the town has been good to us; we are never short of work.’

‘Glad to hear it.’

‘That was why the position of partner came up. I was getting bogged down by it all, some days I wasn’t getting home until 6pm! The wife said enough is enough! I work to live, I don’t live to work. You know, son?’

‘I hear you loud and clear.’

‘Good, good.’ Edmond now settled himself once more at his desk.

‘When I read your profile I knew you could handle things here. It will most likely seem a doddle compared to what you had to deal with in the city. The thing is to remember that Avalon is full of good people, for the most part. There is the odd bad apple but most cases are property disputes, drunken brawls, that kind of thing. Nothing too wayward. It may seem menial at times but it is ultimately rewarding. Like I said, it is a town full of good people and they are always more than grateful for our help. Only the other day Mrs. McKenzie from the small farm down the road sent me a basket of lovely apples to thank me for helping her husband when he got sentenced a DUI.’

Aiden nodded.

‘We get a lot of DUIs. Folk just don’t think, but we have a good relationship with the local law enforcement who keeps us up to speed on things. Buck Fern is the local sheriff and has been as long as I can remember. Straight as an arrow that man. Folks round her respect him and that’s important in keeping the peace and all that. I’ll get him to pop by later this week; no doubt he’ll be keen to meet you.’

‘Yes, of course.’

‘You got family, Mr. Connelly?’

‘Yes, a wife and daughter.’ Aiden’s reply clearly pleased Edmond. ‘And please, call me Aiden,’ he added.

‘Well Aiden, how old is your little ray of sunshine?’

‘Meegan turns two next month.’

‘Two, how wonderful! My grandson Grant was two just last week. Lovely age. Well, I suppose I need to stop smacking my gums with you and get down to working. We are starting to sound like a couple of hens with our cackling!’

Aiden could feel himself warming towards the old man. You couldn’t help but like him.

‘But first things first, you cannot work without coffee.’ Edmond pressed the intercom on his desk. ‘Betty, my dear.’

‘Yes, Mr. Cope.’ Her response came back crackly through the machine.

‘Can we have two coffees?’ To Aiden he whispered, ‘You do drink coffee, son?’ Aiden nodded. ‘Yes, two coffees please, Betty.’

‘Right away.’

‘Thank you, my dear.’

After Betty has bustled in with two steaming coffees and a plate of biscuits, Edmond handed Aiden a thin brown file. On the front it read:

White, Brandy

Case no. 2315

Aiden assumed it was a routine DUI and was about to read the notes when Edmond stopped him.

‘Now that there is an unusual case. It is pretty much open, shut, not much to be done. I’m giving it to you as I thought you would have experience in that sort of thing, and being new to town, folk might not want you delving into their personal matters quite so fast.’

Intrigued, Aiden opened the file.

‘A murder case?’ He could not conceal his shock. A shiver of excitement ran down his spine. He was prepared to deal with domestic disputes, unruly neighbours, but a murder! This was legal gold!

‘Don’t get too excited there, Aiden. Like I said, open, shut. Mrs.White is a resident here in Avalon, we represent her as an obligation, not through choice. She has already confessed to the crime and is awaiting sentencing over at Eastham Ladies Penitentiary, about twenty miles east of here.’

‘I see,’ Aiden muttered, his eyes scanning the records before him.

‘She murdered her husband in cold blood, terrible matter. Shook the town to its core. He was a beloved town hero. She must have been possessed by the devil himself to do such a thing.’

‘When is the hearing?’

‘Three weeks from now. You just need to go over, give her legal support, explain what will likely occur after her guilty plea.’

‘So, she is down for first degree murder?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘So under state law…?’

‘It will be the death penalty, son. No messing about here.’

‘My God, she’s only twenty-four.’

‘It ain’t pretty, son. Murder never is. If you feel this case is a little too heavy for you, just say. Personally, I knew Brandon and know his father well, we go to the same church. It wouldn’t feel right representing Mrs. White myself. I’m sure you understand.’

‘Yeah.’

‘That is the downside of working in such a small town. You know pretty much everyone who walks through them doors and it is hard not to be attached or emotionally involved. Especially this case. Everyone round here is still reeling from it all.’

‘Any idea why she did it?’

‘None at all. As her lawyer I guess it is your job to suss that out. That’s if you want the case?’

‘Yeah, yes, of course! I dealt with a lot of murder suspects in Chicago so it is not a problem at all.’

‘Well then, I most heartily welcome you to Cope and May Solicitors at Law. May we enjoy a long and prosperous working relationship together.’ Edmond raised his coffee mug in celebration, as did Aiden. In his mind, Edmond was all too aware of the bottle of sweet, sweet liquor nestling just inches from him but reasoned it was too early on in his relationship with Aiden to break it out, even when a toast was in order. Besides, it was only half past nine in the morning. To drink before noon was something only winos did.

Aiden spent the rest of the day researching the Brandy White case. Edmond had been right when he had said that it was open, shut. Mrs. White had confessed to the murder of her husband almost immediately, in fact she had been the one who had dialled 911. He had seen this kind of thing before, domestic argument gotten out of hand. They had only intended to fire a warning shot. The police report made for chilling reading: Mr. White had been stabbed in the chest six times. Mrs. White was apparently covered in his blood and hysterical when police arrived at the scene. Aiden made a call to Eastham to arrange a visit for the following day.

It was early afternoon and Aiden felt that he was all wrapped up with his work and prepared for his visit to Brandy the next day. Edmond must have sensed this as at 2pm he looked over from his desk. He had been typing furiously at his computer pretty much all day, apart from the occasional call to Betty for coffee.

‘Fancy calling it a day, Aiden? I’ve got Mr. and Mrs. Johnson in here this afternoon to discuss setting up a will so I’ll be needing the office to myself anyways.’

‘Only if you are sure?’

‘Yes, its fine. There are no strict hours here, just get the work done. So you are popping over to Eastham tomorrow?’

‘Sure am.’

‘I like your style, just dive right in. If you could pop by on your way back, just to report in and that?’

‘Of course.’

‘Wonderful. Betty has some directions to Eastham in her desk, I’m sure she won’t mind fishing those out for you.’

Aiden said his goodbyes, gathered up his briefcase and jacket and went out to talk to Betty. Left alone, Edmond felt that he more than deserved the small drink which he was already pouring for himself.

‘Terrible business.’ Betty was shaking her head as she riffled through her drawer looking for the directions. ‘He was a lovely young man, so handsome. And she…well, beauty clearly is more than skin deep. Ah, here it is.’ She handed Aiden a crumpled piece of typed paper with a faded map on the back. ‘I’m sorry it isn’t very clear, dear. We rarely have the need to visit the Ladies’ prison you see. Usually the men making all the trouble, no offence.’

‘None taken.’

‘If you get stranded just give me a call, I’ve lived here all my life and know my way around Avalon like the back of my hand.’

‘Thanks, I will.’

‘Well, best of luck with your first case, Mr. Connelly. Not that you’ll need it.’

‘Thank you, Betty.’

Aiden was satisfied with his first day at work. He had a decent case; he was leaving at a very reasonable hour. He couldn’t wait to get home and spend the evening with his wife and daughter.

‘Well, I could certainly get used to this!’ Isla exclaimed as her husband entered the kitchen at 2.30pm. ‘On work days I’m not used to seeing you during daylight hours!’

‘I know, great isn’t it?’ Aiden beamed as he kissed his wife on the cheek. ‘And how is Daddy’s favourite girl?’ Meegan was sat in her high chair and squealed with excitement when she saw Aiden.

‘She’s been helping Mommy wash up.’

‘Good girl.’ He ruffled her fine hair and placed his briefcase down on the table.

‘So, good day?’

‘Yeah, really good. The place is small but I expected that. I really like the guy, Edmond Cope, seems really genuine.’

‘You should invite him round for dinner. I take it he is married?’

‘Woah, get you Suzie Homemaker! Since when do we invite people round for dinner? Four days in Avalon and you are a changed woman!’

‘Give over.’ Isla dried her hands on the tea towel and playfully flicked him with it. ‘We are in a new town and it will be good for us to make friends with people. Besides, with you working I’m going to get lonely and be in need of adult companionship, there is only so much baby talk I can handle.’

‘Well, I’ll ask him then, although I don’t want to blur the lines between work and home.’

‘This isn’t Chicago, Aid. People here aren’t ruthless and spineless, they are kind.’

‘What makes you so sure?’

‘Well, since being here I’ve been to the grocery store and today the salon and everyone is always super nice, although they keep inviting me to church…’

‘See?’

‘What?’

‘They are already trying to ram their belief system down our throats.’

‘Don’t be so silly. They are just trying to make us feel part of the community. We are going on Sunday and that’s final End of discussion.’

‘What?’ Aiden made a mock face of disgust at Meegan who burst into fits of giggles.

‘It will be good for us. Besides, Meegan has never even been christened.’

‘Since when were you interested in all that religious stuff?’

‘Jeez, Aid, I’m just trying to make a good impression. Whilst you are at work I’ve got to be here holding down the fort and I don’t want us to be the heathen family who don’t attend church. If we plan on settling here we are going to need friends.’ Isla’s hands were now placed firmly on her hips as she stared him down.

‘I’m just jossling you, honey. Of course I’ll go to church Sunday. I need to start making contacts of my own. Edmond was saying how he’d introduce me to the local sheriff soon.’

‘Sounds good. So was it all cattle ownership suits and someone erecting a fence on another’s lawn?’

‘Actually, I got a murder case.’ Isla’s eyes widened.

‘What, here? I thought this was a safe place!’

‘It is, it is. I haven’t established much yet, but it seems a simple domestic case. Wife stabs husband in a frenzy.’

‘I can relate to that,’ Isla teased.

‘It is nothing I haven’t dealt with before. I’m going to meet the suspect tomorrow.’

‘Where?’

‘Local Women’s Prison. I’ll let you know what it’s like, for when they take you in for losing it with me.’

‘Cheek!’ Isla threw the tea towel from beside her at Aiden but he caught it mid-air.

‘Nice try,’ he laughed, and Meegan joined in.

‘Well, I am busy tomorrow, too.’

‘Oh yeah?’

‘Meegan and I are going to get beautified at the local salon. They were more than happy for me to take her there whilst I got my hair done. I could never have done that in Chicago.’

‘See, we are already reaping the benefits. I’m home; you are now a God-fearing housewife…’

‘And since you are home, you can prepare tea tonight with me for a change.’

‘What is on the menu for chez Connelly?’

‘Spaghetti bolognaise.’

‘Ah, bellisimo!’

That evening was one of the most pleasant Aiden had experienced in a long time. He cooked dinner with his wife, played with his daughter, and as the sun set he didn’t feel exhausted and drained, he felt alive. He sprawled across the couch, glass of wine in hand, surrounded by cardboard boxes in various stages of unpacking. The house was slowly starting to come together and feel like home. Isla had already started to paint some of the walls which made a huge difference. A little time and a little love and it would be amazing. He looked out into the garden wistfully, imagining summer barbeques with friends, Meegan playing happily with Edmond’s grandson, Grant. The men enjoying ice-cold beers, the women nattering over some wine. Isla seemed to be settling in which was good news. This was all such a culture shock for her but she was taking it really well. Aiden assumed that finding the beauty salon had made a big impact on her mood. His wife loved to pamper and shop. Since shopping was confined to the few stores Avalon had to offer she would have to make do with pampering for now, not that he was complaining.