"What happened? Did Jake hit the lottery?" Dean asked.
"No," answered Witherspoon. "I hear Jake's got a new employer in Philly. He's graduated to the family and papa takes care of his boys. He either sends in out-of-towners like this guy or gets big-dollar local counsel." He named two or three prominent lawyers Dean knew.
Judge Adamson arrived and there followed more conversation at the bench and in the judge's chambers than in the courtroom. All of this was off the record so no one had any idea what was transpiring. Dean wished he could follow the lead of the pensioners and catch a nap. As it turned out, he could have. It was nearly noon when the session ended. A deal was struck, without Dean's testimony. At first he was disappointed, but the look on the faces of Shakey Jake and his dapper counsel indicated the deal was not to their liking. The only one smiling was Bobby Witherspoon.
"Adamson tossed the book at the little twerp! He ate the bastard for lunch!" Witherspoon was ecstatic as they left the courthouse. "This is what makes it all worthwhile! Adamson was terrific!"
"What happened?" Dean asked.
"I'll spare you the details, but our judge doesn't like hired guns from out of town and he doesn't like being instructed in the law. Before this started, I'd have settled for half of what Shakey Jake caught, all because his lawyer didn't know when to shut up!"
The two men celebrated with a deli pastrami sandwich pasted with horseradish that made your eyes burn. It wasn't the war, but it was a battle won, and one more slug was off the street. One more red conviction star could go on Lieutenant Anderson's chart.
Harrigan was out interviewing Byrne's doctor and Rita's printed version of Mayer's interview was on Dean's desk when he returned. His only phone message sounded like the same person who had telephoned the house the night before-again leaving neither name nor number. Dean spent the remainder of the workday sorting reports and more closely reviewing the Byrne papers.
The job evaluations of Jeffrey Byrne in the personnel file surprised Dean, as they were considerably more glowing than the picture Mayer had painted of the missing man. There was no derogatory information at all. Byrne was an outstanding employee who was thorough, conscientious, a self-starter and had missed but one day in the 15 years with the company. Dean made a note to check into the evaluation with Mayer, but Byrne's Philadelphia boss called Dean first to see if anything new had developed. After Dean had informed him of the lack of progress, he questioned Mayer about the glowing appraisal.