The next morning, when I reached Chambers, I decided to look through the brief in R v Tuan Ho again, in case I had overlooked some flaws in the prosecution case. The brief had disappeared from my desk. Where was it? Maybe Helen took it.
I strolled down the corridor to her tiny room. The door was open and she was typing on her laptop under the same precarious cliff of folders. The three folders containing my brief were tucked under her chair.
I said: "Hi, how did the hearing about the fence go?"
She looked up, distracted. "Oh, we settled. An independent painter will paint it once a year."
"What colour?"
"Up to the painter."
I bet that settlement fell apart. "Good work. Have you read the brief in Tuan Ho?"
"Yes, most of it. Fascinating. You've got a tough job, haven't you? You've got to prove those two cops - Hanrahan and Mostyn - planted the pistol."
Her diligence was impressive because she wasn't briefed and wouldn't get paid. It made me nostalgic for the days when I valued experience more than money. "Yep. And, unfortunately, I know Hanrahan is a crooked bastard who would plant a murder weapon, but I can't tell the jury."
"How do you know he's dodgy?"
"He planted evidence that resulted in another one of my clients getting convicted."
Her face showed a hint of disdain. "You didn't expose him?"
"Correct. He hit all of my questions out of the park. The jury thought he was the burning bush."
She looked amazed at my incompetence. "So you can't use the evidence in that trial in this one?"
"Correct."
"And you want revenge?"
"I want my client acquitted." And I wanted revenge. "Now, can I have the brief back? I want to waste more time reading it."
"Oh, sure." She reached down, picked up the folders and handed them over.
"Thanks. Now, sometime next week, my solicitor and I are going to visit the crime scene in Cabramatta. You're welcome to come along."
She grinned. "Oh, I'd love to. There's a Latin name for the crime scene, isn't there. They told me at law school, but I've forgotten."
"The locus delecti?"
A laugh. "Yes, that's it. What're you hoping to find at the locus delecti?"
"A vital clue that will turn the prosecution case into a smoking ruin."
An uncertain laugh. "You're kidding, right?"
I smiled. "Definitely."
"Then why are you going out there?"
"Because I'll look slack if I don't. A visit to the crime scene - sorry, locus delicti - is a box I've got to tick, that's all."
"I understand. Anyway, I'd love to tag alone."
Did I have her enthusiasm when I started at the Bar? It was hard to remember. "I'll be in touch."