Breathless - Softcover

Guhrke, Laura Lee

3.83

516 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0671023683 ISBN 13: 9780671023683

Publisher: Pocket, 1999

View all copies of this ISBN edition:

Five years after the break-up of her marriage, Lily Walker is forced into an uneasy alliance with her husband's divorce lawyer, Daniel Walker, a man who had once torn her reputation to pieces, to investigate a shocking murder. Original.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:

Laura Lee Guhrke is the author of several historical romances, including Conor's Way, which won the Romance Writers of America's prestigious RITA Award for Best Historical Romance. Laura knew she wanted to be a writer the day an English teacher told her she could never be successful at it because her stories were "too sappy." That teacher also told her she would never amount to anything because she had terrible penmanship. Now, armed with the knowledge that nobody could read Hemingway's handwriting either, Laura pens her stories of happy endings on her computer and thoroughly enjoys knowing that her teacher was wrong. You may write to her at P.O. Box 1143, Eagle, Idaho, 83616, and she promises to read your letters even if your penmanship is as bad as hers.

Chapter One

Atlanta, Georgia, 1905

Daniel Walker loved a good fight. He loved the law. He loved to win. In fact, Daniel loved winning most of all.

He rose to his feet. He folded his arms across his chest and stared at the short, cherubic-faced man on the witness stand for a long, thoughtful moment, as if trying to decide how best to approach him. It was an act, of course. Daniel knew exactly what he was going to do. He just hoped it worked.

He walked toward the witness and watched the other man swallow nervously at his approach. It was a common reaction. Daniel was six feet three inches tall, weighed two hundred pounds without his clothes, and had shoulders wide enough to block a doorway. He was fully aware of how intimidating his size could be, and before he was done, he was going to intimidate the hell out of George Duvet.

"Mr. Duvet," he began, "tell me about the mysterious woman in red the newspapers have been talking about. What do you know about her?"

Hugh Masterson, a public prosecutor for the city of Atlanta, was on his feet. "Objection! That woman is not relevant. Mr. Walker is trying to cloud the issue by using the romantic speculations that have been generated in the press."

Daniel had expected this. He turned to Judge Rayner. "What is brought up on direct may be refuted on cross."

Hugh stared at him. "I never brought up the woman in red on direct."

"But he did, Your Honor. He asked Duvet about the effect the press was having on him during the trial. If the woman isn't relevant, how could she affect his state of mind?"

Judge Rayner turned to Hugh. "You did ask the question."

"Well, yes," the prosecutor admitted. "But...but...it was only a passing reference....I mean...that is, I never intended..." His voice trailed off helplessly.

"You opened the door, Mr. Masterson," the judge reminded him. "You can hardly blame Mr. Walker if he uses it. Your objection is overruled."

The opposing attorney glared at Daniel as he sat down, but there was nothing he could do. Daniel responded to his opponent's anger with a careless smile, but he was fully aware his plan could easily backfire on him. If Duvet didn't fall for it, Daniel knew his entire defense strategy would fall apart, he would lose the case, and Tom Rossiter would hang.

"Once again, Mr. Duvet, tell me about the woman in red."

"I don't know anything about her."

"Was she there that night?"

"I never saw her."

Daniel glanced at the back of the courtroom, where Josiah stood waiting for the signal from him. He nodded slowly, and his law clerk left the room. Daniel returned his attention to the witness.

"You never saw her?" He put just the right amount of derision in his voice. "The newspapers have been discussing her for weeks. They have reported that she was there that night. Was she there, George?"

"I don't know. I didn't see her, I tell you."

"But maybe she saw you. Did she? Did she see you kill Amelia Rossiter?"

"No!" Duvet burst out. "I went to the warehouse that night to go over the accounts, and I found Amelia there. I never saw the woman in red -- " He broke off as the doors to the courtroom opened and a tall blond woman in scarlet silk walked in. Murmurs of astonishment rippled through the packed courtroom as she moved with Josiah to stand at the back of the room, in plain view of the witness stand.

George Duvet stared at the woman, and his hands began to shake. He broke out in a sweat. It was exactly the reaction Daniel had hoped for. He resumed his cross-examination. "The truth is, Mr. Duvet, that you killed Amelia Rossiter, didn't you?"

George Duvet shook his head. "No, no. I didn't kill her. I -- " His voice broke. "I loved her."

Daniel nodded. "Yes, of course you did. And that's why you killed her. You found out she had no intention of leaving her husband." He leaned closer, and his voice hardened. "She played you for a fool, didn't she, George? And that enraged you. So, you killed her."

The witness looked away, refusing to meet his eyes. "No. It isn't true. I never -- "

"You can't lie to us. We know all about it." He pointed to the woman at the back of the room and leaned closer to the witness. "She knows. And she can tell everyone, George," he murmured. "She can tell everyone what she saw."

"That's impossible!" Duvet burst out. "She wasn't there when I -- "

"When you what, George?" Daniel asked softly. "When you killed Amelia? When you strangled her with your bare hands?"

Hugh jumped to his feet and pounded the table before him with one fist. "Objection! The witness is not on trial!"

Everyone ignored him. Daniel leaned over Duvet, watching the beads of sweat roll down the man's face. He knew now that he was going to win. He could feel victory, smell it, taste it. "When you had your hands around her throat, did her face turn blue? Did she gasp desperately for air? Did she -- "

"She lied to me!" Duvet shouted. "She was using me. She told me she wasn't going to leave Tom. She laughed at me. Nobody laughs at me. I had to stop her from laughing. I had to stop her. I never meant to kill her."

With those words, chaos broke loose in the courtroom. Daniel stepped back with a long, slow breath of relief, watching without pity as Duvet began to sob. He glanced over his shoulder at the girl in the scarlet dress, and she gave him a slight nod in return. Then she slipped out the doors and was gone. He turned to the judge, who was pounding his gavel in a futile effort to quiet the crowd. Over the din, he was forced to shout. "Your Honor, I move that the charges against my client be dismissed."

Judge Rayner nodded. "Your motion is granted, Mr. Walker. The case against Tom Rossiter is dismissed. Bailiffs, take Mr. Duvet into custody."

Journalists rushed out of the room, hoping to get the story in the evening newspapers that the woman in red had come to court prepared to testify, the prosecution's lead witness had confessed on the stand, and that the murder charge against Tom Rossiter, the son of one of the most powerful men in the state, had been dropped. And Daniel Walker, successful attorney and future candidate for the Georgia senate, had just won another case.

He turned to his client. "It's over, Tom."

The young man still looked dazed by the sudden turn of events that had set him free. "I can't believe it. I reckoned I was going to swing on a rope for sure."

Before Daniel could respond, a heavy hand clapped him on the shoulder, and he turned to Tom's father. "Thank you, Daniel, for saving my son," Will said and shook his hand with intense relief and gratitude. "I won't forget this."

"I hope you mean that," he answered, "because I'm counting on your support when I run for office."

"You've got it," the other man promised. But Daniel could feel the hostile stare of Hugh Masterson boring into his back, and he knew his seat in the Georgia State Senate was by no means assured. Hugh continued to glare at him as he and his client received the congratulations and thanks of Tom Rossiter's family, friends, and business associates.

Daniel could see Josiah pushing his way through the crowd surrounding him, but it was not until Rossiter and his entourage departed that his law clerk could reach him. "You did it," Josiah said, shaking his head. "I never thought you'd get Duvet to confess. Even when I brought the girl in, I still didn't think you'd pull it off."

"There was never a doubt in my mind," Daniel answered, tongue in cheek. Josiah's brows rose in response to that statement, and Daniel chuckled. "Thank God he broke down and confessed," he muttered under his breath to his clerk. "I don't know what I'd have done if he hadn't."

"Congratulations," Hugh Masterson's voice cut in. "Even if it was pure luck."

Daniel turned to face the prosecutor, grinning in the face of the other man's obvious hostility. "Don't pout, Hugh," he admonished. "I won, you lost, and luck had nothing to do with it."

"The press has been trying to locate that woman for weeks. Where did you find her?"

Daniel glanced around to make sure no reporters were within earshot, then leaned closer to the district attorney. "In my imagination," he answered in a low voice.

Stupefied, Hugh stared at him. "What do you mean?"

His grin widened. "I mean, she doesn't exist. I invented her."

Realization dawned in Hugh's eyes. "You son of a bitch," he said and swung, punching Daniel in the face.

Pain shot through his left cheekbone, but Daniel took the blow without flinching. With his greater size and weight, he could have responded with a much more effective punch of his own, but he did not do so. He recognized the other man's fury for exactly what it was. "Sour grapes, Hugh?"

The prosecutor eyed him with contempt. "Trust you to pull some kind of trick to win."

"Trick? I don't know what you're talking about. Your lead witness lost his head on the stand and finally told the truth about what happened. I prefer to call that justice."

"I will have you disbarred."

Daniel knew it was an empty threat. "For what?"

"You fabricated a witness out of whole cloth."

"Ah, but I didn't. She wasn't a witness. I never intended to put her on the stand, and she never testified. The newspapers saw her visiting the police station and my office regularly and going to see Tom in jail. Everything they have reported about her has been pure speculation. She never spoke to them, and I told them nothing untrue."

"It was all innuendo."

Daniel shrugged. "Whatever works to keep an innocent man from being hanged."

Hugh scowled. "You've always been the golden boy with the newspapers. What will it do to your political ambitions when I tell the press what you did?"

"Tell them whatever you like. I did nothing unethical, and you know it. Besides, I doubt the press will pay much attention to such trivial accusations. They'll be too busy writing headlines about how one of Atlanta's public prosecutors punched Georgia's next senator in the face."

"You're not a senator yet," Hugh said furiously. "One of these days, you're going to fall on your ass. I just hope I'm there to enjoy it."

"I hope so, too," Daniel agreed. "God knows, I've enjoyed watching you do it for years."

Masterson's hand curled into a fist, but he did not try to hit Daniel again. Instead, he marched out of the room without another word.

Josiah, who was still inexperienced enough to be in awe of prosecutors, also watched the other man leave. "I can't believe he actually hit you."

"I can. Poor Hugh. He doesn't like losing, especially to me."

"You'd think he'd be used to it by now." He studied Daniel with a worried expression. "You'll have a black eye."

Daniel touched his throbbing cheek with a grimace. "Probably. But it was worth it." He picked up his leather portfolio and started for the door.

Josiah followed him. "Are we going back to the office?"

"Yes," Daniel answered as they walked out the front doors of the courthouse. "I have something to do first, so I'll meet you there."

The words were barely out of his mouth before he caught sight of the luxurious carriage standing at the curb. It was a fine summer afternoon, the carriage top was down, and Daniel could plainly see the man seated inside. The man beckoned to him, and Daniel paused on the courthouse steps. He turned to Josiah. "On second thought, why don't you just go home? See your wife. How is Muriel, by the way?"

"Fine," Josiah murmured absently, gazing at the carriage. "Baby's not due for over a month." He turned to Daniel. "You're meeting Calvin Stoddard?" he said in surprise. Even Josiah, who did not move in the high social sphere that Daniel did, recognized the man universally acknowledged to be the wealthiest, most powerful man in the state of Georgia.

"The very same."

Josiah let out a low whistle, suitably impressed. "First Will Rossiter, now Calvin Stoddard. You're moving in high circles these days, sir."

"So it would seem. Go on home. I'll see you tomorrow."

His young law clerk knew better than to ask questions. He turned away, and Daniel walked toward the carriage. Calvin swung the door open, and he jumped inside.

"Congratulations." Calvin grinned and offered him a cigar.

Daniel accepted it. "You heard?"

"Of course. A few minutes ago, reporters were running out of that courthouse like it was on fire. I'll bet Will was pleased."

"Happy as a clam in mud. Wouldn't you be if your son was acquitted of murder?"

"Indeed I would. Where can I drop you off?"

"Magnolia Street."

The mention of a street in Atlanta's most notorious prostitution district caused Calvin to raise an eyebrow, but he nodded to his driver, and the carriage jerked into motion. "Celebrating?" he asked.

Daniel laughed. He lit his cigar and leaned back. "No. Business."

"Good. It wouldn't do for a future senator to be seen in an alley with his pants down. Especially if I've given him my backing."

Triumph flooded through Daniel at those words, and it was a sweet sensation. With Calvin Stoddard's support, he would win his senate seat hands down. "So you're endorsing my candidacy?"

"That depends. I have a case for you to handle on my behalf."

"I see. There's a catch."

"Isn't there always?" Calvin shrugged. "Don't worry, Daniel. It's nothing to compromise your legal ethics."

"I'd be more worried if you gave me your backing without asking for anything in return." He met the other man's inquiring gaze and his voice hardened. "I make it a policy never to owe anybody a favor."

"Very wise of you. In politics, it's a bitch when people call them in."

"Exactly."

Calvin took a puff on his cigar. "Then you'll take a case for me?"

"That depends," he answered, throwing Calvin's own words back at him with a smile. "What are you accused of doing?"

"Me? Nothing. I have a business partner, however, who has a bit of trouble. A very beautiful and charming business partner."

"I see." Daniel made it his business to know everything about men like Calvin -- men who had power, men he needed on his side -- and he knew Calvin had several partners who could fit the description of beautiful and charming. "Which one?"

Calvin laughed. "You're from Shivaree, aren't you?"

The mention of Daniel's hometown gave him the answer to his question. "Is this about Helen Overstreet?"

"You know her?"

"Shivaree is a small town."

"It's also big business, and that business has dried up. The Shivaree Social Club is closed."

Daniel raised an eyebrow at the news. The Shivaree Social Club was famous, or infamous, depending on your point of view, because it was the most notorious gentlemen's club in Georgia. "Has Helen been arrested?"

"No, and that's where you come in. Some woman in Shivaree managed to convince Judge Billings to slap an injunction on the place a few days ago, closing it down. I want that i...

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.