A Time to Kill
by John Grisham

33

__________

Monday, July 22. Not long after the last margarita Jake bolted from the couch and stared at the clock on his desk. He had slept for three hours. A swarm of wild butterflies fought violently in his stomach. A nervous pain shot through his groin. He had no time for a hangover.

Nesbit slept like an infant behind the wheel. Jake roused him and jumped in the back seat. He waved at the sentries, who watched curiously from across the street. Nesbit drove two blocks to Adams, released his passenger, and waited in the driveway as instructed. He showered and shaved quickly. He chose a charcoal worsted wool suit, a white pinpoint button-down, and a very neutral, noncontroversial, expressionless burgundy silk tie with a few narrow navy stripes for good measure. The pleated pants hung perfectly from his trim waist. He looked great, much more stylish than the enemy.

Nesbit was asleep again when Jake released the dog and jumped in the back seat.

“Everything okay in there?” Nesbit asked, wiping the saliva from his chin.

“I didn’t find any dynamite, if that’s what you mean.”

Nesbit laughed at this, with the same irritating, laughing response he made to almost everything. They circled the square and Jake got out in front of his office. Thirty minutes after he left, he turned on the front lights and made the coffee.

He took four aspirin and drank a quart of grapefruit juice. His eyes burned and his headached from abuse and fatigue, and the tiring part had not yet begun. On the conference table he spread out his file on Carl Lee Hailey. It had been organized and indexed by his law clerk, but he wanted to break it down and put it back together. If a document or case can’t be found in thirty seconds, it’s no good. He smiled at her talent for organization. She had files and sub-files on everything, all ten seconds away at a fingertip. In a one-inch, three-ring notebook she had a summary of Dr. Bass’s qualifications and the outline of his testimony. She had made notes on anticipated objections from Buckley, and provided case authority to fight his objections. Jake took great pride in his trial preparation, but it was humbling to learn from a third-year law student.

He repacked the file in his trial briefcase, the heavy black leather one with his initials in gold on the side. Nature called, and he sat on the toilet flipping through the index cards. He knew them all. He was ready.

A few minutes after five, Harry Rex knocked on the door. It was dark and he looked like a burglar.

“Whatta you doing up so early?” Jake asked.

“I couldn’t sleep. I’m kinda nervous.” He thrust forward a loaded paper sack with grease spots. “Dell sent these over. They’re fresh and hot. Sausage biscuits, bacon and cheese biscuits, chicken and cheese biscuits, you name it. She’s worried about you.”

“Thanks, Harry Rex, but I’m not hungry. My system is in revolt.”

“Nervous?”

“As a whore in church.”

“You look pretty haggard.”

“Thanks.”

“Nice suit though.”

“Carla picked it out.”

Harry Rex reached into the sack and produced a handful of biscuits wrapped in foil. He piled them on the conference table and fixed his coffee. Jake sat across from him and flipped through Ellen’s brief on M’Naghten.

“She write that?” Harry Rex asked with both cheeks full and his jaws grinding rapidly.

“Yeah, it’s a seventy-five-page summary of the insanity defense in Mississippi. It took her three days.”

“She seems very bright.”

“She’s got the brains, and she writes fluidly. The intellect is there, but she has trouble applying what she knows to the real world.”

“Whatta you know about her?” Crumbs fell from his mouth and bounced on the table. He brushed them onto the floor with a sleeve.

“She’s solid. Number two in her class at Ole Miss. I called Nelson Battles, Assistant Dean of the Law School, and she checked out fine. She has a good chance of finishing number one.”

“I finished ninety-third outta ninety-eight. I would’ve finished ninety-second but they caught me cheating on an exam. I started to protest, but I figured ninety-third was just as good. Hell, I figured, who cares in Clanton. These people were just glad I came back here to practice when I graduated instead of going to Wall Street or some place like that.”

Jake smiled at the story he had heard a hundred times.

Harry Rex unwrapped a chicken and cheese biscuit. “You look nervous, buddy.”

“I’m okay. The first day is always the hardest. The preparation has been done. I’m ready. It’s just a matter of waiting now.”

“What time does Row Ark make her entrance?”

“I don’t know.”

“Lord, I wonder what she’ll wear.”

“Or not wear. I just hope she’s decent. You know what a prude Noose is.”

“You’re not gonna let her sit at counsel table are you?”

“I don’t think so. She’ll stay in the background, sort of like you. She might offend some of the women jurors.”

“Yeah, keep her there, but outta sight.”

Harry Rex wiped his mouth with a huge paw. “You sleeping with her?”

“No! I’m not crazy, Harry Rex.”

“You’re crazy if you don’t. That woman could be had.”

“Then have her. I’ve got enough on my mind.”

“She thinks I’m cute, don’t she?”

“She says she does.”

“I think I’ll give it a shot,” he said with a straight face, then he smiled, then he burst into laughter with crumbs spraying the bookshelves.

The phone rang. Jake shook his head, and Harry Rex picked up the receiver. “He’s not here, but I’ll be glad to give him the message.” He winked at Jake. “Yes sir, yes sir, uh huh, yes sir. It’s a terrible thing, ain’t it. Can you believe a man would do it? Yes sir, yes sir, I agree one hundred percent. Yes sir, and what’s your name, sir? Sir?” Harry Rex smiled at the receiver and laid it down.

“What’d he want?”

“Said you was a shame to the white race for being that nigger’s lawyer, and that he didn’t see how any lawyer could represent a nigger such as Hailey. And that he hoped the Klan got ahold of you, and if they didn’t he hoped the bar association looked into it and took away your license for helping niggers. Said he knew you were no ’count because you were trained by Lucien Wilbanks who lives with a nigger woman.”

“And you agreed with him!”

“Why not? He was really sincere, not hateful, and he feels better now that it’s off his chest.”

The phone rang again. Harry Rex snatched the receiver. “Jake Brigance, Attorney, Counselor, Consultant, Adviser, and Guru at Law.”

Jake left for the restroom. “Jake, it’s a reporter!” Harry Rex yelled.

“I’m on the potty.”

“He’s got the runs!” Harry Rex told the reporter.

At six—seven in Wilmington—Jake called Carla. She was awake, reading the paper, drinking coffee. He told her about Bud Twitty, and Mickey Mouse, and the promise of more violence. No, he wasn’t afraid of that. It did not bother him. He was afraid of the jury, of the twelve who would be chosen, and their reaction to him and his client. His only fear, at the moment, was of what the jury might do to his client. Everything else was irrelevant. For the first time, she did not mention coming home. He promised to call that night.

When he hung up, he heard a commotion downstairs. Ellen had arrived, and Harry Rex was talking loudly. She’s wearing a see-through blouse with a miniskirt, thought Jake as he walked downstairs. She was not. Harry Rex was congratulating her on dressing like a Southern woman with all the accessories. She was wearing a gray glen plaid suit with a V-necked jacket and short slim skirt. The silk blouse was black, and apparently the necessary garment was underneath. Her hair was pulled back and braided in some fashion. Incredibly, traces of mascara, eyeliner, and lipstick were visible. In the words of Harry Rex, she looked as much like a lawyer as a woman could look.

“Thanks, Harry Rex,” she said. “I wish I had your taste in clothes.”

“You look nice, Row Ark,” Jake said.

“So do you,” she said. She looked at Harry Rex, but said nothing.

“Please forgive us, Row Ark,” Harry Rex said. “We’re impressed because we had no idea you owned so many types of garments. We apologize for admiring you and we know how much this infuriates your little liberated heart. Yes, we’re sexist pigs, but you chose to come to the South. And in the South we, as a rule, drool over well-dressed attractive females, liberated or not.”

“What’s in the sack?” she said.

“Breakfast.”

She tore it open and unwrapped a sausage and biscuit. “No bagels?” she asked.

“What’s that?” asked Harry Rex.

“Forget it.”

Jake rubbed his hands together and tried to sound enthusiastic. “Well, now that we’ve gathered here three hours before trial, what would y’all like to do?”

“Let’s make some margaritas,” said Harry Rex.

“No!” said Jake.

“It’ll take the edge off.”

“Not me,” said Ellen. “This is business.”

Harry Rex unwrapped a biscuit, the last of the sack. “What happens first today?”

“After the sun comes up, we start the trial. At nine, Noose will say a few words to the jurors and we start the selection process.”

“How long will it take?” asked Ellen.

“Two or three days. In Mississippi, we have the right to interrogate each juror individually in chambers. That takes time.”

“Where do I sit and what do I do?”

“She certainly sounds experienced,” Harry Rex said to Jake. “Does she know where the courthouse is?”

“You do not sit at counsel table,” said Jake. “Just me and Carl Lee.”

She wiped her mouth. “I see. Just you and the defendant sitting alone, surrounded by the forces of evil, facing death alone.”

“Something like that.”

“My father uses that tactic occasionally.”

“I’m glad you approve. You’ll sit behind me, next to the railing. I’ll ask Noose to allow you into chambers for the private discussions.”

“What about me?” asked Harry Rex.

“Noose doesn’t like you, Harry Rex. He never has. He’d have a stroke if I asked if you could go in chambers. It’d be best if you pretended we’d never met.”

“Thanks.”

“But we do appreciate your assistance,” Ellen said.

“Up yours, Ellie Mae.”

“And you can still drink with us,” she said.

“And furnish the tequila.”

“There will be no more alcohol in this office,” Jake said.

“Until the noon recess,” said Harry Rex.

“I want you to stand behind the clerk’s table, just loiter about like you always do, and take notes on the jury. Try to match them with the notecards. There’ll probably be a hundred and twenty.”

“Whatever you say.”

________

Daybreak brought the army out in force. The barricades were reinstalled, and on each corner of the square soldiers clustered around the orange and white barrels blocking the street. They were poised and anxious, watching every car intently, waiting for the enemy to attack, wanting some excitement. Things stirred a little when a few of the vultures in their compact wagons and minivans with fancy logos on the doors appeared at seven-thirty. The troops surrounded the vehicles and informed everyone there would be no parking around the courthouse during the trial. The vultures disappeared down the side streets, then moments later reappeared on foot with their bulky cameras and equipment. Some set up camp on the front steps of the courthouse, others by the back door, and another group in the rotunda outside the main door of the courtroom on the second floor.

Murphy, the janitor and only real eyewitness to the killings of Cobb and Willard, informed the press, as best he could, that the courtroom would be opened at eight, and not a minute before. A line formed and soon circled the rotunda.

The church buses parked somewhere off the square, and the marchers were led slowly down Jackson Street by the ministers. They carried FREE CARL LEE signs and sang “We Shall Overcome” in a perfect chorus. As they neared the square, the soldiers heard them and the radios began squawking. Ozzie and the colonel conferred quickly, and the soldiers relaxed. The marchers were led by Ozzie to a section of the front lawn where they milled about and waited under the watchful eyes of the Mississippi National Guard.

At eight, a metal detector was moved to the front doors of the courtroom, and a trio of heavily armed deputies began slowly searching and admitting the crowd of spectators that now filled the rotunda and trailed off into the halls. Inside the courtroom, Prather directed traffic, seating people on the long pews on one side of the aisle while reserving the other side for the jurors. The front pew was reserved for the family, and the second row was filled with courtroom artists who immediately began sketching the bench and the bar and the portraits of Confederate heroes.

The Klan felt obligated to make its presence known on opening day, especially to the prospective jurors as they arrived. Two dozen Kluxers in full parade dress walked quietly onto Washington Street. They were immediately stopped and surrounded by soldiers. The potbellied colonel swaggered across the street and for the first time in his life came face to face with a white-robed and white-hooded Ku Klux Klansman, who happened to be a foot taller. He then noticed the cameras, which had gravitated to this confrontation, and the bully in him vanished. His usual bark and growl was instantly replaced by a high-pitched, nervous, trembling stutter that was incomprehensible even to himself.

Ozzie arrived and saved him. “Good mornin’, fellas,” he said coolly as he stepped beside the faltering colonel. “We’ve got you surrounded, and we’ve got you outnumbered. We also know we can’t keep you from being here.”

“That’s right,” said the leader.

“If you’ll just follow me and do as I say, we won’t have any trouble.”

They followed Ozzie and the colonel to a small area on the front lawn, where it was explained that this was their turf for the trial. Stay there and stay quiet, and the colonel would personally keep the troops off them. They agreed.

As expected, the sight of the white robes aroused the blacks who were some two hundred feet away. They began shouting: “Free Carl Lee! Free Carl Lee! Free Carl Lee!”

The Klansmen shook their fists and shouted back:

“Fry Carl Lee!”

“Fry Carl Lee!”

“Fry Carl Lee!”

Two rows of troops lined the main sidewalk that divided the lawn and led to the front steps. Another row stood between the sidewalk and the Klansmen, and one between the sidewalk and the blacks.

As the jurors began arriving, they walked briskly through the rows of soldiers. They clutched their summonses and listened in disbelief as the two groups screamed at each other.

The Honorable Rufus Buckley arrived in Clanton and politely informed the guardsmen of who he was and what that meant, and he was allowed to park in his spot marked RESERVED FOR D.A. next to the courthouse. The reporters went wild. This must be important, someone had broken through the barricade.

Buckley sat in his well-used Cadillac for a moment to allow the reporters to catch him. They surrounded him as he slammed the door. He smiled and smiled and made his way ever so slowly to the front door of the courthouse. The rapid fire of questions proved irresistible, and Buckley violated the gag order at least eight times, each time smiling and explaining that he could not answer the question he had just answered. Musgrove trailed behind carrying the great man’s briefcase.