A Good Mother, Lara Bazelon [the red fox clan .TXT] 📗

Paul shakes his head. “Mr. Estrada. The man is impressive. Not many attorneys would sit in jail like that for a client.”

“No,” Abby agrees.

“But you would,” Paul says. “You would sit in jail for as long as it took. Until the last dog died. You almost had to.” Paul nods, as if to himself. “That was some very good lawyering, under tremendous pressure. You can’t teach that.”

“I got lucky,” she says. Hearing the familiar sounds from Cal, she takes him off her shoulder, carefully wipes his mouth with the bottom of her tee shirt, and cradles him again. Cal’s eyelids flutter, then close.

Paul shakes his head. “It’s got nothing to do with luck. You are a fine trial lawyer, Abby. Exceptional, even.”

Abby’s vision blurs. She blinks hard several times and tries to say “thank you,” but the words strangle in her throat. She looks down as Cal, awake after all, opens his eyes and looks up.

Acknowledgments

This book was years in the writing and benefited tremendously from the editorial advice, expertise, love, care, and encouragement of many people.

To my Los Angeles writer’s group: Reyna Grande, Jessica Garrison, Ann Marsh, Sonia Nazario, and Lisa Richardson: you were there with Abby from the beginning. I am thankful and honored that I got to be part of this group. Your generosity and support over the years made me believe I was a writer. You inspired me to keep going even during the hardest times.

To my colleagues and friends at the Office of the Federal Public Defender in Los Angeles: I am grateful for my seven years with you. Maria Elena Stratton and Sean Kennedy: the fearless client-centered bosses who always had my back. To Dennis Landin, who generously supervised me during that very intense first year, in addition to all of his other responsibilities, and to the intrepid and unflappable Callie Glanton Steele, who taught me to stand up at crucial moments. To my trial partners over the years: Michael Proctor, Michael Schafler, Jill Ginstling, and Myra Sun. To Reuven Cohen, who made me laugh until I cried—and who never got to finish smoking that cigarette. And, especially, to Guy Casey Iversen, the greatest trial lawyer I have ever seen, including on TV. Guy, your ability to see the world in four dimensions and exceptionally high level of emotional intelligence gave me so much: courtroom skills, confidence in myself, and even a freshly laundered tee shirt to blow my nose into when I was crying uncontrollably. Michael Garcia, on that same note, thank you for your huge heart and clean white handkerchief. I know it was never the same afterward. To Alonso Garcia, an exceptional investigator.

To all the hardworking public defender mothers out there who inspire me every day, including and especially Eda Katherine Tinto—there has been no string of acquittals like yours, not before and not after.

This book benefited immeasurably from early and careful readers. John Jay Osborn, Chris Flood, and Reyna Grande, your exhaustive edits made it so much better than it was. Payton Lyon, for educating me about military life, David Frankel, for educating me about medical matters of the heart—all mistakes are mine. To Jenny Estevez, Jessica Garrison, and Melissa Segura for telling me the truth. To Alafair Burke, for lifting up an aspiring novelist, and to Cathi Hanauer—it was high praise coming from you. Jane Dirkes, you are a generous reader and an even more generous grandmother and friend.

I am lucky to have a loving and indefatigable champion in my agent, Emma Patterson, who has known Abby for many years and was the driving force in bringing her to life. I am thankful my novel found a home at Hanover Square Press, and for a wise, insightful editor, Peter Joseph, who understood immediately what I was trying to do. Peter, Grace Towery, and everyone on the Hanover Square team got me from Mile 18 to the end of the marathon.

Finally, to Matt Dirkes, for our beautiful children, Carter and Ella, and our imperfect but lifelong partnership, and to my parents, who led by example and always told me to shoot for the moon.

ISBN-13: 9780369703149

A Good Mother

Copyright © 2021 by Lara Bazelon

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

Hanover Square Press

22 Adelaide St. West, 40th Floor

Toronto, Ontario M5H 4E3, Canada

HanoverSqPress.com

BookClubbish.com