Lisa Scottoline's 'Accused': An excerpt

Last of three excerpts from

Lisa Scottoline's new book, "Accused," which came out Tuesday.

'I'm here about my sister." Allegra's face fell. "Her name was Fiona, and she was murdered six years ago, at a party at my father's new offices."

"Our condolences. I seem to recall reading about the case."

Mary set down her pen, having lost her sense of humor. The murder case was coming back to her, too. She'd seen it in the news, a girl stabbed to death, at 16 years old. Suddenly, Mary realized why she felt for Allegra in the first place. Despite her funny decals and bumper stickers, Allegra Gardner was a sad girl, and it seemed to travel with her, like a backpack.

"Thanks," Allegra said quietly. "The thing is, I believe they sent the wrong man to jail. His name is Lonnie Stall, and he's in Graterford Prison. I think he's innocent. He said he was at trial, and I believe him. I want to find out who really murdered my sister and punish him. I need somebody to look at the case and start over."

Bennie frowned. "Wait a minute. I seem to remember that the defendant in that case pleaded guilty."

"I know he did, right before the jury came back, but I'm sure he didn't do it."

Bennie paused. "What makes you say he's innocent, even though he pled guilty?"

"I don't want to go into it now. I'm not sure if I'm hiring your firm."

"Fair enough." Bennie eased back in the chair. "So we're clear, you'd want us to evaluate the evidence and record to see if the decision was correct or incorrect?"

"No, I want you to solve my sister's murder." Allegra's request had a weight of its own, hanging in the air.

"So you want an investigation after the fact."

"Right. Exactly."

"We're not investigators, we're lawyers."

"That never stopped you before. I saw online. And you have a firm investigator, right? Lou Jacobs. His photo is on the website."

"Yes, but he's on vacation. He's not back until next week."

"OK, so add him in, whatever it takes, I can pay. I want this to be done right. I want to know the truth." Allegra pressed her lips together again. "I was there when Fiona was murdered, at this big office party. It was supposed to be a grand opening, and well, it was so, so horrible."

Mary shuddered, but said nothing. Her biggest nightmare was something terrible happening to her twin sister, Angie, a former nun who was in Tanzania on yet another mission, saving a world that refused to be saved.

Allegra frowned deeply under her little cap. "I kept thinking and talking about Fiona and what happened to her, and my parents worried I was getting obsessed. They sent me to a therapist, then to boarding school, but I wasn't obsessed or depressed, and I'm still not."

Bennie leaned over to Allegra. "So your parents believe Stall is guilty?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because of the evidence at the trial and because he pleaded guilty himself, in the end. They want the case to be over, but I want it to be right."

"Allegra, you have to be realistic. It's harder to find out what happened now than it was then." Bennie opened her palms in appeal.

"The case is six years old. Evidence may be lost or thrown away, and memories have faded."

"I understand that, but I want to try. I can't do it myself because I'm a kid." Allegra met Bennie's gaze behind her big glasses. "Ms. Rosato, you have a reputation as one of the best trial lawyers in the city, if not the country. You've defended many people who were wrongly accused. I want a do- over."

"There's no backsies in murder cases, Allegra." Bennie seemed momentarily nonplussed, but Mary felt as if she could help out, since Bennie wasn't good with kids or human beings, in general.

"Allegra, what she means is, this is a lot for a 13-year-old to deal -."

"That's why I need a lawyer, and I'm not your typical 13-year-old, anyway. I'm a genius."

"Pardon?" Mary smiled at the matter-of-fact way she said it, without a trace of arrogance.

"Really, I am, but being that smart only makes things worse." Allegra's lips flattened. "I know I'm weird, different. Kids make fun of me for everything, of my grades, the way I look, or my bees. They call me Allergy, Allergan, Bee Girl, Bee Geek, brainiac, whatever, I don't care."

"What is it with the bees?" Mary couldn't help but ask.

"I keep bees."

"For fun?"

"Yes." Allegra smiled.

"Don't you get stung?"

"No, they're in hives, and I know how to handle them. I wear a veil and I have a smoker, which calms them down. The smoke blocks their pheromones that send out a distress signal, so you can work in the hive." Allegra warmed to her topic. "It's a very old hobby, beekeeping.

"It dates back to the Egyptians. And mine are very docile and nice, and they're used to me, and they all get along and help each other. Did you know that each hive holds thirty thousand bees?

"That's more friends than anybody in my class has, even counting their fake Facebook friends. I'm fine with it."

Mary felt for her. No kid was fine with being different, and it wasn't easy being green. "But I'm thinking that you can't be so legalistic in your approach to this problem. There's too much emotion involved."

"There's emotion because it matters. What should I spend my time on, stuff that doesn't matter?"

Mary had to admit it was a good point. "But it won't be easy for you, living at home, going forward with this investigation. Your parents will be upset, I'm sure. They had closure, but now they won't.

"You want to prove that a man they believe killed their daughter really didn't do it."

"I know that, too, but I have to know the truth, no matter who likes it and who doesn't." Allegra's forehead buckled again. "If I do what makes them happy, then I'm unhappy, and that's not very grown-up, is it?"

Mary felt momentarily stumped. She wouldn't hurt her parents for all the truth in the world. She hadn't, in her life. She'd die with her secret.

"And anyway, I owe it to Fiona." Allegra reached under her collar and showed them a delicate necklace with a heart-shaped pendant.

"This was hers, and I wear it all the time. She looked out for me in everything. She was my sister."

Mary swallowed hard. "I understand."

"I'm giving up everything to do this. I had to leave my hives at school. Luckily, the headmaster keeps bees, too, so he knows what to do."

"Why didn't you bring them with you?"

"You can't. Bees get to know their territory. They consider it their home. They'd be upset if I tried to move them."

Mary didn't know bees had emotions, but maybe they did. The way Allegra talked about her bees reminded her of the way Pigeon Tony talked about his homing pigeons.

Judy frowned. "To get back to the investigation, Allegra, I'm surprised the other firms would represent you, given that your parents will be unhappy if you get any traction."

"Why?" Allegra flushed, and Mary realized that intelligence and sophistication were two separate things.

Judy answered, "You're essentially opposing the Gardner interests.

"The big firms will want more business from the family, so they'll choose them over you."

Allegra shook her head. "No, I disagree. They'll represent me if I choose them, I'm sure of it. I met with them. They said they'll get back to me with a proposal."

Mary and Judy looked over at Anne and Bennie, and they all knew what Allegra Gardner had yet to learn. Money talks, and justice doesn't pay. If Allegra were taking on the Gardner family, she'd be radioactive to the big firms. Only the women at Rosato & Associates would take her on, because they were a bunch of mavericks who never would have gotten business from the Gardners anyway. And Allegra was an underdog, which was their weakness.

Bennie leaned over. "Regardless of what the others do, we'd be happy to represent you."

"Cool beans." Allegra grinned, in a newly relaxed way. "How does it work? Do you all work together, or can I choose which lawyer I want?"

"Of course you can choose. We work separately or together, depending on our availability. When would you want to get started?"

"Right away. Who's available?"

"I'm not, and neither is Anne." Bennie gestured at Anne, who made a cartoony sad face, like an emoticon with perfect makeup. "We're starting a trial, but Mary and Judy are free. They're a great team."

Allegra grinned. "I can tell. They've been writing each other notes this entire meeting."

"What?" Bennie frowned.

Mary grimaced, busted. "Sorry, it's a bad habit."

Judy's eyes flared. "I'm really sorry, too."

Allegra shrugged happily. "It's OK, and I can read upside down, too. I like that you think I'm cute, but please don't try and breast-feed me."

Mary laughed, feeling a rush of warmth for the young girl, who had the very mature ability to laugh at herself.

"We'd love to represent you," Judy said, then added with a grin, "Bee our client."

"Good one!" Allegra laughed.

"We could get started right away." Mary leaned forward. She wanted the case, and she needed the business. Her caseload was light because her client base was in South Philly, and Italians didn't like to fight when it is hot. "I'm free right now. I could drop everything."

"Just like that?" Allegra turned back to Bennie. "No proposals?"

"It's a lawsuit, not a marriage. I can e-mail you a fee-and-costs schedule.

"Our retainer is five thousand dollars. Is that a problem?"

"Not at all. The trustee of my trust will send you a check. I'll speak with him and give him your information."

Mary blinked. "Can you get a distribution from a trust, when you're only 13?"

"Yes, if the trustee says it's OK, and mine did. He's not even supposed to tell my father. The trust is from my grandfather, and one of his old banker friends is the trustee. He told me he has a duty of undivided loyalty to me."

Bennie looked over at Mary. "Trustees have some discretion about when to make a distribution, unless there's restrictions in the trust.

"If it's set up that distributions are to be made for her care, support, and welfare, which is typical, then the trustee can exercise his discretion to make the distribution. It's probably a generation-skipping trust or a dynasty trust."

Mary figured her trust skipped her generation, too. She turned to Allegra. "You're a really impressive young woman, and I'm happy to represent you."

"Thanks!" Allegra beamed. "You guys are so different from the other law firms. This is the firm, right? Four women, no drones?"

Mary laughed. "I'm the drone."

"No, you're not. Drones are male. People think drones are worker bees, but they're two different things. Worker bees do all the work, collecting pollen, nectar, and water, but a drone doesn't work. He exists to mate with the queen, and he dies after, with his genitals still in her."

"Yuck." Mary recoiled.

"Nice," Judy said, then, "I mean, yuck."

Allegra smiled. "The way I see it, if this law firm were a hive, Ms. Rosato would be the queen bee, and everybody else would be a worker bee."

"Bingo!" Mary burst into laughter, and so did Judy and Anne.

Bennie shot them a sly smile. "Not exactly, Allegra. Mary is my partner, so at the very least, we have two queen bees."

"You can't have two queens in the same hive. It's not possible."

Allegra lifted an eyebrow. "A new queen starts to emerge, laying supersedure cells, getting ready to take over. Then the new queen will fight the old queen to the death. I've seen it happen."

Suddenly, there was a commotion at the threshold, and Mary looked over, vaguely horrified. Her mother chugged into the conference room, bearing the platter of pastries and cookies, with her father right behind her, and Mary jumped up to head them off. "Ma, Pop! Thanks, but we're kind of busy."

"Maria, you no bring the sflogiatelle, the cannol'. Here, have!"

"MARE, I TOLD HER YOU WERE IN A MEETING, BUT YOU KNOW HOW SHE GETS."

"Psssh!" Her mother waved her off, set the pastries down, then did a double-take when she spotted Allegra. "Deo, che carina!"

"She says you're cute," Mary translated, uncomfortably. She loved her mother, but this wasn't good for client development. "Ma, thanks, but you should go -"

Her father shouted, "IS THIS KID THE RICH ONE?"

Her mother was already engulfing Allegra in a big hug. "Che carina! Si carina!"

"Whoa, hi." Allegra giggled as she righted her cap, which had come askew in the love attack.

"Ma, please don't hug the clients!" Mary hurried over to extricate Allegra. "Sorry, this is my mother and father."

Judy jumped up to help. "Mrs. D -."

"So skinny, so skinny!" Mary's mother let go of Allegra only long enough to pick up the pastry dish. "Have sflogiatelle, cara. Amaretti cookie, imbutitti cookie, musticiolli cookie."

"Have what?"

"Ma, please, no force-feeding." Mary touched her mother's shoulder.

"Sorry, Allegra, really. Sflogiatelle is a pastry stuffed with ricotta and orange pieces, and the cookies have pine nuts, hazelnuts, or honey. My mother thinks the world needs more saturated fats."

"Sweet!" Allegra beamed. "Which cookie has the honey?"

"Cara, prego!" Mary's mother thrust a brown musticiolli cookie at Allegra, who popped it in her mouth.

"This tastes awesome! I make my own honey, but this is almost as good!"

Mary caught Bennie's eye, and the queen bee didn't look happy.

"Uh, Ma, Dad, you should go, we're trying to -."

"No, Mary, it's OK." Allegra grinned, and brown flecks of cookie filled her braces. "It's better than my birthday cake."

Mary's mother's hooded eyes flew open behind her thick glasses.

"Is you birthday? Tanti auguri!"

Her father's face lit up. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DOLL! WHAT'S YOUR NAME?"

"Allegra," she answered, between bites, and Mary's mother started singing her the birthday song, clapping her gnarled little hands.

"Tanti auguri a te, tanti auguri a te . . ."

Then her father joined in, "TANTI AUGURI, ALLEGRA, TANTI AUGURI A TE!" The Tonys came up from behind, with Anthony, singing, clapping, and transforming the conference room into an Olive Garden.

"Bravissima, Allegra!" Mary's mother gave Allegra another hug.

"Tanti auguri!"

"Please, Mrs. DiNunzio -." Bennie blanched, but Allegra jumped to her sneakers with a big grin.

"Mary, can I hire your parents, too?"

Noon: King of Prussia. Costco, 201 Allendale Rd

4 p.m.: Wilmington. Barnes & Noble, 4801 Concord Pike

Noon: Mount Laurel. Costco, 100 Centerton Rd

Read the previous excerpts from "Accused" at www.inquirer.com/books.