Page 10 of The Guilty Trial

Park exchanged a glance with MacKenzie. “Thomas handled a range of cases. Financial crimes attract a certain kind of defendant—people with resources, connections. Nothing that stood out as especially dangerous, but...”

“But what?” Allie prompted.

MacKenzie adjusted his glasses. “He was persistent. When he got his teeth into something, he didn’t let go. That made him effective, but it also meant he stepped on toes. He wasn’t aggressive for the sake of it, but he didn’t back down when he believed he was right.”

“Whose toes did he step on?” Jason asked.

“Defendants, obviously. Defense attorneys who didn’t appreciate his attention to detail. Occasionally witnesses who didn’t want to cooperate.” MacKenzie shrugged. “The usual suspects in any prosecution. But Thomas kept things professional. He didn’t antagonize people unnecessarily.”

“Anyone specific come to mind?” Jason asked. “Someone who might have held a grudge against him?”

The three of them fell silent. Park stared at the table, her fingers tracing the wood grain. Dee-Dee shook her head slowly as fresh tears swelled. MacKenzie frowned, clearly running through memories.

“Not off the top of my head,” MacKenzie finally said. “He was professional. He didn’t make it personal, and most people respected that even when they were on opposite sides.”

Allie made another note. “We’ll need to look at his caseload. Current cases and recent ones.”

“Of course,” Park said. “Whatever you need.”

“What about his relationships within the office?” Jason asked. “Any conflicts? Professional disagreements?”

Park shook her head firmly. “Thomas got along with everyone here. He mentored younger attorneys, collaborated well with other AUSAs. If there were disagreements, they were about legal strategy, not personal issues. And he helped me when I started,” she added. “He kindly showed me the ropes and introduced me to contacts at the FBI field office and local PD. He didn’t have to do that, but he did.”

“Did he have enemies outside the courtroom?” Allie asked. “Personal issues, financial problems, anything that might make him vulnerable?”

“Not that I knew of,” Park said. “His marriage was solid, with two kids in college. Seemed financially stable as far as I could tell.”

MacKenzie cleared his throat. “Thomas wasn’t flashy. He didn’t need to prove anything to anyone. He just did the work and went home to his family.”

They continued for another ten minutes, covering Sterling’s habits, his routines, and whether he ever mentioned feeling threatened or unsafe. The picture that emerged was of a dedicated prosecutor who maintained clear boundaries between work and home, who earned respect through competence rather than charisma, and who didn’t collect enemies.

MacKenzie suddenly straightened in his chair, and his brows pinched together. “Wait. There was something last week.”

Allie locked in. “What?”

“An argument. I’d forgotten about it until just now.” The paralegal removed his glasses and cleaned them with the edge of his shirt in a nervous gesture. “I was coming back from lunch. Tuesday, I think. There was a commotion near the elevators down in the atrium.”

“What happened?” Jason asked.

“Thomas was arguing with Tony Bianchi. He’s the regional director for the local longshoremen’s union at the Port of Tacoma.” MacKenzie replaced his glasses. “It got pretty heated. Enough that people were stopping to watch.”

Allie felt her attention sharpen. “Did you hear what they were arguing about?”

“He told me afterward that it was about an investigation he was overseeing the union’s pension fund. He suspected Bianchi and his associates had been skimming millions from it.” MacKenzie’s fingers drummed once against the table. “But Bianchi was accusing Thomas of running a witch hunt designed to bankrupt the workers. Said he was trying to destroy the union.”

Jason’s pen hurried across his notepad. “How aggressive was this argument?”

“I guess it was fairly heated, but it didn’t break out into a full-on fight. Their voices were raised, and there was a lot of finger pointing, mostly from Bianchi. He got close enough that Thomas took a step back, and they were loud enough that security started moving in that direction, but it ended before they got there. Bianchi stormed off toward the exit.”

“What did Sterling do?” Allie asked.

“He stood there for a minute, then went back upstairs. When I asked him about it later, he said Bianchi was feeling the pressure. That the evidence was solid and Bianchi knew it.”

“What’s your read on Bianchi?” Allie asked him.

MacKenzie didn’t hesitate. “He’s a longshoreman. Not to use a cliché, but the union’s his power base, and he’s not shy about protecting it. He’s built up a lot of political capital, you know, connected to city council, county commissioners, and the like. Thomas thought he was a bit too financially comfortable, considering his salary.”

“Meaning?” Jason asked.