Hugh Kissel had practiced law for close to twenty years before his embarrassing disbarment. It was a scandal that crumbled the life he knew into tiny pebbles, ending his career as a lawyer as well as his marriage. His wife divorced him two years later and then took the kids to another state. He hadn't seen his daughters ever since and just that was enough to break his heart. His own inability to keep it in his pants was his demise. He knew it, which was the entire reason he never challenged his disbarment. He confessed to what he had done and begged the bar association for compassion and leniency. He got neither.

     Despite the fact that it was only noon never stopped Hugh from cracking open a new bottle of Jack Daniels, mixing it up with some ice cold coke classic, and drank it while watching episodes of Maury. He loved the episodes where they did DNA tests to see which guy this slut slept with was the true father of her baby. He was laughing and having a good time when there was an unexpected knock at the front door. Hugh muted the television.

     "I'm not interested!" he called out.

     "Open the door, we need to talk." A voice called back.

     "I don't want to accept Jesus, so fuck off!" Hugh called again.

     "Dammit, Hugh." The voice called again. "It's Max, open the damn door already!"

     "Why the hell should I?" Hugh asked, not leaving his seat.

     "Because I brought lunch!" Max answered through the door. "I need some advice and you're the only one I can trust."

     Hugh paused for a moment. "The door's not locked. Come on in."

     Max sighed before opening the door and then locking it behind him before strolling into the living room.

     "You're watching Maury again?" Max asked.

     Hugh paused the show again. "Whenever I see these people on this show and how fucked up their lives are, it always makes me feel a little bit better about myself."

     "I'll keep that in mind." Max said as he set the large bag down on the coffee table. "We need to talk about a case."

     "It's got to be a dozy if you're bringing me lunch." Hugh said as he looked over at the bag. "Is that Popeye's?"

     "That's right." Max said as he started to take the food out of the bag. "I got two spicy sandwiches, Cajun fries and some gravy. But I need you to sign this first." Max pulled out a form from his pocket and handed it over to him.

     Hugh opened it and had an amused look on his face as he read it to himself, "I have to sign this?"

     "The judge has already ordered a gag on the case." Max explained. "I can't talk to anyone about it, not even Janet unless they sign this and become a part of my team. I told the client that I need someone I trust to bounce ideas off. He signed it and now you need to or we can't even start talking about anything."

     "Damn, this one sounds serious." Hugh said as he continued to read the form.

     "Dude," Max started, "This will seriously fuck you up."

     Hugh paused for a moment and could tell by the look in the young man's face that he wasn't bluffing. Curiosity was finally getting the best of the old lawyer.

     "Alright," Hugh said as he signed the papers. "Let's get this out of the way. I'm not going to have to make any court appearances, do I?"

     "No," Max answered, "There's a good chance this will never see the inside of a court room."

     "Okay, let's start from the beginning." Hugh said as he turned the TV off. Maury and his tribe of losers were gonna have to wait.

     "Here's the problem." Max said as he finished placing out the food for the both of them. "The client could potentially be a suspect in a murder case."

     "Potentially?" Hugh repeated, "What's the problem?"

     "There was a car accident." Max answered.

     "How bad was it?" Hugh asked.

     "His face was seriously smashed up." Max continued.

     "That can't be good." Hugh thought as he could see how that would prevent proper identification. "Fingerprints?"

     "Not in the system." Max added.

     "DNA?" Hugh asked.

     "No matches." Max said.

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     "Then why do they think he did it?" Hugh asked.

     "Because the bodies were found in his trunk." Max answered.

     "Bodies?" Hugh repeated, "As in plural?"

     "Two." Max confirmed.

     "And the accident is what exposed him?" Hugh pondered.

     "Wasn't even his fault either," Max explained, "Our man got t-boned when some dumbass ran a red light."

     "Just like Dalmer," Hugh said as he chewed on some fries. "The police really got lucky here."

     "You have no idea." Max replied. "The two women were slender, blonde haired, bound with rope, and strangled to death. The red scarf that was used to kill them was still around one of their necks."

     Upon hearing that, Hugh jumped up from his couch. His face was one of shock and disbelief. The moment he heard those details, he knew exactly what kind of person they were talking about.

     "Don't you fucking kid about that!" Hugh said as he sat up in his seat. "How do you it was a red silk scarf?"

     "I saw it in the photos," Max explained, "A special agent from the FBI showed them to me this morning."

     Max was eating his food as he gave Hugh a chance to digest the news he was just given. He paced the room and cursed a lot as he finally realized how big this case was and who they were dealing with. He had started to regret sighing that piece of paper already.

     "Are they sure about this?" Hugh asked, "That it was actually a red silk scarf?"

     "They're pretty sure," Max confirmed, "Like I said before, the police found the scarf still wrapped around one of the girl's necks. There's no doubt what and who we might be dealing with here."

     "Son of a bitch!" Hugh cursed again as he picked up his chicken sandwich and started nibbling on it as he continued to pace around the room. "And you've been picked to represent this piece of shit?"

     "Pretty much," Max answered. "But that's not the biggest problem with the case."

     "Well, I can see you're unable to identify him." Hugh said, as he remembered seeing John Doe written on the piece of paper he signed. "Have you had a chance to talk to him?"

     "Yes, only once at the hospital." Max answered, "He's a bit banged up from the accident but that's where the next problem arises. He's got no memory of it."

     "No memory of what?" Hugh asked.

     "Anything," Max replied. "He's got no memory of anything prior to the accident, which happened almost two months ago. He was in a coma all this time, which is why I'm just getting it now. He remembers nothing."

     "Nothing?" Hugh repeated.

     "Not a damn thing," Max confirmed, "Not his childhood, his adult life, or even his own fucking name. It's like someone just sucked every detail out of his head. Everything is just blank up there."

     "Now that's a real curve." Hugh said, as he finally sat back down to chew on it and his sandwich at the same time. "Is he even competent to stand trial?"

     "He might not be and that's the problem," Max said, as he began to explain his conversation in the judge's chamber and their concerns; that a man who appears harmless could go back to killing gain should be somehow regain his memory. "There's also a chance he might be innocent. The case is weak at best."

     "It's got more holes than Swiss cheese." Hugh confirmed, pausing for a moment. "Are they offering this bugger a deal?"

     "If he voluntarily commits himself to a mental institution of their choosing, they'll be no charges." Max answered. "Considering what this guy could be charged with; this is an amazing offer."

     "If this guy is guilty, this is a damn steal!" Hugh confirmed as he kept pacing. "I can see why you came to me. This is quite the conundrum you're in, ethically I mean."

     "I got that," Max agreed. "What if this really is our killer?"

     "Then he's a truly sick piece of shit," Hugh answered. "This man is wanted in over ten states! The most brutal killer since Ted Bundy himself and that's saying something. I mean how many kills does the press say he's likely responsible for?"

     "At least at least thirty that we know of," Max answered. He looked over some files on his I-pad, trying to google more information about the murders in question.

     "Let's hope there's no blonde haired nurses in the mental facility." Hugh said with a half hearted chuckle.

     "Right now he's completely harmless," Max said, as he tried not to think about that detail. "He has no idea who or what he is and as far as the feds are concerned, they want it to stay that way. 'They don't even know who this guy is."

     "And that's why he's called John Doe," Hugh said, as what he saw on the form made more sense now.

     "It's standard procedure for all unidentified victims." Max answered as he sipped his soda pop. "It took four surgeries to repair his face so no one recognizes him. He's a complete unknown. If he never gets his memory back, we'll never be able to identify him."

     Hugh wandered over to the window and peered out of it. "When did this accident happen again?"

     "Almost two months ago." Max answered. "He was in a coma up until a few days ago."

     "Let me guess," Hugh started as his brilliant brain was finally in full gear. "There hasn't been a single killing since our friend landed himself in the hospital."

     "Not one." Max confirmed.

     "That also doesn't bode well for our friend here." Hugh said.

     "Is what they're doing legal?" Max asked. "They've kept all this from the press this whole time. Charges haven't even been laid and the judge has gagged it already."

     "I can see why," Hugh replied as he thought about, "They're afraid that the public might riot if they find out we're considering giving one of this nation's worst serial killers a free pass. There are a lot of families out there that would flip out if they found out about any of this. The press would do round the clock coverage of it and this town would be a media circus as long as he's here."

     "No shit, don't think I haven't thought about it." Max said, as that worried him as well. "I have four people in the media that would kiss my feet if I tipped them off about this."

     "Don't you fucking dare," Hugh said as he turned back from the window. "We need to keep this super quiet, especially if your guy is going to take that deal."

     "What should we do next?" Max asked his friend.

     "We need to speak to the client." Hugh answered. "I need to see him for myself."

     "Why?" Max asked.

     "To authenticate his story," Hugh replied, "No one can bluff me at the poker table. If this bastard is faking, I should be able to tell. We need to speak with him again."

     "I'm going back tomorrow morning." Max answered. "I can pick you up before I go over."

     "Alright," Hugh said as sat back in his couch and continued eating. "Tell me more about this deal they're offering."