The Alibi

An honorable man. . . a very sexy dilemma.

Hammond Cross is a man caught in a moral dilemma. The plot of THE ALIBI centers around Hammond Cross, Special Assistant County Solicitor. (for those of you who don’t live in South Carolina and haven’t read THE WITNESS, you might not know that in that state, lawyers are called solicitors. In Texas we call them by other names.) Hammond Cross hails from a wealthy Charleston family, but he eschews his heritage and the advantages it affords, even going far as to choose public service over a more lucrative career in criminal defense. He’s ambitious, and has his sights set on higher offices, but his goals aren’t strictly politically motivated. He’s also an aggressive prosecutor out to win for all the right reasons. He believes in what he’s doing and devotes himself to bringing criminals to justice. Until . . . He unwittingly becomes the alibi of an accused murderer. The captivating and elusive woman with whom he had spent an overnight getaway — a meeting he mistook as happenstance — becomes the prime suspect in the most important criminal case Hammond’s career. If he prosecutes it successfully, he’ll inherit the top position from the retiring County Solicitor. If he doesn’t, he’ll have many people to answer to . . . not the least of which is himself. To admit his own culpability is self-destructive. To fail is unthinkable. To win is to sacrifice the woman he’s come to love. (source)