Mickey Haller 4 - The Fifth Witness

cross-examination, potshotting Trammel here and there but not penetrating the armor of her direct testimony. My client could not be shaken from her contention that she was not walking near WestLand National on the morning of the murder. With the exception of the three-sided ruler, it was a damn good start because it put the jury on immediate notice that we were engaged in an affirmative defense. We would not be going down without a fight.
    The prosecutor took it right on up to five o’clock, thus preserving the ability to come up with something overnight and hit Trammel with it in the morning. The judge recessed for the evening and everybody was sent home. Except for me. I was heading back to the office. There was still more to do.
    Before leaving the courtroom I huddled with my client at the defense table and whispered angrily to her.
    “Thanks for telling me about the three-sided ruler. What else don’t I know?”
    “Nothing, that was stupid.”
    “What was stupid? That you hit a kid with a ruler or that you didn’t tell me?”
    “It was four years ago and he deserved it. That’s all I’m going to say about it.”
    “It’s not going to be your choice. Freeman can still bring it up on rebuttal, so you better start thinking about what you’re going to say.”
    A look of concern creased her face.
    “How can she? The judge told the jury to forget it was brought up.”
    “She can’t bring it up on cross but she’ll find a way to bring it up later. There are different rules about rebuttal. So you’d better tell me all about it and anything else I should know but you’ve neglected to tell me.”
    She glanced over my shoulder and I knew she was looking for Herb Dahl. She had no idea what Dahl had revealed to me or about the double-agent work he was doing.
    “Dahl isn’t here,” I said. “Talk to me, Lisa. What else should I know?”
    When I got back to the office I found Cisco in the reception area, hands in his pockets and chatting up Lorna, who was behind the front desk.
    “What going on?” I demanded. “I thought you were going to the airport to get Shami.”
    “I sent Bullocks,” Cisco said. “She got her and is on the way back.”
    “She should have stayed here preparing for her testimony, which will probably come tomorrow. You’re the investigator, you should’ve gone to the airport. Both of them together probably can’t carry the dummy.”
    “Relax, Boss, they got it covered. And they’re fine together. Bullocks just called from the road. So you keep your cool and we’ll do the rest.”
    I stared hard at him. I didn’t care if he was six inches taller and seventy-five more pounds of muscle. I’d had it. I’d been carrying everything and I’d had it.
    “You want me to relax? You want me to be cool? Fuck you, Cisco. We just started the defense and the problem is we don’t have a defense. I have a lot of talk and a dummy. The problem is, unless you get your hands out of your fucking pockets and find me something, I’m the one who is going to look like the dummy. So don’t tell me to be cool, okay? I’m the one who’s standing in front of the jury every fucking day.”
    First Lorna burst out laughing and soon Cisco followed.
    “You think this is funny?” I said in full outrage. “It’s not funny. What the fuck makes it so fucking funny?”
    Cisco held up his hands in a calming gesture until he could contain himself.
    “Sorry, Boss, it’s just that when you get yourself worked up… and that thing about the dummy.”
    This made Lorna start another cycle of laughter. I made a mental note to fire her after the trial. In fact, I’d fire them both. That would really be funny.
    “Look,” Cisco said, apparently sensing I wasn’t picking up on the humor of the situation. “Go into your office, take your tie off and sit down in the big chair. I’ll go get my stuff and I’ll show you what I’ve got working. I’ve been dealing with Sacramento all day so the going is slow but I’m getting close.”
    “Sacramento? The state crime lab?”
    “No, corporate records. Bureaucrats, Mickey. That’s why it’s taking forever. But you don’t have to worry. You do your job and I’ll do mine.”
    “Kind of hard to do my job when I’m waiting on you to do yours.”
    I headed toward my office. I threw a baleful look at Lorna as I went by. It only served to make her laugh again.

Forty
    I was uninvited and unexpected. But having not seen my daughter in a week—I’d had to