10th Anniversary by James Patterson Read Free Book Online Page A

That’s a dead end. A late-model Toyota SUV was parked at the end of the street, where it butts up against the I-280 overpass. This is a bad neighborhood, but I was able to watch without being seen.”
    “Go on, Mr. Podesta.”
    “The meeting was clearly clandestine,” Podesta said. “I took photographs of Dr. Martin getting into this SUV. WhenI downloaded them onto my computer later, I thought I’d seen the man’s face before.”
    “And what happened next?”
    “Two weeks later Dennis Martin was murdered.”
    “What did you do, Mr. Podesta?”
    “I compared my picture of the man in the SUV to pictures on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. In my opinion, the man I saw talking to Dr. Martin was Gregor Guzman.”
    “And why is Mr. Guzman on the FBI list?”
    “Your Honor. Is this witness an FBI agent? What the—?”
    “Sit down, Mr. Hoffman. The witness may answer to the best of his knowledge.”
    “Gregor Guzman is wanted on suspicion of murder in California as well as a few other states and other countries. He’s never been arrested. I contacted the FBI three times, but no one ever got back to me.”
    Yuki introduced the photograph of Candace Martin sitting in a dark sports utility vehicle with a balding man with a shock of hair at the front of his scalp. It was a grainy photo, taken with a long lens at night, but it appeared as Podesta described it.
    “Thank you,” Yuki said. “That’s all I have for you, Mr. Podesta.”

Chapter 20
    “YOUR HONOR, SIDEBAR?” Hoffman said stiffly.
    The judge waved the two attorneys in toward the bench and said, “Go ahead, Mr. Hoffman.”
    “Your Honor, this witness is a private investigator. He’s not even a cop. His testimony is pure guesswork. Where is this so-called hit man? Why isn’t
he
on the witness list? How do we know
why
my client was seeing this man, or even if this person is who the witness says he is?”
    “Ms. Castellano?”
    “Mr. Podesta didn’t say he was an expert witness. He followed the defendant, who got into a car with a man who resembles Gregor Guzman. Mr. Podesta took pictures of a clandestine meeting between them. He compared the picture of the man in the SUV with photos of Gregor Guzman issued by the FBI. He made a match—
in his opinion.
That’s his testimony.”
    “Mr. Hoffman, I’ve heard you. Now, please cross-examine the witness,” LaVan said.
    Phil Hoffman addressed Joseph Podesta from his seat beside his client, trying to show the jury how little regard he had for the witness.
    “Mr. Podesta, I don’t know which piece of fiction to begin with. Okay, I’ve got it,” he said before Yuki could object.
    “First, have you ever worked for the FBI?”
    “No.”
    “Do you have any specialized training in the identification of contract killers?”
    “I have a very good eye.”
    “That wasn’t my question, Mr. Podesta. Do you have any specialized training in the identification of contract killers? Did you get this man’s fingerprints? Did you get his DNA? Do you have a tape recording of this assumed conversation?”
    “Objection,” Yuki said. “Which question does counsel want the witness to answer?”
    “I’ll withdraw all of them,” Hoffman said, “but I object to this exhibit. The quality of this photograph stinks and it proves nothing. In fact, I object to this entire testimony and move that it be stricken from the record.”
    “Overruled,” said the judge. “If you’re finished questioning this witness, Mr. Hoffman, he may step down.”

Chapter 21
    “THE PEOPLE CALL Ellen Lafferty,” Yuki said.
    The doors opened at the back, and a pretty, auburn-haired woman in her early twenties wearing a tight blue suit and a blouse with a bow at the neck came into the courtroom and walked down the aisle. She passed through the gate to the witness stand, where she was sworn in.
    “Are you employed by Candace and the late Dennis Martin?” Yuki asked her witness.
    “I am.”
    “In what capacity?”
    “I am the children’s