Leader of the Pack (Andy Carpenter) by David Rosenfelt Read Free Book Online Page B

right, which is why I feel our system carries a presumption of guilt.
    But a situation like this one with Joey is far more difficult, because a jury has already spoken. He’s been found guilty by his peers, and the system quite properly has a healthy respect for their decision.
    In order to get Joey a new trial, we would have to ask a court to invalidate that verdict, something they are inherently loathe to do. In fact, the legal standard set is a very high bar. Not only do we have to come up with new evidence, but the justices have to believe that there is more likelihood than not that we would prevail in a new trial.
    Those are the general rules. Complicating our situation somewhat is that we don’t have any new evidence. At this point we really don’t even have a theory. All we have are the ramblings of a senile, now-dead, fat guy. It might be hard to find a judge who would be impressed by that.
    So it’s clear I need to be aggressive about this. It’s the only way I’m going to resolve the matter one way or the other. I have to shake the tree, though that is also complicated, as at this point I need a GPS to even find the forest.
    I catch a break, because Laurie is heading into Manhattan today to have lunch with Cindy Spodek. Cindy is an FBI agent, ranked number two in the Boston office. We met on a case a number of years ago.
    We’ve since become friends, or we at least have a relationship that fits neatly into my definition of friendship. It’s one in which I can call on her for favors whenever I’m in need, and in which she can respond by granting those favors.
    The truth is that I like her a lot, despite her position in law enforcement, and the fact that she likes to arrest the very people I’m sworn to defend. But she and Laurie have really hit it off, and whenever Cindy has occasion to come to New York, they have lunch.
    They’re eating at the Redeye Grill, on the Westside in Midtown. It’s one of Laurie’s favorites, because she loves their oysters. If death by starvation were imminent, I would not eat an oyster. I would prefer fried dirt.
    Laurie tells me that their lunch is at noon, so I time my own trip into the city to let me arrive at the restaurant at one-fifteen. I tell the woman at the desk that I’m meeting someone already there, and I set out in search of Laurie and Cindy. It’s a large restaurant so it takes a few minutes, but I finally find them, at a secluded table back near the bar area.
    “Oh, my God,” I say, feigning shock with all of my considerable feigning ability. “What are you two doing here? What are the odds against that?”
    “You mean what are the odds of us having lunch at the restaurant I told you we were eating at?” Laurie asks.
    “Did you say Redeye Grill? I thought you said the Thai Mill.” Then, to Cindy, “It’s a small Asian place in the village; if you go there try the shrimp rolls.”
    “What do you need, Andy?” Cindy asks.
    I pull up a chair and sit down at their table. “Did I mention you’re looking wonderful?”
    “You always mention I’m looking wonderful when you need something,” Cindy says. “Even when we’re talking on the phone.”
    “No, then I say you’re sounding wonderful.”
    Between the two of them, they seem to be conducting an eye-rolling contest. “Are you hungry, Andy?” Laurie asks.
    “No thanks. I’ll just chat for a minute and then get out of here before the check comes.”
    “I already told Cindy about the Joey Desimone situation.”
    This time I feign horror. “You did? Why? I had hoped this would be a social lunch.”
    “Land the plane, Andy,” Cindy says. “What do you want?”
    Time to stop feigning. “I want to know if the Bureau had any information that Richard Solarno was dirty.”
    “Dirty how?” she asks.
    “I’m not sure, but I think it might be arms smuggling. One of his employees saw a boatload of guns where shrimp were supposed to be. And I also want to know, if he was doing it, where those