"Yes, I do."
"You also said you believed she appeared rather blue. Do you remember that as well?"
"I don't know if those were my exact words, but it is the gist of what I was saying."
"I contend that it was exactly what you said or extremely close. In your deposition, you agreed it was extremely close. Would you like to read the relevant portions?"
"If I said it was extremely close, then it was. At this point, I don't remember."
"When Dr. Bowman arrived, he found Patience totally blue and hardly breathing at all. Would you say that was a big difference from your description over the phone?"
"I was trying to do my best in a difficult situation. I made it very clear to him she was very ill and that she should be seen at the hospital."
"One further question," Randolph said, straightening his tall, lean frame to its six-foot-plus limit. "Taking into account Patience's long history of hypochondriasis, along with a number of previous episodes of chest pain caused by intestinal gas, do you believe on the evening of September eighth, 2005, that Dr. Bowman thought Patience Stanhope was having a heart attack?"
"Objection," Tony cried, getting to his feet. "Hearsay."
"Sustained," Judge Davidson said. "The question can be posed to the defendant himself during his testimony."
"No more questions," Randolph said. He strode back toward the defense table.
"Do you wish to redirect?" Judge Davidson asked Tony.
"No, Your Honor," Tony said.
As Jordan stepped down from the witness box, Jack turned to Alexis. He flashed her a thumbs-up on Randolph 's cross-examination, but then his eyes went to the jurors. They didn't strike him as being nearly as riveted as he had been. Instead of many of them leaning forward as they'd been earlier, they were all leaning back in their chairs, arms folded across their chests, except for the plumber's assistant. He was back to fussing with his nails.
"Plaintiff, call your next witness!" Judge Davidson ordered.
Tony stood up and bellowed, "Ms. Leona Rattner to the stand, please."
12
Jack twisted around. He had a mildly prurient interest in seeing the nubile hussy turned spurned-lover vixen. Having read her racy deposition, he was sure her testimony was going to be a show.
Leona came through the courtroom door and strode unhesitantly down the courtroom's central aisle. In contrast to Craig's description of her typically sexy apparel, she was now dressed demurely in a dark blue pants suit with a white blouse buttoned to the neck. Jack assumed it was at Tony Fasano's suggestion. The only hint of her normal style was extra-high-heeled sandals that made her walk slightly wobbly.
Although the woman's clothing was modest, Jack could immediately appreciate what had attracted Craig. Her individual features were not special, nor was her straw-blond, obviously dyed hair with its dark roots. But her skin was flawless and radiant. She was the picture of youthful sensuality brazenly projected.
Leona went through the bar with a saucy shake of her head. She knew she was onstage and she loved it.
Jack hazarded a glance in Alexis's direction. Her face was set in stone, reflecting a determined expression with her lips pressed firmly together. Jack had the sense that she was steeling herself for what was coming. He thought that was a good self-preservation ploy, having read Leona's deposition.
The court clerk administered the oath while Leona held her right hand heavenward. "Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?"
"I do," Leona said in a slightly nasal voice. She glanced modestly at the judge through eyelashes heavy with mascara as she stepped up into the witness box.
Tony took his time getting to the podium and arranging his notes. Then he hiked one of his tasseled loafers onto the brass rail, as was his habit, and began the direct. First off, he established a short biography: where she was born (Revere, Massachusetts); where she'd gone to high school (Revere, Massachusetts); where she was currently living (Revere, Massachusetts). He asked how long she had worked in Dr. Craig Bowman's office (more than a year) and where she was going to night school three nights a week (Bunker Hill Community College).
As Leona answered these neutral initial questions, Jack had more of an opportunity to observe her. He noticed she and Tony shared the same accent, which to him seemed as much like a Brooklyn accent as a Boston accent. Jack could also see more evidence of the personality traits Craig had described: opinionated, high-spirited, and willful. What he had yet to observe was the mercurial petulance.
"Now, let's talk about your relationship with your boss, Dr. Craig Bowman," Tony said.
"Objection," Randolph said. "Immaterial."
"Counsels, approach the bench!" Judge Davidson ordered irritably.
Randolph complied immediately. Tony motioned to Leona to sit tight and followed.
Using his reading glasses similar to the way a person uses a newspaper roll to threaten a dog, Judge Davidson directed his attention to Tony. "This better not be an elaborate sham, and I want to be assured again that this social crap is germane to the plaintiff's case. Otherwise, we are going to be dealing with a mistrial and potentially a directed verdict for the doctor."
"It's absolutely germane. The witness will testify that Dr. Bowman did not consider meeting Patience Stanhope at the hospital because of their relationship and their evening plans."
"All right. I'm going to give you a lot of rope, and I hope you don't hang yourself with it. I'm going to allow the social testimony for the reasons I've already given in the past, specifically, the assurance that its probative value outweighs its prejudicial value." Judge Davidson waved the glasses in Randolph 's direction. "As far as the defense is concerned, I will allow you wide latitude on your cross-examination, which Mr. Fasano will respect. Now, within this framework, I want to move things along. Between the two of you, these interruptions are annoying me to death. Understood?"
"Yes, Your Honor," both counsels echoed in unison. They turned on their heels and returned to their respective spots.
"Objection overruled," Judge Davidson called out for the court reporter's benefit. "Continue the direct of Ms. Rattner."
"Miss Rattner," Tony said. "Could you tell the court about your relationship with Dr. Bowman?"
"Sure. At first I was, like, just one of the employees. But about a year ago, I could tell Dr. Bowman was giving me the eye. You know what I'm saying?"
"I think I do," Tony responded. "Go on!"
"At first I was embarrassed and everything because I knew he was married with kids and the whole works. But then one evening when I was working late, he came into the file room where I was working and started talking. One thing led to another, and we began hanging out with each other. I mean, it was okay since I found out he had moved out of his house and gotten an apartment in Boston."
"Was this a platonic affair?"
"Hell, no! He was a tiger. It was a very physical relationship. We even did it on the examination table one afternoon at the office. He said his wife didn't like sex and, besides, she'd gained all this weight after she'd had her kids and never lost it. It was like he was starving and needed a lot of attention, so I went out of my way. A lot of good it did me!"
"Your Honor, this is beyond -" Randolph began, rising to his feet.
"Sit down, Mr. Bingham," Judge Davidson snapped. Then he looked at Tony over his reading glasses. "Mr. Fasano, it is time to establish foundation, and it better be convincing."
"Of course, Your Honor," Tony said. He made a quick detour to take a sip of water at the plaintiff's table. Then, running his tongue around his lips as if they were dry, he returned to the podium and shuffled his papers.