Page 12 of One of Us Is Guilty

YOU’LL GET THE BOOK BACK AFTER.

He closed the notebook, glared at me, his eyes bugging out of his big round head. It took a few moments for Gennaro to gather himself enough to start thinking. But it didn’t take him long.

‘Your Honor,’ said Gennaro, addressing the judge, ‘I’m so sorry, but I think I’ve brought the wrong notebook. Could I have some time to go find the correct one?’

The judge rolled her eyes, said, ‘Let’s adjourn for fifteen minutes. Mr. Shilton, by then I want an update on how long it’s going to take for Officer Gennaro to get his original notebook and bring it to this court. Shouldn’t take more than an hour, but I want a firm timeline when we come back.’

With that, the judge stood, and Gennaro almost ran out of the witness stand and grabbed Shilton, taking him to a corner of the courtroom for a hushed and anxious conversation.

‘What’s happening, Eddie?’ asked Errol.

I could only see Shilton’s back, but the way he hung his head, and then slumped his shoulders told me all I needed to know.

‘Looks like justice is happening, Errol.’

Gennaro shook his head, his blood pressure now getting the best of his fear as he turned lobster red and then stormed out of court, Shilton calling after him.

Shilton gestured that we should talk. I took Gennaro’s notebook and put it in my jacket pocket, and joined Shilton.

‘Problem with your star witness?’ I asked.

‘Look, we’ve been thinking. We’re going to take your offer, Flynn. Settled at twenty-five grand, no admission of liability. Settlement agreement to be sealed.’

‘I told you I would win this case without saying a word in court, didn’t I? Look, I can see you’ve got a problem with Gennaro. I’ll agree no admission, and to sealing the agreement. But my offer of settlement was fifty thousand dollars, Shilton, not twenty-five.’

‘What? You told me, not ten minutes ago, you would take twenty-five.’

‘You need to get your hearing checked. I said fifty.’

‘No, you didn’t.’

‘Did you write down my offer settlement in your notes?’

Now it was Shilton’s turn to change his complexion. His neck flushed red.

‘No,’ he said.

‘What did you tell me?If it wasn’t written down at the time it didn’t happen?Fifty. Take it or leave it. And make sure Gennaro leaves Errol and his family alone.’

Shilton stared at the ground. He was out of moves.

‘I’ll take it. Jesus, you’re not a lawyer. You’re a goddamn con artist, Flynn.’

‘Believe it or not, I take that as a compliment.’

Errol’s grandma damn near crushed my ribcage as she took me in a bearhug. I didn’t mind. I was too busy watching Errol and his wife as the dollar signs rolled around in their eyeballs.

Sometimes I really like this job.

My cell phone buzzed, a reminder for an appointment at a white-shoe law firm on Wall Street.

Right then, I got a feeling that my day was about to go downhill rapidly.

2

Eddie

The offices of Buchanan and Duff, attorneys at law, occupied three floors of a skyscraper on Wall Street and even the kid in the back room working the photocopier wore a better suit than me.