A Matter of Life and Death Phillip Margolin (novels to read in english .TXT) 📖

“Can you find out?”

“I can try, but I won’t do anything that puts me in danger. I’m taking a big enough risk talking to you.”

“I can accept that. And you’ll tell me if you learn anything useful?”

“You can count on it.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Karl Tepper called Tony Carasco and told him to bring the money to a parking lot in downtown Portland at ten o’clock. Tepper told Stacey he’d be back for her once he got the money, and they would drive back to San Francisco. Then he opened the door to Stacey’s apartment.

Tepper’s mood changed from elation to horror when a fist the size of a ham mashed his nose. Tepper staggered backward into the apartment. A giant in a ski mask tased the pimp. Stacey screamed. The giant grabbed Stacey’s cheeks and squeezed.

“Make another sound and I’ll rip your tongue out.”

Two more men wearing ski masks rushed into the apartment, and the giant locked the door behind them. He turned to one of the men, who was only slightly smaller.

“Take her into the living room.”

The man grabbed Stacey’s arm and hustled her onto an armchair.

“Help me move this piece of shit,” the giant said to a light heavyweight in a leather jacket.

The light heavyweight slapped tape over Tepper’s mouth. The giant grabbed the collar of Tepper’s jacket, dragged him along the floor, and dumped him in the middle of the living room a few feet from Stacey.

“You’re supposed to see what we do to your friend,” the giant told Stacey. “So, get comfortable and enjoy the show.”

While the giant stood next to her, the other men started beating Tepper with police batons. Stacey heard bones crack and closed her eyes to block out the blood and horror. The giant smacked her hard.

“This is educational, bitch. If you don’t want us to start on you, keep your eyes on your boyfriend.”

The men took turns beating Tepper until he was weeping. When the giant told his men to stop, he turned to Stacey.

“Do you understand that we’re serious people?”

Stacey was too frightened to speak, so she nodded.

“That’s good. Now, a friend trusted you, and you betrayed him. He believes that you have videos, audios, or other items that could embarrass him. Think before you answer. A lie will result in some of the same punishment your greedy friend suffered. You don’t want to know what will happen to you if you lie more than once. So, do you have anything that could embarrass our friend?”

Stacey nodded vigorously.

“Is it in this apartment?”

“Yes.”

“Show me where it is,” the giant said.

Stacey got up unsteadily. When they were in the bedroom, Stacey pointed at a bookshelf that was across from the bed.

“The camera is hidden behind the books on the top shelf, and the recordings are in a hollow space in the books on either side of the camera.”

Even though he was tall, the giant had to stand on his toes to see the camera, which pointed at the bed through a gap between two books on the top shelf. The giant opened the books. They had been hollowed out. Inside them were several DVDs and audiocassettes. The giant grabbed them and tossed the books on the floor. While the giant’s back was turned, Stacey thought about going for the gun in her end table, but she was too scared to try for it.

“Is this everything?”

“Yes, I swear.”

“You know what will happen if you’re lying?”

“It’s everything.”

“It’d better be,” the giant said as he scooped up the recordings. Then he turned to Stacey. “If you pulled this shit with me, you’d look like something out of a horror movie, but the man you betrayed is merciful.”

The giant grabbed her arm and led her back into the living room. Tepper was moaning in agony. The giant knelt next to him and made eye contact.

“I checked with some friends in the City by the Bay. They told me you’re a small-time punk. My friends owe me. If you ever show your face in Oregon or bother anyone in Oregon again, my friends will pay off their debt by making this beating seem like a spa treatment. Do you understand?”

Tepper nodded. Stacey collapsed on the sofa and tried to stop herself from shaking.

“Put this turd in the trunk of their car,” the giant told his accomplices before turning to Stacey.

“Your boyfriend stays in the trunk until you’re out of Oregon and in California, Washington, or wherever you decide to go. When you’re over the border, do what you want with your pimp. If you go to a hospital, tell the doctor that your boyfriend was in a car accident. Under no circumstances do you try to put this on us. Understand?”

Stacey nodded.

“Good girl. We’re going now. Wait twenty minutes, then you can go.”

The two men carried Tepper outside, and the giant followed. One of the men returned and tossed Stacey the car keys. Stacey thought she might throw up, but she was too scared to run for the bathroom. Instead, she watched the clock tick off twenty minutes.

Stacey had packed for the return trip to California when she thought she would be leaving with Tepper and the money he’d extorted from the judge. As soon as the last second passed, she grabbed her valise and ran to the car. Washington was the closest state. She found the location of the nearest Washington hospital and headed north.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

When Loretta Washington gave Robin and Amanda her draft of the juror questionnaire, they edited it and sent it to Judge Wright. The day after Robin and Amanda visited the Jungle Club, a pool of jurors was summoned to Judge Wright’s courtroom and given the questionnaires. The next day, a messenger delivered the defense copies of the completed questionnaires to Barrister, Berman, and Lockwood, where Robin, Amanda, Jeff, and Loretta started ranking each juror in order of desirability.

Robin and Amanda spent three days questioning the jurors individually in Judge Wright’s courtroom. Each side was allowed