Read Online Mickey Haller 4 - The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly - Free Book Online

didn’t let me speak to them, only Herb.”
    “Herb got to you in the jail, did he? He must be relentless.”
    “He said that when he sees a story he stops at nothing. Remember that little girl who lived for a week on the side of the mountain with her dead father after he crashed off the road? He got her a TV movie.”
    “That’s impressive.”
    “I know. He’s very successful.”
    “Yes, you said that. So did you make some sort of agreement with him?”
    “Yes. He’ll put all the deals together and we split everything fifty-fifty after his expenses and he gets the bail money back. I mean, that’s only fair. But he’s talking about a lot of money. I might be able to save my house, Mickey!”
    “Did you sign something? A contract or any sort of agreement?”
    “Oh, yes, it’s all legal and binding. He has to give me my share.”
    “You know that because you showed it to your lawyer?”
    “Uh… no, but Herb said it was standard boilerplate. You know, legal mumbo-jumbo. But I read it.”
    Sure she did. Just like when she signed the contracts with me.
    “Can I see the contract, Lisa?”
    “Herb kept it. You can ask him.”
    “I will. Now did you happen to tell him about our agreements?”
    “Our agreements?”
    “Yes, you signed contracts with me yesterday at the police station, remember? One was for me to represent you criminally and the others granted me power of attorney to represent you and negotiate any sale of story rights so that we can fund your defense. You remember that you signed a lien?”
    She didn’t answer.
    “Did you see I have three people out there, Lisa? We’re all working on your case. And you haven’t paid us a penny so far. So that means I have to come up with all their salaries, all their expenses. Every week. That’s why in the agreements you signed yesterday you were giving me the authority to make book and film deals.”
    “Oh… I didn’t read that part.”
    “Let me ask you something. Which is more important to you, Lisa, that you have the best defense possible and try to defy the odds and win this case, or that you have a book or movie deal?”
    Lisa put a pouting look on her face, and then promptly deflected the question.
    “But you don’t understand. I’m innocent. I didn’t—”
    “No, you don’t understand. Whether you’re innocent or not has nothing to do with this equation. It’s what we can prove or disprove in court. And when I say ‘we’ I really mean ‘me,’ Lisa. Me. I’m your hero, not Herb Dahl out there in the leather jacket and Hollywood piece sign. And I mean that as in piece of the pie.”
    She paused for a long moment before responding.
    “I can’t, Mickey. He just bailed me out. It cost him two hundred thousand dollars. He has to make that back.”
    “While your defense team goes hungry.”
    “No, you’re going to get paid, Mickey. I promise. I get half of everything. I’ll pay you.”
    “After he gets his two hundred grand back, plus expenses. Expenses that could be anything, it sounds like.”
    “He said he got a half a million for one of Michael Jackson’s doctors. And that was just for a tabloid story. We might get a movie!”
    I was on the verge of losing it with her. Lorna had a stress-release squeeze toy on the desk. It was a small judge’s gavel, a sample of a giveaway she was considering for marketing and promotional purposes. The name and number of the firm could be printed on the side. I grabbed it and squeezed hard on the barrel, thinking of it as Herb Dahl’s windpipe. After a few moments the anger eased. The thing actually worked. I made a mental note to tell Lorna to go ahead with the purchase. We’d give them out at bail bond offices and street fairs.
    “Okay,” I said. “We’ll talk about this later. We’re going to go back out there now. You are still going to send Herb home because we are going to talk about your case and we do not do that in front of people who are not in the circle of privilege. Later,