"Gary tried to get date with ... girl at Stallion. She said no. Gary .. . kept after her. She called him stupid ... Made him angry. Gary grabbed her. Yelled at her.
"Gary said he ... ran away. Still mad. Ran to his ... house. Got hatchet. Went back to Stallion."
"Did the defendant say that anything happened on his way back to the Stallion?"
"He saw girl. Thought she was ... girl from bar." -The one who insulted him?"
Booth nodded.
"Where did he see her?"
"Near entrance to ... park."
"Was this the main entrance to Wishing Well Park that leads to the Wishing Well Memorial?"
Booth nodded again.
"What did the defendant say he did after spotting this woman?"
"He threatened her. She backed into the park." Booth paused and took a sip of water. "Gary grabbed her.
They struggled. She had ... necklace. Gary ... grabbed her .. . by the necklace. It came off. She broke away."
Booth paused again. "Ran to the well."
"Who ran to the well?"
"The girl."
"Then what happened?"
"Gary threw away ... the necklace. Ran after her.
Caught her."
"Did he say what he did after catching her?"
Booth nodded. He stared at the jury'he killed her."
"Did he say how many times he struck her or where?"
Booth shook his head. "He was ... upset. Crying.
Gary just said he ... hit her. More than once."
"What happened after the defendant hit Miss Whiley with the hatchet?
"She was ... dead. He stood over her. That's when he saw he killed the wrong one."
"What did the defendant do then?"
Booth sipped some water before continuing his testimony.
"He was scared. Ran away."
"What did the defendant do with the hatchet?"
"Put it in storm drain ... near college."
"And after that?"
"Gary went to the Ponderosa."
"That's a bar?"
Booth nodded.
"Did the defendant ever express remorse for killing Sandra Whiley?"
"He was sorry."
Sorry Booth looked at the jury and waited a beat before saying, "Sorry he killed the wrong girl."
"Was anyone else present during these conversations between Mr. Harmon and yourself?" Peter Hale asked, when court resumed after a twenty-minute recess.
Booth shook his head.
"So, the jury has only your word that Mr. Harmon made this confession."
Booth did not answer.
"You stand to benefit greatly from your testimony, don't you?"
"I don't ... understand."
"Well, let's start with the drug charges you're facing.
You were arrested holding two garbage bags containing a total of twenty kilos of cocaine, weren't you?"
"I ... didn't ... know..
"Your Honor, will you instruct Mr. Booth to answer 1% the question, please?"
"Yes, Mr. Booth. You must answer yes or no, if you can."
Booth ran his tongue across his lips, then nodded.
"And you had just been given the twenty kilos by Rafael Vargas, an enforcer for a Colombian drug cartel?"
Again, Booth nodded.
"Agents of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration made the arrest, did they not?"
Booth nodded. -Which means you're facing charges in federal court?"
Booth nodded again.
"Has your lawyer told you that under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines you will most likely be sentenced to more than ten years in prison if you are convicted for possession of that much cocaine?"
... don't have ... a lawyer."
see. But you know the possible sentencep, "Yes."
"Did Ms. O'Shay tell you about that sentence?"
The question caught Booth off guard and he could not help looking at the prosecutor.
"Don't ... remember."
"That's interesting. You would think you would remember the person who told you that you were going to spend ten years in prison."
Peter paused and Booth said nothing.
"You're not worried about spending any time in prison, are you, Mr. Booth?"
"What do ... you mean?"
"Why don't you tell the jury about the deal you're going to receive for testifying?"
"No deal."
"Are you telling this jury that you're not going to receive any benefit from the prosecutor or the federal government for testifying against Gary Harmon?"
"No deal."
"Are you going to trial to contest the narcotics charge?"
"Don't know."
"If you plead guilty or go to trial and are found guilty, do you think Ms. O'Shay will put in a good word for you with the judge at sentencing?"
"I hope so."
"You know so, don't you, Mr. Booth, because you and Ms. O'Shay have a deal worked out already."
"Asked and answered, Your Honor," Becky said quickly. "Mr. Booth has already explained that he is testifying without any promise of assistance from MY office or the federal prosecutor."
Peter could not believe this. There was obviously a J deal. O'Shay and Booth had to be lying.
"Do you want this jury to believe that you are testifying out of the goodness of your heart?"
"Didn't want to," Booth managed. "Gary is my friend. But . Booth shook his head slowly. "That girl. To kill her like that. What if Gary was free ... and killed again?" Booth paused. "Couldn't have that ... Vill on conscience."
"Did it bother your conscience when you lied to Mr. I Harmon at the Stallion by telling him that Karen Nix I wanted to go out on a date with him?"
"Not me. Chris Mammon told Gary ... about girl."
"But you went along with it?"
Booth nodded.
"You've known Mr. Harmon since high school?"
Id Booth nodded again.
"Then you know he's mentally handicapped?"
Booth hesitated before nodding.
"And knowing this, you went along with Manurion's cruel joke?"
Booth ran a tongue over his lips. "Didn't want to. Felt bad."
"Oh? Does that mean that the witnesses who said you were laughing hysterically at Gary's discomfort were mistaken?"
Booth did not answer.
"You enjoyed tricking and teasing Mr. Harmon, didn't you?"
"No," Booth rasped, but he did not sound conti vincing.
And you had no difficulty lying to Gary to gain your ends at the Stallion, just like you have no trouble lying to this jury about what Gary said to you to save yourself from a federal prison sentence.
"Objection," O'Shay shouted. -Sustained," judge Kuffel said.
"Then I have no further questions, Your Honor."
Peter replayed Kevin Booth's testimony over and over during the five -hour ride from Portland to Whitaker and he always came to the same conclusion. Booth sounded as if he was telling the truth and Peter's cross-examination had not given the jury any reason to disbelieve him.
His cross-examination of Booth had been as disheartening as his cross-examination of Dennis Downes. Neither witness had been broken because Peter was not sure how to cross-examine effectively. He'd had few chances to examine witnesses and his inexperience in court was killing him.
Peter considered going to the office and working on the case, but he was too depressed and tired. Then, he thought about going home, but he did not want to be alone. Finally, he decided to visit Donna and he felt better immediately. He had really enjoyed being with Donna the other night. It had been one of the few times since the trial started that he had been able to relax.
Donna was attractive, but Peter tried not to think of her in that way because she was Steve's wife. He tried to think of her as a friend. Someone he could talk to. Someone he just enjoyed being around.
Peter hoped he would find Donna alone, but Rhonda Kates opened the door when he knocked. Rhonda had also proved to be a good friend. She had been great about helping Donna. When he saw her, Peter smiled warmly.