Devil's Bridge Read Online Free Page A

crazy, Judge? Call a little more attention to it? Spare me a ‘No, ladies and gentleman, Mr. Estevez is neither a vampire nor a homicidal maniac.’”
    “He’s just a pumped-up pimp,” I said, whispering to Moretti, “who uses masks and machetes to coerce young women—to scare them to death—so they turn tricks from which he profits.”
    “Your choice,” the judge said.
    “If you’re not going to allow me to ask anything else,” I said, “I’d like you to go a little deeper into the meaning of sex trafficking, Judge. It’s not a familiar statute to most jurors.”
    The sex-trade profession may be the oldest on earth, but the crime was a very new one on the books, ramped up recently in recognition of the brutal nature of sex slavery and the inadequacy of the old “promoting prostitution” laws.
    “I’ll entertain some questions from you, Alex, but keep them within reason.”
    The door creaked open at the rear of the room. I didn’t bother to turn this time as I tried to suggest a punch list for Fleming to use.
    Her law assistant assiduously made notes of my comments, while the judge had her eyes on whoever had entered the room.
    When I did glance back, I saw a neatly turned-out twentysomething-year-old striding down the aisle, making for the first pew, a row kept empty for press and for family and friends of the accused, directly behind Gino Moretti’s seat. She looked familiar to me. I had seen her recently, in the corridor near my office.
    “Keep going, Alex,” the judge said to me, chewing on the arm of her eyeglasses. “That’s not the colleague you’ve been waiting for, is it?”
    “No.”
    “’Cause if it was, you might want to tell her she’s sitting on the wrong side of the courtroom.”
    “She’s new. She’s a paralegal in the Child Abuse Unit, I think.”
    “Cute kid. She could give some cred to Mr. Estevez, sitting at his back, fluttering her eyelashes over here at Gino.”
    “She’s in the right place, Your Honor,” Moretti said. “Seated on the side of the angels.”
    “You must mean my side, Gino,” I said, smiling at him. “That’s why she’s working in my office. Maybe I’ll scoop her up for the Special Victims Unit.”
    “You’re missing my point, Alexandra. That young woman is married to Antonio Estevez.”
    “She’s
what
?”
    Fleming was on her feet again. “Lower your voice, Alex. I don’t need a situation here.”
    “I don’t think she’s been in the office a month,” I said, my jaw clenched. “I’ll bet she didn’t put that fact on her job application. I can’t imagine the hiring administrator—”
    “Of course it’s not on her application,” Moretti said, one eye on me and one on the attractive young woman who was trying to get the attention of the defendant. “The wedding was at Rikers Island last weekend. I was the best man.”
    I was steaming mad. “I’d like a recess, Judge. I need to find out—”
    “Don’t try to stall this anymore, Alex,” Moretti said. “Shit happens. There’s nothing illegal about marrying an inmate.”
    Antonio Estevez looked back and saw his bride. She mouthed words to him, but I couldn’t read her lips. He nodded. Then she blew him a kiss and got up to leave.
    “Excuse me, Judge, but I’ve got to talk to her. I’ll be right back,” I said.
    Most of the prospective jurors were riveted by this bit of courtroom drama. Gino and I were having a standoff in front of the judge and the young paralegal was sashaying her way out of court. The jurors were staring at us as I took off after the new Mrs. Estevez.
    “You’ve got no business, Alex,” Moretti yelled after me.
    “Hold it right there, Ms. Cooper,” the judge said as she banged her gavel on the bench. “Captain, don’t let the DA out of here.”
    The door slammed behind the paralegal and the captain of the court officers squared himself in front of it.
    “I’d like to see you both in the robing room,” Fleming said to Moretti and me. “Ladies