The Runaway Jury

JOHN GRISHAM
Level 6

Retold by Hilary Maxwell-Hyslop

Series Editors: Andy Hopkins and Jocelyn Potter
 Pearson Education Limited
Edinburgh Gate, Harlow, Essex
CM20 2JE, England
and Associated Companies throughout the world.

ISBN: 978-1-4058-8270-5

First published by Arrow Books 1997

New edition first published by Penguin Books Ltd 2001
This edition first published 2008

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Original copyright © John Grisham 1996

Text copyright © Pearson Education Ltd 2008

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 Contents

page
Introduction v
Chapter 1 The Big Four 1
Chapter 2 The Case Opens 8
Chapter 3 Lonnie Shaver's Opportunity 15
Chapter 4 More Telephone Calls 21
Chapter 5 The Siesta Motel 28
Chapter 6 The Stillwater Bay Development 35
Chapter 7 A Fire 41
Chapter 8 Family Backgrounds 48
Chapter 9 Buying a Verdict 54
Chapter 10 The Case for the Defense 61
Chapter 11 A Juror's Dismissal 67
Chapter 12 Hoppy Dupree's Confession 73
Chapter 13 Closing Speeches 79
Chapter 14 The Verdict 86
Chapter 15 Fitch's Surprise 92
Activities 98
 Introduction

Behind the lawyers sat the jury consultants, watching the possible
jurors for any gestures-armsfolded across the chest, or fingers picking
nervously at teeth-which might reveal their real thoughts and opinions.
Juror number fifty-six, Nicholas Easter, received more than his share ef
anxious looks. He worried the jury consultants, as they hadn't been able
to find out very much about him.

A lawsuit is brought against Pynex, a tobacco company, by the

widow of a man who smoked cigarettes all his life. She feels
that Pynex is responsible for her husband's death. The tobacco
company-not surprisingly!-disagrees with her, arguing that
people are free to make their own life-style choices, including
whether to smoke or not. The verdict is of great importance to
both sides, but the tobacco company especially cannot afford to
lose. If the widow wins her case, it will mean disaster not just for
Pynex but for the tobacco industry in general.
The four largest tobacco companies in the country are therefore
prepared to pay a lot of money in order to make sure that the
jury reach the 'right' verdict. They employ a man, Rankin Fitch,
who has a lot of experience in secretly influencing juries-but
he is not the only person involved in suspicious activities. One
of the jurors is also trying to control what the jury thinks and
does-but why is he doing this, and whose side is he on?

John Grisham was born on February 8, 1955, in Jonesboro,

Arkansas. His father worked as a builder and a cotton farmer,
and his mother was a homemaker. Encouraged by his mother
to love books, Grisham soon became an enthusiastic reader,
especially of John Steinbeck, who was his favorite writer.
In 1977, Grisham graduated from Mississippi State University

v
with his first degree, and four years later he graduated from law
school. He was especially interested in criminal and general law,
and he made extensive use of this knowledge in his later career
as a novelist. Grisham worked as a small-town general lawyer in
Southaven for ten years, and was also elected as a Democrat to
the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1983. He was an
extremely busy man, working sixty to seventy hours a week in
his law practice, but he still found time for his favorite hobby•
writing.
In 1984, he began writing his first novel, A Time to Kill.
He would get up at 5 o'clock in the morning to work on his
book before going to his law practice. A Time to Kill eventually
came out in 1988, but was not a great success. Three years later,
however, his second novel, The Firm, was published, and that
changed his life. It was an immediate success and Paramount
Pictures bought the story for $600,000. Suddenly everybody
wanted to read John Grisham!
Grisham gave up his law practice and political work, and
became a full-time writer. Since 1988, he has written twenty
novels and one non-fiction book-most of them best-sellers. In
an interview in 2006, Grisham said that he usually took only
six months to write a book. The Runaway Jury, published in
1996, was his seventh novel. Other legal thrillers include The
Pelican Brief (1992), The Client (1993), The Chamber (1994),
The Rainmaker (1995), and The Brethren (2000), all of which are
Penguin Readers. In January 2008, Grisham's first fictional legal
thriller for three years-The Appeal-was published.
Many of Grisham's stories have been made into movies, which
has, of course, greatly increased his international popularity. The
first movie of one of his stories was The Firm, which came to
movie theaters in 1993, with Tom Cruise and Gene Hackman
in the leading roles. Julia Roberts and Denzel Washington were
in The Pelican Brief (1993), and the movie of his first novel, A

Vl
 Time to Kill, came out in 1996, starring Sandra Bullock, Samuel
L.Jackson, and Kevin Spacey. Runaway Jury was released in 2003,
with Dustin Hoffinan as Wendall Rohr, and Gene Hackman as
Rankin Fitch. The most recent movie of a book by Grisham
is Christmas with the Kranks (2004), based on a non-legal story,
Skipping Christmas (2001).
John Grisham lives with his family on their two farms in
Mississippi and Virginia.

Grisham's books have touched readers everywhere. Almost all his

novels are about law, justice, and the court system. They show
in great detail the lives of lawyers, judges, and clients. His stories
are always very complicated, but they are also entertaining and
exciting. In a typical Grisham thriller, honest, ordinary people
find themselves in difficulty, even danger, when they fight large,
powerful, dishonest organizations. For example, in A Time to Kill,
his first book, a black man cannot find justice because of the
color of his skin; in The Firm, a young law school graduate's life
is in danger because he discovers the truth about his law firm's
criminal activities; in The Pelican Brief, a law student fears for her
life after she discovers the truth about the deaths of two judges;
in The Rainmaker, a powerful insurance company tries to refuse
a dying boy life-saving treatment; and in this book, The Runaway
Jury, a widow finds herself in a seemingly impossible legal battle
with the four largest tobacco companies in the United States.
In all these stories, and many others, if the ordinary people in
trouble are not lawyers themselves, there are lawyers who put
themselves and their families in danger in order to defend them.
In a world where our lives are increasingly governed by
impersonal, powerful forces beyond our control, there are messages
of hope for us all in John Grisham stories. Large organizations
can be defeated if ordinary people are courageous enough. Good
humans can defeat evil machines.

Vll
 Chapter 1 The Big Four

High above the water in a modern beach house in Mississippi,

four gentlemen enjoyed drinks and waited for a visitor. Normally
their work required them to be enemies. This afternoon, however,
they'd played golf and eaten grilled seafood together. Each of the
men was CEO* of a large public corporation. These corporations
were extremely successful; the smallest had sales of six hundred
million dollars, the largest four billion dollars. Although they
manufactured other things, their real profits came from
cigarettes-the companies represented here were responsible for
98 percent of all cigarettes sold in the United States and Canada.
The tobacco business was becoming more and more
unpopular. The Big Four, as the four corporations were known
in financial circles, were attacked by the public, the medical
profession and even some politicians. And now, the lawyers
were pursuing them. The survivors of dead smokers were suing
them, claiming that cigarettes caused lung cancer. There had
been sixteen trials. Until now, the tobacco companies had
managed to win every case, but the pressure was increasing. If
they lost a single one, they'd face possible claims from millions
of people.
To help fight these court cases, the Big Four had put together
a sum of money called The Fund. The Fund was a secret.
Officially, it didn't exist. The money in it was used to hire the
best defense lawyers for the trials. It paid for well-spoken experts
to help persuade people that cigarette smoking didn't necessarily
kill you, and the cleverest jury consultants. Before a trial, the jury
consultants' job was to find out all they could about possible

* CEO: Chief Executive Officer

1
jurors, so they could predict whether they might be sympathetic
to the tobacco companies' case or not.
The Fund was managed by a man called Rankin Fitch. The
four CEOs disliked him, but they listened to what he said and,
when necessary, obeyed the instructions he gave. He'd directed
eight trials without a loss. Now they were waiting for him to
arrive to tell them about the latest trial, vVood v. Pynex. Pynex
was the third largest of the Big Four; its CEO was D. Martin
]ankle.
"Fitch is here." The four men each reached for their drinks as
Fitch walked into the room. He was a big man in a dark suit; he
looked important. An assistant handed him a glass of water, and
he waved away a plate of seafood.
"A brief summary, gentlemen. At the moment, the entire
defense team is working non-stop, and this will continue through
the weekend. Investigations into possible jurors are on schedule.
Trial lawyers are ready, witnesses are prepared, all our experts are
already in town."
"What about the jurors?" asked ]ankle. It was his corporation's
lawsuit, and so he was the most nervous. "One problem juror can
be poison."
"I'm aware of that," Fitch replied coldly.
"I assume the plaintiff's lawyers are ready?" asked another CEO.
"Safe assumption," said Fitch. This latest challenge to the
tobacco companies had been organized carefully. There were
eight lawyers at the last count, financed by eight of the largest law
firms in the country, who'd each contributed a million dollars.
The lawyers had picked the plaintiff, the widow of a man named
Jacob L. Wood. They'd picked the place, on the Mississippi coast,
because juries in Biloxi could be generous in this kind of case.
They were even lucky with the judge, the Honorable* Frederick

* Honorable, Your Honor: titles given to a judge.

2
Harkin. He'd previously been a plaintiff's lawyer. The opposition
were certainly ready.
This wasn't an ordinary tobacco case, and everyone in the
room knew it.
"How long will the trial last?" ]ankle finally asked.
"Four to six weeks. Jury selection goes fast here," replied Fitch.
"How long should we stay in town?"
"I don't care. You can leave now, or you can wait until the jury
is picked. You all have big jets. If I need you, I can find you." He
was suddenly ready to leave. "Anything else?"
Not a word.

•
Wendall Rohr, the main lawyer for the plaintiff, had made and
lost his first fortune before he was fifty. He made his second
fortune and swore never to lose it. His energies were directed at
suing American corporations on behalf of injured people. He'd
met Celeste Wood, widow of Jacob Wood, through a young
lawyer. Jacob Wood had died at the age of fifty-one after smoking
three packs of cigarettes a day for almost thirty years.
Rohr had raised the first million dollars to fight the case, and
then more money had flowed in. His plan was simple and smart.
If he won this case, more people would decide to sue. With a
hundred million smokers out there, he'd be busy for the rest of
his working life.
Rohr operated from offices near the courthouse, and his team
was working hard investigating possible jurors. The tobacco
lawyers were down the street working just as hard. Nothing
rivaled the thrill of big lawsuits .

•
By 8 A.M. on Monday, a crowd was gathering outside the Biloxi
courthouse. There were Wall Street financial analysts who were

3
 specialists in the price of tobacco shares, sent to follow the early
developments of the trial. There was a group of people growing
larger by the minute, each holding a piece of paper-a jury
summons. Seven deputies had been assigned to security duties.
At eight-thirty the doors to the courtroom, on the second
floor, opened. A court official, Gloria Lane, checked each
summons, greeted the people she knew, and organized them into
their seats. There were 194 possible jurors. All were given forms
to complete. The lawyers arrived in dark suits, and tried to look
at the jurors without being noticed.
Behind the lawyers sat the jury consultants, watching the
possible jurors for any gestures-arms folded across the chest, or
fingers picking nervously at teeth-which might reveal their real
thoughts and opinions. Juror number fifty-six, Nicholas Easter,
received more than his share of anxious looks. He worried the
jury consultants, as they hadn't been able to find out very much
about him.
The last lawyer into the room was Wendall Rohr. He stared at
the possible jurors. These were his people. This was his case, in his
home town. He nodded at a couple, grinned at another. Together
they'd find the truth.
Rankin Fitch was also in court, pretending to read a
newspaper.
Then Judge Harkin arrived. He completed a short welcoming
speech. The lawsuit had begun four years ago, and the documents
now filled eleven boxes. Each side had already spent millions to
reach this point.
The jury selection started. Six people over the age of sixty-five
who hadn't been identified by the computer were free to leave.
Five of them left.
"Is anybody legally blind?" the Judge asked. Slowly a hand was
raised from the center of the pack. Juror number sixty-three, Mr.
Herman Grimes, age fifty-nine, computer programmer, white,

4
married, no kids. What was this? Did nobody know this man was
blind? The jury consultants whispered on both sides.
"Mr. Grimes, you are excused from jury duty. You're free to
go."
Herman Grimes didn't move. He just looked at whatever he
could see and said, "Why do I have to leave?"
"Because you 're blind."
"I know that. Who says blind people can't serve on juries? You
tell me why. If it's written in the law, the law is unfair, and I'll sue.
If it isn't written in the law, I'll sue even faster."
The law said that a blind person may be excused from jury
service, so the Judge decided not to insist. "On second thoughts,
Mr. Grimes, I think you'd be an excellent juror. Please sit down."
Herman nodded politely. "Thank you, sir."
The Judge continued to release possible jurors with physical
problems. At noon, thirteen had been dismissed. By 3 P. M. the
number remaining was down to 159. Then the group were asked
about any non-medical problems. Eleven more were dismissed,
and another form was given out, with instructions to the jurors
that they should complete it by nine the next morning .

•
The form included questions like, Do you smoke cigarettes? Do you
want to stop? Has any member of your family, or anyone you know well,
suffered any disease or illness directly linked to smoking cigarettes?
Other questions explore? their opinions on tax and smokers'
rights. Then: Do you know any of the lawyers working on the case? Do
you know any of the possible witnesses?
Nicholas Easter made another cup of coffee. He'd spent an
hour with the questions last night, and another hour this
morning. He knew that handwriting experts would study
everything he wrote. He wanted to appear neat, thoughtful, and
intelligent, a juror that both sides would love.

5
 Many of the questions had been used in the Cimmino
tobacco case last year in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Nicholas had
been a possible juror in that case too. But then he'd been known
as David Lancaster, a part-time film student with a beard and
glasses. He hadn't been selected for the jury. A month later, he'd
shaved his beard, thrown away his glasses, and left town.
Nicholas knew that there were people on both sides trying to
find out about his past. His present apartment was only a
temporary home. It was basic, but although he had a better
address four blocks away, he couldn't risk being seen there .

•
In court on the second day, the forms were collected from the
possible jurors and six more were excused for personal reasons.
Then the show began. Wendall Rohr introduced the plaintiff,
Celeste Woods, to the court. A small woman of fifty-five, she
tried to look as if she was still saddened over the death of her
husband, although he'd been dead for four years. In fact, she'd
almost remarried, an event which Rohr had persuaded her to
cancel when he heard about it. She could marry after the trial, he
told her.
Rohr started questioning the possible jurors about their
previous jury service and their opinions on the rights of victims
and the price of insurance.
The jury had a lunch break; Gloria Lane and her staff handed
out box lunches to the lawyers, containing thin sandwiches and
red apples. This was going to be a working lunch for them.
Outside the courtroom, forms were being analyzed by the jury
consultants and the results were being fed into computers. After
three hours' discussion with the lawyers, the Judge removed
another thirty-one names. The group was down to 111 .

•
6
 The following morning, it was the turn of the main lawyer for
Pynex, Durwood Cable, senior partner for Whitney & Cable &
White. His opponent, Wendall Rohr, was friendly and sociable;
Cable, on the other hand, seemed quieter. He talked slowly, but
his gray eyes missed nothing.
"My name is Durwood Cable and I represent Pynex, a
company that has been making cigarettes for ninety years."
There, he wasn't ashamed of it! He did an expert job of
persuading his audience that his client was almost likeable. Cable
then talked about the freedom to choose whether to smoke
cigarettes or not. He asked a lot of questions, got a few
responses, and finished at noon, in time for a quick lunch.
Before three o'clock, the lawyers on both sides had to agree
on the final jury selection. According to the rules, each side
could ask for a number of strikes, which meant that a possible
juror could be dismissed for no reason. Because of the
importance of this case, Judge Harkin had granted each side the
right to do this ten times, instead of the usual four. The process
started. Out of the first thirty names, ten were selected. Finally,
the jury was complete, and Nicholas Easter had become the
eleventh juror for Wood v. Pynex.
When the courtroom was opened at three, Judge Harkin
called out the names of the chosen twelve. Nicholas, twenty•
seven, was the second youngest juror. There were nine whites,
three blacks, seven women, five men-one blind. In the corner
of the jury box, there were three extra jurors. These would
replace any member of the jury who had to leave the jury for
some reason.
The Judge forbade the jurors from discussing the case with
anyone, and with a pleasant smile, dismissed them for the
night.

7
 Chapter 2 The Case Opens

At eight-thirty in the morning, Nicholas slipped through the

unlocked back door of the courthouse and went up to the
second floor. He knew the building well. Three weeks earlier,
unnoticed, when there was no one around, he'd explored the area
around the courtroom, including the Judge's chambers, the
witness rooms and, of course, the jury room. He went there now,
and found Lou Dell sitting outside the room, reading a romantic
novel.
"Good morning. Can I help you?" Her entire face was one
large smile.
"Nicholas Easter," he said as he reached for her outstretched
hand. She found his name on her paperwork.
"Welcome to the jury room. Is this your first trial?"
"Yes."
"Come on," she said, pulling him into the room. "Coffee and
cakes are over here. I made these cookies myself."
Nicholas poured black coffee into a plastic cup. There was a
list of instructions for the jurors from Judge Harkin, including the
order that they couldn't discuss the case with anyone. They
couldn't even discuss the case with each other, until instructed by
the Judge. Nicholas signed the list at the bottom, as requested.
The door opened with a kick, and Mr. Herman Grimes
entered with his walking stick tapping along in front of him. His
wife was close behind, describing the room to him under her
breath. Nicholas introduced himself.
"My favorite uncle's blind," Nicholas said. ''I'd consider it an
honor if you'd allow me to assist you during the trial."
"Thank you," said Herman, after a brief pause.
"Thank you, sir," his wife said .

•
8
 At ten o'clock, Judge Harkin looked around the crowded
courtroom and decided that everyone was in place. "Bring in the
jury," he said. The jurors walked in.
"Good morning," said the Judge. "Do we have a foreman?"
"It's me, Your Honor," Herman Grimes said.
The lawyers and jury consultants for the defense were worried
by this choice of foreman, but their expressions remained warm
and positive.
Nicholas Easter looked cautiously around the courtroom. On
the second row, behind the defense, Rankin Fitch sat trying to
look uninterested in the jury, but Nicholas knew better. Fitch
missed nothing. Fourteen months earlier, Nicholas had seen him
in the Cimmino courtroom in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Nicholas
knew that Fitch would have investigated his background and
found that some of what he'd said wasn't true.
There were also small groups of people whom Nicholas was
certain were the jury consultants. The selecting was done, so now
they moved to the next phase--watching. They listened to every
word spoken by every witness, and predicted how the jury would
react. If a witness seemed to make a bad impression on the jury, they
could be removed, sent home, and replaced by another witness.
After a sign from the Judge, Wendall Rohr started his opening
statement. He told the jury that he'd prove that Mr. Jacob Wood,
a fine fellow, developed lung cancer after smoking cigarettes for
almost thirty years. The cigarettes killed him. How could they
prove that cigarettes caused lung cancer? They'd bring along
cancer experts, and talk to people who used to work in the
tobacco industry.
Rohr finished in fifty minutes, smiled, and sat down. Durwood
Cable, for the defense, spoke for under thirty minutes. He calmly
assured the jurors that Pynex had its own experts who would
clearly explain that cigarettes don't cause lung cancer. Cable
spoke without notes, looking carefully into the eyes of each

9
juror. His voice and stare were honest. You wanted to believe this
man.

•
The first crisis occurred at lunch. Judge Harkin announced the
noon break at 12:10, and the jurors left the court. Lou Dell took
them to the jury room.
"Just have a seat," she said, "and lunch will be here in a moment."
Herman Grimes took a seat at the head of the table next to
Millie Dupree, a kind woman of fifty who actually knew another
blind person. Nicholas introduced himself to Lonnie Shaver, the
only black man on the jury and the manager of a grocery store.
Twenty minutes passed, and no lunch appeared. At twelve•
thirty, Nicholas said, "Hey, Herman, where's our lunch?"
''I'm just the foreman," Herman answered with a smile, as the
room was suddenly quiet.
Nicholas walked to the door and asked Lou Dell to come in.
"We 're hungry," he said.
Lou Dell looked at the other eleven faces and said, "It's on the
way."
"Where's it coming from?" he demanded.
"O'Reilly's restaurant.Just around the corner."
"Listen," said Nicholas. "We can't go out and eat a nice lunch
like normal people. So if lunch is going to be here, I hope there
isn't going to be a problem every day. I suggest you get on the
phone and find out where it is, or I'll discuss it with Judge Harkin."
The door closed.
"That was a bit hard, don't you think?" asked Millie Dupree.
"Maybe, and if it was, I'll apologize," said Nicholas. "But if we
don't get things organized at the beginning, they'll forget about
us. Do you realize that in almost every trial, they allow the jurors
to go out and eat?"
"How do you know?" asked Millie Dupree.

10
 "I know a little about the system. I had two years of law
school." The other jurors were impressed.
No food had arrived by 12:45.
"It should be here soon," said Lou Dell nervously. ''I'm really
sorry."
"Where's the men's room?" asked Nicholas.
Lou Dell gave him directions, but Nicholas walked past the
door and out of the courthouse to Mary Mahoney's, a local
restaurant. Nicholas had done the same walk a week ago-and
had even eaten at a table close to Judge Harkin's. He went up to
the Judge's table.
"Sorry to interrupt, sir," Nicholas said.
"What are you doing here?" Harkin asked.
''I'm here on behalf of your jury. While you're having a nice
lunch here, we're sitting in a tiny room waiting for food. We're
hungry, and we're upset."
Harkin stood up. "Well, let's go and see."
When they got back to the jury room, the table was bare. No
food. The time was 1:05.
Lou Dell suddenly arrived. She was breathless. "I've just talked
to O'Reilly's," she said. "Someone called them to say we
wouldn't need lunch until one-thirty."
"These people are starving," said the Judge. He turned to the
jury. ''I'm very sorry. This won't happen again." He paused,
looked at his watch, and smiled. ''I'm inviting you to follow me
to Mary Mahoney's and join me for lunch."
The restaurant served the jurors with delicious grilled seafood.
Nicholas was the hero of the day.
Later, Mr. O'Reilly met with Judge Harkin. He swore on a
Bible that he'd talked to a woman who said she was ringing from
the courthouse. She'd instructed him to deliver lunch at exactly
one-thirty.

•
11
The trial's first witness was the dead man,Jacob Wood, testifying
on a video which had been filmed a few months before his
death. He was thin and pale, and sounded sick. He was fifty-one and
looked twenty years older.
When the jury felt sleepy, the Judge gave them a break. The
four smokers needed a cigarette, and Lou Dell took them to a
separate room.
"If you can't stop smoking after this trial, something's wrong,"
she said,jokingly.
The four didn't smile. Jerry Fernandez, thirty-eight, a car
salesman with casino debts and a bad marriage, lit his cigarette
first. Then he passed his lighter to the three women.
"Here's to Jacob Wood," Jerry said. The three women said
nothing-they were busy smoking. One of them was a tall
woman with a long pointed nose, called Sylvia Taylor-Tatum. "I
wonder who's next?" Jerry continued.
"I guess all those doctors," Sylvia replied, sucking hard on her
cigarette.

•
The woman's name was Marlee; at least that was the name she'd
chosen for this period of her life. She was thirty, with short brown
hair and brown eyes. She'd been in the courtroom before and she
knew her way around. She sat in the back row, and just before the
Judge arrived she asked one of the deputies to deliver a letter to
Rankin Fitch.
Fitch was surprised to see his name on the envelope. No one
knew his name, except his employees and clients. He read the
note:

Dear Mr. Fitch:

Tomorrow, juror number two, Easter, will wear a gray and red sweater, white
socks, and brown Leather shoes.

12
 Fitch went up to the deputy who was standing by the
courtroom door. "Who gave you this?"
"A woman. I don't know her name." Fitch questioned the
deputy about her appearance and voice. With Jose, his driver,
he looked around the first floor of the courthouse. Then, as if
they were just enjoying some fresh air, the two men walked
around the outside of the courthouse. Who was she, and what was
going on?

•
Fitch had thought about entering Easter's apartment before, but
now he knew it was necessary. He sent Jose and another man,
Doyle, to the apartment building while Easter was in court.
Inside, Doyle photographed the apartment. He was there for no
more than ten minutes.
Nicholas left the courthouse on foot and stopped at O'Reilly's
for some food. He was certain he was being followed. When he
got to his apartment, he entered a four-number code on the door
before he unlocked it. He went to his computer and found that
an illegal entry had occurred at 4:52 P. M. The secret camera,
hidden above the refrigerator, had filmed Doyle. Nicholas
watched the video and stared at Doyle's face. He'd never seen
him before. Nicholas smiled as he saw Doyle looking at his
computer. It was impossible to enter. Doyle couldn't even find
the power switch.

•
At eight the next morning, Fitch was hiding in a van by Easter's
apartment and watched him walk out into the sunshine. Fitch
looked out of the van window. "I don't believe it!" Gray and red
sweater, white socks, brown shoes. Fitch went straight to his office.
"We have to find the girl," he said. "She has something for us."

13
 His office was in the back of an empty store. No one noticed
the place and it was just a short walk from the courthouse. Two
men with guns guarded the door at all times. The furniture was
cheap, but the office was full of the latest technology. The walls of
one room were covered with photos of the jurors.
The room at the back was the smallest, and was kept locked. It
was a viewing room. One of Fitch's people had hidden a tiny
camera in a document case which was placed in the courtroom
under the defense table and which secretly filmed all the jurors.
In the viewing room, two jury consultants watched the results on
a large screen. When Fitch talked to Cable, he could tell him
how the jurors seemed to be feeling. Cable, however, didn't know
about the hidden camera.

•
The deal was organized over a three-hour lunch. Luther
Vandemeer, CEO of Trellco, one of the Big Four tobacco
companies, and his friend, Larry Zell, of Listing Foods, had
already talked about it on the phone. Trellco wasn't in court this
time, but the Big Four had to stand together. Zell understood.
He'd worked for Trellco for seventeen years.
There was a small, regional grocery company, Hadley Brothers,
which owned stores along the Mississippi coast. One store was in
Biloxi and its manager was a smart young black man called
Lonnie Shaver, who by chance was on the jury in the Pynex trial.
Vandemeer wanted one of Listing Food's divisions, SuperHouse, a
much larger group of grocery stores, to purchase Hadley Brothers.
It would be a small deal, and nothing could go wrong. Listing and
Trellco were totally independent of each other, and Listing was
already in the grocery store business. Later, of course, there would
need to be a reorganization of the company, and pressure could be
put on Lonnie Shaver to support the defense.

14
 They needed to act quickly. The trial was only due to last for
four more weeks.

Chapter 3 Lonnie Shaver's Opportunity

Easter made sure he was easy to follow over the weekend. On

Saturday he worked all day selling computers, then he returned
to his apartment and didn't leave it.
On Sunday he drove to the harbor, where he met Jerry
Fernandez. They left in a fishing boat with two others, and
returned eight and a half hours later with red faces, a can full of
fish, and a boat full of empty beer cans. Fishing was the first
hobby of Nicholas Easter that anyone had been able to discover.
And Jerry was the first friend.
There was no sign of the girl.

•
She waited only until Monday morning, thirty minutes before
the trial restarted. Fitch was in his office. An assistant, Konrad, said,
"There's a phone call you might like to take."
"Her name?"
"She won't say."
"Any idea how she got the number?"
"No."
"Are you tracing it?"
"Yes. Give us a minute. Keep her on the line."
Fitch lifted the telephone receiver. "Yes," he said, as nicely as
possible.
"Is this Mr. Fitch?" she asked, quite pleasantly.
"It is. And who is this?"
"Marlee. In about twenty minutes, juror number twelve,

15
Fernandez, will walk into the courtroom holding a copy of Sports
Illustrated, the October 12 issue."
"I see," said Fitch. "Anything else?"
"No, not now."
Konrad raced in. "The call came from a pay phone in
Gulfpoint, a convenience store."
"What a surprise," said Fitch as he grabbed his jacket and
began straightening his tie. "I guess I'll run to court."

•
In the jury room Nicholas waited until the general conversation
died down. He said loudly, "Well, did anyone get bribed or
followed over the weekend?" There were a few laughs, but no
confessions.
"Why does the Judge keep asking questions like that?" asked
Millie Dupree.
"In similar cases there have been some problems with the
jurors," Nicholas explained.
"I don't think we should discuss this," Herman said.
"Why not? It's harmless. This isn't about evidence. This is about
... " He hesitated a second for effect, then continued, "This is about
trying to control the jury." Nicholas had the jurors' attention.
"There was a tobacco trial, very similar to this, in Quitman
County, Mississippi, about seven years ago. There was some pretty
shocking behavior, before and during the trial. Judge Harkin is
watching us carefully. Lots of people are watching us."
"Who?" asked Millie.
"Both sides," answered Nicholas. "Both sides hire these jury
consultants and they come here to help pick the perfectjury. The
perfect jury is one that will deliver the verdict that they want.
They study us before we're selected."
"How do they do that?" one of the jurors asked.
"Well, they photograph us, our apartments, our offices, and

16
 our kids. It's just legal, but it's close to being illegal. They might
check our tax records and talk to our neighbors."
All eleven jurors were listening, trying to remember if they'd
seen any strangers hiding around street corners with cameras.
Nicholas drank some coffee and continued: "After the jury's been
picked, it's a little different. Now they're only watching fifteen
people-the twelve jurors and the three extra jurors. Throughout
the trial, each side will have jury consultants in the courtroom
trying to read our reactions. They usually sit on the first two rows.
They're well dressed and they stare at us all the time."
"I thought those folks were newspaper reporters," said another
juror, retired Colonel Frank Herrera.
"I hadn't noticed," said Herman Grimes. Everyone smiled.
"Watch them today," Nicholas said. "In fact, I have a great idea.
There's one woman who I'm almost positive is a jury consultant
for the defense. Every morning since the trial began, she's been
on the front row behind Durwood Cable. When we go out this
morning, let's stare at her. All twelve of us."
"Even me?" Herman asked.
"Yes, Herm, even you.Just turn to ten o'clock, and stare with
the rest of us."
'.'Why are we playing games?" asked Sylvia Taylor-Tatum.
"Why not? What else have we got to do for the next eight
hours? Let's do it while Judge Harkin is reminding us about all
the rules. That always takes ten minutes."

•
Lou Dell came for them at nine. Nicholas held two magazines•
one of which was Sports Illustrated. He walked beside Jerry
Fernandez until they came to the courtroom, then said to his
new friend, "Want something to read?"
Jerry took the magazine, "Sure, thanks," he said. They walked
through the door into the courtroom.

17
 Fitch knew Fernandez, juror number twelve, would have the
magazine, but the sight of it was still a shock. His surprise quickly
turned to excitement. Marlee was clearly working on the
outside; maybe there were two or three or four members of the
jury who were plotting with her. It didn't matter how many
jurors were involved; Fitch just wanted to make a deal.
The jury consultant's name was Ginger. She'd sat through
dozens of trials. She looked at the jury and waited for the Judge
to greet them, which he did. Most of the jurors nodded and
smiled at the Judge. Then all of them, including the blind man,
turned and stared directly at her.
She looked away.
Judge Harkin continued asking the jurors one question after
another and he, too, quickly noticed that the jury were looking at
the same person.
They kept staring, all together. Nicholas found it difficult not
to laugh. His luck was unbelievable. Two rows behind Ginger sat
Rankin Fitch. It was difficult to tell exactly who the jurors were
staring at-Ginger or Fitch. Ginger certainly thought it was her.
She found some notes to read. Fitch felt helpless as the twelve
faces studied him.
Judge Harkin finished his questions quickly. "Thank you,
ladies and gentlemen. Now we will continue with Dr. Milton
Fricke."
After Dr. Fricke had spoken, there was a short break as a new
witness, Dr. Robert Bronsky, was called by Wendall Rohr. Fitch
was in his office when the call came.
"It's Marlee, line four," Konrad whispered.
"Trace the call," Fitch ordered. "Hello."
"Mr. Fitch?" came the familiar voice.
"Yes."
"Do you know why they were staring at you?"
"No."

18
 "I'll tell you tomorrow. And if you keep tracing the calls, I'll
stop calling."
Konrad arrived with the expected news that the call had been
made from a payphone.

•
On Tuesday morning, Nicholas arrived at the jury room early.
There were new cups and saucers. Nicholas claimed to hate
coffee from a plastic cup, and two of the other jurors said they felt
the same. The Judge had agreed to his request.
Retired Colonel Frank Herrera arrived just after eight.
"Morning, Colonel," Nicholas said warmly. "You're early."
"S o are you. ,,
"I know. I couldn't sleep. I was dreaming of black lungs."
Herrera sat down across the table. "I smoked for ten years in
the Army," he said. "But I had the good sense to stop."
"Some people can't, I guess. Like Jacob Wood." The Colonel
made a sound of disgust. "Why did you stop?"
"Because cigarettes are poison. Everybody knows that."
If Herrera had given those opinions on the pre-trial forms, he
wouldn't have been selected. But he probably wanted to be on
the jury. He was retired, bored with golf, and tired of his wife.
"So should cigarettes be illegal?" Nicholas asked.
"No, I think people shouldn't be stupid and smoke three packs
a day for almost thirty years. What do they expect?"There was no
doubt that his mind was made up.
"You should have said this during jury selection. We were
asked questions just like these," said Nicholas.
Herrera's cheeks went red, but he hesitated for a second. This
guy Easter knew the law. "Yes, well, I can be persuaded, you
know,".Herrera said.

•
19
 After a day in court looking at diagrams of lungs and listening to
medical explanations from Dr. Bronsky, Lonnie drove to his
supermarket.
"We have guests from Head Office for you," an assistant
manager said with a frown.
In his office Lonnie found three men.
"Lonnie, good to see you," said Troy Hadley, son of one of the
owners. He quickly introduced the others. "Listen, Lonnie, Ken and
Ben here are from a company called SuperHouse, and, well, for
lots of reasons, my dad and my uncle have decided to sell all
seventeen stores to them."
Lonnie was finding it hard to swallow. "Why?"
"Two main reasons. Number one, my dad is sixty-eight, and
Al, my uncle, has just had surgery, as you know. Also, SuperHouse
is offering a good price. It's time to sell."
"Will this store be closed?" Lonnie asked, almost in defeat.
Ken picked up a piece of paper. "Well, there are always
changes when this sort of thing happens. But we see a future for
you with us, Lonnie. We're ashamed to admit that we don't have
an African-American in a management position. We want this to
change. We'd like you to come to Charlotte as soon as possible
and spend a few days with us. When can you come?''
In a minute Lonnie had gone from near-unemployment to
promotion in a new company. He said with obvious
disappointment, ''I'm on jury service. But what about the
weekends?"
"Can you do this weekend?"
"Sure," said Lonnie.

•
The first person Nicholas saw the following morning in court
was the man who'd broken into his apartment. Nicholas had

20
already decided what to do. He wrote a note and asked for it to
be handed to the Judge.

Judge:
That man out there, left side, third rowfrom thefront, white shirt, blue and green
tie, was following me yesterday. It's the second time I've seen him. Can we find
out who he is?
Nicholas Easter

The Judge called a ten-minute break, and asked for Nicholas.

"Now, where did you see this man?"
Nicholas didn't mention the video, but told the Judge that
he'd seen the man a couple of times recently.
The Judge relaxed slightly. "Mr. Easter, have any of the other
jurors mentioned anything like this?"
"No, sir."
"Will you tell me if they do? If there's something wrong I
need to know. You can send a note through Lou Dell."
"Well, there is something perhaps you ought to know ... " He
hesitated. "Colonel Herrera thinks that anyone who smokes three
packs of cigarettes a day for almost thirty years deserves what he
gets."
The Judge digested this information. "Mr. Easter, I'm not
asking you to spy on the other jurors. But I am worried about
this jury because of the pressure from the outside. If you see or
hear anything, please tell me."
"S ure, J u d ge. "

Chapter 4 More Telephone Calls

The defense's questioning of Bronsky ended late Thursday

afternoon, and Marlee struck on Friday morning. Konrad took
the first call at 7:25.

21
 "Good morning, Fitch," she said sweetly, when she was put
through.
"Good morning, Marlee," Fitch answered with a happy voice,
his best effort at pleasantness. "And how are you?"
"Fabulous. Juror number two, Easter, will wear a light blue
shirt, faded jeans, and running shoes. And he'll bring with him a
copy of Rolling Stone, October issue. Got that?"
"Yes. When can we get together and talk?"
"When I'm ready."
Pang, one of Fitch's technicians, was sitting in a coffee shop
near Easter's apartment. On time, Easter left his apartment and
started his walk to the courthouse. Of course, he was wearing
exactly what she'd promised.
Marlee's second call came from a different number.
"Something new for you, Fitch. You'll love it. Guess what the
jurors are going to do today."
"Tell me."
"They're going to do the Pledge of Allegiance."*
Marlee's third call went to the offices ofWendall Rohr. She
was going to send a fax which must be handed to Mr. Rohr
before he left for court. The fax stated which clothes Nicholas
Easter would wear that day, and hinted at the Pledge. Rohr called
an emergency meeting.

•
Before the court started, Nicholas waited for a pause in the
conversation. "Hey, Herman, I have an idea."
By now, Herman knew the other eleven voices from memory.
"Yes, Nicholas," he said.
Nicholas raised his voice so everyone could hear him. "Well,

* Pledge of Allegiance: a statement by American citizens of their loyalty to the

United States.

22
 when I was a kid, we started each day at school with the Pledge
of Allegiance. Every time I see a flag early in the morning, I have
this desire to give the Pledge. And in the courtroom, we have this
beautiful flag behind the Judge."
"You want to do the Pledge of Allegiance out there in open
court?" asked Colonel Herrera.
"Can't see anything wrong with that," said Jerry Fernandez,
who'd earlier agreed to support Nicholas.
"You're not playing games, are you?" asked the Colonel.
Nicholas looked at him with aching eyes and said, "My father
was killed in Vietnam. That flag means a lot to me."
The plan was agreed. The jurors entered the courtroom. Just
before Judge Harkin started his standard speech reminding them
that they mustn't have unauthorized contact with anyone, he
realized that the jurors were still standing. With their hands on
their hearts, and led by Nicholas, they said the Pledge of
Allegiance.
Judge Harkin's initial reaction was of disbelief. He glanced at
Rohr and Cable, who were open mouthed. Then he stood.
Halfway through the Pledge he joined in. Suddenly it seemed
important that everyone joined in. The lawyers certainly couldn't
show any disloyalty.
From the back row, Fitch watched in amazement. A jury
taking control of a courtroom! It was extraordinary that Marlee
knew it was going to happen. It was exciting that she was playing
games with him. But Fitch at least had some idea of what was
happening. Wendall Rohr, on the other hand, felt completely
defeated. He was shocked by the sight of Easter dressed exactly as
the fax had said, and then starting the Pledge. He stared at the
jury, especially Easter, and wondered what was going on.
The· Pledge finished and the jurors sat down. Judge Harkin
seemed determined to act as if this was normal behavior.
"I believe we're ready for a new witness," he said.

23
 Rohr stood, still shocked, and said, "The plaintiff calls Dr. Hilo
Kil van."
The next expert witness entered the courtroom .

•
Lonnie was collected early Saturday morning by a company jet,
and was flown to Charlotte. Ken met him at the airport in a
company van, and fifteen minutes later they arrived at the
SuperHouse headquarters. Ken and Ben showed him around. They
had coffee with George Teaker, the CEO, in his large office, and
then Lonnie was shown a video about the company. According to
the video, SuperHouse was going to grow by 15 percent a year for
the next six years. Profits would be amazing.
When the video finished, a young man arrived with details
about health care, share options, and vacations. After lunch in a
smart restaurant, there were more meetings and another video.
By now, Lonnie needed some fresh air, and Ken suggested that
they could go and play golf. Lonnie had never played golf before,
a fact that Ken knew, but he suggested that they go and get some
sunshine anyway. They drove through neat farms and tree-lined
roads until they reached the country club.
Lonnie was nervous about entering a smart country club and
decided to leave if he saw no other black faces. But George
Teaker was in the club lounge with two black gentlemen. They
all greeted Lonnie warmly and he felt much better. They drank
and talked and planned the future. Lonnie stayed the night in the
country club, and woke the next morning with a slight headache.
That morning there were two brief meetings. The first was with
George Teaker, who wanted Lonnie to run the Biloxi store for
ninety days, under a new contract. If all went well, he'd be
transferred to a larger store. They were then joined by a lawyer,
Taunton, who handed Lonnie a proposed contract of employment.
"Look over it," Taunton said, tapping his chin with a designer

24
 pen, "and we'll talk next week." He took out a notepad. ''Just a
few questions," he said. The questions were routine. Then he
asked, "Have you, in your capacity as store manager, been
involved in litigation?"
"Yes, I have," replied Lonnie. "About four years ago, an old
man slipped and fell on a wet floor. He sued. "
"Did it go to trial?" asked Taunton. He knew every detail.
"No," replied Lonnie. "The claim was settled out of court."
Taunton glanced at Teaker and said, "This tobacco trial in
Biloxi could be serious for companies like ours. If the plaintiff
wins the case and there's a big verdict, there will be a lot more
tobacco litigation. The lawyers will go crazy. They'll bankrupt the
tobacco companies."
"We make a lot of money from tobacco sales, Lonnie," Teaker
said, with perfect timing.
"There has to be an end to these trials. The tobacco industry
has never lost one of them. I think their record is something like
fifty-five wins." He took a deep breath. "Sorry if I said too much.
But this trial is so important."
Lonnie thought about this. Taunton was a lawyer, so he
wouldn't talk about the trial in a way that wasn't appropriate.
"No problem," he said.
Taunton was suddenly all smiles and promised to call Lonnie.
The meeting was over.

•
On Monday mornmg, the jurors met over coffee, and talked
about their weekends. Herman was late so he couldn't stop them
whispering about the trial.
"I think I was followed at the weekend," said Nicholas
"Why would they follow you?" someone asked.
"That's what the tobacco companies do. They spend millions
of dollars selecting us, and more watching us."

25
 "How do you know it's the tobacco company?" asked
Sylvia, lighting another cigarette.
"I don't. But they have more money than the plaintiff. In fact
they have unlimited funds to fight these cases."

•
For Wendall Rohr and the plaintiff's team, the weekend had
brought no rest. They'd traced Marlee's fax back to a truck stop
near Hattiesburg, and obtained an unclear description of a young
woman, late twenties, maybe early thirties, wearing a fishing cap,
with a face half-hidden by dark glasses. It was the opinion of the
eight principal plaintiff's lawyers that this was something new.
No one could recall a trial in which a person outside had
contacted the lawyers with hints of what the jury might do. They
all agreed that she'd be back and that she'd probably ask for
money. A deal-money for a verdict.
They didn't dare, however, to plan how they might deal with
her. Maybe later, but not now.
Fitch, on the other hand, thought of little else. He'd spent the
weekend watching jurors and meeting with lawyers. He'd been
pleased with the Ken and Ben show in Charlotte, and had been
assured by George Teaker that they could trust Lonnie Shaver.
Fitch slept four hours Saturday and five Sunday. He dreamed of
the girl Marlee, and what she might bring him. This could be his
easiest verdict yet.

•
Fitch watched the courtroom on Monday from the viewing
room in his office. He listened as Dr. Hilo Kilvan continued
with his testimony. Fitch's consultants were certain that the
plaintiff's witnesses hadn't really made a strong impression on
the jurors.
In court, Nicholas sent a note to the Judge saying that he

26
needed to see him urgently. At lunchtime, he went to the Judge's
chambers.
"I need to be quick," said Nicholas. "It's Frank Herrera. We
talked about him last time. Well, his mind is made up, and I'm
afraid he's trying to influence people."
"Is he discussing the case?"
"Once, with me. Herman is very proud of being foreman of
the jury, and he won't allow talk about the trial. And another
thing." Nicholas opened his case and pulled out a videocassette.
He looked at a videocassette recorder in the corner. "May I?"
The Judge nodded. On the video, they watched a man enter
Nicholas's apartment. They saw the man, Doyle, taking pictures
of the apartment and then leaving. "I was robbed and beaten
about five years ago and I almost died. I'm careful about security
now," said Nicholas.

•
Fitch's sandwich was interrupted with the words he was waiting
to hear: "The girl's on the line." He grabbed the phone.
"Fitch, baby. It's me, Marlee. Don't know the guy's name, but
he's the goon you sent into Easter's apartment on Thursday, just
after I gave you the note. Anyway, later, you sent the same goon
into the courtroom. That was stupid because Easter recognized
him, and he sent a note to the Judge. Are you listening, Fitch?"
Listening, but not breathing. "Yes."
"Well, now the Judge knows that the guy broke into Easter's
apartment. So get him out of town, fast."
Two hours later, Doyle was flying to Chicago .

•
At three-thirty, the jurors were sent back to their room, and
Judge Harkin questioned the lawyers about the break-in at
Nicholas's apartment. Nicholas was called to the meeting, and the

27
Judge questioned him about the man who'd been following him.
Nicholas answered in perfect detail, giving dates and places and
also describing the security measures in his apartment. He played
the videocassette again. After he'd gone, Judge Harkin and the
lawyers considered their options.
Back in court, Judge Harkin apologized for his decision. It
was very rare to sequester a jury. But he had no choice in this
case. The jurors should leave, go home, pack, and report to the
court the next day, ready to spend the next two weeks
sequestered.

Chapter 5 The Siesta Motel

On Monday night, Nicholas invited Jerry to go to a casino to

celebrate their last hours of freedom. Jerry invited Sylvia
Taylor- Tatum. They were becoming friendly-Sylvia was
divorced for the second time, and Jerry would soon be
divorced for the first.
Lonnie Shaver spent Monday night working. He contacted
George Teaker at his home and explained that the jury was going
to be sequestered and that the Judge had forbidden any direct
phone calls to and from the motel. Teaker was sympathetic, and
worried about the result of the trial.
"Our people in New York think a guilty verdict could really
damage the economy, especially in our business."
''I'll do what I can," Lonnie promised.
"You've got to help us, Lonnie. I know it's difficult, but you're
there, know what I mean?"
"Sure, I understand. I'll do what I can."

28
Durwood Cable waited until almost nine on Monday evening to
talk to Fitch.
"We were embarrassed in court this afternoon," Cable said.
"Who was the guy in the apartment?"
"He wasn't one of my men. We have reason to believe that he
was a goon employed by Rohr and his boys."
"Can you prove it?"
"I don't have to prove a damn thing. And I don't have to
answer any more questions. Your job is to win in court."
"I rare 1y 1 ose. "
Fitch went to the door. "I know. And you're doing a fine job,
Cable. You just need a little help from the outside."

•
Nicholas arrived first with two gym bags filled with clothes. Lou
Dell and Willis, a deputy, were waiting outside the jury room to
collect the bags and store them. It was 8:20, Tuesday morning.
"How do the bags get from here to the hotel?"
"We'll take them over later," Willis said, "but we have to
inspect them first."
"No one is inspecting these bags."
'·'Judge's orders," said Lou Dell.
"I don't care what the Judge has ordered. No one is inspecting
my bags." Nicholas placed them in a corner and walked to the
coffeepot.
By 8:45, all twelve jurors were present and the room was full
of baggage that Nicholas had rescued and stored. He'd done a
fine job of making the jury feel really angry about the question
of their baggage. At nine, Lou Dell knocked on the door.
"It's time to go. The Judge is ready for you."
"Tell the Judge we're not coming out," said Nicholas.
The courtroom was full on Tuesday morning, so many people

29
witnessed Lou Dell whispering to the Judge. He wondered what
to do. His jury was on strike!
The Judge addressed the court. "Gentlemen, there is a small
problem with the jury. I need to speak to them."
When the Judge knocked on the jury door, Nicholas opened
it.
"What's the problem?" asked the Judge.
"We don't think it fair that the deputies search our bags."
"Why not? It's routine in all sequestration cases."
"These are our personal possessions. We're not terrorists or
drug smugglers. We're not corning out until you promise our
bags will be left alone."
"Fine," replied the Judge. "The bags will not be searched. But
if I find out that a juror possesses any item which is on the list I
gave you yesterday, then that juror could be sent to jail. Do you
understand?"
Easter looked round the room at the other jurors. "That's fine,
Judge," he said. "But there's one other problem. According to
your rules here, we're allowed one personal visit per week. We
think we should get more."
The Judge didn't want to have a discussion about it. "Can we
agree on two? It's only a couple of weeks," he asked.
"Two, with a possible third," said Nicholas.
"That's fine. Does that suit everybody?"
"Thank you, Your Honor," Herman said loudly.
The jury were ready to enter the courtroom.
News of the break-in to Nicholas's apartment affected the
Pynex share price. On the Tuesday morning it started to fall.
Then rumors started that the jury had refused to leave the jury
room because the testimony offered by the plaintiff was so
boring. The share price rose again .

•
30
30
 The woman juror that Fitch wanted to influence most was Rikki
Coleman. She was a pretty thirty-year-old mother of two. She
worked as an administrator in a local hospital, and her husband
was a private pilot. Neither of the Colemans smoked and there
was no evidence that they drank. Because of her lifestyle, and her
job in a hospital, Fitch was afraid of Rikki Coleman as a juror.
Fitch had managed to get hold of medical records for seven
out of the twelve jurors, including those of Rikki Coleman. After
some investigation, he discovered that while Rikki had been at a
small Bible college in Montgomery, Alabama, she'd become
pregnant, but had decided not to have the baby. The operation
was carried out in a small private women's hospital, a week after
her twentieth birthday. The father wasn't named.
Rikki had met her husband a year after she finished college.
Fitch was willing to bet a lot of money that he didn't know
about Rikki's pregnancy.

•
The motel was called the Siesta Motel and it was fifty kilometers
along the Coast. The trip was made by bus. The jurors felt tired
and lonely. Only Nicholas was delighted with sequestration, but
he managed to look depressed. The bus was followed by Fitch's
boys and two detectives working for Rohr. No one expected the
motel address to remain a secret.
The jurors were on the first floor of one wing of the motel. Lou
Dell and Willis had rooms by the door leading to the main
building. Another deputy, Chuck, had a room at the other end of
the hallway. The rooms had been assigned by Judge Harkin
himself. The motel TVs only showed hotel movies-no news or
other programs-during sequestration. The telephones had been
removed. A room at the end of the hall had been made into a
sitting room for the jurors; it was quickly given the name of the
Party Room. No one could leave the wing without authorization.

31
31
 The following morning over breakfast, the complaints started.
"I don't understand why we can't have telephones," Nicholas
said.
"Why can't we have a cold beer?" asked Jerry. "I have a cold
beer every night when I'm at home, maybe two."
The complaining increased until the jurors were ready to
rebel.
"We'd better get things sorted out now," said Nicholas
seriously. "We're going be here for two weeks, maybe three. I say
we talk to Judge Harkin."
Judge Harkin was in his chambers with the lawyers when
Gloria Lane entered.
"We have another problem with the jury. They're at the motel
and they're not coming until they can talk to you."
The Judge gave a false smile. "Let's go and see them."

Konrad took the first call at 8:02. She didn't want to talk to Fitch;
she just wanted to leave a message that the jury were upset and
not leaving the motel until the Judge had seen them. At 8:09, she
called again and gave Konrad the information that Easter would
be wearing a dark shirt over a brown T-shirt, and red socks. At
8: 12 she called again and asked to speak to Fitch.
"Good morning, Fitch," she said.
"Good morning, Marlee."
"Do you know the St. Regis Hotel in New Orleans?"
"No."
"It's on Canal Street. There's an open-air bar on the roof. Meet
me there at seven tonight."
"Fine."
"And come alone. I'll watch you enter the hotel, and if you
bring friends, the meeting's off. And if you attempt to trail me, I'll
disappear."

32
 •
Judge Harkin, Cable, and Rohr were met at the front desk of the
motel by Lou Dell, who was scared. She led them to the Party
Room.
After a few uncertain hellos, the Judge said, 'Tm a little
disturbed by this."
Nicholas Easter replied, "We're not in the mood to take any
criticism." He'd written down a list of their complaints. The
Judge had to agree. Beer would be no problem. Newspapers
would be allowed after they'd been checked. Phone calls were
possible. Television was allowed, if they promised not to watch
the local news. The Judge asked for a no-strike guarantee in the
future, but Easter wouldn't promise anything.
On the news of a second strike, Pynex shares moved down
two points, but later recovered .

•
The St. Regis Hotel was watched by Fitch's people from the
afternoon, but there was no sign of the girl. Just before seven,
Fitch went up in the elevator to the roof and sat down. Several of
his people were there, at different tables.
At seven-thirty she appeared from nowhere. She was very
pretty, and Fitch guessed her age to be between twenty-eight and
thirty-two. The waiter asked if she wanted something to drink.
He'd been bribed to remove anything she touched with her
fingers-e-glasses, plates, anything. He wouldn't get the chance.
"Are you hungry?" Fitch asked.
"No. I'm in a hurry. If I stay, your goons can take more
photos."
"So why are we here?"
"One meeting leads to another."
"And where do all the meetings lead us?"

33
 "To a verdict."
"For a fee, I'm sure."
"Let's not talk about money now, OK?"
They talked briefly about some of the jurors. Fitch found out
little about Marlee's real identity or her relationship with
Nicholas Easter. As soon as Marlee had left, Fitch ordered his
people to go after her. When she was nearly back home in Biloxi,
Marlee told the police that she was being followed. Two of Fitch's
goons were arrested.
Later that evening, Nicholas slipped out of the motel and met
Marlee, who told him all about her trip to New Orleans .

•
Wendall Rohr thought the court was tired of listening to
scientists talk about lung cancer and smoking. So on Thursday
morning he called Lawrence Krigler as his next witness.
Lawrence Krigler had worked for Pynex. He'd left in the middle
of a lawsuit with the company-he'd sued Pynex and they'd sued
him-which had been settled out of court. While he was there,
he did research on the possibility of growing an experimental
tobacco leaf which contained much less nicotine. But the
company wasn't interested. Nicotine was addictive. More
nicotine meant more smokers, which meant more sales and more
profits.
It was an important moment in the trial. Everyone was
listening carefully. Over lunch the jury were silent. Did they
really hear right? Did tobacco companies keep nicotine levels
high so people became addicted?
In the afternoon, Cable tried to introduce a lot of details into
Krigler's testimony, to confuse the jury. But during coffee,
Nicholas explained to them what Cable was doing.
By the end of Thursday, the price of Pynex shares was down.
Krigler was quickly flown out of Biloxi by Rohr's security

34
people. Pynex had paid him three hundred thousand dollars out
of court just to get rid of him. They wanted him to agree never
to testify in trials. He refused, and so his life would always be in
danger.

Chapter 6 The Stillwater Bay Development

Millie Dupree.s husband, Hoppy, owned a struggling real estate

agency in Biloxi. He worked hard with the little business that
came his way. Somehow he took care of his family-his wife,
Millie, and their five kids.
Just before six on Thursday, a well-dressed young businessman
entered the office and asked for Mr. Dupree. His business card
showed him to be Todd Ringwald of KLX Property Group, from
Las Vegas, Nevada. His company liked to work with smaller
companies, he said, and Hoppy had been highly recommended.
He showed Hoppy a map.
"MGM Grand is coming here. But no one knows it yet.
They're going to build the biggest casino on the Coast. Probably
the middle of next year. We want this." On the map he pointed
to a large area ofland north-west of the proposed casino. Then he
showed Hoppy an artist's drawing of the land labeled Stillwater
Bay. There were office buildings, big homes, smaller homes, a
dock, parks, a shopping mall, even a proposed high school.
"The whole thing will cost thirty million dollars. These are
just the first drawings. I'll show you more if you can come to our
office in Las Vegas."
Happy's knees shook and he took a deep breath. "What kind
of help were you thinking about from us?"
"First we need someone to arrange the purchase of the land,
then we'll need a real estate firm to advertise and sell the whole
development."

35
35
 "How much will the land cost?" asked Hoppy.
"It's expensive. Five million dollars. But the sellers don't really
want to sell, so we have to move in quickly. That's why we need a
local agent."
Ringwald watched as Hoppy calculated his normal 6 percent
fee on the land sale. Three hundred thousand dollars! Hoppy's heart
beat faster. And with the whole Stillwater Bay
development, he could be a millionaire in five years.
Ringwald said, ''I'm assuming your fee is 8 percent. That's
what we normally pay."
"Of course," said Hoppy. His tongue was dry. From three
hundred thousand dollars to four hundred thousand-just like
that! "Who are the sellers?"
"The property is in the sixth district. And the county
. . ,,
supervisor 1s-
"Jimmy Hull Moke," Hoppy interrupted.
"You know him?"
"Everyone knows Jimmy Hull Moke. He's been in office for
thirty years. Cleverest crook on the Coast. On a local level he
controls everything."
"Perhaps we should arrange a meeting with Mr. Moke?"
"Meetings don't work. What Moke wants is cash. Lots of it. In
secret."
"He doesn't get caught?" asked Ringwald.
"He's pretty bright. Those of us who work along the Coast
know how he operates."
"I think the first step is for you to talk to Mr. Moke."
"I have a clean reputation," said Hoppy. For twenty-five years,
he'd worked honestly. He wasn't going to change.
"We don't expect you to get dirty." Ringwald paused. "We
have ways of delivering what Mr. Moke wants. You won't have
to touch it. In fact, you won't even know when anything
happens."

36
36
 Hoppy liked it! Still, he felt cautious. He said he'd like to think
about it.
They chatted some more and said goodbye at eight. After
Ringwald had left, Hoppy telephoned KLX. He spoke to Mr.
Ringwald's assistant, Madeline, who explained that Mr. Ringwald
was out of the office.
So, KLX really did exist.

•
At 7:40 Thursday night, Lonnie Shaver had a message that
George Teaker had called. He rang back and for the first ten
minutes answered nothing except questions about the trial.
Lonnie confessed that it had been a bad day for the defense, as
Lawrence Krigler had made a big impression on all the jurors•
all except Lonnie, of course.
Teaker said that the folks in New York were worried. They
were relieved that Lonnie was on the jury, and was reliable. He
said that they needed to arrange the final details of Lonnie's new
contract. He currently earned forty thousand dollars. SuperHouse
would give him fifty thousand with some share options and an
extra annual payment which might be twenty thousand dollars.
An hour later, Lonnie stood at his window and told himself
that he'd soon be earning seventy thousand dollars a year. Not
bad for a kid whose father drove a milk truck .

•
On Thursday night, Hoppy Dupree slept little. The agreement
with Jimmy Hull Moke worried him. He'd never before been
involved with anything dishonest. He sat on his porch and
thought. But just before dawn on Friday morning, he started to
feel better. Surely Moke would know how not to get caught.
Hoppy wouldn't get near the cash. He decided that he'd have a
chat with Moke, and then report to Ringwald.

37
37
 On Friday morning, the Wall Street Journal printed an article
about Krigler which said that he hadn't been a satisfactory
employee and that there were mistakes in his research. The
company denied that tobacco was addictive.
The newspaper also said that Pynex shares had risen, then
fallen.
Judge Harkin read the story. He checked with Lou Dell that
the jurors couldn't have seen it .

•
In court, the defense tried to look relaxed for the day after
Krigler. It was important that they didn't seem bothered. They
wore light-colored suits, and smiled at the jurors.
"Why are they so happy?" whispered one of the jurors.
"They want us to think everything is under control,"
whispered back Nicholas.
Wendall Rohr called the next witness, Dr. Roger Bunch. He'd
become famous ten years earlier, when he'd worked for the
government and had been fiercely critical of the tobacco
industry. Since leaving office, he'd continued to criticize
smoking. He wanted to share his views with the jury. Cigarettes
cause lung cancer, and cigarettes are addictive. Tobacco
companies spend billions deceiving the public. They spend
money on studies which claim that smoking is harmless. Bunch's
study showed that cigarettes contain poisonous chemicals, and
trash swept off the floor. He had the jury's attention .

•
Hoppy arranged to meet Jimmy Hull Moke at his office. He'd
provided sandwiches and iced tea, but he was too nervous to eat
anything himself. He showed Moke the drawing of the Stillwater
Bay development and presented the project.
"Who's doing this?" Moke asked.

38
38
 Hoppy had practiced his answer. He couldn't give a name, not
at this point.
Moke frowned. "There could be problems with zoning and
planning. But, as you know, the supervisors make the final
decisions."
"My client is anxious to work with you."
"You know I control everything in my district. If I want this
approved, it will be. If I don't like it, it's dead."
Hoppy nodded.
Moke said, "You know, my son is a very fine consultant for
projects like this."
"I didn't know that. My client would love to work with your
son." Ringwald wanted Hoppy to find out what Moke wanted.
"How much might he charge for his services?"
"A hundred thousand dollars." Hoppy didn't show any
emotion. KLX had said the deal might cost up to two hundred
thousand. "A penny less than that, and I'll kill the deal with one
phone call."
"I need to make a phone call," Hoppy said. He walked into
the front room and rang Ringwald. He returned to his office. "It's
OK," he said slowly. "My client will pay." It felt good to arrange
this deal. KLX on one side, Moke on the other, and Hoppy in the
middle, with no involvement.

•
On Friday afternoon, Fitch didn't attend the trial. Instead he
continued to study the jury file from the Cimmino case, which
he'd received three days earlier. Three hundred possible jurors had
received a summons. One of them was a young man called David
Lancaster. There was nothing strange in his file, except a note
saying that when he appeared on the first day there was no record
of his summons being issued. But he was able to show the relevant
papers. One of the jury consultants had noticed that Lancaster

39
39
seemed anxious to be on the jury. However, he wasn't selected.
Fitch had learned that David Lancaster had disappeared from
Allentown a month after the trial. By Wednesday night, Fitch was
almost certain that David Lancaster was Nicholas Easter.
Carl Nussman, Fitch's chief jury consultant, had looked
through the papers of another tobacco trial in Oklahoma. One of
the possible jurors there was a young white male called Perry
Hirsch. He was almost selected for the jury, but missed it at the
last moment. Soon afterward, he left town. Again, no one knew
anything about him.
Fitch and his staff stared at the photos of Hirsch, Lancaster, and
Easter. The three faces were of the same person. After lunch, a
handwriting expert analyzed their writing. He announced
without any doubt, "Hirsch and Lancaster are the same people.
Hirsch and Easter are the same people. Therefore Lancaster and
Easter must be the same."
"All three are the same," said Fitch, slowly.
"That's correct. And he's very, very bright."

•
Marlee called Fitch late on Friday night m his hotel. No one
outside his team knew where he was. The call was put through to
the hotel's front desk, but the hotel was being paid a lot of money
to protect Fitch's secrecy, so they couldn't admit that he was a
guest. When Marlee called again, she was put through to Fitch,
on his orders.
"Hi, Fitch. Sorry to call so late."
"No problem," he said. "How's your friend?"
"Lonely. Tonight was the night for jurors' personal visits."
"Why didn't you visit your lover?"
"Who said we're lovers? I tell you, Fitch, Krigler really worked
well for the plaintiff. They listened to every word."
"Tell me some good news."

40
 "Rohrs worried."
"What's worrying Rohr?" he asked, looking at his puzzled
face in the mirror. He felt betrayed.
"You. He knows you're trying to think up all kinds of ways to
get to the jury."
"How often do you talk to him?"
"A lot. He's sweeter than you, Fitch. He doesn't tape my calls
or send goons to follow me."
"So Rohr knows how to charm a girl?"
"Yes, but he hasn't got as much money as you."
"How much of my money do you want?"
"Later, Fitch. I must run. There's a suspicious-looking car
across the street. It must be some of your goons."
Fitch showered and tried to sleep. At 2 A.M. he drove to the
casino. By dawn, he'd won nearly twenty thousand dollars.

Chapter 7 A Fire

The first Saturday in November was unusually cool for the near•
tropical climate of the Coast. The jurors, accompanied by Lou
Dell and her husband, five part-time deputies, and two other
court officials, went by private bus to New Orleans. They
shopped at outdoor markets, bought souvenirs, and at four went
on a sightseeing trip on a boat.
They were back home at ten, tired and ready for sleep .

•
Early that same morning, Hoppy was just making coffee when he
heard the doorbell. Two young men stood on the doorstep. When
Hoppy heard "FBI,"* he nearly fainted.

* FBI: the US internal security service.

41
 "Mr. Dupree," Agent Nitchman said when the introductions
were completed. "We'd like to ask you some questions."
"About what?" Hoppy asked, his voice dry.
"Questions about Stillwater Bay, Jimmy Hull Moke, things
like that," Nitchman explained.
Hoppy grabbed the door, "Oh, my God," he said.
"May we come in?" Agent Napier said.
"No please, not here." The children! "My office, please."
There were no sounds from upstairs. The kids were still
sleeping. He dressed fast, and thought about calling Todd
Ringwald, or his lawyer. He thought of the public shame. How
could he have been so stupid?
Nitchman started. "Are you familiar with Stillwater Bay?"
"Yes."
"Have you met a man by the name of Todd Ringwald?"
"Yes."
"Have you signed any kind of contract with him?"
"No."
"What was the purpose of your meeting with Jimmy Hull
Moke?"
"To discuss the development of Stillwater Bay."
Napier cleared his throat. "We've been investigating Mr. Moke
for the last six months. We agreed to make things easier for him if
he helped us. Did you offer money to Mr. Moke?"
"No," Hoppy said. He hadn't actually offered money. He'd
made it possible for his client, Mr. Ringwald, to offer money.
Nitchman took out a pocket tape recorder and put it on the
table. "Sure?" he asked. He pressed a button. Hoppy held his
breath. Then, there was his voice and then Moke's.
Hoppy stared at the tape recorder, defeated. When he finally
looked at them, his eyes were red. "So what will happen to me?"
"For trying to bribe a government official? I'd say three to five
. pn.son. "
years m

42
 The microphone had been hidden in a pen, which was sitting
in a jar with other pens and pencils on Happy's desk. Ringwald
had put it there on Friday morning, when Happy had left his
office briefly. From the desk, the recording had been sent to a
van, recorded onto tape and delivered to Fitch's office. Moke, of
course, wasn't involved; he was simply behaving like he always
did, trying to make money from bribes. Ringwald, Napier, and
Nitchman all worked for a security firm that Fitch often used.
The Happy scam would cost The Fund eighty thousand dollars, a
tiny amount for them.
Happy mentioned legal representation. But it was important
that Happy didn't talk to a lawyer, who'd want names and
addresses.
"We know you're not a crook," Nitchman said softly.
"You just made a mistake," added Napier. "Let's keep this quiet
for twenty-four hours. We need time to think about your
situation. There may be a way out for you, Mr. Dupree. We'll
meet here tomorrow at nine o'clock in the morning."
"It's a deal," said Happy.

•
Since the Happy scam was going well, Fitch decided to act. Early
Sunday morning, Pang and Dubaz, another of Fitch's employees,
dressed as workmen, broke into Nicholas's apartment. Dubaz
went straight to the camera hidden above the refrigerator, and
removed it.
Pang managed to remove the back of the computer and take
out what he needed, while Dubaz searched for more computer
disks. It didn't take long.
"Let's go," said Pang.
They threw the computer onto the sofa, and covered it with
pillows and clothing. Then they poured lighter fuel on top,
walked to the door, and Dubaz threw a match onto the heap.

43
When the flames were near the ceiling, they left quickly, locking
the door behind them. Downstairs, they pulled a fire alarm. Then
they began banging on the front doors of the other apartments.
There were screams as people came out into the hallways.
"Make damn sure you don't kill anyone," Fitch had warned
them.
As the crowd went out into the parking lot, Pang and Dubaz
separated. When the firemen arrived, they disappeared. No one
died and no one was injured. Four apartments were destroyed,
eleven badly damaged.

•
Easter's computer disks were almost impossible to read. They
were so secure that Fitch's computer experts were defeated.
However, they did manage to read one disk. On it there were
current news items about the tobacco industry, information
about other legal cases, and a poem about rivers. It was
impossible to decide whether Easter was sympathetic to smokers,
or just interested in the law.
Finally they found a two-page letter to Easter's mother, a Mrs.
Pamela Blanchard, in Gardner, Texas. In it, he apologized for not
writing sooner, and said he'd found a job in a casino. Although he
still thought about being a lawyer, he doubted he'd ever return to
his law studies. He signed the letter Love Jeff Fitch immediately
sent two people by private plane to Gardner.
There was one other important piece of information: a list of
people registered to vote in Harrison County. From A through
K, there were 16,000 names and addresses. The list itself wasn't
secret. But two things about it were odd. First, it was on a disk,
which meant that somehow Easter had managed to steal the
information from a court computer. Second, why did Easter
need it?
Fitch knew that Easter was quite capable of altering the list to

44
have his own name entered as a possible juror in the Wood v.
Pynex case.

•
Happy's eyes were red and swollen as he drank coffee at his desk
early on Sunday morning. At nine, Napier and Nitchman entered
with a third, older man. He was introduced as George Cristano,
from Washington, Department of Justice. His handshake was cold.
"Hoppy, could we have this little chat elsewhere?"
They left town in a big black Lincoln Town Car and drove to a
dock near Bay St. Louis. Hoppy followed Cristano onto a boat
named Afternoon Delight.
"Sit down, Hoppy," said Cristano. The boat rocked slightly.
Cristano sat opposite Hoppy. "I'll be brief. We have a deal for you
which means that you can walk away. No arrest, no trial, and no
prison. In fact, Hoppy, no one will ever know."
''I'm listening," interrupted Hoppy.
"This deal has nothing to do with the law. It's political.
There'll be no record of it in Washington. Are you worried about
crime and drugs, Hoppy?"
"Of course."
"Everyrhing's political these days. We're constantly fighting
with the government and with the President. Do you know what
we need in Washington?We need more good Republicans who'll
give us money and keep out of our way. The Democrats are
always talking about budget cuts and the rights of criminals. We
have to protect our friends, Hoppy, and you can help us."
Cristano paused and looked up and down the dock. He leaned
closer. "Your wife can help."
"Millie?"
"It's the trial, Hoppy. Guess who gives most money to
Republican candidates? The tobacco companies. They give
millions of dollars because they're annoyed by government rules.

45
They believe people should be free to smoke if they want to. If
they lose this trial, there'll be a flood of lawsuits. The companies
will lose millions of dollars, and so we'll lose millions of dollars in
Washington. Can you help us, Hoppy?"
"Sure, I guess, but how?"
"Talk to your wife and make her see that this case is
dangerous. She needs to stand up against the liberals who might
want a big verdict for the plaintiff. Can you do that?"
"Of course I can. I'll see her tonight, in fact."
They talked about the best way to persuade Millie. Hoppy
asked what would happen if Millie voted with the tobacco
company, but the rest of the jury disagreed. Cristano promised
that if Millie voted correctly, everything would be all right.
Hoppy almost danced along the dock as he returned to the
car. He was a new man.

•
Judge Harkin wouldn't allow the jurors to go to their different
churches on Sunday. Instead, he arranged for a service to be held
at the Siesta Motel. At two, relatives started arriving with clean
clothes for the jurors. As Easter had no close relatives in the area,
Willis drove him to his apartment.
The fire had been out for some hours. The narrow front
garden and sidewalk were full of burnt items and wet clothing.
Neighbors were cleaning up. Nicholas felt weak at the knees. He
walked to the first group of people.
"When did this happen?" he asked.
"This morning, about eight," a woman answered. "Do you
live here?"
"Yes, Easter, in 312."
"It's totally destroyed. That's probably where the fire
started."
The security guard led Nicholas up the steps to the second

46
floor. There was nothing left of his apartment, except the kitchen
wall. No furniture and, to his horror, no computer .

•
Sunday evening from 6 P. M. was personal visits. Hoppy arrived
first and started to talk about the trial to Millie. Nicholas
managed to leave the jurors' wing of the motel unnoticed, and
went up to the second floor, where Marlee had booked a room.
Marlee and Nicholas had first met in Lawrence, Kansas, where
she worked as a waitress and he was at law school. Marlee's
mother had died a few years previously and she'd inherited
almost two hundred thousand dollars. They fell in love. Nicholas
hated studying law, and finally left law school. In their four years
together they'd traveled to half a dozen countries. They'd also
followed tobacco trials, staying in places such as Allentown, and
now, Biloxi. Together they knew more about nicotine, lung
cancer, Jury selection, and Rankin Fitch than any group of
experts.

•
Rohr spent Sunday evening meeting with the other trial lawyers
who'd each given a million dollars toward fighting this case. They
were discussing how many more witnesses for the plaintiff should
be called. The trial was now three weeks old. Rohr had enough
experts to continue for at least two more weeks. Although Cable
had his experts, defense witnesses normally took less than half the
time of the plaintiff.
However, this tobacco trial was unique because of the
sequestered jury, and at some point this jury would rebel. The
lawyers argued for an hour. Rohr thought that the jury had heard
enough and he wanted to use only two more witnesses. Other
lawyers disagreed, quoting evidence from the jury consultants.
Rohr felt he could understand the jury better himself.

47
 Chapter 8 Family Backgrounds

Nicholas had a private meeting with Judge Harkin on Monday

morning. He assured him that he was fine, in spite of the fire. He
was just a student, with little to lose, except a fine computer and
some good security equipment.
Since they were alone, Harkin asked him how the other jurors
were. It would have been more appropriate if the lawyers had
been present. But he could trust this kid.
"Everything's fine," Nicholas said.
"Is the case being discussed?"
"No. When we're together, we try not to talk about it."
"Good, let me know if there's a problem. And let's not talk
about this meeting to anyone."
"Sure," said Nicholas. They shook hands and he left.
Rohr's next witness was Leon Robilio. He was led into the
courtroom through a side door. A deputy helped him sit down.
He was old and pale, dressed in a dark suit, white shirt, and no tie.
He had a hole in his throat, covered with a bandage and hidden
under a white scarf. When he swore to tell the truth, he did so by
holding a pencil-like microphone to his throat. His voice was flat.
He was a victim of throat cancer; he'd lost part of his throat eight
years earlier, and had learned to talk in this way. He'd smoked
heavily for almost forty years and his habit had almost killed him.
The jury quickly became accustomed to Robilios mechanical
voice. He told them that he'd worked for twenty years for the
tobacco industry. He'd left the job when he got cancer and when
he realized that, even with the disease, he couldn't stop smoking.
He was addicted. He still worked full time, but now was fiercely
critical of smoking. In his previous job he'd seen a lot of studies
of cigarettes and the tobacco industry. He referred to Krigler's
evidence.
Robilio regretted many things that he'd done when he

48
promoted the tobacco industry. But he most regretted his denials
that the industry aimed its advertising at teenagers. "We spent
millions studying kids. We knew that they could name the three
most advertised brands of cigarettes. We knew that almost 90
percent of the kids under eighteen who smoked preferred the
top three advertised brands. So what did the companies do? They
increased the advertising."
"Did you know how much money the tobacco companies
were making from cigarette sales to children?" Rohr asked.
"About two hundred million dollars a year. The tobacco
companies know that 3,000 kids start smoking every day and that
nearly all adult smokers start as teenagers. So they have to target
young kids. They know that one-third of the 3,000 kids who
start smoking today will die from their addiction."
The jury was fascinated by Robilio.
Rohr took a few steps forward. Then he asked, "How did you
answer the arguments that nicotine is addictive?"
"I helped the tobacco companies think of the answer. It goes
something like this: 'Smokers choose the habit. So it's a matter of
choice. Cigarettes aren't addictive, but, even if they are, no one
forces anyone to smoke.' I used to make this argument sound
good. The trouble is, it's not true."
"Why isn't it true?"
"Because the issue is addiction and an addict can't make
choices. And kids become addicted quicker than adults."
Hoppy came to the trial that Monday morning, for the first
time. Millie was thrilled to see him. His sudden interest in the
trial was strange, however; he'd talked about nothing else for four
hours the night before.
After a coffee break, Cable started to question Robilio for the
defense. He started well when Robilio admitted that he was
being paid for attending at court. Cable then tried to make
Robilio lose his temper. He asked Robilio about his children,

49
who'd all smoked, and reminded him about the work the
industry was doing to stop teenagers smoking.
Robilio wasn't persuaded. "The industry will spend a little
money to look responsible. But they do that because they know
the truth. If they spend two billion dollars next year advertising
cigarettes, more young people will become addicted. And you're
a fool if you don't believe this."
Judge Harkin leaned forward. "Mr. Robilio, that is unnecessary."
"Sorry, Your Honor. And sorry to you, Mr. Cable. You're just
doing your job. It's your client I hate."
"Why?" Cable immediately regretted asking the question.
"Because these tobacco people are clever. They're bright,
intelligent, educated, and dishonest. They'll tell you that cigarettes
aren't addictive. And they know it's a lie."
"No further questions," said Cable .

•
Nicholas was silent during lunch. He avoided glances and looked
sad. The mood was generally serious. The jurors could still hear
Leon Robilio's mechanical voice. Three thousand kids start to
smoke each day. One-third of these will die from their addiction.
One of the jurors asked Jerry Fernandez, "How old were you
when you started smoking?"
"Fourteen."
"Why did you start?"
"The Marlboro Man."The jurors thought of the image in the
advertisement. The cowboy on the horse, the hat, the snow on the
mountains behind. Why would a young boy of fourteen not want
to be the Marlboro Man?
"Are you addicted?" Rikki Coleman asked Jerry.
"I don't know," he said. "I guess I could stop. I've tried to stop
a few times. Sure, it would be nice to stop."
"You don't enjoy it?" Rikki asked.

50
 "Oh, there are times when a cigarette is just what I want, but I
smoke two packs a day now, and that's too much."
"I was sixteen when I started," Sylvia admitted.
"I started at fourteen," Herman offered. "Gave up when I was
forty."
"Did anybody start smoking after the age of eighteen?"
Not a word.

•
Nitchman met Hoppy for a sandwich. Hoppy was nervous about
being seen in public with an FBI agent, and was relieved when
Nitchman arrived wearing jeans. Nitchman handed Hoppy a
piece of paper. He said it had just come from Cristano at the
Justice Department. In fact, the document had been written by
two of Fitch's people.
It was a faxed copy of a report on Leon Robilio. Hoppy read it
quickly while eating French fries. Robilio was being paid half a
million dollars to testify. He'd been fired from his job for
dishonesty, he had a history of mental illness, and his throat
cancer was probably the result of his alcohol abuse.
"Really?" Hoppy said, his mouth full of potatoes.
"Mr. Cristano thought you should somehow give this to your
wife," Nitchman said. "She should only show it to people she can
trust on the jury."
"Right." Hoppy folded the paper and put it in a pocket .

•
Nicholas's mother, Pamela Blanchard, lived in the old part of
Gardner. She was married to the president of a local bank. He
wasn't the father of Nicholas or Jeff or whoever he was. She had
two sons by a previous marriage which ended in divorce. One
was in Alaska, one was a lawyer, or studying to be a lawyer.
Something like that.

51
 Fitch's people finally found a college teacher who told them
that Jeff Kerr had gone to law school in Kansas. Fitch arranged
for a local security firm to start searching Lawrence, Kansas for
any trace of Jeff Kerr.
They discovered that Jeff Kerr had registered as a law student,
but didn't receive a degree. A local investigator found a lawyer
who'd been a student with Jeff and went to see him. The lawyer,
Tom Ratliff, said he hadn't seen Jeff in four years. Jeff had left law
school because he suddenly hated the idea of being a lawyer.
Also, he fell in love.
"Who was the woman?"
"Claire. She worked in a bar, Mulligan's. I heard that he and
Claire left town, but I never heard from him again."
Employment records at Mulligan's gave her full name: Claire
Clement.

•
On Monday afternoon in court, an economist gave some
information about Jacob Wood's finances. He told the court what
Mr. Wood's salary was when he died, and calculated how much
his future earnings would have been. One of the defense lawyers
tried to challenge the figures. But the lost salary was just the
beginning. Rohr would add pain and suffering, medical care, and
the price of the funeral.
An hour before the end of the day, Rohr announced his last
witness, Mrs. Celeste Wood. The jury hadn't realized that the
plaintiff was almost finished. Several of them smiled. Tonight
would be their seventh night in sequestration. According to
Nicholas's theory, the defense would take no more than three
days. They did the math. They could be home by the weekend!
Celeste Wood was fifty-five, thin, with short gray hair. She
worked for a library and had brought up three children. She'd
practiced what she was going to say and she answered Rohr's

52
questions easily. She talked about her husband, kids, and
grandchildren. Her husband had wanted to stop smoking, but he
couldn't. The addiction was too strong.
Cable didn't question her. What could he ask?
Judge Harkin looked at his jury. They were tired. "Ladies and
gentlemen," he said, "I have good news and bad. The good news
is obvious. The plaintiff is calling no more witnesses. The defense
has fewer witnesses. The bad news is that the lawyers and I have
to deal with other business concerning the trial. We'll have to do
that tomorrow, probably all day."
Nicholas raised his hand. "You mean we have to sit around at
the motel all day tomorrow?"
''I'm afraid so."
"I don't understand why."
"What do you want to do?"
"We could hire a big boat and go fishing."
"I can't ask the taxpayers to pay for that, Mr. Easter."
''I'm sure that the lawyers wouldn't mind paying."
Rohr answered first, "We'd be happy to pay half."
"It's a great idea,Judge," said Cable loudly.
Nicholas put up his hand again. "Excuse me, Your Honor,
maybe some jurors would prefer to shop in New Orleans."
No problem. Rohr and Cable would divide the costs .

•
Rohr and his team had presented ten witnesses to the jury,
including the video of Jacob Wood. It had taken thirteen days. If
the jury hadn't been sequestered, Rohr would have called at least
three more experts, but he knew it was time to stop. This was no
ordinary jury, with a blind man as foreman, at least two strikes,
and lists of demands.
The jury didn't seem ordinary to Fitch, either. He had huge
experience of influencing juries. Things were going well. Only

53
one fire, and no broken bones. But Marlee had changed
everything. With her, he could purchase a verdict. In this, the
biggest tobacco trial ever, his lovely Marlee would hand him a
verdict. A victory over Rohr in Biloxi would make future
litigation much more difficult. It might even save the industry.
When Fitch counted the jury's votes, he thought there were
four jurors with him and one that could go either way. Another
would probably vote against the tobacco companies. That left
Easter and the remaining five, who'd vote with Easter. Nine votes
were needed by either side for a verdict, or the trial would have
to take place again.
In his office, Rohr was sure that he had nine votes.

Chapter 9 Buying a Verdict

In Lawrence, Kansas, Fitch's local investigator tried too hard.

Small spoke to a girl called Rebecca, who'd worked at Mulligan's
with Claire Clement. Small went to see her in the bank where
she worked.
"Didn't you work with Claire Clement a few years ago?"
Small asked.
"Maybe. Who wants to know?"
"Do you know where she is now?"
"No. Why are you asking?"
"Well, she's a possible juror in a trial. My firm has been asked
to investigate her background."
"Where's the trial?"
"Can't tell you. You worked at Mulligan's, right?"
"Yes. That was a long time ago."
"Have you talked to her recently?"
"Not in the last four years. Now please, I'm very busy, and
you're wasting your time."

54
 When Small had gone, Rebecca rang the number of an
apartment in St. Louis, and left a recorded message for her friend,
Claire. They chatted at least once a month, though they hadn't
seen each other in a year. Claire and Jeff lived an odd life, never
staying long in one place. Only the apartment in St. Louis stayed
the same. Claire had warned Rebecca that people might come and
ask difficult questions. She'd hinted that she and Jeff were working
for the government.
When Marlee checked her messages at the St. Louis
apartment, she was worried. She called Rebecca and managed to
sound perfectly normal, though her mouth was dry. Rebecca was
able to remember the whole conversation.
"Are you OK?" Rebecca asked her friend.
"Oh, we're fine," Marlee assured her. They said goodbye to
each other, and promised to keep in contact.
Neither Marlee nor Nicholas had believed they'd be traced to
Lawrence. Who'd found them?Which side, Fitch or Rohr? More
likely Fitch, because he was smarter and had more money. What
had been their mistake? How much did these people know? She
needed to speak to Nicholas, but he was on a boat with his fellow
Jurors.

•
Fitch was in the office when the call came.
"Hello, Marlee," he said to the girl of his dreams.
"Hey, Fitch. What are the chances of a meeting without your
goons hiding behind the bushes?"
"The chances are excellent."
"You're lying. Let's do it this way. Let's meet and talk, and if
my people see your people, this is the end."
"It's a deal."
'Tm at Casella's, a seafood restaurant at the end of the Biloxi
dock. I'm waiting."

55
 When Fitch arrived at the restaurant, Marlee was sitting at a
wooden table with an umbrella above it. She was wearing jeans,
sunglasses, and a fishing cap.
"I got a call from Lawrence this morning," she said, and Fitch
swallowed. "It seems you have some goons up there trying to find
things out."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Fitch didn't sound
very certain.
So it was Fitch! His eyes betrayed him!
"Right. One more phone call like that, and you'll never hear
my voice again." She said nothing for a moment.
"Fine, whatever you want. I just wish I knew what you were
talking about," said Fitch. She was silent for a moment. Then
finally, Fitch said, "When do we stop playing games?"
''Now.''
"Wonderful. How much money do you want?"
''I'll name a price later. It depends on what you want. The jury
can do one of four things. It can deliver a verdict for the plaintiff.
It can split down the middle, and there will have to be a retrial. It
can vote nine to three in your favor and you have a huge victory.
It can vote twelve to zero in your favor, and you and your clients
can relax for several years."
"I know all this."
"Of course you do. If we forget a verdict for the plaintiff, then
you have three choices."
"What can you deliver?"
"Anything I want. Including a verdict for the plaintiff."
"So the other side is willing to pay?"
"We're talking."
"Tell me how the deal works."
"It's very simple. We agree on the verdict you want. Then we
agree on the price. You get your money ready. We wait until the
lawyers finish their closing arguments, and the jury withdraws

56
to discuss the case. At that moment I give you instructions
about which bank you send the money to. When the bank
confirms they've received the money, the jury delivers your
verdict."
"But there's no guarantee," he protested.
She leaned forward. "Do you doubt me, Fitch?"
Fitch would pay. He'd decided a week earlier to pay whatever
she wanted, and he knew that when the money left The Fund
there were no guarantees. He didn't care, he trusted his Marlee.
He'd love to ask her lots of questions, but he knew she wouldn't
answer. He also knew she'd deliver his verdict. She'd worked too
hard to fail.
"I'm not totally helpless in this, you know," he said, trying to
look in control.
"Of course not, Fitch. I know you've laid traps for at least four
of the jurors. Shall I name them?"
No, he didn't want her to name them. How did he know if
she was telling the truth? It simply wasn't fair.
"I feel you doubt whether I'm in control. What if I get a juror
removed from the jury, say, Lonnie Shaver?"
Fitch tried not to react. "No, he's harmless. I think we should
keep Lonnie. But I can't agree a deal without details."
Without any hesitation she said, "And I'm not agreeing to
anything as long as you keep investigating my past."
"Are you hiding something?"
"No, but I don't like getting phone calls from my friends. One
more call, and I'll never speak to you again."
"Don't say that."
"I mean it, Fitch. Stop your people. If you don't, I'll talk to
Rohr. He might want to do a deal. A verdict for him means you
have no job, and your clients lose billions. You can't afford it,
Fitch." She was right about that. ''I'm hungry, "she said. "I'll call
you in a couple of days."

57
 'Tm hungry too," he said.
"No thanks, I'll eat alone."

•
The boat traveled eighty kilometers from the coast, where half the
jury started fishing. One of the jurors, Angel Weese, got sick but
recovered with the help of some medicine and actually caught the
first big fish. Nicholas and Jerry had decided to chat to Lonnie
Shaver. Nicholas was friendly with Jerry, who sometimes agreed to
say what Nicholas wanted him to. It was a game to him; he had no
idea what Nicholas was really doing. They made sure that Lonnie
had a supply of cold beer, and after a few cans he talked more easily.
"I wonder how many experts the defense will call," Nicholas
said.
"They don't have to call any," Lonnie said, staring at the sea.
"You've had enough?" Nicholas said.
"Damned ridiculous. A man smokes for thirty-five years, then
wants millions for his family after he kills himself."
"Jerry and I thought that you would support the defense,"
Nicholas said.
"And what about you?" Lonnie asked.
"Me, I'm still open-minded. Jerry's leaning toward the
defense, because he's addicted to nicotine. He thinks he can stop
smoking if he really wants to, so Jacob Wood should have stopped
long before he got cancer. Right?"
"That's about right," Jerry said.
The boat returned soon after five. Its arrival was reported to
Fitch. He was in his office with one of his people, Swanson,
replacing the goons that had annoyed Marlee with another firm
who guaranteed not to get caught. Swanson was going to Kansas
City to direct operations. Fitch couldn't lose Marlee, but he had
to know who she was. There was something hidden in her past .

•
58
Angel Weese was in love with and planned to marry Derrick
Maples, a young man who was between jobs and between wives.
He was in the process of divorcing his first wife. They had two
young children, and his wife and her lawyer wanted six hundred
dollars a month. The situation wasn't good.
Angel was two months' pregnant, though she'd told no one
except Derrick.
Derrick's brother Marvis had once been a deputy sheriff and
was now a part-time minister. Marvis was approached by a man
named Cleve, who said he'd like to meet Derrick. Introductions
were made. Cleve was known as a runner. He ran cases for
Wendall Rohr. His usual task was to find good death and injury
claims and make sure that they went to Rohr's office. Cleve had
to work carefully; looking for clients like this wasn't considered
acceptable behavior. On his business card, he was called an
"Investigator."
Over a beer, Cleve talked to Derrick and quickly realized that
he had financial problems. He started asking questions about
Angel and the trial.
"Why don't you tell me what this is about?" Derrick asked.
"My client is willing to purchase influence. For cash. Five
thousand dollars. Half now, half after the trial."
Derrick smiled. "And I do what?"
"You talk with Angel when you see her during personal visits
and you make sure she knows how important this case is to the
plaintiff. Just don't tell her about the money, or about me, or any
of this. Not now. Maybe later."
"Wh y no.t?"
"Because this is illegal, OK? If the Judge found out that I was
talking to you, offering you money to talk to Angel, then both of
us would go to jail. Understand?"
"Ten thousand. Five now, five when the trial is over."
"OK, ten."

59
59
 •
Durwood Cable was in charge of keeping D. Martin ]ankle away
from any alcohol. Fitch and ]ankle had fought over the question
of whether or not ]ankle could drink on the night before he
testified. Fitch accused ]ankle of having a drink problem. ]ankle
cursed Fitch for trying to tell him, the CEO of Pynex, if, when,
and how much he could drink.
Cable got involved in the argument. He insisted that ]ankle
stay in his office to prepare his testimony, and then practice it.
]ankle performed adequately. Nothing special. Cable made him
watch a video of his performance. When he was finally taken to
his hotel after ten, he found that Fitch had replaced the alcoholic
drinks in his room with juices. He cursed and went to his
overnight bag, where he kept a bottle hidden in a leather case.
Fitch had removed that too.

•
At 1 A.M. Nicholas silently opened his motel room door and
looked up and down the hall. The guard was gone, probably
asleep. Marlee was waiting in a room on the second floor. They
kissed. She hurriedly told him about her chat with Rebecca in
Lawrence, then she tried to recall every word of her conversation
with Fitch.
They were both shocked to realize that they'd been partly
discovered. They were sure it was Fitch, and they wondered how
much he knew. They were certain that Jeff Kerr would have to
be discovered in order to find Claire Clement. Although Jeff's
background was harmless, Claire's had to be protected, or they
wouldn't be able to continue with their plan.
There was little that they could do except wait .

•
60
Derrick entered Angel's room through the window. He couldn't
wait until tomorrow night, he told her, because he loved her and
missed her. She noticed he'd been drinking.
They awoke at dawn, and Angel was nervous because she had
a man in her room and this was against the Judge's orders.
Derrick wasn't worried. He'd been thinking and he'd decided
that Angel's vote was worth a lot more than ten thousand dollars.
He'd suggest to Cleve that they paid him cash now, and then a
percentage of the money granted to the plaintiff after the verdict.
There would never be a chance like this for him again.

Chapter 10 The Case for the Defense

On Wednesday morning, an analyst named Walter Barker wrote

in an article in Mogul, a popular weekly financial magazine, that
the jury would decide against Pynex and that the sum of money
Pynex would have to pay out would be enormous. His opinions
were listened to, and he was usually right. Wall Street was
shocked. The share price dropped from seventy-six to seventy•
one and a half.
. The jury arrived in court at nine. Harkin welcomed them,
went through his normal questions, and then promised that there
would be a speedy end to the trial.
]ankle was called as a witness, and the defense began. Free
from the effects of alcohol, ]ankle was ready. He smiled and
seemed to welcome the chance to defend his tobacco company.
Sitting on the second row was Taunton, the black lawyer whom
Lonnie had met in Charlotte. It didn't take long for their eyes to
meet. Lonnie managed to nod and smile, because it seemed like
the polite thing to do. Taunton's message was clear. The defense
was speaking, and it was important for Lonnie to understand that

61
he should believe every word that was said by the witness. No
problem with Lonnie.
Jank.le described the different brands of cigarettes his
company made, showing the jury a colorful chart of the eight
brands, each with the nicotine levels labeled beside it. By
offering this wide selection of brands, Pynex allowed each
person to decide how much nicotine he or she wanted. Choose
the number of cigarettes you smoke each day. Choose what you
do to your body with cigarettes. The message was choice, choice,
choice. Cigarettes were responsible products if used carefully.
However, like many other products-alcohol, butter, sugar, and
handguns, for example-they could become dangerous if they
were abused.
Fitch watched all of )ankle's testimony from a seat near the
back. To his right was Luther Vandemeer, CEO of Trellco, the
largest tobacco company in the world, and the unofficial head of
the Big Four. Fitch and Vandemeer had lunch at Mahoney's,
alone. They were relieved by jankles success that morning, but
they knew the trial would become more difficult.
"How much influence do you have with the jury?" asked
Vandemeer.
Fitch wasn't going to answer truthfully. He wasn't expected to.
No one knew some of the things he did, except his own agents.
"The usual."
"Maybe the usual is not enough." Vandemeer was scared, with
good reason. The pressure was enormous. A large plaintiff's
verdict would mean an immediate 20 percent loss in shareholder
value, and that was just the beginning. There could be one
million lung cancer lawsuits during the five years after such a
verdict. The legal fees would average one million dollars for each
case. Nobody dared predict the cost of one million verdicts. The
government might try to ban cigarettes.
"Do you have enough money?" Vandemeer asked.

62
 "I think so," answered Fitch, wondering for the hundredth
time how much his dear Marlee might want.
"The Fund should have a lot of money."
"It does."
Vandemeer chewed on a tiny piece of grilled chicken. "Why
don't you choose nine jurors and give them a million dollars
each?" he said with a little laugh, as ifhe was joking.
"Believe me, I've thought about it. It's just too risky. People
would go to jail."
Vandemeer stopped smiling. "We have to win, Rankin, you
understand? We have to win. Spend whatever it takes."

•
With a jury exhausted by sequestration, Durwood Cable didn't
want to extend the case. He'd cut his list of witnesses to five, and
he'd planned for their testimony to run for no more than four days.
In the afternoon, ]ankle was questioned by Wendall Rohr.
Rohr started with a vicious question, and things went from bad
to worse.
"Isn't it true, Mr.Jankle, that your company spends hundreds of
millions of dollars trying to persuade people to smoke, but when
they get sick, your company won't pay a dime to help them?"
]ankle said something that no one could hear.
''I'm sorry, Mr. ]ankle. I didn't hear that. When was the last
time-"
"I heard the question. I can't recall one."
"So you say that cigarettes don't cause sickness?"
"Only if they're abused."
"So tell us please, Mr. ]ankle, how does one abuse a cigarette?"
"By smoking too much."
"And how much is too much?"
"I'd say more than two packs a day."
Rohr spoke more softly. "Will you describe to the jury how

63
you have warned the public that smoking more than forty
cigarettes a day is dangerous?"
The damage was done, but Rohr saved the best moment until
the end. He showed a video of ]ankle, together with the other
CEOs, giving evidence before a group of politicians. One by one
they were asked if nicotine was addictive. They all clearly said no.
]ankle was last, and when he made his angry denial, the jury knew
he was lying.

•
Fitch and Cable had a tense meeting. Fitch was bothered about
]ankle's defense. Cable, who didn't like being criticized by a non•
lawyer, whom he hated anyway, explained that they'd begged
]ankle not to talk about cigarette abuse.
Fitch thought the jury might be tired of Cable. Why couldn't
another defense lawyer talk to a few witnesses? There were a lot
of them. Fitch and Cable shouted at each other across a desk.
After they'd both tried to become calmer, they did agree that the
defense should be brief, and last no more than three days. Fitch
banged the door shut as he left the office.
In his car, Fitch read faxes. There was a summary of the
investigations into Claire Clement in Kansas. The car went past a
store, and Fitch suddenly wanted a beer. He was an ex-alcoholic
and hadn't had a drink for nine years. He knew that if he had one
drink, he'd go on drinking. He stopped thinking about beer.
Where was Marlee, and why hadn't she called? He closed his
eyes, thought of the jurors, and dreamed of Marlee .

•
Derrick chose a different place for his meeting with Cleve. It was
a bar in the black section of Biloxi. Cleve insisted that they meet
in the parking lot first. He arrived late.
"I don't think this is a good idea," Cleve said. "I'm the only

64
 white face here, and you expect me to go into the bar with five
thousand dollars and hand it over to you? If you want the money,
meet me at the Waffle House."
Sitting in the Waffle House, they drank coffee. Derrick was
nervous as he spoke.
"So I'm thinking that ten thousand dollars isn't enough, know
what I mean?"
"I thought we had a deal," said Cleve, showing no emotion.
"Things are different now. I want fifty thousand dollars, plus a
percentage of the sum of money that the plaintiff gets. I think 10
percent would be fair."
"Oh, you do?You're crazy. We made a deal for ten thousand.
Anything larger and we'll be caught." Cleve got up and hurried
out to the parking lot.
Derrick ran after him and caught up with Cleve in his car.
Cleve got out, lit a cigarette, and looked at Derrick.
"Look, what I'm offering you is illegal. Don't get greedy. If
you do, you'll be caught."
"But if you offer a percentage, Angel will work harder to
persuade the other jurors to decide on a large sum of money."
"You don't understand. If there's a verdict for the plaintiff, it'll
be. years before the money is actually paid. Take the money. Talk
to Angel."
"Twenty-five thousand. Per vote."
"Per vote?"
"Sure. Angel can deliver more than one."
Cleve finished his cigarette. ''I'll have to talk to my boss."

•
It was time for personal visits at the Siesta Motel. Hoppy had
arrived early with some Chinese food and a bottle of wine. He
and Millie made love, and then talked about the kids. Hoppy
spoke sadly about her absence. Everyone missed her.

65
 He dressed and turned on the television. "You're not going to
believe this," he said, taking a piece of paper out of his pocket.
"What is it?" said Millie, taking the paper and reading it. It was
a copy of the document which Fitch's people had written, with
false information about Leon Robilio. Millie looked suspiciously
at her husband. "Where did you get this?" she demanded. "Who
sent it?"
"Don't know. Looks like it came from Washington." Hoppy
hated lying to Millie, but Napier and Nitchman were out there
somewhere,just waiting.
"Why didn't you just throw it away?"
"I don't know, I-"
"You know it's wrong to show me stuff like this, Hoppy."
Millie threw the paper on the bed and walked closer to her
husband. "What are you trying to do?"
"Nothing. Somebody just faxed it to my office, that's all."
"What? Somebody knew your fax number, knew that your
wife was on the jury, knew that Leon Robilio testified? And that
person also thought that you'd be stupid enough to try to
influence me? I want to know what's going on."
"Nothing, I swear," said Hoppy.
"Why have you taken such a sudden interest in the case? I can
tell when something's bothering you, Hoppy."
"Nothing. Relax. This case is difficult for both of us. I'm sorry
I showed you it."
Millie finished the wine and sat on the bed. Hoppy sat next to
her. Mr. Cristano had suggested that Millie showed the
document to all of her friends on the jury. Hoppy didn't know
how to tell Mr. Cristano that this wouldn't happen. As he
thought about this, Millie started crying. "I want to go home,"
she said, with red eyes.
Hoppy put his arm round her and squeezed tightly. ''I'm
sorry," he said. She cried even harder.

66
 Hoppy felt like crying too. The meeting hadn't been successful.
The trial would end soon. He had to persuade Millie to vote for a
defense verdict. Hoppy would be forced to tell Millie the truth.
Not tonight, but surely during the next personal visit.

Chapter 11 A Juror's Dismissal

Colonel Herrera's routine never varied. He got up at exactly five•

thirty, did his exercises, and took a cold shower. At six he had
breakfast in the motel dining room. At eight, he returned to his
room.
At 6: 15 on Thursday morning, Nicholas greeted the Colonel
in the dining room, and had a brief conversation about the
weather. He then went quietly down the hall, took a pile of
newspapers from a drawer in his room, and used a key he'd stolen
from the front desk to enter the Colonel's room. He put the pile
of newspapers and magazines under the Colonel's bed. One was a
copy of yesterday's Mogul. He went to his room and phoned
Marlee.
Marlee called Fitch. "Hey, Fitch. Go to the middle pay phone
at the corner of Fourteenth and Beach Drive. I'll call in seven
minutes."
"Damn it!" Fitch screamed. He shouted for Jose and they
rushed to his car. The phone was ringing as they got there.
"Hey, Fitch. Juror number seven, Herrera, is really annoying
Nick. I think we'll lose him today."
"Don't do it, Marlee! He's on our side."
"Oh, Fitch, they'll all be on our side when it's over.Anyway, be
in court at nine to see what happens."
Fitch controlled himself, and walked calmly to the car.
Whatever she wanted. It didn't matter.

•
67
Judge Harkin lived in Gulfport, fifteen minutes from the
courthouse. As he was getting ready to leave for the courthouse,
the phone rang.
''Judge, I'm sorry to bother you at home," said a nervous
voice. "It's Nicholas Easter."
"What's the matter?" The Judge wondered how Nicholas had
obtained his phone number, but said nothing.
"It's about Herrera," Nicholas said. "I think maybe he's reading
things that aren't on the approved list. This morning, when I went
into the dining room, he was there alone and he tried to hide a
copy of Mogul from me. Isn't that some kind of business magazine?"
"Yes it is," replied Harkin. If Easter was telling the truth, and
why should he doubt him, then Herrera would be sent home
immediately. The reading of any unauthorized material meant
dismissal. "Do you think he's discussed it with anyone else?"
"I doubt it. Like I said, he was trying to hide it from me. But
I'll listen carefully."
"You do that. I'll ask Colonel Herrera to come in and see me
this morning. We'll probably search his room."
"Please don't tell him I reported him. I feel really bad about
doing it."
"It's OK. The trial's almost over, Nicholas. I'm asking the
lawyers to be as quick as they possibly can."
On his way to the court, Harkin called the Sheriff and asked
him to go to the Siesta Motel and wait. He then called Lou Dell,
who told him that Mogul wasn't sold at the motel. He wondered
how a sequestered juror could have got a copy of it.
When Harkin arrived in court he told Rohr and Cable what
he'd learned, without telling them who'd told him. Both lawyers
were unhappy. Cable was annoyed because everyone thought that
Herrera would vote with the defense. Rohr was cross because
they were going to lose a juror, and there was a danger the trial
might have to be repeated.

68
 Herrera was called to the Judge's chambers, where he was told
he had to answer some questions. He felt like a criminal.
"Have you been reading any materials not specifically
authorized by me, in particular a business weekly magazine called
Mogul?" asked the Judge.
"Not since I've been sequestered," Herrera replied.
"Will you agree to a search of your room?"
The Colonel went red. "What are you talking about?" he
demanded.
"I have reason to believe that you have been reading
unauthorized materials at the motel. I think a search of your
room would settle the matter," replied the Judge.
Herrera knew there was nothing in his room. "Then search
it," he said, between his teeth.
In the motel, the Sheriff and two deputies found the newspapers
and magazines under Herrera's bed. They took them to the Judge's
chambers. The Judge showed them to Herrera. "These items were
found under the bed in Room 50,just minutes ago."
Herrera was speechless. "They're not mine," he said angrily.
"Somebody must have put them there."
"The fact is that these were found in your room. I have no
choice. You are dismissed from jury service."
There were many questions Herrera wanted to ask, but he
suddenly realized he'd be on the golf course by lunchtime.
"Whatever you say, Judge."

•
The jurors took their seats a few minutes after ten. In the
courtroom, the jury watched silently as Judge Harkin showed
them a copy of Mogul. He asked if anyone had read it, or heard
what was in it. No one.
"Juror number seven, Frank Herrera, has been dismissed and
replaced by the extra juror, Mr. Henry Vu."

69
 Fitch's newspaper dropped several inches, as he stared at the
new juror. He was scared because Herrera had gone, and thrilled
because his girl Marlee had done exactly what she'd promised.
Fitch looked at Easter, who stared back.
Cable's first witness on Thursday was Dr. Denise McQuade.
The defense wanted to answer Leon Robilios claims that kids
were targeted by the cigarette industry. Dr. McQuade was
beautiful and clever. She'd written four books and many articles.
She quickly made her point. Advertising is everywhere. Children
are familiar with commercials for all kinds of things that kids eat
and drink, like hamburgers and soft drinks. No one accuses those
companies of dishonestly targeting the young.
Dr. McQuade's testimony made perfect sense to the jury.

•
Rohr spent his lunch hour with Cleve, discussing what they
should do about Derrick. "This is what we'll do," said Rohr.
"We'll give him fifteen thousand dollars now, and the other ten
after the verdict. We'll promise him twenty-five thousand for the
other votes. We'll also record the interview. If we get our verdict,
we won't pay, and if he causes problems, we'll threaten to call in
the FBI."
"I like it," Cleve said.
"Get the cash. You must see him this afternoon."
Cleve met him in a cheap bar. But Derrick had other plans.
He wanted Angel's twenty-five thousand dollars in cash, now, and
he also wanted an advance payment for each of the other jurors.
Eighty thousand dollars in cash, now.
"You're crazy," Cleve said.
"And you're a crook," replied Derrick.
"There's no way we can pay eighty thousand cash."
"Fine, I'll go to the tobacco company."
"You do that," said Cleve.

70
 •
On Thursday morning, the search for Claire had a small success.
They got information about another friend of Claire's. Her name
was Beverly Monk and she lived in Greenwich Village in New
York. Swanson flew to New York and phoned her, pretending to
be Nicholas. He'd practiced imitating Nicholas's voice many times.
"It's Jeff Kerr."
"Oh yes." Maybe she remembered him, maybe she didn't.
''I'm in the city and I wondered if you'd heard from Claire
recently. I'm looking for her."
"I haven't talked to Claire in four years. Look, I'm real busy
now."
"Sure." Swanson called Fitch. They decided to offer Beverly
Monk cash.

•
Fitch knew Marlee would ring on Friday morning.
"Hi, Fitch. Lonnie Shaver's bothering Nicholas."
"Oh! Damn! No! You can't do that! You've got to stop this,
Marlee." Fitch was aware of how desperate he sounded. "Don't
do it, please. Let's talk about this."
"We'll meet in an hour. Fulton Street, number 120."
Fitch walked to Fulton Street. He went alone.
"Are we ready to talk money?" he asked, with a nasty grin.
"Yes. You send me ten million dollars before the verdict."
"You must be joking."
She never stopped looking at him. "Ten million, Fitch, and
there's no discussion. How much is in The Fund?"
"The what?" he said. No one knew about The Fund!
"Don't play games, Fitch. I want ten million dollars sent to a
bank in Singapore before the jury withdraws to discuss their
verdict. Otherwise, the deal's off."

71
 "What happens if the deal's off? "
"One of two things. Either Nicholas will split the jury, or he'll
persuade it to vote nine votes to three for the plaintiff" The
game was over. She was in control. "So we have a deal?''
"Yes," said Fitch. They shook hands .

•
Swanson approached Beverly Monk m a corner coffee shop.
"Excuse me, are you Beverly Monk?"
She looked up, surprised, and said, "Yes, who are you?"
"A friend of Claire Clement's."
"What do you want?" She was nervous, but the shop was
crowded. "You called me yesterday, didn't you?"
"Yes, I did. I lied. I said I was Jeff Kerr. I'm not. I'm Jack
Swanson. I work for some lawyers in Washington."
"Is Claire in trouble?"
"No." Swanson gave a quick explanation of Claire's summons
to jury service for a huge trial in the future. "We'll pay for
information," he said.
"How much?"
"A thousand dollars, cash, to tell me everything you know
about Claire Clement." Swanson took out an envelope and
placed it on the table. Beverly stared at it, then grabbed it and put
it in her purse.
"There's not much to tell," she said." I worked with her for
six months. Then I left town. I called her once or twice, then we
lost contact."
"Where did she go to college?"
"Somewhere in the Midwest. Claire was a very secretive
person. She didn't talk about her past. I didn't ask."
Swanson thanked her. As he was leaving, she offered to make a
few phone calls. She obviously wanted more money. Swanson
said fine, and gave her his business card.

72
 •
Hoppy sat in the back of a long, black Chrysler car with Mr.
Cristano. Nitchman and Napier were in the front. Hoppy had
met with Nitchman and Napier the day before, and admitted that
Millie hadn't reacted too well to the document.
"When do you see her again?" Cristano asked.
"Tonight, I think."
"The time has come, Hoppy, for you to tell her the truth."
Hoppy's eyes watered as he stared out the window. He cursed
himself for his stupidity. If he had a gun, he could almost shoot
Todd Ringwald and Jimmy Hull Moke. He could definitely
shoot himself.
"I guess so," he whispered.
"You'll have to tell her that if she doesn't support the defense's
case, you will go to prison for five years."
Hoppy started crying. In the front, Nitchman grinned.

Chapter 12 Hoppy Dupree's Confession

Fitch met with Marlee an hour after the previous meeting ended.
"How much does Rohr know?" he asked.
"He knows nothing. We never met. I made you think I'd met
him, but it never happened."
"Promise me you won't get rid of Lonnie Shaver," Fitch said.
"Tell me why. If we're working for the same verdict, then we
have to be honest."
"All I can say is that Lonnie has been bought and paid for.
How many votes does Nicholas have now?"
"He'll have nine votes before the jury withdraws, maybe
more. He just needs a bit of help with a few, like Rikki Coleman,
for instance."

73
 "We might have some information about her."
"You keep playing games, so will I. What about Millie
Dupree?" Nicholas had noticed Hoppy's sudden interest in the
trial, and he and Marlee had their suspicions that Fitch was trying
to use Hoppy to persuade Millie.
Fitch decided to be cautious. "Nothing on Millie," he said.
They discussed the other jurors briefly. Marlee asked for
another twenty-five thousand dollars to bribe Jerry Fernandez
and another juror, then gave new instructions for the transfer of
the ten million dollars. The meeting was over.
Later on Friday, Fitch instructed each of the Big Four CEOs
to send two million dollars each to The Fund immediately.
There was no time for explanations. He then transferred ten
million dollars from The Fund's bank account to a new account
which he opened in the Netherlands Antilles. By Friday evening,
it was all done. At first, Fitch was relieved, but he knew his work
wasn't finished. He didn't know the real Marlee, and why she was
doing this. Fitch didn't like the unknown. He soon became angry
and worried again.

•
At eight on Friday evening, Derrick went to Durwood Cable's
office. He was nervous and when he asked for a Mr. Gable by
mistake, he was told that no one of that name worked there .

•
In court,Judge Harkin was worried about the jury. It was five on
Friday. They were bored and tired. The lawyers were worried too;
the jurors weren't reacting to testimony as they should be. They
were staring blankly into space or trying to stay awake.
Nicholas wanted the jurors to be tired. They'd listen to him
more willingly. He persuaded all the jurors to sign a letter to
Judge Harkin asking for the trial to continue on Saturday. Judge

74
Harkin agreed. "The trial should be over Monday afternoon," he
said. "We'll have closing arguments on Monday morning, and
you '11 receive the case before noon. That's the best I can do."
There were smiles from the jury. With the end in sight, they
could manage one more weekend together. There would be
personal visits tonight, tomorrow night, and Sunday .

•
Hoppy arrived in Millie's room late. He sat on her bed and put
his face in his hands.
"What's the matter, Hoppy?" she asked, frightened. He finally
told her. Mr. Todd Ringwald, Stillwater Bay, Jimmy Hull Moke,
Napier, Nitchman, and the tape. How could he have been so
stupid! Millie began crying. But there was more. When he got to
the part where he did a deal with Mr. Cristano, Millie stopped
crymg.
"But I'm not sure I want to vote for the tobacco company,"
she said.
"Wake up, Millie. If you don't, I go to prison for five years."
"That's not fair." Millie was shocked.
"What about the kids?" Hoppy asked. He'd planned his
arguments in advance. Millie felt she'd been hit by a bus.
"It's not fair to the people in the trial," she said.
"I know, honey," he replied. "I know. I'm a total failure. Believe
me, I've even thought about shooting myself."
"Don't be silly," she said, and started to cry again.
After Hoppy had left, Millie couldn't sleep. At midnight, she
went down to the Party Room for a snack. She found Nicholas
alone.
"Why are you up so late?" he asked. "You look troubled."
"I am. Can you help me, Nicholas?"
"I'll try."
She told him everything. Nicholas suspected a scam but didn't

75
tell Millie that. She promised to do nothing until they spoke
again. He went to his room and rang Marlee .

•
In court on Saturday, Cable decided to start with a bit of action.
His witness was a Dr. Olney, who'd done research on laboratory
mice. He had a video of the mice. Over some years the mice had
been given huge doses of cigarette smoke. Not one had
developed lung cancer.
Hoppy was in court, listening. He'd promised Millie that he'd
come to show his support. Derrick sat at the back and continued
to plot. Rikki Coleman's husband was also in court; so were the
families of some of the other jurors .

•
Marlee had been working since six on Saturday morning. She
called newspaper reporters, the police, FBI information lines, and
government information services. She soon decided that the
whole Hoppy affair was a scam arranged by Fitch.
Fitch arrived for a meeting with Marlee at ten. Earlier that
morning, he'd received a report on the investigations into Claire
Clement. Before she arrived in Lawrence in the summer of
1988, she hadn't existed. While in Lawrence, she made no long
distance phone calls. After she left Lawrence, the trail led
nowhere. She'd probably changed her identity. Whoever she was,
she was smart.
"We've got problems with Rikki Coleman," said Marlee.
"Nicholas th.inks she wants a big verdict."
Without comment, Fitch handed Marlee a piece of
paper. "So she was pregnant? You're sure this is her?"
''Positive.''
"You have nothing on Herman Grimes?"
"Nothing," replied Fitch. "Nicholas will have to deal with

76
him. He's getting paid for it. If there's a problem, can't you get
him removed?"
"We're thinking about it."
Fitch shook his head in amazement. "Do you realize what
you're doing."
"I think so. That's all for now, Fitch. I have work to do."
Later that day, Marlee received a call from an FBI Agent in
Biloxi called Madden. He confirmed that Nitchman, Napier, and
Cristano weren't FBI agents and he'd love to talk to them. Marlee
said she'd try to arrange a meeting .

•
At three on Saturday afternoon, the defense finished. The jurors
were free to go. There would be trips to a football match or
movie theater arranged for Saturday night, followed by personal
visits. On Sunday the jurors could go to church, and in the
evening there would be more personal visits.
Millie had no interest in movies, and certainly none in
football. Hoppy arrived with some food, which they ate slowly.
After dinner, they talked about their problems again. There were
more tears and more apologies. Finally, Millie confessed that she'd
told Nicholas everything. He could be trusted, she said.
At ten-thirty, Nicholas, back from the football game, visited
Millie's room. He explained to Hoppy and Millie that the whole
thing was a scam. A close friend had made phone calls which
confirmed that Napier, Nitchman, and Cristano weren't
government agents and that KLX Property Group didn't exist.
Hoppy had been tricked. At first Hoppy felt even more stupid,
then he had questions. What did it mean? Was it good news or
bad? "What about the tape," he asked, "of me and Jimmy Hull
Moke?"
"I'm not worried about it," Nicholas said confidently. "The
tape was obtained illegally. Forget it."

77
 What sweet words. "You're serious?"
"Yes, Happy. The tape will never be played again."
Millie leaned over and kissed Happy. This time her tears were
of joy.

•
On Sunday morning, some of the jurors went to church. Happy
went to his office at ten. He'd called Napier at eight on Sunday
morning with the news that he had important developments to
discuss; he said he'd managed to persuade his wife, and she was
influencing other jurors. Napier called Cristano, who called
Fitch. Fitch was delighted and authorized the meeting.
Napier and Nitchman arrived in Hoppy's office at eleven.
Happy was making coffee. He started talking to his visitors.
Another guest quietly entered the building through the front
door, which Hoppy had left unlocked. He knocked on Hoppy's
door and opened it.
"Agent Alan Madden, FBI," he said, showing his badge. Napier
and Nitchman went pale as their hearts stopped.
"The FBI is already here," said Hoppy, acting perfectly, looking
at Madden, then the other two, then Madden. "You guys don't
know each other?"
"FBI?" Madden said. "Show me your identification."
"I can explain," Nitchman said, his voice higher than normal.
"You see we're not really FBI agents-we're private investigators
and, well-"
"What!" screamed Happy. "You've been telling me for ten
days that you're FBI agents. What's going on here?"
"Who are you?" Madden asked the two men. There was no
response. He took out a gun and searched them .. Then he led
them from the building, where another FBI agent was waiting.
They got into a car and drove away.

78
 In the car, Napier and Nitchman invented a story. They'd been
hired to investigate some real estate. One thing led to another,
and their boss had made them pretend to be FBI agents. No
harm done, really. Madden was a young agent and thought it was
a minor crime. He gave them a lecture about pretending to be
FBI officers, and told them to stay out of Mississippi.
When Fitch heard the story, he was so angry that he broke a
lamp. He sent Pang to fetch the two men. Three hours later
Napier and Nitchman were sitting in a room next to Fitch's
office, with Cristano.
"Start at the beginning," he said. "I want to hear every word."
They remembered nearly everything.
After they'd left, Fitch sat and thought. Hoppy would tell
Millie tonight. Millie would be lost as a defense juror. In fact, she
would probably go right over to the other side and want billions
of dollars for the poor widow Wood.
Marlee could rescue the situation, only Marlee.

Chapter 13 Closing Speeches

Beverly Monk had some information. She'd managed to trace a

friend of Claire's, Phoebe. When she called Phoebe, she found
out that Phoebe had also received a call from someone
pretending to be Jeff Kerr. She knew it wasn't, but had spoken to
him anyway. She hadn't seen Claire Clement in four years.
Beverly told Phoebe that she wanted to contact Claire again.
Phoebe told her Claire's real name.
"It was Brant. Gabrielle Brant. She was from Columbia,
Missouri. She had a boyfriend who was crazy and so she changed
her name and left town. I think her father's dead. Her mother was
a professor at the local university."

79
 "Is she still there?"
"I have no idea."
''I'll try to find her through her mom. Thanks, Phoebe."
Beverly took an hour trying to reach Swanson on the phone
to sell him this information. After checking with Fitch, Swanson
offered her two and half thousand dollars. They bargained for ten
minutes, and finally settled on four thousand, in cash. Swanson
immediately flew to New York, arrived at dusk, and called
Beverly's roommate, who told him that she might be at a party.
He called the pizzeria where she worked, and was told she'd been
dismissed. He drank coffee, made phone calls, and waited .

•
Marlee wanted one more meeting with Fitch. Fitch could have
kissed her feet when he saw her.
He decided to tell her everything about Hoppy and Millie and
the scam which had gone wrong. Nicholas must talk to Millie
immediately, before she spoke to the other jurors. What would
she do when she learned the truth? It would be a disaster, no
question about it.
Marlee listened without reacting as Fitch told the story. It
amused her to see Fitch sweat.
"I think we should get her off the jury," Fitch declared, when
he was finished.
"Relax, Fitch. Nicholas and Millie are quite close. Millie will
vote the way he wants."
Fitch tried to smile. "Just out of curiosity, how many votes do
we have right now?"
"Nine. Look, Fitch, you're worrying too much. You've paid your
money, you've got the best, now relax and wait for your verdict.
It's in very good hands."
"Will we get all twelve?"
"Nicholas is determined to get them all."

80
 Out of the building, Fitch was almost dancing. Jose had never
seen his boss so happy.

•
Wendall Rohr and Durwood Cable were each practicing their
closing speeches. In a conference room, in front of seven
lawyers, Wendall Rohr walked forward and back, speaking
softly, with carefully chosen words, to his jury. His voice was
warm and rich, filled with sympathy one minute and hard
words for the tobacco companies the next. He lectured and
persuaded. He was funny, and he was angry. He finished in fifty•
one minutes. The closing speech had to be an hour or less•
Judge Harkin's orders. The comments from his audience were
tough. Rohr agreed to perform again. It had to be perfect.
Victory was so close.
Cable had a larger audience. He was videotaped, so he could
watch himself. He was determined to do it in half an hour. The
jury would like that. Rohr would no doubt go on for longer.
Cable delivered his closing speech, then watched the video.
Again and again, throughout Sunday afternoon, and into the
night.

•
By the time Fitch arrived at the beach house, he was his normal
pessimistic self again. The four CEOs were waiting, having just
finished a fine meal. ]ankle was drunk. Fitch was questioned
about the two million dollars he'd required from each of them.
He explained that the defense had a very large, unplanned
expense.
"Do you have the votes, Fitch?" asked one of the CEOs.
"I believe I do. The verdict has been purchased." His voice
held a touch of pride.
"How?"

81
 "I'll never tell," Fitch said coolly. "The details are not
important."
They stared at him. Eight times they'd been to the edge of
disaster, and each time Rankin Fitch had saved them. Now he'd
done it again. "How much?" ]ankle demanded.
"Ten million. I've purchased the verdict for ten million dollars.
That's all I'll say. Of course, nothing is guaranteed. You never know
until the jury comes back."
Well, it ought to be guaranteed, at a price of ten million
dollars. But the CEOs said nothing .

•
There was a general feeling among the jurors that Sunday night
would be their last in sequestration. The mood was more relaxed,
and many of the jurors packed up their things. It was the third
night of personal visits. Marlee and Nicholas ate pizza in his
room and discussed their plans.
Marlee left at nine. Nicholas went to see Hoppy and Millie.
They were full of thanks. Millie was worried about staying on
the jury. She'd discussed it with Hoppy and didn't feel she could
be fair after what had happened. Nicholas had anticipated this and
wanted Millie to stay on the jury. If she told Judge Harkin what
had happened, then the Judge would probably order the trial to
be held again.
"It's our job, Millie," Nicholas said. "We've been chosen to
decide this case. It's our responsibility to reach a verdict."
Millie agreed. Her new friend Nicholas made everything
easier.

•
After failing to meet with Cable, Derrick had to deal with Cleve.
They met in the Nugget Casino on Sunday night, and drank a
beer. Cleve gave Derrick a packet containing fifteen thousand

82
dollars. The other ten thousand would be paid after the verdict,
as long as Angel voted for the plaintiff.
After Cleve had left, Derrick stayed behind to gamble. He bet
heavily. The beers kept corn.ing. Down to seven thousand dollars.
He wanted to cry. But his luck changed, and he left the casino
with nearly eleven thousand dollars.
Although it was too late for personal visits, he got in his car
and started to drive to the Siesta Motel. Soon he noticed blue
lights behind him. He stopped the car.
"Have you been drinking?" asked a policeman. Derrick was
taken to jail. A five-hour stay was automatic for drunk drivers. He
couldn't phone Angel from jail, but he had to reach her before
she left for court.
At five-thirty on Monday morning, Marvis arrived at the
police station to collect Derrick. Derrick gave his brother two
hundred dollars, and borrowed his car. He raced to the Siesta
Motel and tried to wake Angel by throwing stones at her
window.
"Don't move!" said a voice behind him. Derrick turned to see
Chuck, one of the deputies, with a gun. "Hands up."
Derrick was taken to jail for the second time that night.
Angel slept through it all.

•
On Monday mornmg, while Nicholas helped Mrs. Grimes
prepare Herman's breakfast, he dropped four small tablets into
Herman's coffee. They wouldn't kill him. Herman would be sick
for four hours, then recover completely.
Nicholas carried their breakfast back to the Grimes's room.
Mrs. Grimes thanked him; such a nice young man.
The drama started half an hour later. The door to the Grimes's
room was open and Herman was bent double on the bathroom
floor. Lou Dell ran to the phone and rang the emergency

83
services. Nicholas said to Rikki that maybe it was a heart attack.
Herman had had one six years ago.
The ambulance arrived and Herman was taken away. In the
confusion, Nicholas managed to knock over the coffee cup. Lou
Dell called Judge Harkin.

•
Pynex shares opened high on Monday morning. There was good
news coming out of Biloxi, though no one knew the source. All
tobacco shares rose in early, heavy trading.
Judge Harkin arrived in court at nine-thirty. He'd been
arguing with Rohr and Cable. Cable wanted a new trial after the
loss of another juror, but the Judge didn't agree.
Fitch sat in amazement. How do you give someone a heart
attack? Was Marlee capable of poisoning a blind man? Thank
God she was on his side.
Judge Harkin told the jurors that Herman wasn't in danger.
Everyone was very relieved, and Shine Royce took Herman's
place. The Judge asked Wendall Rohr to start his closing speech.
It went well, lasting forty-eight minutes, and he ended it with
some figures. You could value Jacob Wood's life at a million
dollars. Add some other damages, and the total sum that the
family were due was two million. But there was also the role of
punitive damages. How do you punish a company that has $800
million in cash?
He was careful not to suggest a figure.
In response, Durwood Cable took slightly more than half an
hour to dismiss the idea that you should give millions to the
family of a man who'd smoked for thirty-five years. It was just a
means of getting money. He appealed to the jury's sense of
fairness, asking them to judge the case on facts not emotions. He
had the jury's complete attention.
The Judge told the jury that the case was now for them to

84
decide. He asked them to select a new foreman, in place of
Herman Grimes. As the jury left, Nicholas turned and looked at
Fitch. Fitch nodded.
Fitch left the court and went to his office. Marlee phoned.
"Fitch, I have new transfer instructions for the money." She
wanted it sent to a bank in Panama City. "You have twenty
minutes, Fitch. The jury is eating lunch. If I don't have
confirmation by twelve-thirty, then the deal's off and Nicholas
will change direction."
Within ten minutes the money was on its way. He received
confirmation by fax. At 12:20, Marlee called her banker in
Panama, who confirmed receipt of ten million dollars.
Marlee was in a motel room ten kilometers away, with a fax
machine. After five minutes, she instructed the same banker to
transfer the money to a bank in the Cayman Islands. Nicholas
called at twelve-thirty to learn that the money was safe. Marlee
went straight to the airport, where a small plane was waiting .

•
Swanson had waited patiently for Beverly. She'd rung him at
3:30 A.M. Monday morning, obviously drunk, and arranged to
meet him at 7 A.M. in the coffee shop. She was four hours late,
and looked drugged, but Swanson could have kissed her.
"Have you got the money?" There was no doubt what the
money would be spent on.
"Yes, but tell me about Claire."
Beverly gave him the information she'd got from Phoebe.
"Now give me the money," she said.
Swanson handed her the envelope. "Thanks," he said, and
disappeared.
He finally reached Fitch on the phone just after one. By then,
Swanson was on his way to Missouri.

85
 Chapter 14 The Verdict

In the jury room, they were ready to do what they'd been

dreaming about all month. They took their places and stared at
the empty seat at the end of the table, the one that Herman had
occupied.
"Guess we need a new foreman," said Jerry.
"And I think it should be Nicholas," Millie added quickly.
There wasn't any doubt about who the new foreman would be.
No one else wanted the job, and Nicholas seemed to know as
much about the trial as the lawyers.
Nicholas started. "Judge Harkin wants us to consider all the
evidence, including the reports, before we start voting," he said.
''I'm ready to vote now," said Lonnie Shaver.
"Not so fast," said Nicholas. "This is a very complicated case
and it would be wrong to rush things."
"We're not going to read all that stuff are we?" asked Sylvia.
"I have an idea," said Nicholas. "We'll each take a report, read
it fast, and then make a summary for everyone else."
They started work.

•
Marlee's flight from Biloxi to George Town, Grand Cayman, took
ninety minutes. She went through customs with a new passport
which showed her to be Lane MacRoland, a Canadian. She took
a taxi to the Royal Swiss Trust bank. The tropical air was warm,
but Marlee hardly noticed.
She was greeted by a receptionist and within minutes had met
a young man named Marcus. They'd spoken many times on the
phone. The money had arrived, he told her. In his office, a
secretary bought coffee and Marlee ordered a sandwich.
Pynex shares were still strong when Marlee made her first
trade. She sold 50,000 shares in Pynex at seventy-nine dollars,

86
 using a system which was popular with experienced investors. If
the price of shares was going to fall, trading rules allowed them to
be sold first at the higher price, then purchased later at the lower
one. With ten million dollars in cash, Marlee would be allowed to
sell approximately twenty million dollars' worth of shares. Later,
she'd buy them back, and if their price had fallen, she'd make a
profit on the difference in price.
Marcus confirmed the trade, and Marlee then sold shares in
two other Big Four companies, and then more in Pynex. She
paused and instructed Marcus to watch Pynex closely. She'd just
sold 110,000 shares, and was worried about the effect on Wall
Street.
"I think it's safe now," said Marcus, who'd been watching the
share price closely for two weeks.
"Sell 50,000 more," she said, without hesitation. She was very
calm.
Marcus's heart missed a beat, then he completed the trade.
"That's approximately twenty-two million dollars, Ms. MacRoland.
I think we should stop. More sales will need approval from my
superior. One question. When do you anticipate movement on
these shares?"
"Tomorrow, early. If you want your other clients to think
you 're really smart, then you should suggest that they follow my
example."
Marcus sent for a company car to take Marlee to her hotel.

•
Marlee's present seemed under control, but her past was being
discovered. At the University of Missouri, records were found of
a Dr. Evelyn Y Brant. She'd died in 1987, age fifty-six, and left
everything to her daughter, Gabrielle, age twenty-one. Gabrielle
had received nearly $200,000. On the death certificate it stated
that Dr. Brant had died of lung cancer.

87
 By the time Fitch was told this, they knew more. Dr. Brant's
husband, Dr. Peter Brant, had died in 1981 at the age of fifty-two,
leaving everything to his dear wife Evelyn and his daughter,
Gabrielle. He'd also died oflung cancer.
Fitch took the telephone call from Swanson alone, with the
door locked. At first, he was too shocked to react. Both of
Marlee's parents had died oflung cancer! He wrote it down on a
yellow pad as ifhe could analyze it, as if he could somehow make
it fit in with her promise to deliver a verdict.
He closed his eyes and rubbed his head. He must stay calm.
There was nothing he could do to stop the jury's discussions.
They were in there, with deputies by the door. Fitch made a list
of possible things he could do, all of which would be dangerous,
illegal, and would fail.
He slowly rose to his feet, and took the glass lamp in both
hands. Konrad and Pang were standing outside and heard a crash
as the lamp hit the wall. Fitch shouted something about "the
money," then the desk hit the wall.
"Find the girl!" he screamed. "Find the girl!"

•
After the period of forced concentration, Nicholas decided that
some debate was needed. He started by summarizing a report on
the state of Jacob Wood's lungs. His audience was bored.
"I have an idea," Rikki Coleman said. "Let's see if we can all
agree that cigarettes cause lung cancer."
"Fine with me," said Nicholas. "Raise your hands if you
believe that cigarettes cause lung cancer." Twelve hands went up
in the air.
"Who thinks nicotine is addictive?" Another yes vote.
"Let's keep united, folks," Nicholas said. "It's really important
that we walk out of here voting the same way." Most of the jurors
had heard him say this before. The legal reasons weren't clear, but

88
they believed him anyway. They continued to work through the
reports. They left the room to smoke and to stretch. Lou Dell and
two deputies guarded the door.
After another juror had summarized a report on the contents
of cigarette smoke, Lonnie Shaver spoke.
"I thought we'd decided that cigarette smoke was harmful." He
looked at Nicholas. "I say we get on with the voting. I'll go first."
He took a deep breath and everyone turned to watch him. "My
position is easy. I believe cigarettes kill. That's why I leave them
alone. Nobody can force you to smoke, but if you do, you'll suffer
the consequences. Don't smoke for thirty years, and then expect
me to make you rich ... These crazy lawsuits need to be stopped."
"Do you know when I started smoking?" said Angel Weese. "I
remember the exact day. I was thirteen, and I saw this really
good-looking guy, all smiles, perfect teeth, with a beautiful girl
on his arm, and a cigarette in one hand. 'What great fun,' I
thought. 'There's the good life.' So I went home, got my money,
and bought a pack of cigarettes. Don't try and tell me anyone can
give up. I'm addicted."
Lonnie said nothing. The arguments continued, then the jury
returned to their reading. At five o'clock, Judge Harkin called
them back. "You've had the case for five hours. I'd like to know if
you're making progress."
Nicholas stood up. "I think so, Your Honor. We're determined
to finish and have a verdict sometime tonight."
"Wonderful. Thank you. Dinner is on the way. I'll be in my
chambers if you need me."

•
Dinner was over at six-thirty, and the jury agreed to vote.
"Are you willing to hold Pynex responsible for the death of
Jacob Wood?" asked Nicholas. Four jurors voted yes, four no, the
rest weren't sure.

89
 "I think it's time for you to say what you think," Lonnie said
to Nicholas.
"OK," he said. He'd practiced this speech, and spoke very persuasively.
''I'm certain that cigarettes are dangerous-they kill
400,000 people a year and they are full of nicotine. I think
cigarettes killed Jacob Wood and I am also certain that tobacco
companies lie and cheat and do everything in their power to
persuade kids to smoke. They are selfish and greedy and should
be punished."
Rikki Coleman and Millie Dupree felt like clapping.
"You want punitive damages?" asked Jerry.
"The verdict means nothing if it's not significant. It has to be
huge."
They went round the table again-seven for the plaintiff, three
for the defense.
"How much money do you have in mind for Celeste Wood?"
asked Rikki.
"A billion dollars." Mouths fell open.
"That's ridiculous," said Lonnie. At that moment, most of the
other jurors agreed. The discussions continued. Finally, they
agreed ten votes to two that Celeste Wood should receive two
million dollars in actual damages. After the mention of a billion
dollars, two million seemed a very small amount. Again, they
voted ten to two for punitive damages. "Any idea of how much?"
asked Nicholas.
"I have an idea," said Jerry. "Get everyone to write down their
amounts on a piece of paper, then add them up and divide by
ten. That way we'll see what the average is."
The jurors quickly wrote their numbers on pieces of paper.
Nicholas slowly unfolded each piece of paper and called the
numbers out to Millie, who wrote them down. One billion,
one million, fifty million, ten million, one billion, one million,

90
five million, five hundred million, one billion, and two m.illion.
Millie did the math. "The average is three hundred fifty-six
million, nine hundred thousand."
Lonnie jumped to his feet. "You're crazy," he said and left the
room, banging the door behind him.
Another juror looked shocked. "I can't do this. I'm retired,
OK. I have enough money, but I can't understand these figures."
"These numbers are real," Nicholas said, "and the company is
very rich. It has eight hundred million in cash. We've got to think
big, or they won't take any notice."
"What will happen to the tobacco industry if we bring back a
big verdict like this?" asked Angel.
"There'll be a lot of action. The industry will have to examine
their advertising plans again. They'll go to the government and
demand special laws, but I suspect they'll get less and less help.
The industry will never be the same," Nicholas answered. "We
need to decide on an amount, folks, if we want to go home."
"I have an idea," said Jerry. "Let's take it up to four hundred
million, half their cash."
"Count the votes," said Nicholas. Nine hands went up. He
filled in the verdict form and made everyone sign it. Lonnie
returned.
"We've come to a verd.ict, Lonn.ie."
"What a surprise. How much?"
"Two million dollars, and four hundred million dollars. Care
to join us?"
"Hell, no," answered Lonnie.
Nicholas walked to the door and asked Lou Dell to inform
Judge Hark.in that his jury was ready.
While they waited, Lonnie whispered to Nicholas, "Is there any
way I can say that I didn't agree?" He was more nervous than angry.

91
 "Sure, don't worry. The Judge will ask each one if this is our
verdict. When he asks you, make sure everyone knows you don't
agree with it."
"Thanks."

Chapter 15 Fitch's Surprise

Lou Dell delivered a note from Nicholas to the Judge. In it,

Nicholas asked for a deputy to accompany him from the
courthouse as soon as the trial was finished. He said he was
scared.
The Judge gave the necessary instructions, and then went into
the courtroom. The atmosphere was full of anticipation. Lawyers
were walking around, nervous and wild-eyed. It was almost eight
o'clock.
"I have been informed that the jury has reached a verdict,"
Harkin said loudly. "Please bring in the jury."
They came in looking serious. Lou Dell took the verdict form
from Nicholas and handed it to the Judge. His face showed no
reaction to the extraordinary news he was holding. He was very
shocked, but there was nothing he could do. It was technically
correct. There would be action to reduce it later on, but he
couldn't do anything now. He gave it back to Lou Dell, who
asked Nicholas to read it.
"We, the jury, find in favor of the plaintiff, Celeste Wood, and
grant her damages of two million dollars."
Wendall Rohr and his lawyers breathed a huge sigh of relief.
They'd just made history.
But the jury wasn't finished. "And we, the jury, find in favor of
the plaintiff, Celeste Wood, and grant punitive damages of four
hundred million dollars."
Cable sank down into his chair as if he'd been shot. The other

92
 defense lawyers stared at the jury box, mouths open, eyes wide in
total disbelief. "Oh my God!" one of them said.
Rohr was all smiles as he put his arm around Celeste Wood,
who'd started crying. The other lawyers with Rohr congratulated
each other. Oh, the thrill of victory, the thought of sharing 40
percent of this verdict.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen of the jury," Judge Harkin said. "I
am going to ask each of you individually if you voted in favor of
this verdict."
"I did," answered Nicholas Easter and six others. When it
came to Lonnie, he said loudly, "No, your Honor, I did not. I
disagree with this verdict entirely." Two more jurors said they
hadn't voted for the verdict, but the final two, Sylvia and Jerry,
stated they'd supported it. The vote was nine to three.
Nicholas was extremely worried that Fitch wasn't in court.
How much did he now know? Nicholas wanted to get out of the
courtroom and leave town. The Judge thanked the jury and told
them that they couldn't tell anyone about the discussions they'd
had. They were dismissed.
Fitch was watching from the viewing room in his office. He
was alone; all the jury consultants had been dismissed. He'd
discussed what he could do with Swanson. They could kidnap
Easter, but he wouldn't talk and they'd go to jail for it. They
decided to follow him, hoping he'd lead them to Marlee. But
what could they do if they found her? They couldn't report her
to the police.
Fitch was trapped whatever he did.
Nicholas left court quickly without saying goodbye to anyone.
At the back entrance, the Sheriff was waiting for him in his car.
"Judge said you needed some help." Nicholas directed him to a
large apartment building north of town and got out, thanking the
Sheriff. He then got in a new rental car that Marlee had left there
two days ago and drove to Hattiesburg, where a private plane was

93
waiting. He arrived in George Town with new Canadian papers.
Marlee met him at the airport. They kissed.
"Have you heard?" he asked.
"Sure, it's all over CNN,"* she said. "Was that the best you
could do?" she asked with a laugh. They kissed again.
They went to the beach and sat in the sand alone as the waves
washed across their feet. What a moment it was. Their four-year
operation was over. Their plans had finally worked, perfectly .

•
Marlee went alone to the Royal Swiss Trust bank the following
day. Marcus greeted her in his office.
"Your trade in Pynex shares seems to have been extremely
successful. I've been on the phone to New York, and things are
really confused. The verdict has surprised everyone. Except you, I
guess." There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but he
knew there would be no answers. "They might stop trading for a
day or two." He looked at his computer, and spoke to someone in
New York. "They're offering Pynex shares at fifty dollars." Two
minutes passed. His eyes never left the computer screen. "They're
at forty-five now. Yes or no?"
"No. What about the others?" Marcus's fingers danced across
the keyboard. "The entire tobacco industry is down."
"Check Pynex again," Marlee said.
"Still falling. Forty-two, with a few small buyers."
"Buy 20,000 shares at forty-two."
A few seconds passed before he said, "Confirmed." The
Marlee-Nicholas team had just made seven hundred and forty
thousand dollars, less the bank's fees. She went on buying slowly.
The quick kill was happening. She'd planned this very carefully,
and she'd never have another opportunity.

* CNN: an American TV news channel.

94
 A few minutes before noon, with the market still very upset,
she'd finished. Marcus wiped his forehead.
"Not a bad morning, Ms. MacRoland. You've made over eight
million dollars, less fees."
"I want the money transferred to a bank in Zurich." She
handed him written instructions. "Immediately, please."
She packed quickly. Then Nicholas and Marlee flew first class
to Miami, where they waited two hours and flew on to
Amsterdam. They watched the news in the plane. Wall Street was
going round in circles. Experts were speaking everywhere. Judge
Harkin had no comment. Cable couldn't be found, but Rohr
finally came out of his office and took the credit for the victory.
From Amsterdam they flew to Geneva, where they rented a
hotel apartment for a month.

•
Fitch left Biloxi three days after the verdict. His future as director
of The Fund was in doubt, but his firm had plenty of other
work. Not as well paid as The Fund, however.
A week after the verdict, he met with Luther Vandemeer and
D. Martin Jankle in New York, and confessed every detail of his
deal with Marlee. It wasn't a pleasant meeting.
He also discussed with other New York lawyers the best way of
attacking the verdict. The fact that Easter had disappeared
immediately was suspicious. Herman Grimes had agreed to release
his medical records, which showed that he'd been fit and healthy
until that morning. He remembered an odd taste to his coffee,
then he was on the floor. Colonel Frank Herrera had already given
a sworn statement which said that the magazines under his bed
weren't his. The mystery surrounding the verdict increased.
The New York lawyers didn't know about the Marlee deal.
They never would.
Cable was planning to ask permission to interview all the

95
jurors, an idea that Judge Harkin seemed to like. How else could
they find out what had happened in there? Lonnie Shaver was
particularly anxious to talk. He'd received his promotion and was
ready to defend American business.
The appeal would be long and difficult.
Rohr's future was filled with opportunity. Extra staff were
em.ployed just to answer the phone calls from other lawyers and
possible victims. Wall Street seemed more sympathetic to Rohr
than to the tobacco industry. The share prices stayed low. Anti•
smoking groups openly predicted the bankruptcy and eventual
death of the tobacco industry .

•
Six weeks after he left Biloxi, Fitch was eating lunch alone in a
tiny Indian restaurant near Dupont Circle in Washington. It was
snowing outside.
She appeared from nowhere. "Hi, Fitch," she said, and he
dropped his spoon.
"What are you doing here?" he said, without moving his lips.
He remembered how pretty she was. Her hair seemed shorter.
"Just came to say hello."
"You've said it."
"And the money is being returned to you, as we speak. I'm
transferring it back to your account. All ten million dollars,
Fitch."
He could think of no quick response. He was looking at the
lovely face of the only person who'd ever beaten him. "How kind
of you," he said.
"I started to give it away, you know, to some of the anti-
smoking groups, but we decided against it."
"How's Nicholas?"
"He's fine."
"Why are you returning it?"

96
 "It's not rrune. I never planned to keep the money. I just
wanted to borrow it. Tell me, Fitch, did you find Gabrielle?"
"Yes, we did."
"And her parents?"
"We know where they are."
"Does it make more sense now?"
"It makes more sense, yes."
"They were both wonderful people. They were intelligent and
energetic and loved life. They both got addicted to cigarettes in
college and I watched them fight their habit until they died. They
died terrible deaths, Fitch. I was their only child. My mother died
at home on the sofa because she couldn't walk to her bedroom."
She paused, but her eyes were surprisingly clear. It must have
been sad, but Fitch could feel no sympathy.
"When did you start this operation?"
"Graduate school. I studied finance, thought about law, and
then I dated a lawyer and heard stories of tobacco litigation. The
idea grew."
"An amazing idea."
"Thanks, Fitch. From you, that's a nice thing to hear."
"Are you finished with us?"
"No. We'll watch the appeal closely, and if your lawyers go too
far attacking the verdict, then I've got copies of the bank
transfers. Be careful, Fitch. We're proud of that verdict, and we're
always watching. And remember, Fitch, next time you go to trial,
we'll be there."
 ACTIVITIES

Chapters1-3

Before you read

1 Read the Introduction and answer these questions.
a What are most John Grisham stories about?
b Why are his stories successful?
2 Look at the Word List at the back of the book. Which words
a are for people?
b refer to trials and courtrooms?
3 Discuss these questions with another student.
a At a trial in your country, who decides
• whether a defendant is innocent or guilty?
• the punishment after a guilty verdict?
b What are the advantages and disadvantages of a jury system?
c Should tobacco companies be legally responsible for people
who die from smoking-related diseases? Why (not)?

While you read

4 Complete the sentences below with the following names.
Durwood Cable Nicholas Easter Rankin Fitch
Herman Grimes Colonel Frank Herrera D. Martin Jankle
Marlee Wendall Rohr Lonnie Shaver Celeste Wood
a manages The Fund.
b .'s company is involved in a lawsuit.
c is suing the tobacco company.
d is the plaintiff's main lawyer.
e is a mysterious juror.
f is the main lawyer for the defense.
g becomes the foreman of the jury.
h sends a mysterious message to the tobacco
companies' fund manager.
The tobacco companies plan to put pressure on ..
to support them .
........................ is reported to the judge by another juror.

98
98
After you read
5 How are these important in this part of the story?
a smoking f Nicholas Easter's clothes
b Biloxi g secret cameras
c the Cimmino tobacco case h Hadley Brothers grocery
d Mary Mahoney's restaurant company
e video films the October 12 issue of
Sports Illustrated
6 Work with another student and have this conversation between
Wendall Rohr and Rankin Fitch before the court case.
Student A: You are Wendall Rohr. You think that you will win the
case against Pynex. Tell Rankin Fitch why.
Student B: You are Rankin Fitch. You think that Pynex will win
the case. Tell Wendall Rohr why.
7 "This wasn't an ordinary tobacco case ... " Discuss why both sides
are so anxious to win.

Chapters4-6
8 How might Fitch and his team attempt to influence the jury's
verdict? What could the judge do to try and stop them?

While you read

9 Tick (.() the correct ending to each sentence.
a Lonnie Shaver is offered
1) a better-paid job in a major tobacco company.
2) the possibility of promotion.
b Doyle goes to Chicago because Rankin Fitch
1) cannot use him any more.
2) needs him to find out more information about
Nicholas Easter.
c The jury go on strike in the jury room because they
do not want
1) their bags to be searched.
2) to be sequestered.

99
99
 d In the Siesta Motel, the jurors go on strike because
they are not allowed to
1) watch movies.
2) use telephones.
e Fitch wants Marlee to eat or drink so that he
1) has more time to ask her questions.
2) can collect her fingerprints.
f Lawrence Krigler's evidence helps
1) the plaintiff.
2) Pynex.
g Wendall Rohr
1) protects a witness who is in danger.
2) secretly tries to influence a juror.
h Hoppy Dupree is
1) a member of the jury.
2) married to a member of the jury.
Fitch discovers that Nicholas Easter has
1) been on the jury in previous tobacco trials.
2) used other names.

After you read

10 How do these people feel, and why?
a Wendall Rohr, about Marlee's fax
b Judge Harkin, Rankin Fitch, and Wendall Rohr, when the jurors
give the Pledge of Allegiance
c Lonnie Shaver, about entering the smart country club
d Lonnie Shaver, after talking to Taunton
e Rankin Fitch, about Rikki Coleman
f the jurors, after they move into the Siesta Motel
g Lawrence Krigler, about Pynex
h Pynex, about Lawrence Krigler
Hoppy Dupree, after talking to Todd Ringwald
Hoppy Dupree, after talking to Jimmy Hull Moke
11 Discuss these questions with another student.
a What is the connection between the Stillwater Bay Development
and the lawsuit against Pynex?

100
 b Is Judge Harkin good at his job? Why (not)?
c Why does Marlee keep contacting Rankin Fitch? What is her
plan?

Chapters7-9

Before you read

12 Who is more confident at this point in the trial-Rankin Fitch or
Wendall Rohr? Why?

While you read

13 Are these sentences true {.I) or false (X)?
a Jimmy Hull Moke secretly recorded his conversation
with Hoppy Dupree.
b Rankin Fitch plans the attack on Nicholas Easter's
apartment.
c Fitch's computer experts find secret information on
one of Nicholas Easter's stolen disks.
d The conversation with George Cristano depresses
Hoppy Dupree.
e Leon Robilio's evidence supports the plaintiff's case.
f Nicholas Easter failed his law degree exams.
g Wendall Rohr wants the trial to end as soon as
possible.
h Marlee expects Rankin Fitch to pay her before the
verdict is announced.
Rankin Fitch attempts to influence Angel Weese's vote.

After you read

14 Who is speaking, who to, and why?
a "We know you're not a crook."
b "Make damn sure you don't kill anyone."
c "Make her see that this case is dangerous."
d "I used to make this argument sound good."
e "She should only show it to people she can trust on the jury."
f "One more phone call like that, and you'll never hear my voice
again."

101
 g "A verdict for him means you have no job."
h "Make sure she knows how important this case is to the
plaintiff."
15 Work with another student. You are Rankin Fitch and Durwood
Cable. Discuss the following jurors. Which of them are likely
to support Pynex, and which of them are likely to support the
plaintiff? Why?
Nicholas Easter Millie Dupree Lonnie Shaver Jerry Fernandez
Rikki Coleman Colonel Frank Herrera Herman Grimes
Sylvia Taylor-Tatum Angel Weese
16 Discuss these questions with another student.
a Why does Rankin Fitch have Nicholas Easter's apartment
robbed and burned? Is he wise to do this? Why (not)?
b "People should be free to smoke if they want to." Do you agree
with this statement? Why (not)?
c According to Leon Robilio, why do tobacco companies "target
young kids"? What is done in your country today to stop this
happening?

Chapters10-12

Before you read

17 What will happen when Hoppy Dupree next meets his wife? Why?

While you read

18 In which order do these happen? Number them 1-10.
a Rankin Fitch and Marlee make a deal.
b The FBI stop the scam on Hoppy Dupree.
c The Chief Executive Officer of Pynex gives evidence
in court.
d A juror is unfairly accused of reading unauthorized
material.
e Hoppy Dupree and his wife learn about Rankin
Fitch's scam.

102
 f Rankin Fitch argues with the main defense lawyer.
g Millie Dupree asks Nicholas Easter for help.
h Happy Dupree shows his wife false evidence about
a witness.
Rankin Fitch transfers a large sum of money to a
foreign account.
One of Rankin Fitch's men meets an old friend of
Marlee's.

After you read

19 Find the correct endings, below, to these sentences.
a The Pynex share price drops suddenly because ...
b Taunton is in court because ...
c Rankin Fitch and Durwood Cable have a tense discussion
immediately after ...
d Cleve is angry when ...
e Millie Dupree is suspicious when ...
f The Sheriff goes to the Siesta Motel because ...
g Rankin Fitch has mixed feelings when ...
h Swanson pretends to be Jeff Kerr because ...
Millie Dupree cries with joy after ...
j The Stillwater Bay Development scam fails because ...
1) Colonel Frank Herrera is dismissed from the jury.
2) Happy produces a copy of a document that he says has
been faxed to him.
3) Nicholas Easter talks about Marlee's investigations.
4) Rankin Fitch wants Lonnie Shaver to listen carefully to a
witness.
5) an unauthorized magazine has been found in a juror's room.
6) Angel Weese's boyfriend gets too greedy.
7) Wendall Rohr proves that a witness is lying.
8) Millie Dupree talked to Nicholas Easter about her problems.
9) an article about the trial is written in a financial magazine.
10) Rankin Fitch wants information about Marlee.

103
20 Work with another student. Have this conversation between
Rankin Fitch and the D. Martin Jankle, the Pynex CEO.
Student A: You are Rankin Fitch. You want Pynex to send two
million dollars to The Fund. Tell Jankle why you need
the money, but do not tell him about Marlee.
Student B: You are Jankle. You do not want to send The Fund
any more money. Tell Rankin Fitch why.
21 Discuss these statements with another student. Do you agree with
them? Why (not)?
a "Millie Dupree has a stronger character than her husband."
b "Napier and Nitchman should have gone to jail."
c "Rankin Fitch accepts Marlee's demands too easily."
d "Wendall Rohr is wrong to have offered Derrick Maples
money."

Chapters13-15

Before you read

22 What will the jury's verdict be? Why?

While you read

23 Is Rankin Fitch pleased (P) or displeased (D), do you think,
a after his conversation with Marlee about the failed
scam?
b about meeting the four CEOs at the beach house?
c about Pynex share prices on Monday morning?
d after the lawyers' final speeches?
e when he hears the truth about Marlee's past?
f about the jury's verdict?
g about his meeting with Luther Vandemeer and Martin
Jankle in New York?
h after the release of Colonel Frank Herrera's sworn
statement?
after his meeting with Marlee in an Indian restaurant
in Washington?

104
After you read
24 Look at your answers to Question 23. Why is Rankin Fitch pleased
or displeased about these events and situations?
25 Only one of these sentences is true. Correct the false sentences.
a Claire Clement, Gabrielle Brant, and Lane MacRoland are all
the same person.
b Rankin Fitch is worried about Lonnie Shaver.
c The four CEOs are worried about Rankin Fitch because they
have never worked with him before.
d Wendall Rohr would be pleased if he knew that Derrick Maples
had been arrested.
e Nicholas puts tablets in Herman Grimes's coffee because he is
afraid that Grimes might vote against the plaintiff.
f The other jurors agree with all of Nicholas's suggestions.
g All the jurors vote in favor of the plaintiff apart from Lonnie
Shaver.
h After the verdict, Rankin Fitch plans to kidnap Nicholas.
Marlee is more interested in money than in justice.
Rankin Fitch hates Marlee.
26 Work with another student. Have this conversation between
D. Martin Jankle and Rankin Fitch.
Student A: You are Jankle. You do not understand how Rankin
failed to win the case for you. Ask him what
happened.
Student B: You are Rankin Fitch. Explain how you failed to win
the case, but be careful not to mention Marlee.
27 Discuss these questions with another student.
a Does the story end as you expected? Why (not)?
b Do you feel sorry for Rankin Fitch? Why (not)?
c If you were Marlee, would you return Rankin Fitch's money?
Why (not)?

Writing
28 Imagine that you are Colonel Herrera. Write a letter to a friend
about your experiences as a juror.

105
29 Imagine that you are Judge Harkin. You think that, in many ways,
this has been the strangest trial that you have ever been involved
in. Write an article for a national newspaper, explaining why.
30 Imagine that you are an inspector for the Department of Justice.
You have received complaints from some people about the
behavior of Nicholas Easter as a juror and later as a foreman. You
have investigated the complaints and talked to several witnesses.
Now write your report.
31 "No one involved in this trial is completely innocent." Do you agree
with this statement? Why (not)?
32 Should smoking be completely banned? Why (not)? Write an
essay giving both sides of the argument, then finish with your own
opinion.
33 Imagine that you are D. Martin Jankle, the Pynex CEO. Write a
letter to Rankin Fitch after the verdict, explaining why you no
longer want him to manage The Fund.
34 Imagine that you are Durwood Cable. You want to appeal against
the verdict. Write a letter to the Department of Justice explaining
why.
35 Imagine that you are Rankin Fitch. You are so impressed with
Marlee that you would like her to work for you. Write her letter a
explaining why.
36 Imagine that you are Marlee. You have just received a letter from
Rankin Fitch inviting you to work for him. Write your reply.
37 Imagine that you are the Secretary of State for Public Health.
You are not happy about the behavior of tobacco companies in
general. You want them to act more honestly in future and to stop
targeting young people in their advertisements. Write them a letter
explaining your views and making suggestions for improvements
in their future practice.

Answers for the Activities in this book are available from the Penguin Readers website.
A free Activity Worksheet is also available from the website. Activity Worksheets are
part of the Penguin Teacher Support Programme, which also includes Progress Tests and
Graded Reader Guidelines. For more information, please visit:
www.penguinreaders.com.
 WORD LIST

allegiance (n) loyalty to a country, belief, or leader

authorize(v) to give official permission for something
casino (n) a place where people try to win money by playing games
chambers (n pl) a room in which a judge can consult privately with
lawyers, or hear cases that are not going to court
colonel (n) a middle-ranking officer in the army or air force
damages (n pl) money that someone must pay to another person for
harming them or their property
fax (n/v) a document that is sent in electronic form down a telephone
line and then printed using a special machine
foreman (n) the leader of a jury
goon (n) an informal word for a violent criminal who is paid to frighten
or attack people
lawsuit (n) a problem or complaint that someone brings to a court of
law
litigation(n) the process of taking a legal case to a court of law
motel (n) a hotel for people traveling by car, with a place for the car
near each room
nicotine(n) a dangerous substance in tobacco
plaintiff (n) the person in a court of law who accuses someone else of
doing something illegal
pledge (n) a formal, usually public, promise
punitive damages (n pl) money that is paid to another person as a
punishment for harming them
real estate (n) property, like houses or land
research (n) the detailed study of a subject, especially to discover new
facts or test new ideas
runaway (adj) moving fast and out of control
scam (n) an informal word for a dishonest plan, usually to get money
sequester(v) to isolate or hide away from other people
settle (v) to decide on something; to make an agreement, for example a
financial one, that ends an argument
share (n) one of the equal parts into which the ownership of a company
is divided
sue (v) to make a legal claim against someone who has harmed you,
especially for money
summons(n) an official order to appear in a court oflaw
supervisor(n) someone who is responsible for a group of workers and
makes sure that they do their job properly
testify (v) to make a formal statement of the truth in a court of law
testimony (n) a formal statement of what is true, especially one made
in a court of law
v. (prep) a word, short for versus, used to show that people are against
each other in a court of law
verdict (n) an official decision that is made in a court of law about
whether someone is guilty of a crime
 PENGUIN READERS recommends

The Testament
John Grisham

Nate O'Riley is a powerful Washington lawyer. Returning to work

after a long stay in hospital is difficult for Nate. Then he is sent on
a journey that takes him from the tense courtrooms of Washington
to the dangerous swamps of Brazil. It is a journey that will change
his life forever ...

The Chamber
John Grisham

The horror of death row is that you die a little each day. The
waiting kills you. Seventy-year-old Sam Cayhall is on Mississippi's
death row. Sam hates lawyers but his date with the gas chamber
is close, and time is running out. Then Adam Hall, a young lawyer
arrives. Can he and his secret persuade Sam to accept his help?

A Time to Kill
John Grisham

Ten-year-old Tonya Hailey is attacked and raped by two local men.

Carl Lee, Tonya's father, shoots them. Now only his lawyer and
friend, Jake Brigance, stands between him and the electric chair.
Is there a legal defense for Carl Lee's actions?

There are hundreds of Penguin Readers to choose from - world classics,

film adaptations, modern-day crime and adventure, short stories,
biographies, American classics, non-fiction, plays ...
For a complete list of all Penguin Readers titles, please contact your local
Pearson Longman office or visit our website.

www.penguinreaders.com
 PENGUIN READERS recommends

Misery
Stephen King

A story by Stephen King - the master of horror. Paul Sheldon

is Annie Wilkes's favourite writer. She loves all his books about
Misery Chastain. When Annie finds Paul after a car accident, she
takes him home to look after him. The Annie discovers that Paul
wants to kill Misery and to write different kinds of book. She is
determined to stop him, and Paul becomes her prisoner.

The Beach
Alex Garland

'Close your eyes ... imagine idyllic white sands and coral gardens.'
Richard arrives in Thailand. He hears about 'the beach', a secret
island. It is paradise on earth. He goes there, but paradise soon
turns into hell ...

The Body
Stephen King

Gordie Lanchance and his three friends are always ready for
adventure. When they hear about a dead body in the forest they
go to look for it. Then they discover how cruel the world can be.

There are hundreds of Penguin Readers to choose from - world classics,

film adaptations, modern-day crime and adventure, short stories,
biographies, American classics, non-fiction, plays ...
For a complete list of all Penguin Readers titles, please contact your local
Pearson Longman office or visit our website.

www.penguinreaders.com
 PENGUIN READERS recommends

Cry, the Beloved Country

Alan Paton

'When people go to Johannesburg, they do not come back.' Cry,

the Beloved Country is the moving story of two families in South
Africa - one black and one white - who are brought into violent
contact. From a remote valley in Natal, Reverend Kumalo sets off
for the city of Johannesburg in search of his younger sister and his
son.

Schindler's List
Thomas Keneally

Thomas Keneally's famous novel tells the true story of Oskar

Schindler, a businessman who risked his life every day during the
Second World War to save as many Jews as possible. Steven
Spielberg's film of Schindler's List won seven Oscars, including
Best Picture and Best Director.

The Brethren
John Grisham

Three former judges are in prison. They call themselves the

Brethren and organize a pen-pal scam. The money is pouring in.
But then the Brethren contact the wrong pen-pal - a powerful man
with dangerous friends.

There are hundreds of Penguin Readers to choose from - world classics,

film adaptations, modern-day crime and adventure, short stories,
biographies, American classics, non-fiction, plays ...
For a complete list of all Penguin Readers titles, please contact your local
Pearson Longman office or visit our website.

www.penguinreaders.com
 .
•
.;
Longman Dictionaries .....
11 1

Express yourself with confidence!

Longman has led the way in ELT dictionaries since 1935.

We constantly talk to students and teachers around the
world to find out what they need from a learner's dictionary.
Why choose a Longman dictionary?

Easy to understand
Longman invented the Defining Vocabulary - 2000 of the most
common words which are used to write the definitions in our
dictionaries. So Longman definitions are always clear and easy
to understand.

Real, natural English

All Longman dictionaries contain natural examples taken from
real-life that help explain the meaning of a word and show you
how to use it in context.

Avoid common mistakes

Longman dictionaries are written specially for learners, and we
make sure that you get all the help you need to avoid common
mistakes. We analyse typical learners' mistakes and include
notes on how to avoid them.

Innovative CD-ROMs
Longman are leaders in dictionary CD-ROM innovation. Did
you know that a dictionary CD-ROM includes features to help
improve your pronunciation, help you practice for exams and
improve your writing skills?

For details of all Longman dictionaries, and to choose

the one that's right for you, visit our website:
www.longman.com/dictionaries
 LEVEL 6
The Runaway Jury

Pynex, a tobacco company, could lose millions of dollars in a big

court case. It is Rankin Fitch's job to make sure that they win. But
one of the jurors is also try ing to influence the jury's verdict . Who
si he? And whose s de
i is he on?

Penguin Readers are simplified texts which provide a step-by-step

approach to the joys of reading for pleasure.

Ser ies Editors: Andy Hopkins and Jocelyn Potter

200 headwords
300 headwords Beginner
2 600 headwords Elementary
3 1200 headwords Pre-Intermediate
4 1700 headwords Intermediate
5 2300 headwords Upper-Intermediate
6 3000 headwords Advanced

Contemporary .Americao f.r:ig.l.L,h

Number of words (excluding activities): 27,313

Cover illustration by Alex Williamson I www.debutart.com

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ALWAYS LEARNING PEARSON