It certainly is, Judge Garey snapped. I was heading for the door when I heard, from the living room, the music of Katherines laughter. After all she survived and all she might still face, her laugh, as melodramatic as this might sound, was an affirmation of life from someone who appreciated it, unlike a lot of us who bitch and kvetch about it with oblivious disdain. Who to? You have any boxes of breadsticks? Yeah, well. I nodded.Dont blame her too much. Max was awfully good at manipulating people. It was a specialty of his. One of several. The first billion is the hardest to make. After that, it gets a lot easier. Go fuck yourself, she managed to say, then smiled a little. As soon as you can look out the window and see it. We have spies everywhere. She talked to a Taiwanese VC firm recently. The Taiwanese dont screw around. If theyre interested, we need to be interested. Audrey took another drag on her marijuana, picked up the pepper cannister, and sat back down at the table. She offered me the cannister but I shook my head. Devine was dropped off back at his home. He went to his room, looked up Emerson Campbell online, and saw the same stern face staring back at him. A Vietnam platoon leader involved in some of the most hellish battles of that long, ugly war, Campbell was the recipient of nearly every combat medal under the sun. He was also, like Devine, Ranger tabbed and Ranger scrolled. He had been engaged in pretty much every combat situation the United States had during the intervening years, including the First and Second Gulf Wars. Hed ended up a two-star commanding Fort Benning in Georgia, where Devine had earned his Ranger status, though their paths had not crossed there. Just a moment, just a moment, Hamilton Burger shouted. Just a moment. Lets get this straight. Before the witness answers that question, I want to inspect the paper. I object to this method of interrogation. I object to the question as assuming facts not in evidence. I object to it as not being proper cross-examination. He looked at his watch. It was almost four oclock in the morning. No. And she couldnt have stayed too long. Earl, the guy who owns the place, was already cutting the lights. I wish there was more I could tell you. Im not. And that the time that you saw this defendant was later on in the evening, and the person you picked up there at approximately quarter to five might have been someone other than the defendant? And if I said Id rather get some shut-eye? said Devine. Lets go upstairs, she said. And perhaps you should bring the shotgun. What did you come up herefor?.