Tell Me Your Dreams by Sidney Sheldon

David got up and slowly walked over to the witness box. “Mr. Hill, I would think it’s a big responsibility being a guard in a place where so many hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of art was being exhibited.”

“Yes, sir. It is.”

“And to be a good guard, you have to be on the alert all the time.”

“That’s right.”

“You have to be aware of what’s going on all the time.”

“You bet.”

“Would you say that you’re a trained observer, Mr. Hill?”

“Yes, I would.”

“I ask that because I noticed when Mr. Brennan asked you if you had any doubts about whether Ashley Patterson was the woman who was with Richard Melton, you hesitated. Weren’t you sure?”

There was a momentary pause. “Well, she looks a lot like the same woman, but in a way she seems different.”

“In what way, Mr. Hill?”

“Alette Peters was more Italian, and she had an Italian accent.. . and she seemed younger than the defendant.”

“That’s exactly right, Mr. Hill. The person you saw in San Francisco was an alter of Ashley Patterson. She was born in Rome, she was eight years younger—”

Brennan was on his feet, furious. “Objection.”

David turned to Judge Williams. “Your Honor, I was—” “Will counsel approach the bench, please?” David and Brennan walked over to Judge Williams. “I don’t want to have to tell you this again, Mr. Singer. The defense will have its chance when the prosecution rests. Until then, stop pleading your case.”

Bernice Jenkins was on the stand.

“Would you tell us your occupation, Miss Jenkins?”

“I’m a waitress.”

“And where do you work?”

“The cafe at the De Young Museum.”

“What was your relationship with Richard Melton?”

“We were good friends.”

“Could you elaborate on that?”

“Well, at one time we had a romantic relationship and then things kind of cooled off. Those things happen.”

“I’m sure they do. And then what?”

“Then we became like brother and sister. I mean, I—I told him about all my problems, and he told me about all his problems.”

“Did he ever discuss the defendant with you?”

“Well, yeah, but she called herself by a different name.”

“And that name was?”

“Alette Peters.”

“But he knew her name was really Ashley Patterson?”

“No. He thought her name was Alette Peters.”

“You mean she deceived him?”

David sprang to his feet, furious. “Objection.”

“Sustained. You will stop leading the witness, Mr. Brennan.”

“Sorry, Your Honor.” Brennan turned back to the witness box. “He spoke to you about this Alette Peters, but did you ever see the two of them together?”

“Yes, I did. He brought her into the restaurant one day and introduced us.”

“And you’re speaking of the defendant, Ashley Patterson?”

“Yeah. Only she called herself Alette Peters.”

Gary King was on the stand.

Brennan asked, “You were Richard Melton’s roommate?”

“Yes.”

“Were you also friends? Did you go out with him socially?”

“Sure. We double-dated a lot together.”

“Was Mr. Melton interested in any young lady in particular?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you know her name?”

“She called herself Alette Peters.”

“Do you see her in this courtroom?”

“Yeah. She’s sitting over there.”

“For the record, you are pointing to the defendant, Ashley Patterson?”

“Right.”

“When you came home on the night of the murder, you found Richard Melton’s body in the apartment?”

“I sure did.”

“What was the condition of the body?”

“Bloody.”

“The body had been castrated?”

A shudder. “Yeah. Man, it was awful.”

Brennan looked over at the jury for their reaction. It was exactly what he hoped for.

“What did you do next, Mr. King?”

“I called the police.”

“Thank you.” Brennan turned to David. “Your witness.”

David rose and walked over to Gary King.

“Tell us about Richard Melton. What kind of man was he?”

“He was great.”

“Was he argumentative? Did he like to get into fights?”

“Richard? No. Just the opposite. He was very quiet, laid back.”

“But he liked to be around women who were tough and kind of physical?”

Gary was looking at him strangely. “Not at all. Richard liked nice, quiet women.”

“Did he and Alette have a lot of fights? Did she yell at him a lot?”