Maddy closes her eyes for a moment to clear her head. When she opens them, she turns to the secretary of defense. “Get in touch with Manila again. Tell them we advise them to turn their frigate toward the nearest Philippine port—immediately.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She looks at Boone. “Can our carriers communicate directly with the Chinese destroyers?”

“We can try, ma’am.”

“Do it. Make it perfectly clear that if they attack the Antonio Luna, we’ll send them to the bottom of the sea.”

CHAPTER
117

Rockingham County Courthouse, New Hampshire

The next morning, Ron Reynolds whispers to me as I pass him going into court, “I hear the deputy AG has a bombshell.”

I’m still trying to absorb the one Teresa Bonanno dropped on me yesterday. Had Suzanne really been pregnant with Tony Romero’s baby? Despite her newfound sobriety, Teresa had admitted to lying before. And I’m not sure if I can trust her.

The court clerk’s voice breaks into my thoughts. “All rise!”

Judge Walter Dow enters and sits down behind the bench. “Be seated.” He shuffles some papers, then looks at Bastinelli. “Is the State ready to proceed?”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

Dow lowers his glasses and looks out over the courtroom. “I am going to caution the gallery, as I have before, that I will not tolerate any expressions of approval or disapproval or outbursts of any kind. If you can’t control yourself, the bailiffs will eject you.”

Whatever the prosecution has, it must be pretty juicy.

Dow waves his hand at Hugh Bastinelli. “Go ahead, Counselor.”

“The State calls Mr. Craig Donovan.”

A nervous-looking guy in a corduroy jacket walks through the doors and the clerk swears him in.

It takes Bastinelli only a minute or two to establish the man’s credentials. Donovan, now in his sixties, is a retired professional photographer who spent many years working for the Patriots. He took pictures of the cheerleaders and the players, including Suzanne Bonanno and Cole Wright.

Why is he here? What does he know?

“Mr. Donovan, do you see Cole Wright in the courtroom today?”

“I do.”

“Can you point him out for the jury, please?”

Donovan points to Cole Wright sitting at the defense table.

“Let the record show that the witness has identified the defendant.” Bastinelli continues. “Mr. Donovan, was there an occasion before an Atlanta Falcons road game when you observed the Patriots players in the training area of Gillette Stadium?”

“Yes, sir.”

“And were you taking photographs of that occasion?”

“Not on assignment. I just happened to be passing through the facility on my way to my car. I always had my camera with me, so I took a few shots.”

“Were these photographs meant for publication or publicity?”

“No, that wasn’t part of my job. Just some candids.”

“So you never got front-office approval to make these pictures public?”

“No. I never showed them to anybody.”