Trial by Fire by Danielle Steel

Author:Danielle Steel [Steel, Danielle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2024-11-19T00:00:00+00:00

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Dahlia was wearing a light blue summer dress when she opened the door to him at three forty-five. She looked pretty and fresh and young, like one of her own daughters. She was using her crutches and not the wheelchair. The wheelchair only made sense if someone pushed it.

He walked in looking busy and purposeful and like a man in command of his surroundings and any situation he confronted. He was wearing a dark gray summer-weight business suit with a white shirt she recognized as Hermès and a dark blue tie. He looked like a successful businessman from New York, with the stylish air of men of power in that city. He was no small-town boy or ordinary lawyer.

She offered him a glass of wine, which he declined.

“I’m working, remember,” he reminded her gently with a smile. “If I represent you while falling down drunk, it may not make a great impression.”

He briefed her before the insurance people arrived and told her to try to relax and be herself, and to answer them honestly, and if she didn’t remember something, just say it. He had been preparing witnesses to take the stand for three decades, and he assured her that honesty was always best, and would reassure the insurance people that she would be a solid witness if it came to that. And they’d be meeting with Marilyn Nicasio too, if they hadn’t already. They’d want to see if their stories matched up, or if there was any divergence.

Dahlia seemed very calm to him by the time the doorbell of the suite rang. He went to the door for her so she didn’t have to get up and do it on crutches. Two men and a woman walked in, wearing proper business attire, looking very serious. Dahlia stood up to greet them to show them some respect. She didn’t want them to think her haughty because she hadn’t gotten off the couch.

She offered them coffee or tea, which they declined, and after a few minimal polite words, they got down to business, while Mark watched them carefully. He could tell two things right at the beginning of the meeting, in the first few minutes. They were impressed with Dahlia, and they knew who she was. They asked her to describe the circumstances of the accident, and precisely how it happened, if she remembered. She did as she was asked and told them in minute detail what had happened. She described each moment like a film on pause as she went from one memory, fact, and impression to the next. The woman looked particularly touched by her, and the men looked moved by her recital too.

“You’re absolutely sure that the first impact was from the truck behind you?” one of the men asked her pointedly when she was finished. And Mark was impressed too by how clearly and calmly she had described it.

“Completely,” she said without wavering. “He hit me so hard, I thought I was going to fly through the windshield, but my seatbelt kept that from happening.

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