"Don't pretend you were filled with remorse. Don't give this jury any more trash. Tell us the truth. What was your reaction?"
After all the shouting, Dennis's voice seemed so tiny he was barely audible. "I was glad Sentz was dead."
Ben's eyelids closed.
"What was that, sir? I'm not sure the jury could hear you!"
"I was glad," Dennis said, much louder. "I was glad, okay?"
"You were glad!" Guillerman turned to the jury. "Did you hear that? He was glad!"
"The man killed my wife!" Dennis said, matching his volume. "He deserved to die!"
"Thank you for your honesty." Guillerman threw up his hands. "Nothing more. I've had as much of this calculating killer as I can take."
"Counsel!" the judge said, eyes flared.
"No more questions. I will pass the witness."
"You will pay a five-hundred-dollar fine for contempt of court, that's what you will do. I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in my courtroom. You are an experienced…"
The judge's chastisement went on for some while, but Ben knew it wouldn't matter. Guillerman's tirade was well worth the five hundred dollars his office would pay, and then some. The judge would instruct the jury to ignore his remarks, which was rather like asking a mouse to ignore the elephant about to step on its head. Impossible.
Dennis had been seriously damaged during this examination. He wasn't sure Guillerman had actually brought out anything new. What he had attacked was not so much Dennis's veracity as his character. If the jury didn't trust him, they wouldn't cut him a break. They wouldn't believe he was temporarily insane and they wouldn't be motivated toward jury nullification.
If they bought what Guillerman was peddling, the only thing they would be motivated to do would be to find Dennis guilty of murder in the first degree.