O’Brien came running up to me holding a .12-gauge shotgun.
“You okay?”
I was soaked, my shoulder hurt like hell, and I’d been kicked in the gut and traumatized by a knife-wielding madman who wanted to cut my chest and stick me in an oven. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
“I thought you might need a bit of watching tonight,” he said. “I decided to skip going to O’Toole’s with the boys.”
He helped me to my feet and we walked over to where Juan’s body was lying motionless on my porch. O’Brien kicked Juan’s foot.
“Huh. I thought it would be Rudy Hitchins lying here, not Juan Lopez,” O’Brien said.
I felt a chill. Rudy Hitchins was still out there somewhere in the darkness, still seeking revenge.
O’Brien removed his toothpick and said to the corpse, “Let this be a lesson to you, punk. Never bring a knife to a gunfight.” Inserting the toothpick back between his lips, he grinned and said, “God, I’ve always wanted to say that!”
EPILOGUE
A Week Later
I was late. As usual. It was my first day back after the shooting. As I made my way across the parking lot toward the front door of the Westchester County Courthouse, I saw a man walking several steps in front of me.
Oh crap, I thought. It was miserable Judge Morano. I intentionally slowed down. When he reached the front door, I expected him to hurry inside. But instead, he opened the door, turned, and looked at me.
“Hurry up, Miss Fox. We have serious cases waiting for us.”
I walked with him into the lobby.
He was right.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There are many to thank:
The countless men, women, and children who have crossed my path—those victims who demonstrated great courage and resolve in the face of enormous odds. They are the real heroes who give meaning to those of us who do the work of criminal justice.
Pete Earley, my collaborator, who comes to this effort with a background in reporting and writing as well as an intricate knowledge of the Federal Witness Protection Program. His assistance has been immeasurable. I am most grateful that he, like me, is willing to eat cold pizza during deadlines.
A special thank-you to Gretchen Young from Hyperion for her insight and intuition and her never-ending perseverance in the pursuit of the perfectly edited book. To her assistant, Allyson Rudolph, who works above and beyond to make sure the product is a good one. To Diane Aronson for her thorough work.
David Vigliano, who approached me when I was the sitting District Attorney of Westchester County, New York, to write a book such as this and who was steadfast in his effort to get me to put pen to paper. I thank him for his persistence.
My former District Attorney staff, including Chief Assistant Richard E. Weill; Executive Assistant David Hebert; Annemarie Corbalis, who fought in the trenches with me in the Domestic Violence Unit; and Roseanne Paniccia, my assistant and gatekeeper who always keeps me organized. Also, to Deborah Trevorah for putting in countless hours of transcribing and typing this manuscript.
To Al Pirro, who actually lived those years with me and whose recollection of the lunacy surrounding my early years in the district attorney’s office is uncanny. His wisdom and brilliant mind never cease to amaze me. Thanks, Al, for your contributions to this book.
Finally, to my two children, Kiki and Alex, who have both chosen to follow their parents’ footsteps into the legal profession. May they each find as much satisfaction and challenge in their pursuit of justice as I have found pursuing justice for society’s underdogs.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jeanine Pirro is an Emmy-winning, highly respected former district attorney and county court judge, elected politician, sought-after legal commentator, author, and champion of women’s rights. Jeanine Pirro is the host of two television shows, Judge Jeanine Pirro and Justice with Judge Jeanine. She also appears regularly as a legal analyst and judicial commentator on Today, Good Morning America, The Early Show, 60 Minutes, CNN, and the Fox News Channel. In 1990, she became the first female judge to sit on the Westchester County court bench. In 1993, Judge Pirro was elected district attorney of Westchester County, once again setting a precedent as the first female to hold that position. Judge Pirro received considerable recognition for her work as a leading advocate for victims of domestic violence and worked tirelessly to change the landscape of how courts deal with these issues. She has two children, two dogs, and a pig, and lives in Westchester, New York.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright © 2012 Judge Jeanine Pirro, Inc.
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information address Hyperion, 114 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10011.
The Library of Congress has catalogued the original print edition of this book as follows:
Pirro, Jeanine.
Sly fox: a Dani Fox novel/by Jeanine Pirro.—1st ed.
p. cm.
ISBN-13: 978-1-4013-2457-5
1. Women lawyers—Fiction. 2. Public prosecutors—Fiction. 3. Trials—Fiction. 4. Westchester County (N.Y.)—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3616.I757S58 2012
813’.6—dc23
2011038932
eBook Edition ISBN: 978-1-4013-0416-4
Hyperion books are available for special promotions and premiums. For details, contact the HarperCollins Special Markets Department in the New York office at 212-207-7528, fax 212-207-7222, or email [email protected].
Cover design by GTC Art & Design
Cover photo © Getty Images
Author photo by Telepix
First eBook Edition
Original hardcover edition printed in the United States of America.
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Sly Fox: A Dani Fox Novel Page 30
