that?'
'As I said, ma'am. We'd known each other in passing at the Academy. We'd just started getting to know each other on the ship.'
'You weren't friends.'
'No, ma'am.' Paul knew Pullman was watching him, but he wasn't going to deny that truth.
'Do you believe you know him well?'
Paul inhaled deeply to calm himself, trying to think. 'No.'
'Not like a brother?'
Paul glanced at Carr sharply, but she betrayed no sign that the question was a dig at the fact the defense counsel was Paul's brother. 'No. No, ma'am.'
'Did you share personal secrets with Lieutenant Pullman?'
'No, ma'am.'
'No band-of-brothers bonding?'
'No. He hadn't been on the ship long enough.'
'Did you bond with other officers on the ship in that fashion?'
'Yes, ma'am.'
'One? Two?'
'Uh…' Carl Meadows, Kris Denaldo, Jen before they'd become more than friends, Mike Bristol, Commander Sykes, Lieutenant Sindh. Paul's eyes strayed toward Lieutenant Kilgary at the members' table. 'At least seven, ma'am.'
'Do you believe you know Lieutenant Pullman well?'
'No, ma'am.'
'Did you believe you knew him well prior to his arrest?'
'No.' He looked over at Brad Pullman. 'No, not really, ma'am.'
'Thank you, Lieutenant Sinclair. No more questions.'
David Sinclair stood. 'Defense Counsel will redirect. Lieutenant Sinclair, prior to Lieutenant Pullman's arrest would you have gone into battle with him?'
That really wasn't too hard to answer. 'Yes.'
'Willingly? With no qualms about having Lieutenant Pullman by your side in the face of the enemy?'
Paul stared downward, trying to remember for certain, but knowing that if he'd felt differently he'd surely remember that. 'Yes.'
'Then wouldn't you say you knew Lieutenant Pullman well enough to trust him by your side in the most extreme circumstances?'
'Yes, I guess you could say that.'
'Were there other officers on the ship you trusted less? Officers you'd have wanted by your side in combat less than Lieutenant Pullman?'
He hated to state it publicly, but it was true. He had no idea how Lieutenant Isakov would react in combat, he thought Commander Moraine was a flake and he thought Randy Diego simply never learned nearly enough from his mistakes. Fortunately, he didn't have to name anyone to answer the question. 'Yes.'
'Yes, you'd rather face combat with Lieutenant Pullman by your side than with some of the other officers on your ship?'
Damn. He didn't want to malign the wardroom of his ship, most of whom were fine officers. But he was under oath. Lying wasn't an option. 'Yes. Just a couple.' And please don't ask me to name them.
'Thank you. No further questions.'
Captain Nguyen regarded Paul thoughtfully. 'Lieutenant Sinclair, why are you a witness for the defense?'
'I don't know, ma'am.'
'You didn't volunteer this time?'
'No, ma'am.' So Captain Nguyen did remember Paul from Captain Wakeman's court-martial. He'd wondered about that.
'Would you have volunteered if you'd known some information you thought could help Lieutenant Pullman's defense?'
Paul hesitated. 'Yes, ma'am.'
'But you know of nothing? No flaws in the NCIS investigation? No errors in the handling of evidence? Nothing?'
'No, ma'am.'
He saw the look on her face and realized he'd just inadvertently confirmed Pullman's guilt in Captain Nguyen's eyes. My damned reputation. Nguyen knows I'd speak up if I knew anything or even felt Pullman was being wronged. But I can't find any basis for saying something like that. God knows I've tried to think of anything like that.
Commander Sriracha had something of the same look on his face that Captain Nguyen did. 'Lieutenant Sinclair, correct me if I'm wrong, but do you make a presumption of competence with every new officer?'
'Excuse me, sir?'
'When a new officer comes aboard, do you give him or her the benefit of the doubt? That they're capable enough and intelligent enough and steadfast enough?'
Paul considered the question for a moment. 'Yes, sir, I do. I assume that because they're officers they've proven some abilities. That's just a baseline. Once I get to know them I evaluate them on personal knowledge.'
'Do you think that's what you did with Lieutenant Pullman? Give him the benefit of the doubt since you didn't know him all that well?'
Paul looked at Commander Sriracha, then nodded. 'Yes, sir. I believe I did.' Another nail in Pullman's coffin, perhaps.
Lieutenant Kilgary spoke next. 'Lieutenant Sinclair, you testified that you'd have preferred to go into combat alongside Lieutenant Pullman over a couple of other officers in the wardroom of your ship. For the record, do you have any qualms about facing combat with your fellow officers on the USS Michaelson?'
'Do you mean qualms in terms of trusting them and counting on them? Not the wardroom as a whole, no. No qualms at all. Not the enlisted onboard, either. When shots were being fired by warships at that asteroid I was frankly worried about the prospect of combat, but I was glad to know who was with me on the Michaelson if it came to combat.' Even Garcia, who was always mad but knew his job. Even Commander Kwan, the XO, who doesn't like me but knows his job.
'Thank you, Lieutenant Sinclair.'
Paul almost thanked her back. If he knew anything, he knew Colleen Kilgary had deliberately given him a chance to publicly praise a wardroom of other officers that he might otherwise have been accused of maligning.
'No more questions for this witness, Your Honor.'
Judge Campbell dismissed him, and Paul walked back to his chair and sat down, not willing to look over at Brad Pullman again.
David Sinclair stood slowly, leaning for a moment on the defense table before straightening. 'The defense rests.'
A murmur ran through the courtroom despite the quick rap of Judge Campbell's gavel. Paul stared at his brother. That was it? Me and that former covert agent? Those were your only witnesses? I thought you were a really good lawyer.
Judge Campbell glared around the courtroom until it was as quiet as a roomful of humans could manage. 'Does the defendant desire to make a statement?'
Pullman started to rise but David Sinclair held out a hand to forestall him. 'Your Honor, Defense Counsel requests a brief recess so that I can confer with my client.'
'Very well. How brief?'
'Ten minutes, Your Honor.'
'This court is closed. It will reopen in ten minutes' time.' Judge Campbell banged her gavel, the bailiff
