Damage
On the morning of what was going to be his first day at his new job, a good-looking, well-built man with his hair trimmed to just over his ears stood in front of his bedroom closet in a pair of Jockey shorts. He pulled a T-shirt from the top of a large pile of them on their special shelf. Putting it on, he checked himself in the dresser’s mirror, sucked in an imagined gut, then turned around with a small flourish. The T-shirt read: shotgunwedding: acase ofwife or death.
“No.” His girlfriend sat up against the bed’s headboard.
“Abso¬lutely not.”
“I like it,” he said.
“Wes, you like them all.”
“True. It’s a foolish man who buys a shirt he doesn’t like.”
“It’s a more foolish man who goes to work as the district attorney of San Francisco wearing a shirt that can only be misinterpreted, and will be.”
“By who?”
“Everybody. And all for different reasons.”
“Sam.” Wes walked across the room, sat on the bed, and put a hand on her thigh. “Nobody’s going to see it. It’s not like I’m wear¬ing it outside with my tie. And besides, if I have a heart attack and they have to rip open my dress shirt and somebody sees it, so what? It’s not exactly inflammatory. It’s just a pun, for God’s sake.”
“It’s not just a pun. It’s a political statement.”
“Saying what?”
“That you’re in favor of shotgun weddings. That getting married isn’t sacred. That you don’t think women are equal. Pick one. That you’re not sensitive enough in a general way.”
“Well, we already know that.”
“You laugh, but it’s nothing to laugh at. Everything you do, in¬nocent or not, is going to be a political statement from now on. Don’t you see that? I thought you would have learned that during the election.”
“Nope. I guess not. And, might I remind you, I won.”
Sam made a face. “Wes, you won by ninety votes out of three hundred and fifteen thousand after your opponent died the week before the election.”
“As though it’s a bad thing. No, listen. It’s proof that God wanted me to win. He wouldn’t have taken Mr. Dexter back into His bosom if He didn’t want me to win. It’s self-evident. Maybe even cosmic.”
“It’s hopeless.”
“Well, I hope not that. It’s only my first day. I’m sure I’ll be way more hopeless as time goes by.” He got up and crossed back to the closet. “But if you really think it’s going to matter,” he said, “I’ll consider going with tomorrow’s T-shirt instead.”
“You’re wearing one tomorrow, too?”
“Sam, I wear a T-shirt every day. It provides clues to my secret persona.”
“Not so secret. The press is going to start wanting to see it if word gets out.”
“Good. That’ll just make me more je ne sais quoi. Quirky and lovable. But if you want, for the inaugural, I’ll trade out this one with tomorrow’s.” He turned and held out the next shirt on the pile: Heavily medicated for your safety.
From Damage by John Lescroart. Published by arrangement with Dutton, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc. Copyright © 2011 by The Lescroart Corporation.
Damage
With Damage, John Lescroart takes an explosive look at the seductive power of revenge and the terrible costs of justice.
When Ro Curtlee, heir to San Francisco’s most powerful family, was convicted of rape and murder a decade ago, the fallout for those who helped bring him to justice was swift and harsh. Yet, despite the damage to his career, homicide detective Abe Glitsky was eventually able to rebuild his life.
Now Ro has been released from jail. Within 24 hours, a fire kills the star witness at his trial. When another fire claims the wife of the jury foreman, the truth seems clear: Ro is out for revenge. With no hard evidence to connect Ro to the crimes, can Abe stop the violence before he finds himself in its crosshairs?
Hardcover Book : 416 pages
Publisher: Dutton, Division of Penguin Putnam ( January 04, 2011 )
Item #: 13-152111
ISBN: 9780525951766
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.25 x 0.937inches
Product Weight: 15.0 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Excellent 
October 26, 2011
This is one of my favorite authors. I thought this book was really good. Kept your interst and, I found it, just relaxing to read.
Reviewer: Carol
Good read
June 17, 2011
1st book I have read by Lescroart and I loved it!
Reviewer: S H
sucked
April 09, 2011
I did not care for the book. I just could not get into it.
Reviewer: scarman1313
Good read.
March 21, 2011
Not as great as the Dismus Hardy books but still a very good read. I enjoyed seeing Abe as the main character with his wife and kids and Dismus and his family as secondary characters. A little easier to figure out but still has some really suspenseful parts.
Reviewer: fsmith88
disappointed
January 19, 2011
I LOVE this author!!!! Book was well written but one - third of the way through I already know who "did it".
Reviewer: pepelepew
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