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I promised I’d fight like hell to get a real lawyer to get her out one day.
Even if you fire me (and I know you’ll have to) could you please use your pro bono case to help my sister?’
Please…
FALSE PRETENSES (N.)
THE CRIME OF KNOWINGLY MAKING UNTRUE STATEMENTS FOR THE PURPOSE OF OBTAINING MONEY OR PROPERTY FRAUDULENTLY
ELIZABETH
Seattle, Washington
Several Months ago
The doors at Mission Creek Corrections Center slammed shut, sending a shiver down my spine. No matter how often I came to this prison, it always felt like my first day.
The constant noise in the visitors area was forever unsettling—babies crying, guards yelling orders, the speaker system constantly intruded on us with reminders about how many minutes we had left to stay.
I plopped down in front of my sister’s table, eyeing the new bruise above her left eye.
I knew better than to ask about it; whoever gave it to her probably received far worse bruises in return.
“Look at you,” she said, smiling. “You’ve gotten yourself one hell of a wardrobe upgrade. I’m impressed.”
“Yeah…” I set my briefcase on the table. “I just got a new job at a firm, so I have resources to help you now.”
“Which firm?”
“Hamilton and Associates.”
“What?” Her eyes widened. “LikeAndrewHamilton?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow. I’m jealous.”
“Don’t be,” I said. “My boss is a jackass who thinks the world revolves around him.”
She laughed. “I’ve heard worse things about Mr. Hamilton.”
“I’m not talking abouthim,” I said. “I’m talking about Mr. Carter. He’s a douchebag.”
I refused to waste any of our time talking about Damien. “I need you to sign off on this engagement letter for their pro bono program, so I can get to work.”
She took the paper from me and raised her eyebrow. “Is there another lawyer that can help you with this? I mean, I trust you to do the work, but…You know you can only take it so far.”
“I know,” I said. “I’ll figure that out.”
She signed it and leaned forward.
“Have Foster Mom or Foster Dad asked about me lately?”
“All the time,” I said. “They even drive to New York on weekends and join me for lunch.”
“And you gave them front row tickets to your opening night at Broadway?”
“Of course. They were the first ones in the audience to give me a standing ovation.”
