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I couldn’t get Gen until four, it was something Helena was quite adamant about, very much believing in consistent scheduling. Still technically on the clock, it was best just to go back to the office and see what I could see.
The case was taken “on result,” so there would be no money forthcoming. I couldn’t help but wonder if the bastards knew that, and that was why they dropped the case, just to fuck with me. I wouldn’t put it past them, and it was still greatly preferable to a bullet in the back of the head.
“I just found out,” Kate said out of nowhere.
“You’re not the only one,” I said, holding onto my temper.
I had every reason to believe her. Making me go all the way down to the courthouse, only to find it wasn’t happening, the poisoned icing on the shit cake. And people wondered why I seemed to be paranoid.
“Do you know what happened?” I asked, still in a state of low-level awe.
“It was the blogs.”
“The blogs?”
Kate pulled it up and handed me her phone. Apparently, the blogosphere had lit up like a dry Christmas Tree when word of the case got out. There were people having screening parties of the technically banned movie, also posting it all over the internet, so people could actually see what all the fuss was about instead of having to take the word of self-important blow-hards who hadn’t even seen the film.
Exposure to truth had led to massive pressure on the government to drop the overtly trumped-up ban. Even though the comments on the internet incarnations were agreed that it was incredibly difficult to watch, but that was part of the point.
It wasn’t quite how I would want things to happen, not thinking that the court of public opinion should influence the actual courts, but I couldn’t deny it was a win. Truth and transparency had won out over cynicism and lies. It was encouraging in a strange way.
Chapter Four - Niles
There were few things better for cardio than courthouse steeps. Usually steep and often plentiful, it could be a work-out just to get to court. A more suspicious person might wonder as to the purpose behind it.
Going in with the usual throng, doing my best to avoid the ones coming out the other way, I made it into the lobby without incident. Certain I wouldn’t get an elevator on the first try, my mind didn’t quite to know what to do with it when just that happened.
The door was opened by Emilie Boucher, who I recognized as my neighbor at White & White. There were times I’d gotten the impression she was trying to avoid me. Even if I couldn’t imagine why. Not that reality was bearing my suspicion out, Emilie apparently willing to share an elevator with me.
I was well aware of my reputation, particularly around the office, but it was only half true. I was a ‘player’ in the technical sense, but still had some semblance of morals. No one under 25, for a start.
I was also open to the idea of something long-term, on the off chance that it happened to present itself. I wasn’t opposed to the idea, but it would have to be with someone who not only accepted me and my dedication to my job, a tall order on its own, but also was okay with Lily.
I didn’t want to bring even a potential ‘new mommy’ into her life without being damn sure the situation was going to last. She had already been through quite enough. I wasn’t sure how well she remembered Cora. She was only three at the time, but there was know telling what she could understand, and I was taking no chances.
Standing at a gentlemanly distance, I kept my hands behind my back and my eyes on the numbers, lighting up above the door, not even wanting to risk staring at her ass, which I already happened to know was absolutely gorgeous. Particularly when she wore a form-fitting skirt. Which was most of the time.
The bell dinged, and I let her exit first, overcome with a bout of chivalry. I had been well-trained in the ways of manners. Mostly thanks to my mother who insisted they were vital for finding an appropriate wife. Thought we seemed to have some differing opinions on what exactly ‘appropriate’ meant. She meant rich and posh. I tended to think I should marry someone I actually liked, regardless of those factors.
The gang was all there, the plaintiff, also known as the lying prick, somehow securing three separate lawyers, which only made him look even more guilty than I knew him to be. At least of being a prick.
Going through the whole opening game of Simon Says, it was time for the opening statements. It was a mighty struggle of Herculean proportions. My smirk pulled at the corner of my face like a fishhook from a cheating MMA champion. The poor fool had no idea, which made what was coming all the sweeter.
