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Damien sits up. “Gretchen has tried listening to conversations through them?”
Emma shrugs. “Yeah, but only for gossip stuff. And it didn’t work, anyway.”
“We’re gonna have to clean this all up, aren’t we?” Luc says.
“That would be the honest, ethical thing to do,” I reply. “And that is the direction we’re trying to take the firm.”
Emma giggles, then gathers a handful of paper into her arms. “It won’t be as much work if we all do it together.”
“That’s true,” I say, sweeping up a handful into the trash can. “With all four of us, this should be pretty easy to handle.”
Damien looks at me, suspiciously. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were making some kind of point with that remark.”
I laugh. “Oh, come on. When have you ever known me to make any kind of a point?”
All working together, we have the room looking like a normal office rather than an explosion at a paper factory in a few moments. We divide up all the folders I’ve gathered so everyone feels okay, and finally, everyone heads off to their own desks.
Damien heads out first, then Luc. Emma is the last to head out.
As she’s leaving, she turns around and smiles at me.
“Good job,” she says.
25
EMMA
“Hello,” I say into the phone. “Is this Mr. Lupescu? Hello, sir. It’s great to hear your voice. My name’s Emma and I’m with Devil’s Advocate law firm. Yes, sir, I know that you chose to end your connection with us.”
The rest of the office is empty by now. Everyone else has gone home, because they’re only doing the things that are actually their job. Meanwhile, here I am.
Sometimes I feel silly for it. It makes sense for the Blackwells to stick around doing extra work. They own this place. But what am I here for? I’m just a paralegal. Sure, they’ll probably give me a bonus or a raise or something for doing all this, but that’s not why I’m doing it.
What am I doing this for, anyway?
“Well, we wanted to inform you that we had been looking over your case and we thought of an interesting angle that we might be able to defend you from. Yes, we think we might be able to get them to leave you your house. Yes, I know we said that the best we could do was get you more money from it. Yes, the government contracted to build a road. But like I said, I’ve been looking through the case law, and I think I have a new angle to discuss with you.”
Part of it is just that it feels good to be fighting for something. I have a plan again; I have something that I want and all it’s gonna take to get it is hard work. It’s good to have that kind of certainty. It feels good to be tired at the end of the day and know that you’re getting somewhere rather than just spinning your wheels in place.
Another part is that I just don’t like Raven. Raven has something of a talent for being easy to dislike. I think maybe it comes with being born rich. The idea of her winning, and getting to destroy this law firm just because one member of it didn’t want to be her boyfriend offends my sense of justice. That’s just not how things are supposed to go.
But neither of those are the real reason. I could pretend they were if I wanted to, but why kid myself?
“Your file states that you are a werewolf. Is that correct? Yes, since you were bitten on the moors in Spain. And is it also correct that when you transform, you’re specifically a red wolf? Not a gray wolf? Just what I thought. That’s great.”
I could find a new job if I needed to. I could deal with Raven getting a win. No, I’m doing this for Finn.
And it’s not just that I like Finn. Maybe even more thanlikehim. It’s that I’ve gotten to see how much this means to him. I’ve seen him fight and start to take responsibility in ways I can tell he’s not used to.
That’s what really gets me. I can’t stand the idea that he could put so much into this company and not win. And I’m willing to put in just as much to make sure that doesn’t happen.
“You see, the Endangered Species Act provides the habitats for red wolves certain protections. Well, yes, your house is the habitat for a red wolf, at least a few days every month. You do try to stay indoors when you take on your wolf form, right? Exactly. Well, you might think that, but actually there is some precedent.”
Maybe his brothers are a part of it too. It’s good to be part of a team. To know that when I feel it’s too much, someone else can pick up for me. And that in return, I can pick up for them when I have the energy.
Sometimes, I almost feel like I’m part of their little family. And it’s a good family to be a part of.
“For instance, Illinois vs. Grisholm was a very important case that explored whether someone could be accused of poaching for shooting a werewolf. They concluded that… You’d be interested in setting up a meeting? We’d love to have you back as a client! Well that’s great! Does Tuesday at 1:00 work?”
