by Nick James
Chapter Forty-Three
They didn’t call that night. Emily did. Three times, as a matter of fact. Each time she called, Bobby thought about answering, but in the end he simply dumped her into his voicemail. He didn’t have the energy to deal with her tonight. Besides, Maria was giving him her undivided attention.
Luis had left after staying for no more than an hour. Miguel, Tommy, and the two other men were spending the night. Apparently, they were working in apparent shifts, one out in the hallway opposite the elevator, another staying awake in the living room, and two sleeping.
At the moment, Bobby was in bed, lying on his stomach while Maria sat on top of him massaging his back with a hot oil of some sort. About every thirty seconds, she would lean forward, kiss the back of his head and tell him everything was going to be all right. He didn’t know how long she kept it up. In the morning when he woke, she wasn’t in bed so he laid there, slowly coming awake. It was daylight outside and he turned his cellphone on to check the time. It was just a little before six and he had two text messages from Emily.
The first text message was a long apology for her behavior which she said she couldn’t remember. That text had come through just after two in the morning. The second text had come through a little after three…one line, “I’m so sorry” along with a selfie that left nothing to the imagination. He was in the process of thinking that wasn’t such a bad way to start the day when the bedroom door opened and a naked Maria stepped in holding a steaming mug of coffee. Her eyes grew wide when she saw the cellphone in his hand and he quickly turned it off before she caught sight of Emily’s image.
“Did they call?” she asked, then bit her lower lip in an anguished sort of way.
“No, just checking for messages.”
“I heard one come through last night, very late. A message, not a phone call, so I didn’t wake you. Was that okay?”
“Yeah, I’m glad you didn’t wake me. I was more tired than I realized. Exhausted, actually.”
She handed him the coffee mug, then sat next to him on the edge of the bed. “You were very tired. You, you went to sleep. You’ve never done that before,” she said and raised her eyebrows.
“It was a long day,” he replied. Then her not-so-subtle message suddenly registered with him and he set the coffee mug on the bedside table and moved over so she could climb in next to him. When they were finished, he rolled off her. She snuggled up next to him, content and satisfied with her head on his shoulder and one leg draped over his. A moment later, she began writing across his chest with her fingertip.
“More prayers?” he half-laughed.
“Yes, and do you remember who I pray to?”
“Yes.”
She raised herself up and stared at him, “No, you don’t.”
“I do.”
“Oh really, and what are their names?”
“Names? Well they’re both saints, right?”
“Yes,” she said, with a disgusted look on her face.
“And one was something that started with an ‘M’ right?”
“How can they help you if you won’t even remember their names?”
“Would it be Santa Muerte and Jesús Malverde?”
She stared wide-eyed for a moment, then gave him a long kiss. “They will be with you when you need them. Never think you are alone.”
“I never do. I’ve always got Miguel looking after me.”
She slapped him on the chest, then rolled out of bed. “Put something on and I’ll cook you breakfast. You’re hungry, yes?”
With the thought of breakfast, his stomach made a growling noise. “That answer your question?”
“I knew it. You hardly touched the dinner I made for you last night.”
“I’m sorry, I…”
She laid her index finger on his lips and said, “Shhh, join me in the kitchen once you finish your coffee.” Then she picked up a short silk robe from the end of the bed, slipped into it, and kissed him again before cinching the belt and walking out of the room.
He joined her in the kitchen ten minutes later. She set a fresh mug of coffee down in front of him and a minute or two after that, an omelet of some sort with olives, peppers, basil and some other things he couldn’t identify. It was delicious, and as he ate he thought of Emily acting depressed, hungover, or both and how much more pleasant this was.
A little before nine, he was dressed and heading down to the office. Miguel was driving. Tommy sat in the passenger seat. The Cadillac Escalade followed behind. They were taking a slightly different route, traveling up Kellogg Boulevard, then turning on Minnesota Street, going around the block and then parking in front. The two men in the Escalade climbed out and glanced around the area before nodding to Miguel.
“Okay, escort him to the elevators,” Miguel said to Tommy. Then he turned round to face Bobby. “Call me with anything, anything at all. You’re sure I can’t send Tommy up to your office?”
“No, I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Okay, remember to call me as soon as you hear something.”
He nodded just as Tommy opened the door and Bobby climbed out of the back seat. He noticed for the first time that Tommy was wearing Bishop Dalton’s silver ring and he grabbed his hand and examined the ring.
“Is okay, no?”
“Yeah, it’s fine. I think it looks very good on you. I just hope it brings you better luck than the last guy who wore it.”
Tommy flashed a wide smile, then led Bobby toward the building. He called something in Spanish and the other two fell in behind them. The guard at the security desk eyed the group suspiciously, then recognized Bobby and gave a half-hearted smile. Bobby stepped onto the elevator and turned just in time to see Tommy showing off his new ring before the doors closed.
The moment he stepped off the elevator, Marci greeted him with a pair of wide eyes and began speaking excitedly. “Oh, Mr. Custer, glad you’re here. Mr. Hinz left a message. You’re to see him as soon as you arrive,” she said and handed Bobby a pink message slip.
“He’s already in this morning?” Bobby asked and checked the digital clock on the credenza behind Marci. It was just a little after nine.
“Yes, sir, I know what you mean. He was here when I arrived this morning. I can’t recall the last time he was in this early. As a matter of fact, I don’t think he’s ever been in this early.”
“I suppose I should see what it’s all about,” Bobby said then headed back toward his office. As he left he heard Marci speaking to someone on the phone, “He just came in…”
Chapter Forty-Four
As he made his way back toward his office he was aware of a number of heads peeking out from their cubicles once he’d passed. Dorsey came around the corner pushing the four-wheeled cart just as Bobby unlocked his office door.
“You’re going to be joining me in the luxurious file room again, today, aren’t you?”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I have to check in with Mr. Hinz first, though.”
“He’s already in?”
“Apparently.”
Dorsey glanced over at Bennett’s closed office door and lowered his voice to almost a whisper. “There’s a first. Maybe he’s just coming home from last night and stopped to check messages or grab a quick nap.”
“I’ll let you know.”
“Good luck with that,” Dorsey said and pushed the cart into the maze of paralegal cubicles. Bobby stepped into his office and closed the door. He turned his computer on, quickly checked emails, nothing that couldn’t wait. He grabbed a Post-it note, wrote one word, ‘Emily’, on it and attached it to his computer screen, then walked over to Bennett’s office.
He knocked on the door, opened it, and stuck his head in just as Bennett called, “Who is it?”
“You wanted to see me?” Bobby said, waving the pink message slip.
Bennett was seated at his desk in shirtsleeves. His tie was slightly loosened and his suit coat hung over the back of his chair. His face appeared
redder than usual against the starched white shirt collar. Perspiration was apparent under his arms. He gave an exhausted-sounding exhale and threw a pen onto the spread sheets scattered across his desk. He actually looked like he was working for a change, which may have explained the exhaustion. “Please come in and have a seat,” he said, then sat back in his chair and seemed to steel himself for what lay ahead.
Bobby pulled out one of the client chairs and sat down, taking his time just to make Bennett sweat a little more. “So, what’s up?”
“I’m not sure how to phrase this so I’m just going to come out and say it. There have been concerns expressed by our employees regarding your clientele.”
“My clientele?”
“They feel unsafe, Bobby. Good lord, we’ve got young mothers and law students working here, not to mention senior citizens like myself,” Bennett said, then smiled and waited a moment for the laugh that never came. “You’re attracting people with guns and apparent unbalanced individuals screaming they’re going to kill everyone.”
Bishop Dalton. “Not to make too fine a point, Bennett, but the individual screaming the other afternoon actually said I was going to get everyone killed, not that he, or I for that matter, were going to do the killing. By the way, he’s an attorney, practicing in town. His name is Bishop Dalton and he’s due to appear in front of the Bar Association’s ethics committee in the next few days, and after that in court in a week or two facing misappropriation charges. He came to me for help, as potential clients do. Unfortunately, I felt exactly like many of our employees and said in no uncertain terms that I would not be representing him. I hasten to add I’ve not heard from him since.”
“I’m sure everyone will be relieved to know that. Now, the individuals carrying guns. I can certainly understand…”
Bobby figured he was probably referring to Miguel, or most recently Tommy and the other two, not that it really mattered. “Just for starters, it’s their constitutional right. Unless, perhaps, things have changed and I should check before I say anything. My understanding was with the proper license, a conceal and carry permit which they all have, they are entitled to do just that, conceal and carry.”
“Well yes, yes, certainly. On the other hand, I’m sure you can understand the concerns that have been expressed and…”
“Did they happen to have been expressed by Sawyer or Allen, your partners? Because let’s be honest, they love the billing Mr. Montcreff’s work provides the firm. But apparently, they would prefer that Montcreff and his associates remain out of sight.”
“The Montcreff account was not what they were concerned about. Now…”
So it was the partners. “Really, Bennett? Because other than a practicing attorney who I told in no uncertain terms I would not be representing, Mr. Montcreff has been my sole focus. Don’t tell me they’re still worked up about me taking over Noah Denton’s office? Are they upset about my fee structure?”
Bennett exhaled loudly and stared out the window for a long moment. It gave Bobby the opportunity to quickly glance at the financial sheets scattered across his desk. They all seemed to be labeled ‘Hinz Family Trust’, but off to one side were a series of sheets that looked to be printed copies of emails. Bobby caught the email address ‘SaundersE’ and realized they were from Emily. The one he’d sent Bennett the other night was probably in there. Which meant Emily had most likely believed she’d sent it when she was drunk and had already begun to blackmail Bennett. No doubt the pressure Bennett faced wasn’t due to Bishop Dalton or even Miguel and company. It was probably self-imposed. Bennett pushing the partners for some sort of settlement on the lawsuit regarding Emily’s sister. In a word, Bennett was screwed and he probably knew it.
“Bennett, you seemed really stressed and I can’t believe it’s regarding my situation. There seem to be a lot of changes going on in the Montcreff organization. I have the sense Mr. Montcreff may be ill and there are a number of individuals vying for his position. Thus far, we’ve been able to ride it out, but as you can imagine it’s more than a little crazy. At this juncture about all I can do is stand ready to help Montcreff or whoever becomes the designated heir apparent. What’s the status of that Saunders family lawsuit? Have they dropped their claim yet?”
At the sound of the Saunders family lawsuit the color drained from Bennett’s face and he sat back in his chair, looked toward the ceiling and said, “What an absolute goddamned disaster.”
“Is it going to trial?”
Bennett shook his head. “We can’t have that. We’d be the laughing stock of the entire legal community.”
Meaning Emily probably threatened Bennett with the dozens of images she had of the two of them from San Francisco. She’d start by presenting them to his wife, which explained the trust fund spread sheets. He was probably attempting to protect the fund from a divorce. No wonder he looked stressed.
“If that’s the case can’t you convince your partners it’s in both their and the firms best interest to settle out of court? What sort of timeframe are you looking at?”
“One week,” he said and shook his head. “One God damned week before the shit hits the fan.”
“How much are they asking for?”
“An even five million.”
“Five million dollars?” Bobby exclaimed, not hiding his surprise. “Based on what? A delusional Noah Denton touched her breast? Grabbed her ass? Or made a sexist remark? The firm immediately acted in her best interest. Denton was hospitalized and from there began a downward spiral that led to his passing. Surely reason would win the day and any court would…”
“They’ve an airtight case,” Bennett said and his voice actually cracked as if he was about to cry.
“Air tight? How? What?”
“It’s a bit complicated, suffice to say I’m attempting to convince the partners it would be best to settle. The term mission impossible doesn’t begin to describe the task.”
“Anything I can do to help?”
Bennett seemed to think about that for a moment then put on a funny sort of smile and said, “Do you know any prayers?”
“Let me know if I can be of any help to you,” Bobby said then pushed his chair back and stood.
“I fear we may have already passed that point,” Bennett said and just stared off into the distance.
Chapter Forty-five
He left Bennett drowning in his own misery, buoyed by family trust fund reports and at the same time, no doubt weighed down by emails from Emily. He sat at his desk for a moment then dialed her number. He counted the rings and figured he was about to be dumped into her voicemail when she answered. “Hi. Thank you for calling.”
“Sorry it took so long to get back to…”
“Please. Don’t say a word, I just want to tell you I am so sorry for my behavior the other night. I don’t know what I was thinking drinking all that wine, and then getting on my computer in that condition. I promise I’ll make the night up to you. Just give me a second chance. I’m really, really sorry.”
He was going to joke and say something like; ‘The important thing is you feel bad.’ But he changed his mind and just gave her a cold, “Thank you.”
“Promise me if I ever even think of doing something like that, ever again, you’ll kick me in the ass, hard. Real hard.”
“That sounds a little severe.”
“Not really, I ended up causing all sorts of problems. I just don’t…”
“Problems, did you goof up your software or order all sorts of things from Amazon?”
“That, I could deal with. No, I sent someone an email I shouldn’t have sent.”
“One of your clients?” he asked and just let the word hang out there.
“No, ahhh, just a friend, but it was a stupid thing to do and it continues to cause me headaches. Life is tough enough without creating more problems for myself. You sounded really busy in your email,” she said quickly changing the subject. “Is there a chance we could get together in the near future so I can be
gin to make it up to you?”
“I think that could be arranged. I’m busy the next couple of days, but maybe toward the end of the week.”
“You sure you’re not just punishing me for being such a bitch?”
“No I’m not punishing you, and you’re not a bitch.”
“I beg to differ, I…”
“You were just drunk, really drunk as a matter of fact and sometimes we make bad choices when we’re in that condition.”
“I certainly proved that to be the case. Okay, listen I won’t bug you anymore, but get over here as soon as you can. I need a great big Bobby insert and I’ll drop whatever I’m doing to get it.”
“I suppose you could come down here if you wanted.”
“To your office?” He could sense the discomfort in her voice.
“You know on second thought that might not be the best idea,” he said.
“I will if you really want me too. You might have to sneak me in, but…”
“No, I was just teasing you. I’m afraid we’d be interrupted and I want you all to myself.”
“You know you’ve got that.”
“Thanks,” he said thinking ‘bullshit’. Almost two dozen files on guys you’re blackmailing and a five-million-dollar demand to that idiot Bennett Hinz. “Any progress on your suit against the firm.”
“What did you hear?” she said suddenly sounding very guarded.
“Hear? Not a thing. I’m out of the loop on that one. In fact, I’m not sure anyone knows it’s even out there, well except for the partners and they’re not talking to me.”
“Nothing to report, except that I hope they sign off on our settlement offer and we can be finished with the thing. It’s really been difficult, and it continues to dredge up a lot of heartbreak for both my mother and me.”
