by Shenda Paul
“Don’t you want to go, sweetheart,” Mom, seeing my hesitation, asked.
“I do,” I assured her, “it’s just—I don’t want to make any plans until I know whether I’ve been admitted to the bar or not.
“You will be, Adam,” she assured me.
“I’d rather not jump the gun,” I replied.
“What’s the worse case scenario, Son?” Dad asked.
“I’d have to take the exam again.” He smiled, having already known the answer. “So, in the unlikely event that you have to resit, when would you be able to do so,” he asked, again, knowing I’d have to wait until February.
“Exactly,” he responded before I could, “so let’s plan our trip.” We did. Our plans included visiting London, Paris, and Rome. Mom and Dad wanted to see Ireland and Scotland, so Cait and I decided we’d stay in London for a week longer and then meet up with them in Paris after spending a week in Spain.
Matt, when he heard, asked if he could join Cait and me in London and then travel with us to Spain.
“Sure,” I said, “but you’ve never wanted to see Europe before?” I asked because he’d always spoken about South America and also because he seemed uncharacteristically embarrassed or nervous. I couldn’t determine which because Matt avoided looking me in the eye, something else that was unusual.
“I just think it would be great to see those places with you,” he said.
“Cait will be there, so if you’re expecting us to pick up girls, that won’t be happening,” I warned because Matt is a bit of a player, worse than I’d ever been.
“I know that,” he said, looking and sounding irritated.
“I’m not trying to be a dick, Matt, but I wouldn’t do that around Cait,” I told him.
“Nor would I,” he said glaring at me.
“Great, that’s settled then,” I told him, and so Matt was included in our plans. I expected Cait to protest that our time together would be spoiled, but she didn’t. In fact, she seemed more than pleased. I found it strange because Cait had insisted that our time alone would be good for rebonding. “I miss the way we used to be,” she’d often lamented after I’d left for law school. Preoccupied with waiting for news from the admissions board, I thought no more of her and Matt’s odd behavior.
And now, finally, the day I’ve been working toward for seven years has arrived—well, eight, depending on whether I choose to measure my legal journey from that pivotal moment in Ariane’s office or the day I started my undergrad degree. This morning, I received official notification of my admission to the Massachusetts’ Bar.
In two weeks, I’ll attend the formal ceremony at Faneuil Hall, where, in an actual session of the court presided over by a Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court, I’ll take the Attorneys Oath, sign the Roll of Attorneys, and be presented with my license to practice law.
Three days after that, I fly out to London with my family, and, later, Matt will arrive. Then, he and Cait, my two best friends, will join me for our first overseas adventure. Right now, I feel extraordinarily blessed. I’ve come a long way from that neglected little boy, who watched my mother’s fall into drugs and prostitution and who, later, learned of a father who wanted him aborted. Thanks to the dedication and warm heart of Emma Thorne, who could so easily have written me off as just another welfare case, I’ve been given a new and better life.
Things could have turned out so differently for me; I know that. I’ve seen evidence of that during my pro-bono work and internship. Gaining insight into their lives and learning about the deplorable, sometimes barbaric nature of the crimes perpetrated against the weak and vulnerable has strengthened my resolve to make the most of the advantages I’ve been given. In January, when I start the new phase of my life, I’ll do everything I can to secure justice for the victims of crime. After all, I could so easily have suffered their fate.
-The End-
About The Author
Shenda’s dreamt of writing books since childhood.
Her parents, booklovers, instilled a passion for reading at an early age, and a wonderfully, eccentric English teacher nurtured that love, encouraged her to read widely and to write. The works of Austen, Du Maurier, the Brontës, and Hardy fed her romantic soul, and books such as To Kill A Mockingbird, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, and Beloved sharpened her sense of justice and fed her interest in the complexity of the human spirit.
Shenda writes about romance, love, passion, drama, intrigue, and suspense. She explores how adversity or good fortune shaped and continues to influence the lives of her characters—their views, their choices, their interactions with others—the people they are and, ultimately, the people they choose to become.
She wrote the Counsel series from her ‘office’, the family room overlooking her garden in Sydney, Australia. She can be found there every day, plotting her next literary adventures.
Shenda cares deeply about human rights, the welfare of women, children, and animals. Links to the charities she supports can be found on her website.
For more information on Shenda and her books visit:
www.shendapaul.com
Or, like her on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorShendaPaul/
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
About The Author
