"Hamish!" I chased after the man after I finally caught a sight of him on his way out of the building. I needed to talk to him and clarify if we were okay, and despite the things I've already heard in the office, I was hopeful he didn't feel indifferent towards me.
"Listen, Annie, now's not the right-"
"-Hamish," I silenced him and grabbed both his hands to forcefully turn him my way, even with a bit of struggle on my part as he was clearly stronger than me. "At least give me five minutes of your time. I deserve that, don't I?" I pleaded for him to spare just even a second.
Hamish sighed and rolled his eyes in defeat. "Alright," He sounded uninterested and lacked enthusiasm.
I let him go and clung onto the straps of my bag, my view shifted briefly to the concrete floor and back up to his blue eyes. They were sad, they were clearly in a fight to tell me something.
"What is it, Annie?"
"What's happening between us? Are we okay?"
Hamish rubbed the tips of his fingers along his forehead, his skin wrinkled a bit as he stared up to the clear blue sky and began to explain; "I know I've been acting weird. Erika called me out the other day about it, she said that you're worried so I need to tell you that I'm fine. We're fine. I've just been a bit busier than usual, seems like everyone wants me."
"So, you're not going to help me with the case then?"
He shook his head. "Unfortunately not, since meeting Nathaniel the other day, he's assigned me to do errands with the junior associates instead of being a consultant. I also had to collect all these clients for our firm," He still continued on, which showed that he was still a lot more open than I expected, and I was glad.
"One more question-" I mumbled shyly. "Are you free to catch up for dinner? I really need to talk to you."
"Yes, Erika already shoved me into it." He smiled. "I'll see you tonight, Annie," He added with a wink and lazily wrapped an arm around me to give me a weak embrace, and I couldn't resist to hug him back.
"Anyway, I have to go," I said against the side of his shirt before I parted from our short hug.
"Oh, one more thing-" He grabbed me by my arm and made sure I wouldn't wander off without him finishing, similar but a bit gentle compared to how I stopped him earlier. "-I asked a friend of mine to help you, but I'm not going to say who. Please be a bit nicer, yeah?"
"Okay, but give me a hint?"
Hamish pressed his finger against his lips and winked. "I won't say a word. He'll help you big time," He teased.
"You suck."
"Yes, I know," He only chuckled and patted the top of my head before he walked away. I watched the back of his head leave again, like how he left me and Erika when he volunteered to meet Nathaniel, but at least this time, he looked over his shoulder and gave me a wave goodbye and he was gone.
I only sighed and went back up to work.
Around noon, the rare appearance of Judge Cole in the firm made all the employees frantic. Apparently, other than the senior associates, the partners and bosses, everyone else were more scared of the judge than they were of Nathaniel and my Father. I watched them clean their desk space, straighten themselves and make sure they were as presentable as they were the first day they started working for Lawler & Walsh. I've heard and been told that Judge Cole was an important network for my law career, especially in the corporate world where we needed to play dirty once and a while, and for Judge Cole, it became his sideline job - a hobby more like it.
However, I didn't expect his surprise visit to be for me.
"Ms Lawler," Judge Cole greeted with a wrinkled smile, his arms wide open as he walked closer to give me a warm embrace, a notion in which was not accepted by my fiancé, who happened to be around at the exact same time it happened. Actually, it was he and my Father, they both displayed stern faces and wrinkled noses.
"Adrian and Mr Walsh number two!" The Judge went on as soon as he let me go, he turned towards them and shook their hands. "I haven't stepped in her for a while-"
"-Indeed you haven't, which is why I ask what you're doing here," My Father rudely questioned.
Dominic found his way beside me, his hand on my back as a way to show I was his, but he leaned closer to my ear and whispered, "Am I missing something?"
"No?" I croaked in response, being as surprised as he was at the sudden appearance.
Judge Cole turned to me, his odd smile gave me the chills and filled me with worry. It was off putting, someone else would be worried too from seeing a 60-something year old grinning ear to ear. The more I stared at him, the more I shrunk into my shoes and cower closer to my fiancé. He reminded me more of the clown in It. Ugh, I hated that clown - and clowns in general - since the first time I watched that movie, and I've seen it five times thanks to Erika and Dominic.
"I'm here for Ms Lawler, one of my friends in the earlier days asked for a favor, and I'm not one to reject when I'm the one in debt." He sounded very suave and caught me off guard.
My eyes narrowed and my jaws dropped. "Huh?" I coughed. Was Judge Cole the friend Hamish asked to help me for my case? Since when were they so close? What the hell did I miss out?
"I didn't know you knew someone that was a personal friend to Richard, Marianne?" My Father was just as surprised as I was.
"You know what you and Nathaniel always say," Judge Cole continued to grin and taunt my Father. "Keep a good set of people and network off their contacts... Something like that. Now, if you excuse us, I've got some work to do. I am not going to waste more time babbling nonsense."
Dominic moved by force as Judge Cole walked right in between us, breaking out physical contact before he led me back into my office. He also taunted my fiancé with a wink that made both partners of the firm speechless, they were probably trying to make sense of everything like I did, which failed every second.
"Look, Marianne, I know you have a lot of questions, but before I came in, Hamish briefed me and told me to tell you that you should wait for his explanation during your dinner or whatever." He casually explained and took a seat at the office chair behind my desk, he grabbed the folder laid out on my desk and skimmed through them like a seasoned lawyer, which he obviously was before becoming the Judge.
And there, we worked, like honestly, if I watched this is from another perspective, I suppose I would be as surprised as the rest of the employees in the firm that walked by with cocked eyebrows, dropped jaws and uncertain expressions on their faces. I mean, I've heard the stories and reasons from other lawyers who said that Judge Cole was bad to work with, some probably had no right to even say such things, but there I was, and our work dynamic worked out pretty well. If I had to describe him, he'd actually be a much older and more experienced version of Hamish.
I guess that's why they're good friends, huh?
"Thanks so much for helping me out today." I smiled, feeling pretty relieved that we were nearing the end of our work together.
"Not a problem, my dear." Judge Cole smiled back.
"I hope I didn't take up so much of your time."
He patted his wrinkled hands atop of the paperwork he helped me properly deal with before filing the official deal in a week or two, and I actually was excited for it to finally end. It would mean that I could concentrate in other things other than work - like dealing with the situation with Nathaniel. When I prepared to clean up our mess, my Father barged in, and he fumed red. Both Judge and I narrowed our eyes, and before we could get a word in, he grabbed me by the arm and our faces were so close together.
"D-Dad-"
"How could you do that to me and my reputation?!" His words were mumbled and in a low volume that only we could hear. "You know very well how serious our jobs are and here you are, after a special invitation compared to the many who work plenty to get to where you are, and make a mockery of the opportunity?"
"Wh-What are you talking about?"
The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were heavily creased, his brows curved in an angle, his lips were pursed together and his nose flared. My Father was extremely upset at me, and I didn't need to ask him anything because I knew exactly what he was talking about - I just played pretend.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" He hissed.
"Ahem," Judge Cole cleared his throat and my Father reacted by letting me go, he glared at me and burned me down just by the eye contact. He didn't say anything else to me before he walked outside, his head shaking left and right to show his clear disappointment.
I felt embarrassed, my head down and my arms wrapped around myself to self soothe the situation, but really, all I wanted to do was fall to the floor and cry.
"Listen my dear, we lost count of the time and I think it's time to go and meet your friends." The man gave me a pat on the back. "I need to finish rereading your final statements and I'll prepare it for your meeting tomorrow morning. I think you should take a breather and call it a day," He sounded a lot more like a Father than my very own Father.
"Thank you, Judge Cole." I barely pronounced his name without sniffing.
I didn't look at the time, I didn't talk to people, I didn't care much but run away from the office. I needed time to think, so I spent an hour or so in a café, drowning myself in cups and cups of coffee while ignoring text messages and phone calls from certain people. The two repeat offenders being Dominic and my Father, and I drowned in my own regret. I wanted to cry, I wanted to hide and I had no other choice but to go and face them.
Well, maybe tomorrow.
I was still confused as to how either men found out, but I figured exactly who may have opened their yap, and when I did, the anger built up inside of me boiled and I felt mentally prepared for an all out screaming contest with the person who spilled the beans. However, being the mature adult that I needed to be in a professional environment, I obviously couldn't do any of what I think I would do when the opportunity came, and it's pretty clear that I'm already losing in the game.
To get out of it, I needed a plan and clever people to help me do it. And I think I know who.
"I am screwed."
"Why?" Both Erika and Hamish asked in unison.
I quickly grabbed the glass of wine and gulped it down to the very last drop, my throat clogged more and more as I wanted to spew out every single one of it. I shook my head, my tears held in and I said, "Dominic and my Father found out what I did."
"What did you do?" That's right, Hamish didn't know yet.
"Um, well," I shifted and avoided making eye contact with him. "I gave Mr Gonzalez a lap dance-"
"-In her defence, I foolishly suggested, but she was dared to by Nathaniel." Erika covered up for me as soon as we both saw Hamish's face turn red in anger.
"Why would you do that?" He growled.
"I know, I regret every bit of it!"
"Now Nathaniel has you right where he wants you. Now you're definitely in the game he's playing, and I have a feeling that fact he knows how badly the consequences of his big mouth will do to you and your Father."
"I'm sorry, Hame- I just-"
He raised his hand and sighed. "No, I don't blame you. I should've told you two straight after my meeting with Nathaniel, but I wanted to make sure that's why I did my best to avoid you."
"What?" Now Erika and I asked at the same time.
"Okay, so after that meeting, on my way out, I overheard Nathaniel tell someone on the other line that before anyone found out about the truth, he's going to make sure that Dominic and Adrian are taken down before it gets to their ears too." Hamish had a straight face on, and he didn't break a sweat from the threat.
"So, what does that mean?" My best friend pressed on.
"Well, ladies, it means by the end of this year, we're going to lose our jobs and Lawler & Walsh will be gone, and it's all thanks to this stupid case."
Erika groaned. "Fuck, whoever this Janina Miller is, she's running us to the ground and ruining our lives from her grave," She said with spite and it was her turn to gulp down every drop of alcohol in her glass. "I mean, may she rest in peace, but damn, please don't get us involved!"
I peeked down at the wallpaper of my phone, the image of Dominic came to view. His sweet smile and innocent face made me sad. The last thing I ever wanted was for him to fall down and be ruined. I don't want him to change any more than he already did. I worried for him and for us.
"We need to find out who Janina Miller is." I blurted out without thinking. "Or, at least, stop Nathaniel Walsh from ruining our lives."
"And how do we do that?" Hamish scoffed at my idea.
"Easy," I smirked. "We start by turning everyone against him-" And I raised my phone to show the picture on my screen. "Starting with his protégé."
"Are you sure about this? You do know that it's going to take effect on you and Dominic, right?"
I nodded. Erika reached for my arm and looked at me with doubt and sympathy, she knew I was sacrificing my relationship in order for Dominic to be free and happy. She didn't need to say it to me to explain her weak smile, but we were friends for so long that we didn't need words to explain ourselves to each other.
A weaker smile than hers curved at the corners of my lips. "As long as Dominic is happy, I will be fine." I did my best to reassure them, the confidence in my voice should have done the trick, but deep down, my heart ached so much I could hear cracks echo through my ears.
As Meatloaf sang, I would do anything for love...