A Legal Trap - Chapter 12 - FIN

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Final Chapter on BC...

The author retains all rights to this original work of fiction.

Last Updated: 2/23/2024 to smooth out portions of the story.

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March 13th, 2:35 PM
“I’ll come by your room at 7, okay?” I nodded and opened the door of the rental to get out, but Paul reached over and caught my arm. “We good?”

“Yeah, we’re good.” I smiled back at him, leaning over to give him a quick peck, and then swung my legs out of the car. I smiled as best I could again at him as I closed the door and watched him drive away.

Paul had gotten two text messages that brought our lunch date to an end quicker than I’d hoped. They both hit his phone right after I’d shared what I thought we were getting into as far as a relationship went. I had his full attention during that part of lunch, but the text messages seemed to take his attention away from our conversation about ‘us’ after I’d shared my feelings on the matter.

I’ll give him credit though; he tried valiantly to smooth the transition back to the subject at hand, but it was obvious something was up, and I could tell his wheels were turning behind his smile across the table from me. When I pressed about him being distracted, he said the first text was from Jacob, and he’d asked him to call when he was free. He didn’t offer anything more than, “I’m not sure what that is about.”

Sure, it could have been anything, but I was no less curious and wished he’d shared more about what was going on regarding the firm and whatever he was doing for Jacob. Maybe I should have pressed, but then maybe he wasn’t at liberty to say? It was too late now to overthink that one; maybe over dinner tonight I’d try to inquire subtly.

The other message he had gotten was from Tim at the bureau, and all Paul would say about that was that he needed to show him something. When I asked if it was related to Amber, he said, “No. He’s going to show me a few tricks regarding the software I was using to backup data to the cloud.”

He seemed excited about that. I just smiled in support while he rattled off some tech stuff that was way over my head, and I didn’t get or care to get it. I wish there was more substance than tech talk—like, what data are you trying to back up? Was it the Amber investigation stuff, and if so, why? Maybe it was the data from the firm?

Oh well, another lost opportunity to find out what was really going on behind the scenes. Two opportunities were missed at lunch to get clued into what he was doing. I would absolutely try to fix that over dinner.

My immediate plans, however, were to get back to my room and get checked in for my flight tomorrow morning at 7:58 AM. After that, pack, and then burn off some excess stress by going out for a run. When I get back from that, I'll shower, maybe get a nap, and then get ready for our last dinner together in Arizona.

March 13th, 3:04 PM
Done! I checked in and confirmed seat assignment for 3A, a window seat in First Class. Kendal had arranged it all, even transportation from the hotel to the airport in the morning. A car would be here at 5:45 AM – Augh! At lunch, Paul said he would take me, but I mentioned the firm had already set that up, and I think he was disappointed I didn’t try to get out of the car service in the morning. In Seattle, there would be a car waiting to get me to my apartment in Kent.

I’d be in familiar surroundings in just a little under twenty hours. Part of me was looking forward to that, but there was, of course, the ‘Paul’ factor. I was still trying to get my head around. Would we be different on our home turfs? Would things change? Of course there would be change—everything changes! What am I doing? Augh… Don’t overthink this, just pack your stuff up already!

I looked around the room and gathered up a few things I’d laid out this morning to wear until I’d decided on what I ended up wearing for the Amber interview. I hated every indecision I had with my ability to coordinate my clothing choices and wished I could just pick something out and be happy with it. I blamed HRT, and I’m positive all those chemicals made me scatter-brained and unable to make a decision on something as simple as a blouse at times. Certainly, HRT had an effect on my mood and emotional balance—why not my ability to choose and stick with an outfit selected? Right… I’m sure that’s the root of my clothing issues—hormones! Geesh!

I took the trashcan liners from the bathroom and from under the desk area in the living room, and tossed my dirty clothes in them. When I picked up my running gear from yesterday, I was none too impressed with the stink of stale sweat. Good thing I was bagging my dirty clothes. I chose what I intended to wear tonight: a cute linen skirt, blouse, slip I was still wearing, bra, panties, and flip-flops that didn’t exactly go with the outfit, but it’s the best I could do. For tomorrow’s flight, I laid out a pair of jeans, an Old Navy-branded t-shirt, a bra, underwear, socks, and my sketchers. Oh, and a light jacket because the Seattle weather was about forty degrees cooler.

Okay, that should do it. I arranged the outfits on the dresser and looked everything over at least three times with a critical eye. Augh… Can I just move on?!

Time to get out of here and run! I undid my blouse and stuffed it in one of the trash bags. I slipped out of my Calvin Klein skirt, which Agent Carr had said she had; I’m still not sure I bought that. I put my slip on the pile of clothes I was wearing for dinner tonight with Paul. Bras, panties, and gaff joined tonight’s clothes pile; if I were staying any longer in Arizona, I would have either hit a laundromat or gone out and bought some new clothes.

I caught my naked form in the mirror across the room. Don’t go there. No time for put-downs! Run! Go for a run!

I grabbed a pair of boy short panties and slid them on, followed by my last clean pair of compression shorts, and then my last clean pair of loose-fitting running shorts. I checked the mirror again. Okay, that’s better. I did have long legs, and it was interesting that Paul had mentioned them, even admiring them in a non-pervy way. I smiled at that, and then frowned, catching a glimpse of my shoulders.

No! Get dressed, get running!

Sports bra pulled on, loose-fitting tank top after that. Running shoes were next. I was ready to go, and it only took about two minutes. I so needed to get my head in a different space right now.

Bottle of water, key to the room in the phone case, phone in its armband, headphones... I jumped when my phone began ringing on my arm. I fumbled to get the earbuds in and pressed the mic/volume button to answer, “Hello.”

“Elizabeth… Hello. You sound like I caught you in the middle of something.”

“Oh, a… Hello, Ms. Larson. No, I… I’m just hanging out,” my heart was racing. Why was she calling me?

“Excellent, so you’re set to return tomorrow? Anything you need?”

“Ah, no, I think I’m all ready,” I replied. She sounded like she needed something; get ahead of it by asking. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

If she didn’t need something, was it creepy that she was checking to see if I needed anything?

“I’m trying to get a hold of Jacob. He’s pretty good about answering his phone, but I’ve called twice now and he’s not answering. Have you seen him today?”

Oh crap! I wasn’t going to lie, but should I tell her everything that had transpired today? I stopped giving updates after she said I was free to unwind over the past two days since Amber was recovered. Did she already know about the interview with Amber today?

“Yes, we were, the FBI conducted an interview with Amber this morning to get some additional information regarding David Lafleur.”

“Did she know anything that could help them?” she asked.

Ah! What do I tell her? If I try to guess what she knows and withhold that and she already knows, that isn’t going to look good! Crap! She likely knows about the email from Lisa with the rumor about the firm being split up. What do I say? Shit! Shit! Shit! I didn’t like the position the partners had put me in!

“No, she didn’t have anything that would put them on the right track. At least that’s what the agent interviewing her told everyone.”

That was the truth. I wasn’t going to mention I was in the interview. God, I hoped she didn’t know that.

“That’s too bad; I’m sure the Carson’s are frustrated that this thing can’t be put completely behind them with the conviction of those involved. As a sex trafficking case, the extradition of David Lafleur would have been difficult for the State Department to attain. It is best that this situation has some permanence they can be comforted by,” she said, as if not all that interested.

She knew about Lafleur; she had too, or she wouldn’t be referring to him in the past tense! Permanence? That’s an odd way to describe Lafleur having been murdered. Sex trafficking?! I never mentioned that to her! She knows as much as I know, I’ll bet! What crumbs had Jacob left in emails for Janet and Martin to find?

“Yes, I guess... There's still a lot of healing needed for the entire family. I can’t imagine what that is going to be like,” I said, praying she wouldn’t ask me any other questions about Amber.

“Oh, of course. What time did you last see Jacob, Elizabeth?”

I told her and mentioned he had stayed behind to talk with Director Keith. Did she know that already? Did she know they were friends? Would she be worried about that? The call ended with her thanking me for being here to help Jacob and the Carson's, and finally her saying, “We’re looking forward to having you back Monday.”

No mention of changes coming, the email from Lisa, or whether I had mentioned it to anyone—nothing! She was cool, calm, and, matter of fact, the entire call. Was something waiting for me Monday? Where was Jacob? What did he need to talk to Paul about? Augh! There are too many questions!

I looked around the room. Do I even want to run now? No! Wait, yes, go for a fucking run! I pulled the door to my room open and headed for the nearest exit. When I popped through the doorway, the sky was still ablaze in a beautiful shade of blue, with the occasional pillow-like cloud slowly making its way across the sky. I hit my music, then got going at a faster pace than I expected.

March 13th, 5:18 p.m.
There was nothing like taking a long shower after a good run. Since I wasn’t responsible for the heating of the water, that’s exactly what I intended on doing. I let the water flow and roll over my twenty months of chemically produced hips, that giggly ass due to generous fat redistribution, and, of course, my perky small breasts. I had hopes they would naturally be larger, but it wasn’t to be. Whatever, at least they were real!

I had to be pushing the thirty-minute mark under this powerful stream of hot water. My fingers were starting to show those water-logged wrinkles. I needed to get a move on it and quickly shaved my legs, rinsed a second round of conditioner through my hair, and finally called it good.

I reached for a towel and began patting my face on it gently when my phone began to buzz and ring on the vanity. I pulled open the shower stall door, got the towel wedged under my arms, and looked at the number—it was Paul.

“Hey you,” I said, cheery and happy to be talking to him.

“Hey yourself… What are you doing?” He asked, sounding like he was in a good mood.

I hoped he was going to want to meet early for dinner because I wanted to see him; maybe I’d missed him. Okay, that sounds sappy and needy! Geesh!

“Just getting out of the shower after getting in about seven miles, I think. Now, just get ready for later. What’s up?”

There was a pause, “Yeah... Well, it's going to be a little later. Any chance we can do dinner at 8?”

Okay, at least he wasn’t interested in being late and was warning me. I wondered what was going on, though.

“Sure, that’ll work. What are you doing?” I tried making that sound as if I wasn’t probing.

“Ran long with Tim, having problems with my backup, actually,” he replied.

“I saw some wonderful clouds out there while running today. They didn’t look to be having backup problems.”

“Ha ha… Very cute. I need this stuff done before I can unplug for the evening. Are you sure you’re good with an hour delay?”

Jacob MIA, help from Tim at the bureau with some cloud computing stuff. What are you up to too?

“Sure, let’s play it by ear—come get me when you can,” I said, wondering if I could loosen his lips anymore. “I got an interesting call before going out for a run.”

“Janet?”

“And you knew that, how?”

“I just pulled the entire stack from the firm’s network and am in the process of backing it up to the cloud. Tim got me pointed in the right direction after a failed attempt yesterday. Jacob is avoiding contact with Janet and Martin in case Blass has told them the network has been compromised—there’s no way that message hasn’t reached them though, Blass isn’t an idiot and he knows someone’s pulled a copy of every file,” he’d just outlined what he had been doing. “Figures she would try hitting you up looking for Jacob. Things are going to be coming to a head pretty quickly, I think,” a chime in the background caused him to pause, “Hey, gotta go... See you at 8.”

“Sure, but I want details.”

“I figured you would. I’ll come clean, I promise. Gotta go…”

March 13th, 7:39 p.m.
Getting ready was the typical struggle. I hated my body, and I hated the way the blouse I had picked out looked with this skirt, but I had only one other choice and it totally wouldn’t have worked. I thought about just wearing my outfit for the flight home tomorrow instead, but jeans weren’t going to make the lasting impression I wanted on Paul. The skirt showed off my legs, which he liked; I had more of a love-hate relationship with them, but I wanted to leave him to remember them regardless.

In the scope of it all, I just didn’t have a wide breadth of clothing options that were clean, or, well, I just didn’t have a lot of clothes, period. I certainly didn’t plan my wardrobe options very well for this trip. I should have packed more, even if I didn’t have a chance to wear what I packed – at least I’d have options. Likely no better if I was being honest with myself.

I had been watching a ‘Reload’ version of the TV show ‘Live PD’ since the top of the hour. It was interesting and even had police action from right here in Phoenix, though from a couple months ago. Some of these people captured on the show were none too bright. When there was a lull in the action, I reached for my Android tablet and checked my work email—nothing new.

I thought about replying to Lisa’s email about the firm but held off; hoping Paul was going to shine some light on things over dinner. Plus, Lisa wasn’t likely to see it until Monday morning, and I would be back to work then anyway. That was my...

A knock at the door, and I jumped. Shit! What am I nervous about? I closed up the tablet and went to the door, opening it to see Paul’s smiling face.

“Whoa… You look nice,” he said.

“Thanks… You’re early.”

“I caught a break; things just fell into place. You ready?”

“I’m starving; let’s go.” I grabbed a small clutch from the kitchen counter that had some basics in it: my phone, wallet, and, of course, the corporate credit card.

March 13th, 8:13 p.m.
The drive to the Brazilian steakhouse we’d decided to try didn’t take much time—maybe ten minutes. Paul had made a reservation for 7:15 PM but was able to change it to 8:15 PM when he knew he was going to be late. There wasn’t a wait when we got to the hostess stand, and we were seated right away. Drinks pretty much arrived within a few minutes of sitting and ordering them.

Paul was drinking a true IPA imported from Brazil, and to be different, I ordered a Caipirinha after the server described its distilling process as being similar to rum but the fermentation process being done with fresh sugarcane juice. The first sip was interesting; I could see liking these on a hot day out by a pool—not something you’d probably drink often in Seattle due to the weather.

We perused the menu, settling on two different cuts of steak, and agreed to share. To this point, not much had been said about Paul’s afternoon. I was getting impatient—do your mind reading thing, dude! You know what I want to hear about.

“You all packed?” he asked.

“I am,” I said, taking a sip of my drink. “This is interesting; you want to try it?”

“I’m not a connoisseur of alcohol like you, but I’ll try it.” He sipped the drink, made a little face, and handed it back. “Think I’ll stick to the beer. Brazilian beer, not bad actually.” He raised his glass, and we clinked our drinks together.

“You look tired,” I commented when it took him a second to recover from the sip we’d both just taken from our respective drinks.

“Yeah, been an interesting couple of weeks—months, actually,” he said, rubbing his neck.

“Tell me about it.” Double meaning, Mr. Kline, double meaning! Spill it before I ask you straight up.

“So, you know the score—Janet and Martin are making a play for the firm. They offered to buy Jacob out yesterday for fifty million dollars; the terms are five years for the full payment.”

I gasped, “OMG!”

“Terms are pretty basic; everything stays the same in regard to the staff of seventy-six lawyers; twenty-one of those are partners; fifty-two support personnel; the book of business; and a long list of other pieces that make up the firm. The real change is in the name; they’d be dropping Jacob’s name.” He took a sip of his beer, put it down, and then picked it up to take another.

“How does he feel about that?”

“Not so good. He started the firm twenty-nine years ago, and he’s not ready for retirement. I can certainly think of plenty of things to do with ten million dollars a year for five years.”

“But I don’t understand why they want him out.”

“Money… They want to restructure the firm to increase profit, and to do that, they need to realign staff. There’s talk about expanding to other metropolitan markets even.”

“They want to get rid of partners?”

“No, just the opposite. Look, from everything I can piece together, each lawyer in this firm generates on average about seven hundred fifty thousand dollars in revenues annually. Hack out twenty million for overhead, office space, and support staff—that’s sixty-seven million in gross profit—before paying those generating those revenues for the firm. The math is funky, but for reporting purposes or the public’s perception of profitability, the profit margin runs over 70%. If you’re trying to bring in new clients, you want to look like you’re doing a better job than others.”

Numbers, okay I get that those are big numbers, but I don’t understand the motivation yet. Add partners? Wait… Add partners; their salaries aren’t considered in the profit margin percentage calculation, but their generated revenue certainly looks more profitable to potential clients. Shit… What the hell is going on?

“You in there,” he waved a hand over the table.

I’d spent more time than I thought trying to understand what Paul was telling me.

“I’m getting it, but it’s not making sense yet. Look more profitable?”

"Well, don’t feel bad; I’ve been doing this for Jacob for seven months, and it was only through repetition that I began to get it,” he said thoughtfully. “Yes, look more profitable, so if you want to expand, you bring in more partners, more revenue, and the bank accounts keep growing.”

Expand the firm?

“So, Jacob doesn’t want to expand the firm?”

“Correct… He’s happy with the little kingdom he’s built in Seattle; he says he doesn’t need the added stress.”

“But they’re all managing partners; two to one vote against Jacob, and they're in expansion mode, right?”

“Generally, yes, but when Janet and Martin were brought on as managing partners, they split forty-nine percent of the firm's voting power. Jacob holds fifty-one percent.”

Partner, managing partner, associate—all titles that dictate your compensation package as a lawyer, including salary, bonus, and profit sharing. Our seventy lawyers, not counting the managing partners, make on average two hundred thousand a year in salary, plus—for giggles—half their salary in bonuses, a little thrown in for profit sharing, and that sixty-seven million in gross profit really shrinks to about eighteen million to share among the three managing partners. Jacob getting 51 percent of that is around nine million...

“They low-balled him,” I muttered aloud finally.

Paul was staring at me. “You’re better at math in your head than I am. I’d be like, ‘carry the seven, divided by zero’ and still be way off.”

His joke was lost on me; I was thinking too hard about the numbers.

“The Port of Seattle contract alone generates $10 million annually, I would bet. Expansion, I don’t get it.

Then it hit me! Crap! Martin is always traveling and speaking abroad at various colleges! There would be plenty of newly minted lawyer grads for him to cherry pick from if the idea was to expand the firm. The markets he’s probably researched are likely all over the country, and any city with port activities and a union could look attractive too given our firms work with the Seattle port union.

“Wow! Show some success negotiating with the new city council, which you helped get elected through generous donations, to circumvent the new mayor's desire for a better contract with the union favoring the city. This would be one way you could pick up new clients. Likely pretty easily…”

“It’s a game within a game, Liz,” he said.

I was about to speak, but our server was setting down a plate in front of me, then placing one in front of Paul. The smell wafting from the beautiful steaks on our plates was intoxicating, and being as hungry as I was, it was hard not to switch my focus. We were asked if we wanted to refresh our drinks, and after questioning looks at each other we decided we did.

“Let’s eat; we’ve got plenty of time to talk business later, deal?” Paul asked.

I agreed… Little did he know the break in talking about the firm only gave me time to organize the things I knew to this point. I had so many more questions I wanted to ask.

March 13th, 9:37 p.m.
The walk from our table to the exit was nice, as Paul had his hand on the small of my back the entire way, and once out the door, he took my hand as we walked to the car. It felt unusual holding someone’s hand, but also comforting in a stomach fluttering, joy-inspiring, whatever kind of way. I’m probably just feeling that second drink with dinner, right? No… I think I like this guy.

When we got to the hotel, Paul ran around and opened the car door for me, which made me giggle a bit. It was special, and I was having all kinds of lustful thoughts concerning this man. As I got out, I had an urge to kiss him, and as I turned into him, I put a hand on his chest and leaned in to satisfy that want. He wasted no time reciprocating—our tongues telegraphing those urges we both had.

Telegraph? Does that even exist anymore? Wait… Oh, God… I felt him wrap his arms around me, and I was melting, my knees weakening. He pulled away and was looking into my eyes.

“Where’d that come from?” he asked.

“I don’t... I...”

“It’s OK,” he said, kissing me briefly. “I wanted to kiss you when I picked you up,” he said slyly.

“Well, then you should have,” I said, bolder than I felt.

“Next time, I will.”

We decided to get a last drink at the hotel bar before calling it a night. I tallied up the number of drinks I’d had on this trip, and they were more than I had consumed in total over the last three years combined. Mostly because I was perpetually broke and just didn’t have money to blow on alcohol or a host of other frivolities. I did enjoy the effects of the alcohol, the buzz, and feeling more relaxed. I just needed to keep my tongue from getting me in trouble.

March 13th, 9:56 p.m.
On a Saturday night, there wasn’t much of a crowd in the hotel bar, which is odd since the restaurant on site had a Michelin star and was seating its last guests at 10 p.m. No matter, we found a booth and caught the eye of the bartender, who came over to take our drink order. Paul stuck with beer; I did the rum and Coke standard.

“Alright, I’ve had an awesome evening, but it’s time to get back to some questions,” I said with a pouty-faced smile, but full of playfulness in my tone.

“Oh, really? What do you want to know?” Paul asked.

What did I want to know?

“What have you been doing with all this cloud stuff? Oh, and no tech talk, please.”

He chuckled, “Fine, ruin my whole answer. No, actually, I’ve been gathering evidence of misconduct. Mostly emails between Martin and a couple of the players within the union.”

“Evidence for what? Is Jacob filing a complaint with the state board? Ethics violation?”

“Yeah, it’s a ‘Cover his ass’ move. Between the campaign contributions and positioning Martin has made via email with union representatives, Jacob feels there have been some ethics violations. Strike first, be transparent, and hopefully save the union representation contract and any public backlash.”

Whoa! That meant a disciplinary board would convene, review the information, and hand down a ruling. Martin could be made to attend judicial classes at the low end of the punishment scale, all the way to being suspended or disbarred. Jacob’s move kept the firm above board but made Martin look a little dirty. Throw in any of the city council or union representative connections, and this was a serious play to save the firm.

“So, he’s not selling out. Did he make an offer to buy Janet and Martin out?” I asked.

“Exactly…”

What? What ‘exactly’?

“And?”

“He did that this morning, via courier. He basically rejected their offer and is offering them the same deal they offered him.”

“Did he tell them about filing with the state board?”

Paul smiled, “He didn’t have too; the pulling of all the data today caught them off guard. Blass has since shut down the network—parts of it at least. He’ll be let go tomorrow when Jacob gets back to Seattle. Jacob had me send an email request to the firm’s offsite data repository company for some specific periods—some of the Exchange email server data has gone missing. I’ll be able to get anything deleted back. Oh, and Landon sent an email to Jacob offering assistance with the state attorney general—pretty sure everyone knows there’s a fight coming.”

“Janet?”

“She chooses her side; she’ll be facing the same disciplinary board charges as Martin; though her work with the union is minimal, the city council's contributions don’t shine the best light on her.”

“Do I still... The firm will continue to function then; I just go to work Monday and pick up where I left off.”

“I'm pretty sure that’s what Jacob expects from you. Look, nothing is going to change overnight. The big dogs have all postured up. Janet and Martin might not even show up for a few days while they try to figure out their next moves. My money is on Jacob. I pretty much think they are on their way out, though. The firm has plenty of clients and work going on that can’t just stop.”

Of course, Paul was right; the business couldn’t just shut its doors without hosing hundreds of clients and jeopardizing cases in progress, but... Oh shit!

“Where does that leave you?” I asked, concerned.

"Well, I guess you get to see a little more of me than you might like.”

“Huh? You taking over for Blass?”

He smiled and said, “Temporarily, but I’ll be heading up a search for a new CIO. There are a couple guys there who work as network administrators and do basic support, so I won’t be alone trying to keep the lid on the firm’s network.”

“But, you said... You’re cluster-phobic. How are you going to make it up to the office?”

Why the heck did I bring that up? I shook my head, annoyed at myself. No more alcohol for me!

He reached across the table and squeezed my hand.

“Guess you’ll have to help me with that.”

March 13th, 11:21 p.m.
The walk back to my room was nice—no handholding—but there was a calming, connected feeling I had about being with Paul. At my door, he said he had to get back to work; his kiss goodnight and firm grasp on my ass during that kiss said he wished he could stay. I had to be up in like four hours, so while it might have been fun to do a ‘Netflix and chill’ kind of end to the night, I was good with how it ended. Alone in a quiet room with just the AC humming away, I did feel a little lonely.

There was no time to pout though as I needed to get my face ready for bed. When that was done, I did one last check to make sure everything was set for tomorrow: teeth were brushed, two alarms set, and t-shirt-only sleeping attire. My mind was spinning from all that had happened today. I hoped I could get to sleep before the alarms went off.

Phone on charger, ‘click’ the light out, very quiet in here, very…

March 14th, 12:55 p.m.
My apartment was cold; more to the fact of it the general Seattle area was cold. I’d been up since 4 AM, and pretty much to this point, the day had gone exactly as expected. The surprise of the day was not getting any additional screening at the airport full-body scan machine. Granted, my jeans were maybe a little too tight, and being tucked in tight jeans, while not comfortable, must have been what the TSA agent expected since I’d warned the agent at the scanner. I’m sure my little boobs helped get the ‘Transgendered Woman’ alarms from going off given my crotch area was a muddle of my junk.

Here and now, though, it was quiet in the apartment complex and like a tomb in my unit. I’d picked up my mail—mostly junk, unpacked, and changed into a tattered pair of sweat pants and a Pink! branded sweatshirt. I texted Paul when I had landed and was getting ready to call him after he texted back that he missed me. I was soaring from something as simple as that! It really was a boost to my psyche.

I pulled up his number and hit ‘Dial’.

On the third ring, I got a hearty, “Hey! You all settled?”

It was nice to hear his voice and the cheer in his voice directed at me.

“Yup, I look like a slob, and I really don’t care. I'll probably take a nap after this; I’m wasted. I think that’s the most booze I’ve drank in a very long time. My body isn’t used to the poisoning. I can feel it coming out of my pores.” I heard him chuckle at my complaining.

“I have a beer every couple days; it takes the edge off.”

“Well, back to the real world for me, and no disposable cash for that stuff.”

"Seriously, the real world, I’m ready to get out of here and back to some norm.”

Did your norm include me? I hoped things hadn’t changed in the past twelve hours.

“You done at the Carson’s’?”

“Mmhuh, ‘little’ icy while I was there. I saw Amber once when she went to the kitchen for something and Stephanie was a ghost, I didn’t see her at all. The boys must have spent the night at a friend's. Gary looked pissed and acted that way towards me. I got what I needed done though, explained it, and got out of there pretty quickly.”

“Honestly, gonna be a while before that family see’s eye to eye. I hope they get the help they need and Amber gives up her porn star ambitions,” I added.

We talked for ten minutes more and I learned Jacob was probably just now getting to Seattle about now. That meant the Blass issue would be taken care of shortly. Paul said he would likely be in the office tomorrow late afternoon and hoped he’d see me. I was disappointed he didn’t ask about maybe having dinner, but as he talked about all he needed to do it sounded like he was going to busy into the late evening.

He asked if I was running later. I said I was taking the day off. And after that the conversation seemed to peter out... I knew he was busy, but I missed him. Did he know that?

“Okay… Well, gotta go finish up some things before Jacob cans Blass. Not the same around her without you kid…”

“Yeah… I wish we were hanging out – with less drama swirling around us of course,” I replied and couldn’t help but smile.

“Me too… See you tomorrow?” he asked.

“Yup… Call me if you have elevator troubles, I’d be happy to hold your hand,” I got out quickly and felt flush, maybe a little embarrassed with offering that.

“Will do and I’d happily take the assistance… Catch ya tomorrow Liz.”

“’bye, Paul…”

March 15th, 9:07 a.m.
I’d gone to bed early last night, having forgone the nap I thought I was going to take due to vegging on the couch and zoning out in front of the TV. Now I felt sluggish, like I’d slept too much. I should have gone for a run last night instead of wasting my evening away; I would be running tonight for sure.

The bus commute to the office was as it always was: long and uneventful. I wasn’t sure what to expect when walking into the office, so it was comforting to see everything appear to be ‘business as usual’. I went to my office, got my coat off, put my purse in my desk drawer, and jiggled the mouse to wake up my PC. I entered my credentials and was presented with my desktop.

I guess our systems are still up. I started the Outlook email program and was greeted by a handful of unread items in my inbox. All their titles led me to believe they were work-related, so I could stop worrying about needing to look for another job for the time being. Guess it’s really back to reality time...

March 15th, 10:26 a.m.
As the morning progressed I saw plenty of people walking past my office, got a few head nods and waves. I thought about stopping by Lisa’s office, but I knew we’d be doing coffee about now.

“Hey,” I said, looking up when she finally got around to poking her head in my door.

“Where’s the tan?” she asked.

“No time… I get out for a run every day, though. The weather was amazing down there.”

“Do you see my email?”

“Mmhuh, not until Friday night though, and I knew you wouldn’t see a reply until today. I thought I’d save the internet the trouble.”

“You heard Bill was let go yesterday?”

“Bill?” I knew who she was talking about, but I wanted to make it look like I didn’t know much of anything.

“Bill Blass, IT Director, server God,” she rattled off rolling her eyes.

"Oh, did they say why that happened?”

“No, but it probably has something to do with the partners fighting. I saw Jacob earlier, but no Janet or Martin yet.”

"Sure, it seems like a lot of drama has been going on since I left.”

“Are we getting coffee or what? Pretty sure Bryant’s been missing me,” she said with a wolfish smile.

“Let’s go, girl,” I chuckled.

March 15th, 11:06 a.m.
It was good to see Bryant; I guess I did kind of miss their bantering while I was away. They were sort of cute together, but I still didn’t think they had the chemistry to last if it ever progressed beyond the espresso stand.

While we stood at a table in the atrium, drinking our lattes, Lisa grilled me about what I was doing in Phoenix. I told her I was helping Jacob with a case he was consulting on that involved the potential extradition of someone from Canada. I cut her off from asking any more questions with the “The case is confidential...” line twice before she got the message. I probably shouldn’t have said what I said about it, and I made her promise she wouldn’t say anything to anyone. She happily agreed.

The rest of our break was pretty tame; there was some talk about the partners, but nothing I didn’t already know. When I got back to my desk, there was a meeting request in my email: All-hands Support Staff, Cascade Conference Room, First Floor, 2:00 PM. Here we go I thought. This will be the defining moment for the firm and likely all of our employment.

I checked the participant list—no attorneys, but Jacob would be attending. I had gotten a text from Paul when he got to the airport in Phoenix; it was likely he would be here for this meeting. I was excited, and I hoped how I was dressed caught his attention. Lisa had mentioned I looked nice and then asked if I had an interview. We both got a good giggle out of that one! I had worn this skirt today to accentuate my legs for Paul - in case I got to see him and to keep him interested. Was I pushing it? I hoped not.

One plus to the coffee break with Lisa - she hadn’t brought up her ‘Get laid’ comment from her email telling me about Janet and Martin. I’m not sure I could lie my way out of answering her without a smile I couldn’t suppress when I thought about Paul.

March 15th, 1:54 PM
Lisa and I rode down the elevator to the first floor together, and not knowing where the Cascade Conference Room was, we just followed the herd of other support staff. A couple times Lisa would have brief conversations with others from the office, and I pretty much smiled a lot and stuck to her hip. Inside the theater-sized auditorium-like conference room, we were able to get seats near the middle of the crowd of others attending. There looked to be about forty-five support staff gathered and wondered if I was the only one worried about their job.

Augh! Let it go! Think about something else! I looked toward the stage and could see Jacob, Gillian, the office manager, and a few of the supervisors.

“Oh my,” Lisa leaned over and said in my ear, “Stage left... Guy in the suit. Mmm…”

I looked to the left and saw Paul. I know my pulse rate increased a bit, and a little nervous energy began to flow. He was looking around the room, and when he saw me, he smiled. I felt flush, like a spot light had been turned on me from the stage area. He had looked for me and I felt…

“Now that’s a good-looking guy... I'm a little older than I care for, but I might make an exception,” Lisa said.

Her comment made me bristled a little.

“Really? You think he looks old?” I asked.

“Mmm, maybe mid-thirties. I think five years on either side of my age is the right spread.”

“Really? Why do you think that?” I asked.

“Five years and you’re dealing with someone who can’t name a song you used to jam to in your high school years, hasn’t seen a movie you love, and just is not in the same headspace, know what I mean?”

She said all that with so much matter-of-fact confidence it made me wonder if I should be worried about the age gap between us. Paul was almost thirteen years older than I was—was he in a different headspace? What did that even mean?

“What do you think?” Lisa asked, breaking my train of thought.

“I… I don’t know... I really haven’t given it a lot of thought. What if he was really nice and supportive?” I asked.

“Look, the man is certainly good-looking. He’s probably married or gay. No, married for sure.”

Lisa was annoying me pretty good right now—did she have no filter? Was this ‘girl talk’?

“I think he’s cute,” I finally replied, to see if that might shut her up.

“Okay… When this is over, I’m introducing you.”

“No… No, that’s okay. Thanks anyway, I can manage,” I said nervously, not wanting some awkward moment with Paul in front of Lisa or anyone else for that matter. Grrr!!!

Jacob was climbing up the stairs near where Paul was standing and walking to the center of the stage. The room’s volume went from loud to nearly silent.

“Good afternoon. I wanted to have a quick meeting with everyone to set things straight with some rumors you may have heard floating around the office this past week. The firm is going to be transitioning over the next couple of months. Janet Larson and Martin Brandt have decided to pursue opportunities outside of the firm."

There were murmurs throughout the conference room theater.

"I want to assure you that nothing we are doing today—be it the clients we represent or the day-to-day operation—is going to change much. There will be a few new partners brought on board to take Janet and Martin’s places and likely some other staff additions," Jacob paused, and the tension felt less suffocating.

"Everyone will be gainfully employed for as long as you continue to perform at the levels you’ve exhibited since you’ve joined the firm. No one is being let go, and no reductions in staff are expected for the Seattle or Bellevue offices."

You could feel the room finally take a much-needed breath before Jacob continued.

"We did let Bill Blass go, but that was part of the management change needed to move forward. His position as IT Director will be temporarily held by Paul Kline.” Jacob waved a hand toward Paul, who raised his hand for everyone to see.

“If you have questions or concerns, please start by requesting a meeting from your supervisor or Gillian. Thank you for your continued support.”

The hush in the theater went on for a good twenty seconds before the first groups of people stood after realizing Jacob was done speaking to state of the firm. People began to exit the conference room and head back to work.

Lisa was looking at me. "I wonder how sudden Janet and Martin's exit really were."

I just shrugged and made my way with Lisa in tow to the aisle, then joined the line of people exiting. Ahead at the exit I could see Jacob, Gillian, and Paul had gathered. Jacob was occasionally shaking someone's hand, offering a smile or head nod, or a greeting of some type. I hoped we could skate right by without being noticed, but I couldn’t help but look at Paul.

And I noticed he was watching, no staring at me! When I was just about to squeeze by the gauntlet of power players I felt Lisa brush past me, and posting up in front of him,

"Mr. Kline," she said with an embarrassing amount of cheer, "I'm Lisa Scott, and this is Elizabeth Gallagher. We wanted to welcome you."

I know my mouth dropped, and if there was a rock nearby, I would have made an attempt to get under it.

Paul was all smiles and said, "The Elizabeth Gallagher?" He stuck out his hand towards me, and instinctively, I reached for it to shake it. "I've heard a lot about you from Jacob. I look forward to working with you, even if it's just temporary."

I was flush, and I could feel my body shiver slightly. There was an air void in my throat and every thought I was having was making it hard to hear any sound other than a dull ringing in my ears. I couldn't speak, so I just smiled. Paul let my hand loose after a longer than comfortable handshake, and Lisa and I made our way out of the conference room theater towards the elevators.

"What was that?" Lisa asked.

I shrugged, still not sure I could speak. I was smiling broadly, though; I couldn't help it.

"Oh my God, you know him! You know him, right?" she asked.

The End - Fin

::: --- :::

I would like to acknowledge the assistance of Bronwen Welsh in proofreading and giving me insightful advice. She is an accomplished author in her own right and I appreciate her time more than I can say...

Don't be afraid to click the "Thumbs Up" icon for this short story if it's done anything for you (you don't have to have an account to do so, and there are no prizes for most likes or payouts for that matter (I’d have bot’ed that bitch long ago if there was)). If you comment, I will reply, so let’s chat or not or whatever floats your noddle.

If there are problems or you have criticisms you'd like to share privately, feel free to message me on the site (you’ll need an account) or via email ([email protected]) - I'd love to address them if I can.

I'm trying to grow as a storyteller; I'm far from perfect, so any help is much appreciated and valued. Thanks for reading...

PS - I've got six additional chapters posted on a different site. If interested in seeing how I tied up a few loose ends hit me up and I'll share where you can read those for free. R

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Comments

The end?

Monique S's picture

It's a bit rushed. Why build so much compassion in your readers for Liz and Amber, when you let one of them just silently sip from the plot and us wondering what happened to her?

And, from a business partners point of view, Jacob can hardly let Elisabeth return to an insignificant job, when he's bought out the lady who, even though she was speculating against him, had to Elisabth's knowledge been supportive and appreciative of her? And no reward for what she went through to help Amber?

I mean Paul knows and experienced all the shit that still remains with her, how can he expect to just go on and pretend normality, when his boss is making tens of millions and Liz almost gave her soul to help and doesn't even get peanuts? If he had some ethics, he should have said something about that to Jacob, being firm and self assured about not letting any detailed information out.

The only two coming out of this somewhat unscathed are Paul and Jacob. Janet at least seemed to care for Amber, even though she didn't really know her. Analysing Jacob throughout the story he appears a rather cold, thoughtless, selfish and uncaring type, certainly not involved in really helping his niece, brother and sister in law. Just damage control. But he keeps his little kingdom. At the expense of his family and employees.

Sorry, but I don't like the end at all.

Monique S

My thoughts...

RachelMnM's picture

SPOILER ALERT - authors thoughts to follow... I'm putting that warning out there because I'm about to come clean with my thoughts on this story... You've been warned.

Before I write a novel in response - I want to Thank Monique for calling me out. She has left some of the best comments regarding this story from the beginning and I have the utmost respect for her and her thoughts - many of which kept me in the right lane as this story progressed. So, Thank You Monique - I really / truly appreciate your comments...

I wrote this story fully intending to leaning on you the reader to make some determinations about what was going on and how things might fit together in the present and the future. Reading comments left by readers there were plenty of interesting routes / plot twists proposed - but in the end I tried to keep the scope of this fiction closer to real possibilities than stretching some bounds of reality.

The reality of Elizabeth is she's a young woman (23 yo) with a not so great start to her journey to becoming the woman she knows she is. Her family disowns her, precedes Amber down the 'trap' (path) of dabbling in porn, breaks out of that 'trap' to get an education and a seemingly good career opportunity, volunteers to help find Amber - she knows where that kid has gone, finds a mystery in - Amber, Janet, maybe even Paul, and if all that isn't complex enough for her - being Transgender in a society that has a tough time getting their heads around this is NOT a mental disorder or something done on a whim because we're bored with life. Tell me it isn't a struggle and it's all flowers / rainbows daily - I'll say you're in the 1% club... I tried hard to capture some of the struggles Elizabeth had functioning in the story - some struck cords with readers who commented - others maybe not so much...

OK, that's the majority of the story. She overcame some stuff - but she's certainly got some issues yet to get through and none of that disappears overnight. I purposely write with date and time for that purpose - to keep the reader grounded in "what's happening is happening in a fixed amount of real time". In the scope of every plot line - if you base her efforts in reality and the 'time' constraints - maybe she helps find Amber / assists the authorities. Does she directly affect the catching of potential sex traffickers? Unlikely - how successful are authorities today in stopping this stuff? Check the numbers for missing kids, specifically females, and along the US border to Mexico. Big problem you don't hear much about. Craigslist, The Stranger - just a few sites shut down recently for this very thing - sex trafficking of minors. People - this stuff is real...

In the scope of the firm itself and the Jacob / Janet / Martin triangle - is she going to know what's up or how to make some impact? Unlikely. I've spoken to my organizations ruler less than 100 words in 3.75 years. Not even kidding - the guy is unapproachable in a 'Hey, how was your weekend?' kind of way. Elizabeth was new to the firm - is it realistic to expect she's going to get in the middle of a partners power struggle? To what effect, if there was an in to that conflict, she could manipulate / control / effect the outcome? And Jacob being aloof, callous, uncaring? No, the guy is fighting fires on two ends - the Amber issue (for his sister - going as far as to enlist the FBI's help because he knew Landon) and someone trying to take his firm away from him with some unethical moves - which could totally spill onto him. Maybe he saw / used Elizabeth as just another lackey - but he's a power player and Elizabeth isn't in the same class at 23 yo. Now, I commented to someone via a message that I fully intended to have some kind of reward come her way - a raise, maybe job title / role change - for helping Jacob's family with Amber - but the Paul / Lisa / Elizabeth meeting at the end of the All Hands meeting squashed that idea and was a good exit point (in my mind). The reader gets to put whatever spin of what's to come for her their own way... Oh, the Janet and Elizabeth connection - sure, two women with similar struggles with society. But Janet was a power player and only using her to keep track of Jacob on the ground in Phoenix, while keeping track of him via his emails to Gillian back at the firm. Users using good people... Happens every day.

If you liked Elizabeth as a character - mission accomplished. If you had mixed feelings about everyone else - mission accomplished. If you think Elizabeth and Paul might have a shot at something - well, so do I - and I would write that story, but you can believe it would be full of bumps and pot holes. Were there things you had to make judgment calls on or suppose what happens - yup, you get to own that for yourself in your terms - not pre-chewed for you and served up all nice and neat.

Did this story end to quickly? There's the million dollar question... Yes and No. Yes, because there's so much more that could be explored. No, because you the reader get to suppose what happens in the future. The reality - Elizabeth goes back to work and the 'happy ending' is yours to decide - what do you think happens?

My final thoughts... I could have stretched this story out another chapter, maybe two, but I didn't want it to drag or to stretch it out for the sake of penning something and losing readers. I started this story on another site and was multiple chapters in before beginning to post on BC (best move EVER!). Like most, I have a FT job and a finite amount of time I can sit in front of the keyboard. If I could - you can believe I would write sun up - to sun down.

Thank You All for every comment, every Thump's Up, and giving this story a chance. I haven't decided on whether to sequel this story or try something else. I promise you this - I've learned plenty along the way from the comments and will work my butt off to make my next offering better. In the end - I could have done some things different and certainly could rewrite this whole story and spin it a hundred different ways. I'm happy with this story, I hope you enjoyed it...

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Just my little grain of salt,

Monique S's picture

Rachel.

Yes, your story is very close to the reality. The reality of corporate structures, that is what the firm is, is that the rulers are mostly ruthless. If you want an inkling of what is most probably going to happen to Elisabeth watch "The madness of King George" and look at the fate of the two loyal servants, who support him unquestioning through his treatment and recovery at the cost of being simply discarded when all is well again. They just knew too much and so does Elisabeth. Paul? He'll get eliminated himself, when the time comes. IT experts are replaceable. And that statement is based on personal experience of real life.

Thanks for the praise you gave me for my comments. I either give hints for inspiration or - so I hope - constructive criticism. Your involuntary "epilogue" proves me right.

I Love your writing, Rachel.
Monique.

Monique S

Better than a grain of sand...

RachelMnM's picture

Salt will dissolve in water - a grain of sand in your bikini bottoms will annoy! :-)

I'm not sure Elizabeth would end up like the servants from "The Madness of King George". To the point this story ends Jacob has no idea she's been privy to the firms inner struggles. Sure there's the Amber thing - but right off the bat there's a reminder of the "Confidentiality Agreement" she signed at her employee indoctrination with Lisa. At a minimum I think I'd have written that something good happens to her within the corporate structure of the firm - nothing crazy - but maybe a raise or bonus or title / position change.

Paul isn't long for the firm - he's only temporarily keeping the systems up and functioning while they search for a now Director of IT - that was stated in the story and Jacob's speech at the All Hands. Big hole though - what's Paul's background? Who's he work for? How'd he get hooked up with Jacob? He never really says much except for maybe working for CISCO and Elizabeth was spacing out during his chatter on that... Knowing a bit more about Paul would be something worth knowing - especially if the two of them continue long term.

I love you too Monique! Hugz!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

I'll Be a Bit of a Butinsky Here

It feels right to me that Jacob isn't thinking about Elizabeth right now as he has bigger fish to fry. I expect he does have a positive view of her and is likely even grateful for the role she played in recovering his niece. I agree with Rachel that she'll likely get a raise, a bonus, or a position upgrade (maybe even all 3) at a later time. She's demonstrated a number of positive qualities to the top boss. That has to be good for her future at the firm.

Not a butinsky...

RachelMnM's picture

Everyone sees things differently in what they read... As a writer I'm learning, so everything relayed to me will make me better - promise! Hugz to all!!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Legal Trap #12

For sure a Thumbs up and it surely requires a sequel as there are some nagging questions to be answered and a budding romance to flesh out here. Please write a sequel as your readers are waiting for it.
Thanks for this wonderful story and I hope you can find it in you to write more.
Angela M.

Nagging...

RachelMnM's picture

I've got those same feelings. So much more to write for Elizabeth and her romance. Drag in Amber, what's going on with the firm as it transitions, Lisa... So many directions to be explored. :-)

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Excellent writing...

All throughout the character development impressed me but I particularly liked the realism.... human flaws but still positive with quite a bit of wit that made me smile and the good guys, Jacob, Elizabeth, Paul, etc were smart enough to come out okay.

Yes please for a sequel...

Realism and wit...

RachelMnM's picture

Real life and insights into characters... So much fun to pen! Thank You for the comment and vote of confidence...

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

You can believe...

RachelMnM's picture

That with all she's gone through some of that money she was given ($1K stipend, to be classified as a bonus, for assisting) would certainly go toward fixing her legal status. While not enough for SRS / GRS - I'm sure she'd be saving / working to get there. I read an article by where the woman described her want for SRS / GRS as wanting to "own" her body, rather than be a "renter" within it. LOVE that!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Can you imagine...

RachelMnM's picture

What the ride up the elevator was like with Lisa? Liz trying to melt into the panels in the elevator while Lisa grilling her about sex, sex, sex... LOL You ROCK'd my day with your comment Dorothy!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Sequel ? You want to write a Sequel?

Do it ! I think the Ethernet to Australia still is working. You have a lot of directions to go with this story. Besides, I'm selfish, I want to read more about Paul and Elizabeth.

Karen

Bron - ROCKS!

RachelMnM's picture

Yes, my AU connection is still alive and kicking. Bron is amazing and so dang helpful. Can't express enough how lucky I've been that she took on my need for an editor. Selfish a bit you say? Nothing wrong with that... :-)

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Sequel, yes please.

Great story, please continue. Much appreciated.

Robyn Adaire

Thank You...

RachelMnM's picture

I appreciate every follower to this story, every Thump's Up, and everyone who gave it a chance. :-)

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Very Good

Thanks for sharing.

I liked the way you focused on Elizabeth's continuing battle with self esteem, body image, and self doubt, but still moved her story forward with a hopeful ending for Elizabeth and Paul. I think there is plenty to explore with Rachel's life going forward. A prequel isn't even out of the question.

Prequel...

RachelMnM's picture

Whoa! Now there's an interesting idea... What did Elizabeth's past look like? We heard her talk about it a little bit - but diving into it certainly might be interesting. My only fear is the whole Star Wars prequel stuff, which kind of ruined a good thing IMHO... Thanks CBee!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

A tender moment -

Donna T's picture

Your story flows well. I agree with the other comments... need to see where this is going..

"Paul had his hand at the small of my back the entire way and once out the door he took my hand as we made our way to the car. It felt unusual holding someone’s hand, but also comforting… Probably just feeling that second drink with dinner."

Donna

Thank You Donna!

RachelMnM's picture

Thinking about it... A sequel that is. :-)

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Sequel? Of course

There are so many loose ends that if u are not up to a sequel, deal with them in a Epilogue or some such venue. Amber, the organized group that LaFleur apparently was a part of (a loose thread in itself), Paul, the firm, Elizabeth and her progress and bright(?) future. Plenty of your great work ahead.

Epilogue...

RachelMnM's picture

Hadn't thought of that, but I did write a novel in response to a previous comment about my thoughts regarding the story - kind of an authors insight. I'm going to seriously consider the Epilogue idea... And yes - a lot of loose ends, but not all could be tied up by Elizabeth - even with Super Woman powers. :-) Thank You for following this story...

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Please write a sequel

gillian1968's picture

Paul and Elizabeth have so much to look forward to.

But I’m worried about Amber.

Gillian Cairns

They have...

RachelMnM's picture

A few firsts to get through... Could be fun to see how they deal with that. Thanks for the vote for a sequel...

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Do they or don't they

Jamie Lee's picture

There are stories with several chapters which seem to bog down at some point before reaching the end. This is not one of those stories.

This story made it very easy to be interested in Elizabeth's current situation. Made the reader want to take her by the shoulders and shake some sense into her because of her doubts about Paul.

It made the reader want to comfort her when her demons flowed to the surface because of the help she gave Amber. It also made the reader want to apply a Jethro head slap to Amber in order to jar her brain so she'd realize people were concerned and trying to help her. Trying to keep her from either making a huge mistake or ending up buried somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

Amber is not out of the woods so she could be reentered if a sequel were to be written, as could the consequences suffered by Janet and Martin. And if Elizabeth was reassigned to a position more suited to her intellect.

Each chapter of this story forced the reader to ask questions which might be answered in the next chapter. Or the next, or the next...

IMHO, this is another story well worth the time it takes to read. And another story which bodes well to have a sequel.

Others have feelings too.

Thank You...

RachelMnM's picture

Glad to hear you enjoyed the story and it got you thinking about what was going on. Hugz!

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

A legal Trap

Oh yes, plz continue. They have so much to experience/learn together. Love the story.

Strong...

RachelMnM's picture

Possibility of a continuation. Miss writing this story. Moving forward though there's plenty that will bog this story down. Nothing would happen instantly - just a consideration...

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...

Thank You...

RachelMnM's picture

Reuby...

Thank you for stick with this story to the end. I've dabbled with a followup to this story - just need to work out a solid direction I want to take it.

XOXOX

Rachel

XOXOXO

Rachel M. Moore...