“Oh, woman, you are worth more money.” Reaching over to take mine, I see that it has “insomniac” written on the top of it.
“You better remember that at salary review time, boss, otherwise you never know what special ingredients will start being added to your morning coffee.” Laughing, she pulls her chair closer to get started. “Now spill your brilliance—or it better be brilliant to have me here at seven am.” Greta looks at me, waiting.
I’m lucky to have her as an assistant. She is super intelligent and has the drive to become an amazing lawyer once she gets the experience behind her. I’ve had a few assistants in my time, but I think without a doubt, Greta is the best I’ve worked with. We spend so much time together and sometimes late into the night, and I’ve never had to worry about her dedication to the cases. We have become great friends, and I hope I can keep pushing her along to get her to where she deserves to be in this firm. I would never interfere with her promotions, but I’ll be making sure the people in the know see her ability.
“Right. So last night I was sitting having a scotch after a friend left my apartment. It was my second for the night, plus a beer.”
“That’s not like you, Lex, three drinks on a school night.” She smiles a cheeky grin at me.
“Haha, smarty pants. Anyway, when I started on the third scotch—yes, it had been a long night—I thought to myself, ‘Lucky there are no cameras here watching me, to see me getting drunk on my own.’ That’s when it hit me.”
“What, that you should video your own solo drunken parties?”
“No. Very funny. Now just listen and keep up.” I glare at her.
“Okay, sorry, no room for comedy this morning. Continue,” Greta says, drinking her coffee.
“We may not have a blood sample that is going to prove how much Mr. Digby had to drink that night or what drugs were in his system, but…” I hold my chin and rub my thumb on my beard while I process my thoughts, “…what if there are security cameras in his office that show him drinking or taking drugs in the few hours before he left to drive to his ex-wife’s house.”
“Shit, we didn’t think of cameras in his office. We were so focused on his blood samples, and his driving route once he left the office. I’m on it.” Greta’s fingers are madly typing away.
“Exactly, and if there are cameras, why hasn’t Jacinta used the footage? It’s not like her to miss a piece of evidence to prove her point. It leads me to think there’s something she doesn’t want me to see. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it. I’m not thinking clearly.” I’m pissed off with myself for missing this.
Greta tells her phone to call Blaine, the investigative security expert we use.
I’m almost finished the summary I’ve been working on of what things I want looked for in his office, so I can send it to Blaine after we speak.
“Morning, sexy lady. Where did you disappear to so early this morning? I was going to finish where we left off last night.” Her face goes bright red. I can’t help but start to laugh.
“Morning, Blaine. Something you need to share about my assistant lawyer?” I ask him as she just closes her eyes, shaking her head and still typing away.
“Yeah, Lex, tell my wife she needs to wake me up before she sneaks out to see the other man in her life that early in the morning.” Blaine chuckles to himself, knowing full well that Greta will be ready to kill him.
“Jealous much? That’s what happens when you’re second fiddle, man.” I try to keep a straight face and not laugh at her.
“Can you two both stop your bullshit and get on with work. We don’t have time to continue with you guys trying to one-up each other. Blaine, we have a job and it’s urgent. I’m getting the search warrant as we speak. Lex will get the detective handling the case on to executing it. But we need it this morning.” Both Blaine and I know the tone of her voice means we are no longer joking, and everyone switches to work mode.
“Sure thing, G, fill me in.”
Greta starts talking while I’m sending through the brief to Blaine. We quickly tell him what we’re looking for and the time frame we need the security tapes scanned.
He’s already running checks on the building and gathering intel as we speak, so he’s ready to go as soon as we have the warrant to get in there legally. I can’t afford anything to blow this case. This bastard needs to pay for what he has done.
Blaine and Greta met on the job and hit it off straight away. I told her at the time if I didn’t get invited to the wedding then I would fire them both. Must admit it makes it handy when you have your own investigator on standby. No matter what he’s working on, he won’t say no to his wife. They make a great team both professionally and in life. They make me think about the sort of life that hopefully awaits me somewhere down the track. Where I am right now with relationships is not even close to the happiness they share.
“Okay, so we’re all good to go, Blaine. As soon as we get the paperwork I’ll be in touch. David is standing at the judge’s chambers waiting to get it signed off.” I finish scanning over the message from David saying that the judge has arrived at the courthouse.
“Perfect. Talk soon.” With that he’s gone off the line, and Greta doesn’t even flinch that he didn’t say goodbye to her. Work is work and the rest is for out of the office, otherwise it can just get messy when it blurs the lines.
“Right, now let’s get ready for court and pray that Blaine works his magic and we have something to present to court this afternoon.” I take another sip of my coffee and look out to the day breaking outside. Let’s hope by nightfall we have the evidence that will have this case signed, sealed, and delivered, and Michelle will have the justice she deserves.
“You should thank that friend of yours, Lex. She gave you some clarity with her little visit.” Greta laughs as she continues working at the corner of my desk.
“More than you realize, Greta. Though I’m not sure she’ll be happy with either bits of clarity she left me with last night. Both epiphanies of how my life needs to change are likely to end both situations badly for her.” My eyes are still focused on the clear blue sky.
“That’s a little deep for this time of the morning, boss. Care to share?” Greta stops typing. I know I could tell her anything and it would never leave her lips if I asked her to keep a secret. It’s not fair to burden her with my troubled mind, though. When I’m ready, the boys will get that messed-up conversation. After a few drinks, I’m sure.
“Thanks, but nobody needs my complicated thoughts this early in the day. We have more important things to worry about.” Getting up and walking past her, I squeeze her shoulder to let her know I appreciate her friendship.
“Maybe so, but just know I’m here anytime you need.” Her fingers start typing again so I know she’s letting it go. Obviously, the guys aren’t the only ones to notice I’m not myself at the moment.
I can’t have my mind all cluttered with my own shit. I need to focus on work. People rely on me being at my peak in the courtroom.
Leaning on the window for a moment, I roll my shoulders around a few times and rotate my head once to just loosen my muscles.