Page 19 of Judge

“Did I say you had to pay me for them?” I raise my brow.

Indie bites her bottom lip and looks up at me wearingly. “I assumed.”

“You assumed? See, that’s the problem with people. They assume too fucking much,” I snap, losing my temper with her. I’m so sick and tired of people thinking they know who I am. Indie knows nothing about me.

Indie’s eyes grow wide. I glare back at her with annoyance.

“Well to be fair, Mr. Judge. It wasn’t very clear they were a gift.”

“In case you hadn’t noticed, Indie, I’m not in any mood to argue. I told you not to call me that! Why is it so hard for you to do as your fucking told!” I yell and then breathe out a long-exhausted breath.

Indie walks casually over to me and places the file in her hand on my desk.

“Here’s the file you requested from June this morning. Who, by the way, is so frightened of poking the angry bear she’s petrified of coming in here to give this to you.” She begins to leave my office but stops midway and turns back around.

“Perhaps... Roman,” she accentuates my name. “If you spoke to people in a better manner, then perhaps they would be more inclined to listen.” She cocks her head to the side as her eyes twinkle with something dark and menacing. “And you might find they will be more receptive to your orders when not barked at like a dog.” I’m too dumbfounded by her outburst to respond before she walks the remainder of the way out and closes the door.

My shoulders straighten as I stare at the back of the closed door and take a breath. There are only two people in my world that would dare to challenge me. That’s my father and Liam. It’s courageous and stupid at the same time.

I smirk to myself. If I weren’t so mad, I would probably be proud of her. Here I thought she was intimidated by me, but she sure as hell just put me in my place. I’ll admit, the way I spoke to her was unnecessary. This morning's run-in with my father has me in a mood I can’t seem to shake, and Indie just stood in the firing line. Although, she took it and then threw it back in my face. It was fucking hot! Little sweet Indie has a fire inside her, and I just set it ablaze. I fucking love it.

Now, she has my full attention, and I’m not sure if she can handle that.

MY COMPUTER PINGS WITH yet another incoming email. It's from Charlie. He’s completed his background check on Indie. I eagerly open the attached file and begin to read it. It starts with the normal boring bits, date of birth, address, blah blah blah. Then we get into the bones of it, and to sum it all up, she has an unfortunate history just as I had initially thought. Her sad eyes are well and truly warranted and now so understood.

Abandoned by her scumbag of a father at six years of age, she was barely taken care of by her drug-addict mother who has a rap sheet as long as my arm and an even longer child services record.

She had average grades at school but an impeccable tax record. Indie attended a substandard community college and studied photography. For which she didn’t even get any qualifications because the course is not recognized outside of the state. Indie has had various jobs. Mainly in hospitality, and I’, amazed at how she’s managed to keep up financially with all her responsibilities.

Just as I’d asked, Charlie dug a little deeper than the usual new employee background check, and boy did he dig.

Indie’s father has been living in Atlanta, Georgia for the past nine years. Turns out, the son of a bitch has another family. Three kids, two of them close to Austin and Indie’s age and the other only fifteen. He’s been married for twenty-six years. He works in corporate marketing. Judging from the information in front of me, when Indie was a baby, he spent a lot of time between the firm he worked for in New York and their Indianapolis office, before being permanently transferred to Atlanta. The prick was living a double life. He had two families in two different states. I wonder if Indie knows this. Did her mom find out, and that’s why he left? God, he’s not even my father and even I have so many questions. Are Indie and Austin aware they have a half-brother and two half-sisters?

As if her father's indiscretions were not enough, Indie's mom disappeared when she was eighteen, and the state awarded her guardianship of her brother. That explains so much about her actions at the club last week. I knew it was more than just an overprotective sister sticking up for her brother. She’s literally and legally responsible for him.

Now that I know some of Indie’s past, I can understand why she is the way she is. Guarded because she has been so hurt by the two people who were supposed to love and take care of her. She now protects herself fiercely because her parents whom she loved so completely and unconditionally let her down in an inexcusable way. They left her to raise her brother on her own without ever checking in on her. Why? Apart from the obvious, drugs and prostitution with her mother, and a whole hidden life from her father, what happened? Where the hell is her mother, and why would they abandon their own flesh and blood? There are no death certificates for her mother on record, and from Charlie’s findings, her dad is still in Atlanta.

I quickly type up an email to Isaac Miller, a man I use as a private investigator in my cases.

Isaac,

I need as much information on Frank Austin Johnson, originally from Indiana. DOB 01.03.1976. Also, a Jennifer Anne Johnson, originally from Austin, Texas. DOB 06.15.1979. Children: Indiana Mae Johnson, born in Indiana on 12.10.1999, and Austin Lee Johnson, born in Austin on 10.27.2005. Both are currently in Boston.

This is urgent and confidential.

Kind regards,

Roman Judge

I didn’t pick it up before, but now as I re-read the email, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Indie’s parents named their kids after their birthplace. That’s kind of weird. I wonder if they still would have done that had they been born in Soda Springs, Idaho or Placentia, California?

Chapter Thirteen

Indie

WHAT AN ABSOLUTE ASS of a man! I stride back to my desk infuriated. I should really learn to keep my mouth shut, but when he spoke to me like that, and with his tone so volatile, I just couldn’t contain it.

Maybe it’s because I never really grew up with authority, making me struggle with it so much. However, I never spoke up to my previous employers or teachers like that before. I suppose I’m not scared to be fired in this instance. In fact, that would be a blessing right now. If I never had to lay eyes on Roman ever again that would be ideal.

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