Page 95 of Heist

Chapter Twenty-Four

Wednesday morning, Austin stood in the middle of an empty room imagining what it would look like as her office.

“Can I answer any questions for you, Miss Yates?” the property manager asked.

Austin turned and offered her a pleasant smile. “I think you’ve answered everything, Linda. I’m definitely interested. I’ll get back to you as soon as I know if I want it. There are just a few more puzzle pieces I have to put into place first.”

Linda shook her hand and together they walked out into the hallway.

“I really hope you decide you want it,” the real estate agent said, patting her shoulder.

Austin couldn’t help but feel excited about the prospect of striking out on her own. Thorley and associates had a non-compete clause, but since Austin specialized in contract law, she knew she had a good chance of arguing her way out of it. They were difficult to enforce in the state of New York.

It felt good to believe in herself again. The people she had surrounded herself with convinced her she could do this but most of all, she’d finally convinced herself. Now she just had to come up with an exit strategy that wouldn’t compromise any of her ongoing cases. The law required that Thorley let her continue representing those who chose to stick with her, they just had to be given ample notice of her move to a new firm.

With a spring in her step, she walked down the sidewalk in the New York air to grab a coffee before heading back to work. There was a text from Patrick waiting for her when she checked her phone.

Did you like the space?

She smiled. He had a lot on his plate, but he still took the time to check in with her.

I loved it. I’m still weighing all my options, but I think I’m leaning towards yes.

He didn’t respond right away, and she tucked the phone in her bag and hailed a cab with her coffee in hand.

As she rode the short distance to her office, she thought about all the people who had expressed their faith in her over the past few weeks. It felt good to be surrounded by such a wonderful group of friends, but she still had a hard time believing in herself.

When she stepped out of the elevator onto her floor a half hour later, she bumped into Jack Desmond. Seeing the disdain with which he looked at her made her realize she didn’t need to weigh anymore options. Thorley and associates wasn’t the place for her anymore. She would draft her resignation later this afternoon and be done with this place. There would be a lot of paperwork and clients to notify. Others she wouldn’t be allowed to notify because they belonged to the firm. She worried that David Eastman would fall into that category, and she wasn’t sure how to handle that since they were friends before she was his attorney.

After drafting her resignation letter, she spent the afternoon on the phone with a representative from the American Bar Association getting guidance on the best way to handle everything.

“My only worry, Miss Yates, is that you’re attempting to leave rather abruptly. Is there a reason you don’t want to take your time to formulate an exit strategy?”

She sucked in a deep breath. “It’s all personal reasons. An opportunity to start my own firm has presented itself and I’ve always known I would outgrow Thorley and associates.”

The representative cleared their throat. “I’m looking at the statistics for the firm and I don’t want to imply anything but does your gender have anything to do with why you’re leaving?”

You mean because Chadwick Thorley and his partners are sexist pigs?She didn’t say that out loud though. Instead she said, “I am concerned with the lack of female representation at this firm but don’t feel I’m in a position to change it. What I can do is vow to do better at my own firm. I’ve been paid fairly here and there are no ethics violations to report if that’s what you’re asking.”

The woman laughed. “I’m not asking anything, Miss Yates, just trying to get a clear picture so I know how best to advise you. From the sounds of it, you’re doing everything right.”

“What do I do about the account that belongs to the firm. I know the company will want to retain me, but ABA standards prevent me from contacting them to let them know I’m leaving since their account is with the firm and not me directly.”

“If this is a friend, there’s little you can do about the fact that they have your personal cellphone. I would advise you to tell your friend that they should wait at least six months to transfer unless they become unhappy with the work the firm is doing for them in your absence. At that point, they would be welcome to seek new council.”

That was what she thought they would say. She knew David Eastman was fair and would play by the rules but would likely be unhappy with anyone but her. Though he did retain a number of attorneys for his company and didn’t use her much anymore she just hated the idea of leaving his account with Thorley.

She thanked the woman and ended the call.

As she was typing her resignation letter, her desk phone rang. It was the district attorney’s office.

“Miss Yates, we have you on file as the council of record for Patrick Sutton, is that still the case?”

“It is,” she confirmed, sitting up straighter at the mention of Patrick’s name. “What can I help you with?”

“We would love to sit down and chat with your client and potentially offer him a plea bargain. Can we set that up?”

Austin gave a low whistle. “I don’t think Mr. Sutton is interested in a plea deal. We maintain his not guilty plea. But if you can tell me what you’re offering, I’ll pass it along to my client and see if he’s willing to talk.”

“We would really like to spell out the offer face to face, Miss Yates, is that something you can arrange?”

Austin frowned at the receiver in her hand. Most of the time a D.A. would at least give her a ballpark on the plea deal being considered. With a sigh she said, “I’ll call him as soon as I’m off the phone with you and we’ll set something up.”

The fact that they didn’t want to give her an estimate of the deal made her worry. That could mean they had nothing and couldn’t win the case and just wanted to get it off their plates and still count it as a win. It could also mean they were on a fishing expedition and wanted to see what insight Patrick could give them that might help them win their case. Either way, she didn’t like it and her excitement over opening her new firm waned a little as she returned her attention to keeping Patrick out of prison.

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