Page 18 of The Wrong Side of the Law

“Yeah.” Lisa rolls her eyes. “I guess I can understand it, though. They’re tough, they’re smart as hell, and they’re competent. So competent it’s scary.”

“I bet. I get what he’s feeling. I had my own phase when I was a kid. We went to the museum in Fort Pierce when I was… heck, probably ten? Eleven? I spent the next week doing pushups and begging my mom for flippers and a mask so I could practice in the pool.” I grin at the ambitious kid I was. “Wound up going in a different direction, in the end. How’s Brooke doing?”

“Brooke. Right.” Lisa’s voice goes flat, her face stiffens into a narrow-eyed angry mask. “Sixteen. Straight A’s.”

“So what’s the problem, the naïve attorney asked, rushing forward, heedless of the danger?”

Lisa doesn’t laugh.

“Brandon isn’t the only one with a case of hero worship,” she says. “Brooke expected big, dumb gorillas… and instead found that—in addition to chiseled abs—one of them has a PhD in English Lit, the other one has two Master’s degrees. So, she’s absolutely in love. And I’m absolutely terrified. Of her, more than of them.”

“I can see how that might be a concern,” I say. “If it helps, you can mention to them that you’ve got a prosecutor on speed dial.”

“You’re in the Narcotics Unit, so that’s probably not going to help too much.” Lisa sighs. “But anyway. Speaking of the Narcotics Unit, how is that going?”

“Should be better, starting tomorrow morning,” I answer. “It seems I have some new office help. Thanks for that, by the way. You and Barbara seem to have conspired most effectively.”

Lisa’s face brightens.

“Oh, good! You’re hiring her, then?”

“It doesn’t look like I have a choice. Barbara seems to have found a way to get around all the legalistic HR crap about government job postings and closing dates and all that, and she sent Ms. Wilson over to interview after she was already hired.” I pause, leaning back in my chair. “On the other hand, I don’t think she could have possibly found me a better candidate.”

Remembering the electric feel of Emily Wilson’s hand in mine sends a shiver through me, sitting in the restaurant.

“Well, good.” Lisa cracks a small smile. “What’s going on inside that head of yours? Last time I saw that faraway look in someone’s eyes, Brooke had just discovered a SEAL that could recite entire scenes from Shakespeare.”

“You’re evil, Lisa.” I shrug, looking down at the table.

“But I’m not wrong, am I?” she asks. “Look, the goal was to get you some good, qualified assistance to help you dig out of the hole that Whitehall dumped you into, but… I’m not going to pretend like I hadn’t considered other…possibilities, let’s say.”

“C’mon, now. That’s just cruel. What have I done to make you hate me so much?” I chuckle, but it’s forced. “You set the smartest, prettiest woman I’ve met in a year in front of me, and then make sure she’s my employee, and therefore off limits.”

“She’s not going to be your employee forever. She’ll find a way to go back to school before too long. Emily Wilson is far too stubborn to let her current circumstances be much of an obstacle.”

“Yeah, that’s true,” I say. “I definitely got the impression that she’s viewing this as a temporary setback. In all seriousness, bringing her onboard probably isn’t in the best interests of the State Attorney’s office. This will not be a career for her.”

“Oh, pish. Even if she’s only there for a year, she’s going to be a tremendous help. You should have seen the state of Francis Senior’s office before she started interning in high school. Summer before her senior year, she went through everything and overnight—poof, just like magic—that firm was running like clockwork. She’ll do the same thing for you. She’s perfect.”

Emily is perfect. So perfect that now I can’t stop thinking about her. Sometimes perfection can be a problem.

“Well, hopefully she can work some magic here,” I say, trying not to think about the sprinkling of freckles on her nose, and wondering where else they might be. “I dropped the ball on a report today, that I didn’t find out was due until five minutes before close of business. I spent those last five minutes getting my ass chewed by the SA.”

“He’s starting to tighten the screws, then?”

“Yeah. I still haven’t figured out what exactly I did wrong, but it looks like he’s trying to force me out. Reward my performance with promotion but set me up to fail.” I shrug, shaking my head.

“And you still don’t know why.” Lisa isn’t asking a question.

“Well, I mean, the obvious answer is because I’m exceptionally well-organized, and that he trusts that whatever I do in this office will reflect well upon him next election?” It’s a joke, but it’s not even slightly funny.

“Don’t underestimate him, Gabriel,” Lisa admonishes me gently. “All of John’s moves,” she says, stabbing an emphatic finger toward me with each word, “are calculated. The man does not have even one single, solitary spontaneous bone in his body.”

“I hear you,” I sigh. “But I just can’t see what I did to piss him off. I even went through all the pending cases to see if there was something maybe coming up that he didn’t want me to look into. But there’s nothing. I can’t find anything.”

“You want my take on it?”

“Yeah,” I answer. “I do.”

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