Page 16 of Worth the Want
“Thank goodness. I don’t know how I get anything done around here without you, babygirl.”
“You don’t,” Mom teases him.
He grabs at his chest. “You wound me, woman.”
Her answering smile is the same one she’s given him my whole life. Indulgent, thoroughly amused. If I’m ever lucky enough to find someone to spend my life with, I’d like us to balance each other out the way they do.
“Alright, I’m off to work for a while. It’s only a meeting, so I shouldn’t be late. I’ll see you in a bit, dragonfly. Be good for Grammy, and try to keep Grandpa in line,” I tell her with a wink.
She grins at me, her freckles and her sweet dimple visible in the sun. “Okay. Bye, Daddy! I’ll be good.”
“I’m not worried.” I kiss her cheek, waving to my parents before making my way into town.
On the drive to the office, thoughts of having someone on my property now while I’m away, and how uncomfortable it makes me, start to creep in. I’m not sure whether Winnie is there or not, and I’m not used to having to wonder what someone else is doing around my house.Should I get security cameras?That seems extreme, doesn’t it? But what if she has people over?Amanover.
Fuck, no. That’s not happening.
It does remind me that I don’t really know her, though, do I?Do I want to?No, there’s no point. The words feel hollow, but if I keep repeating them, maybe they’ll feel more true. I’m contemplating this as I park my truck on the street across from the old office building. Walking in, I flip on the lights as I go. Cora’s at her other office job since I only have the one meeting, so it’ll just be me here today.
In my office, I turn on my computer and open the document I was looking at yesterday afternoon. I grab the papers from my briefcase to cross-reference the phone records I’ve already combed through. The ones I received from Kirk were not what I received from Ms. June’s service provider. I knew I had a gut instinct about him. I’ll be able to present this to him and his lawyer today, and that should be the end of it.
I check the clock on my wall; there’s about twentyminutes until they arrive. I make a list of points to go over and then make a list of things I need to get done at home.Thatlist is never-ending, and I’m always adding to it, but I try to make it a point to get on top of it at least once a week. It’s hard to find time to get anything done these days as a one-man band. With Hazel staying the night with Rhett and Winnie tomorrow night, I’ll hopefully be able to get a head start.
I hear the door open, alerting me to Kirk Carter and his rep’s arrival. I stand and grab a few papers, tucking them under my arm, before walking to the entrance to my office.
“Mr. Carter. Mr. Shepherd,”
“Mr. Holloway. I hope you’re well,” Shepherd says, holding out his hand. I shake it, then extend my hand to Kirk. After the niceties, I direct them to the room across from my office so we can talk in a larger space. I’ve found it helps to put someone at ease, feeling more like neutral territory than someone’s personal office.
“If you gentlemen will head through here, we can get started.” I hold my arm out across the hall.
“Sounds great, this shouldn’t take too long,” Kirk says.He’s right, but probably not in the way he thinks he is.
“Okay, Mr. Holloway. I’ll cut right to the chase. It seems like this is a classic case of an elderly soul being taken advantage of,” Shepherd starts. I did a little research on him last night as well, finding out he was drafted onto this case. A favor for a friend of a friend of the firm he works for. He isn’t even the lawyer listed on the original document.
I narrow my eyes on him. “I can see how it may seem that way to someone on the outside looking in,” I say conversationally. “But seeing as you're representing someone involved, Iwould assume you could glean the actual problem here,” I add pointedly.
“I’m not sure what you mean.” He says it with a tight smile, remaining cordial, but he’s annoyed with my subtle jab.
I take my glasses out of my shirt pocket and slip them on, pretending to look over the documents that I now know backward and forward. “Would you mind if I asked your client a couple of clarifying questions? I think that may help the situation.”
He looks puzzled but nods. “Of course.”
Turning my attention to the lying piece of shit, I put my most compassionate foot forward. “First of all, I would like to extend my deepest sympathies over the passing of your aunt. Ms. June was a shining light in our community and will be missed,” I tell Kirk. It’s a truth he will never know, but the truth nonetheless.
“Thank you, I appreciate that.” His faux solemn expression pisses me off.
“So the records I received from you stating your communication and interactions with Ms. June tell a little bit of a different story than the records I was able to obtain from her service provider. Maybe you sent the wrong documents?” I question. I can see his throat work and the fidgeting starts.
He sniffs, and his eyes look up and to the right. “That’s strange. Those should have been the correct records.”Lie.
“Well, I’ve verified that they couldn’t possibly be correct. Did you perhaps communicate with your aunt in another way, or possibly from a different phone number?” I ask him these questions, knowing that it isn’t true, but I don’t mind him and his lawyer coming to the same conclusion: they have no leg to stand on.
“Uh-yeah. Actually, I may have called from another number a couple of times, and I, uh. I have some letters,” he says, pulling at the collar of his dress shirt, swallowing.
“Excellent. Could you give me that number then? I’ll go ahead and check it against my records so there’s no false information presented.” I click my pen and look at him expectantly. He glances at Shepherd. He can’t help you, you little shit. He has nothing.Got you, fucker.
“You know, I may have to get back to you on that. I’ve had a couple of different phones, and I wouldn’t want to give you the wrong number again.” He’s lying through his teeth again—and not very well.
