Page 133 of Dial L for Lawyer
"I'm coming with you."
"Serena, no. You can't?—"
"The hell I can't." I'm already grabbing my purse, my keys. "If this is about us, about our case, then I have every right to be there."
"You'll make it worse." The words come out harsh, and I see him wince immediately. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean?—"
"Yes, you did." My voice is steady, but inside I'm fracturing. "You meant exactly that. And you're right. But, how, Caleb? How would they have even found out about our agreement? It's not like we wrote it down."
He steps toward me, hands raised like he's trying to calm a spooked animal. "Serena, we don't even know if this is what the complaint is about. Ethics complaints can be about anything—a missed filing, a procedural error, a conflict of interest with another client..."
"Don't patronize me," I snap, fear making my voice sharp. "Emergency Saturday meetings aren't called unless it's something big. What else have you done that's as big as asking me to date you as payment? Nothing, right?"
He runs his hand through his hair, frustrated and tense. "This is why you need to stay here. If they see you at the office with me right now, it'll only confirm whatever they think they know."
"So it is about us." My voice drops to a whisper.
"I don't know that. But I can't risk it."
I take a step back, feeling the couch hit the backs of my knees. The cardboard box fortress we've built suddenly feels like a monument to my stupidity. Of course this would happen. Of course the universe wouldn't let me have this. The onegood thing I've found in the wreckage of my life, and now it's threatening to destroy him too.
"Serena." He steps toward me, but I shake my head.
"Go," I say. "Handle it. I'll be here."
He hesitates, clearly torn between staying and going.
"Go," I repeat, more firmly this time. "The sooner you find out what's happening, the sooner we can fix it."
His eyes search my face. "Promise me you won't spiral while I'm gone."
"I make no such promises."
That earns me a ghost of a smile. "I'll call you as soon as I know something."
"You better." I cross my arms, trying to look stern rather than terrified.
He kisses me quickly, then he's gone, the door closing behind him with a quiet click that sounds like finality.
I drop onto the couch and stare at the half-packed boxes surrounding me like sentinels of a life interrupted. One minute we were joking about mugs, and the next... ethics complaint. The words echo in my head, sharp and accusing.
My hands are shaking. I clasp them together to make them stop.
I sit there for exactly fifteen seconds before I grab my phone.
"Layla? It's me. I need you to come over right now. And bring wine. A lot of it."
"What happened?" Her voice is immediately alert.
"Caleb just got called into an emergency ethics meeting at his firm."
"Oh shit."
"Yeah. Oh shit is right."
"I'm on my way. I'm bringing Bennett, and I'm calling Audrey too."
"Don't—"
