Chapter Seven - Part Two

“Or so she can act like the doting mom and create a better image for herself in court.” Addy replied darkly.

“That’s it then.” I said, folding my arms over my chest in determination. “I’ve been putting it off because court isn’t until January, but clearly I’ve only been wasting precious time. So I think we should finally pay Claire that visit. You in?”

“Sure, but you gotta make it fast, otherwise we’re gonna be late.”

“Late for what?”

“Your weekly dance lesson for the cotillion, remember? Babe, I think you should really take those more seriously. I’ve heard rumors you’re still dancing with two left feet… ouch!”

*  *  *

Proctor and Sool was a tall, pointed building, with several floors worth of dark, hooded windows, and shiny, one-way glass. And all you had to do was look, in order to know that it was a building worthy of such a firm as P&S. Even Humans seemed to react to the invisible magnitude of daunting power that it seemed to exude. But it was the Supernaturals of Harbor that were able to recognize the influence of the Vampires who controlled P&S. But the Vampires still continued to prey on the wallets of the victims and criminals who passed through the law firm’s doors, safe from persecution because for once, blood had nothing to do with it.

Addy and I sat in her car, parked on the side of the street opposite the law firm. I reached down, and grabbed the two envelopes that had been tucked away in the dashboard, slipping them safely into my bag.

“Ready, for this?” Adelle asked, observing me with a pleased grin.

“As I’ll ever be.” I replied confidently, slipping on my sunglasses, and unfastening my hair to let it fall around my shoulders. “But it should be easy. All I have to do is avoid Franks and go straight for Claire – she’s the weaker link of the two. Wish me luck?”

“Screw luck – she’s a bitch anyway, and you don’t need her. Just go in there babe, fuck some shit up, and make momma proud.”

So that’s exactly what I set out to do.

*  *  *

Rounding the corner of the short hallway, I felt a strong surge of adrenaline. And before opening the door to the waiting room of Mr. Frank’s office, I pulled up the collar of black Burberry trench coat, and put on a smile. I then slipped inside, and locked the door quietly behind me, before advancing forward into the room.

“Can I help you?”

Claire Briton sat behind an expensive, mahogany desk, looking important and bored; idyllically unaware of the giant wrecking ball that I was about to bring smashing into the walls of her unsuspecting life. She was middle-aged, but still appearing youthful in a long-sleeved, blouse of violet silk that was tucked into a tight, black skirt. The deep cut of the blouse showed off her ample cleavage, while the understated seductiveness of her stockings complimented her slender legs. And looking down at Claire, with her blonde hair and big blue eyes, I had no trouble understanding the reasons why a scumbag Human like Franks would hire her.

“Yes, and you can start by opening this.” I said, continuing to smile pleasantly as I removed the envelopes from my bag, and set one on the empty expanse of desk before her.

“Is this a package for Mr. Franks?” she asked blankly.

“No, Claire. It’s for you.”

And though she looked at the envelope, and then back to me, she remained suspicious, unwilling to even touch it.

“What’s this about?” Claire said in a low voice, blue eyes flashing.  “Are you with the IRS? Are you a bill collector? Because listen – I already told you people – I don’t have any money –”

“I’m not a bill collector, Claire. Just open the envelope.” I glanced at Franks’ office door, but he was still seated quietly behind his desk, oblivious of my presence for now.

Slowly, Claire opened the envelope and shook out its contents until three glossy, black and white photographs of Claire and Franks spilled onto the desk. Frantic, she scooped them up, her face trapped behind a mask of horror.

“Who are you?” she demanded, standing in fury. “How did you get these?”

“Contrary to what you might be thinking, Claire, my problem isn’t with you. It’s with your boss, Franks – the man you’re having an affair with.”

Slowly, wordlessly, she sank into her seat again, clutching the photographs tightly in her hands. And before she replied, she looked quickly to her left, staring at Franks through the frosted, glass, windows.

“Please. If anyone here finds out about this, I could lose my job. I have two kids…”

“Then I guess it would probably be in your best interest to help me get what it is that I need,” I replied, patiently.

“Just tell me what you want.” she whispered hotly, her face pale.

“I need information on a case that he’s working on. It’s for a client named Paris Noble – sound familiar?

“Yeah. She comes to see him from time to time. They have lunch.”

“Do you have access to his office?”

“I have keys, yes.” she said quietly. “I’ve been working for him five years, he trusts me.”

“Good. Get me into that office, when he isn’t around, and we can take it from there.”

At this point, I laid down the second envelope, and Claire’s face darkened even more.

“What? More blackmail?” she said, angrily. “The photos aren’t enough?”

“Open it. I think you’ll appreciate what you see.” I encouraged, with my silver, forked tongue.

She hesitated, but picked up the new envelope, removing the check and the small slip of paper that came with it.

“Ten thousand dollars?” She whispered faintly. “Ten thousand?”

“Just a little… incentive… to keep you headed in the right direction. Besides, you and I both know you’re only with him for the perquisites. But business is business right?”

“I thought Franks could make money talk, but this check fucking sings.”

“Glad to hear it. So, we have an agreement, then?”

“Yeah. Franks is a jerk anyway.” Claire replied breathlessly, pale no longer, but with cheeks that were flushed.

“Good. There’s a number on that paper – call it when you’re ready. But just remember, Claire, time is of the essence…”

*  *  *

Collin and Ethan were already waiting for us at the dance hall by the time we arrived for practice. And with more time to kill than we thought we’d end up with, my friend and I crossed the room to our usual spot, to chat for a few more minutes. But right away, Collin broke from his conversation with Ethan, to grin and wave before making his own way over.

Ever since Addy had asked him to be her date to the cotillion, Collin Nichols had shown up to every practice since, just as faithfully as Ethan. He was cute, and he was sweet, and one hundred percent Human, but for some reason, Addy didn’t seem to care at all.

I watched for a moment as Collin swept Addy into his arms, kissing her sweetly. Giving them privacy, I turned away, only to lock eyes with Ethan. He watched me from across the room, waiting for me to roll my eyes or pretend like I hadn’t noticed him. But this time I surprised us both by scooping up my duffel bag, and crossing the room to join him.

“You know, I think Addy really likes him.” I said, setting my duffel bag on the ground again, once I had reached Ethan. “I think they make a cute couple.”

“I feel bad for the guy – he doesn’t know what he’s in for. But when he notices all the fleas and the back fur, she’ll remember he’s human again.”

I started to laugh, and then covered my mouth, thankful that Susan already had the music blasting. She was our dance instructor, in her early fifties, and a Human to boot, but she could dance like there wasn’t a bone in her body, and we all respected her for that. Quickly, I glanced over to double check that she was still in her lone corner of the room, stretching impressively in the corner.

“Look,” I said, turning back to Ethan and taking a deep breath. “I’m not gonna pretend like I’m not still mad at you – because I am. But, I know you still have a lot of questions about what happened that night. And somehow, believe it or not, Addy managed to convince me that it isn’t fair to keep you from the answers. So, here’s your chance: what do you wanna know?”

“And I’m supposed to believe that this was Newport’s idea? That chick hates me.”

“Yeah, she hates you, just not as much as we all thought she did. Now back to those questions – what were they again?”

“Well, first off, you can tell me why you’re being so nice to me all of a sudden.” he said, looking down at me with clear suspicion. “You’ve been freezing me out for weeks, but now, all of a sudden, Naomi Noble wants to talk to me again?

“Well, maybe I just realized that you really would be good at keeping this secret… Especially from people like Charles, for instance.”

“Oh, so that’s what this is about?” Ethan said, crossing his arms smugly over his chest. “You don’t want me to say anything to the Elder. Why?”

“Oh please. If you were gonna tell Charles about Tidus, you would have done it already. So quit pretending like you aren’t dying to hear what I have to say, Ethan…” I said, poking him squarely in his solid chest. “And just ask me what you wanna know.”

Ethan remained stubbornly silent for a few more seconds, but my offer was clearly too enticing to resist.