pencil.”
“I know the feeling. I’ve put you in for a commendation, by the way. I’m pretty sure it will be a laydown.”
“Thank you for that. It means a lot to me.” Which was true. Recognition of her excellence on the job was one of the ways she measured herself, and it never hurt to hear you were doing a good job.
“I read the interrogation transcript. Pretty heavy stuff. Anything you want to talk about?”
Silver considered her words carefully. “What did you think about it?”
Brett leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling. “We live by rules and conventions, Silver. You know that. They aren’t perfect, and God knows we’ve all had moments where we wish we could take matters into our own hands. But what keeps everything from breaking down is that we don’t. As flawed as things are, they’re better than a lot of other places in the world, so even if I conceded that he has some valid points, which I’m not saying he does, what are the alternatives? In the end, he got what he wanted, which is notoriety, and you did what you had to do, which is your job. That’s why you show up here every day.”
“I suppose so. But would it be stupid or naive for me to ask whether anything will ever come of his claims? If he’s even half right this was the crime of the century.”
“I’ll run it up the flagpole, but I don’t expect much. You know how things work. We’re very good at tracking a bank robber or a killer. Not so great at trying to build a case against, well, most of the big names in the world of high finance. Where do you even start?” Brett shook his head.
“With most crimes, you start at the beginning.”
“I know. But white collar crime isn’t the same. It’s frustrating for that reason. There are a lot of gray areas…”
“And a lot of very powerful people with their congressman’s home phone numbers on speed dial. I get it. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that it’s one of the more frustrating cases I’ve had.”
Brett nodded as he got to his feet. “No disagreement there. But all we can do is mush on and live to fight another day. Right?” He walked to her door and opened it.
“That will have to do.”
Ben welcomed Silver into his office and gestured at his receptionist to bring her a bottle of water. He beamed at her as she sat down.
Once the woman had returned with the drink, he motioned for her to shut the door.
Silver gave him a quizzical look. “What’s the news?” she asked.
“Do you believe in Santa Claus?”
“Not since I was eight. Why?”
“Because from where I’m sitting, it’s Christmas in April.”
“Spit it out, Ben. I don’t think I can afford the humor. You’re too expensive by the joke.”
“Well, I can give you the long version or the short version. Seeing as you’re so testy, I’ll stick with the short. Your ex is no longer a problem. He’s pulled his motion, and I can’t see him being an issue for you anytime soon.”
“What? You’re kidding!” she exclaimed. “Tell me you’re not kidding, Ben.”
“You’re not kidding, Ben.”
Silver winced at the lame joke. “What happened?”
“Ah, so the longer version is suddenly of interest? Fine. Remember all those expensive private detectives you’ve been paying for? Well, they’re worth it. One of them was able to find a twenty-year-old intern who claims that your ex forced her to perform a whole slew of deplorable sexual acts while she was working for him, and that she ultimately quit because of the constant harassment. Apparently some money changed hands, so she never filed any charges, but she still holds a grudge. To make a long story short, even a hint of that would kill Eric’s chances of running for public office, so when we approached him for a friendly chat about it, he suddenly expressed fatigue over the toll that his custody battle was taking on everyone.”
“Yes, I imagine that signing the complaint was exhausting.”
“I commiserated with him and pointed out that we could probably make the entire thing go away without raising any problems with the current arrangement if he was willing to cover your accumulated legal expenses to date. That seemed fair to him.”
Silver nodded. “I hope you triple-billed him.”
“That wouldn’t be ethical. But there were quite a few items that I’d somehow omitted from our calculations for your fee the last time we spoke. That’s why I’m an attorney, not an accountant.” Ben’s face could have been carved from granite. He opened a highly-polished burled walnut box on his desk and withdrew a rectangular slip of paper, then handed it to her. She took it, and her eyes got large when she read the script.
“That’s a hundred percent of your retainer back, plus a little to help compensate for the fees you must have incurred when looking at selling the flat. It’s not my place to probe too deeply, but I hope that will be satisfactory?”
Silver folded the paper and put it into her purse. “More than satisfactory, Ben. You do great work. As always.”
“Just trying to keep the world safe for single mothers, Silver. Today I did my small part.”
“On behalf of single mothers everywhere, I thank you.”
“I saw you in the paper yesterday, by the way. Congratulations. That’s a big achievement. You must be very excited.”
“I thought the photo made me look kind of…heavy.”
“Nonsense. You’re perfect. The camera always adds fifteen pounds. You looked stunning.”
“You’re very kind. So what now? Do I need to do anything more?”
“I’ll ask you to stop on the way out and sign a few documents putting this episode behind us. Beyond that, you’re done.”
Silver stood and extended her hand. “Thanks for everything, Ben. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I hope I never have to see you again.”
He nodded and smiled as he shook her hand. “Believe it or not, I get that a lot.”
The sommelier brought the bottle of wine to the table and presented the label for Richard’s inspection. He nodded his approval, and the man made a big show of opening it and pouring a little for him to taste. He swirled it around in his mouth, then made an approving noise and gestured to Silver’s glass. She watched as the deep purple liquid filled the bottom fifth of the goblet. Once the man had left, they raised their glasses in a toast.
“All’s well that ends well,” she said.
“Bottoms up,” he suggested, then took a sip.
“Mmm. This is really good,” Silver enthused. “Better than the one we had the last time we were here.”
“I agree. Australian Shiraz. Big, bold bruiser of a mouthful.”
“G’day, mate,” she intoned in an exaggerated accent.
They bantered easily as they enjoyed each other’s company. Richard was sliding his hand over to hold hers on the tabletop when they were interrupted by the waiter’s arrival with their entrees — they had both ordered the ostrich special.
She took another taste of the wine.
“I really can’t believe how much I like this wine,” she said.
“It will go well with your ostrich.”
“Doesn’t everything go well with my ostrich?”
“Why, Agent Cassidy. Are you flirting with me?” he asked in a low voice, fixing her with a troubled look.
“It’s sexual harassment I was shooting for.”
“You don’t have to threaten me to get me to admire your ostrich.”
“Admiring it wasn’t what I had in mind, but it’s a start.”
They sipped their wine contentedly. Silver stared off at a distant table, losing the moment for a split second, then she picked up her fork, as did Richard.
“You still have him on the brain?” Richard asked.
She returned her focus to him. “Hard not to, isn’t it?”
