“Yeah, thanks anyway.”
“Well, eventually I’m going to need one, depending on how long we’re here. Let me know if you change your mind.”
I nodded.
E.J. asked, “So why are you really here, Bryce? You had started out so nicely on a different track, hinting at a negotiated settlement. Now you’re trying to pry into my client’s research and development.”
“Just trying to represent my client as best I can. Seems to me that there are two ways to resolve the case. Trial or settlement.”
“True,” he said, “but either way Benton Dynamics is going to get its files back and figure out what happened to them.”
“So settlement is a possibility?” I asked.
“Of course,” he said magnanimously. “It always is. A consent order could put this behind your client. Not just the hearing next Wednesday, but all that’s coming. You know this injunction is just the beginning.”
“I figured as much. So we can discuss settlement without prejudice?”
E.J. said, “Yeah, sure. Make me an offer.”
The air circulator switched on, filling the conference room with a low hum. Outside the window, bare branches on the oak trees swayed in the autumn breeze. A huge flock of blackbirds crossed the cloudless sky in a churning swirl.
I rested both hands on the smooth conference table and asked, “I’ll see what I can do. Any idea why someone would take these particular files?”
“No. Not yet. A lot of possibilities though. What did Ms. Dupree tell you?”
“She said she doesn’t know anything about it.”
“Aw, come on, Bryce,” E.J. replied with a slow shake of his head. “We’re wasting each other’s time. You understand what we have against your client, don’t you?”
“Not really, and I’m not playing dumb. All I have to work with is the complaint you filed and my initial interview with Marisa Dupree. Now I’m talking to you, but you won’t give me discovery. To put it bluntly, I’m in the dark with way more questions than answers. The less I’m in the dark, the better I’m able to advise my client and resolve the case.”
“Okay, that makes sense,” E.J. said, appearing more relaxed as he leaned back into his chair. “Here’s what I can tell you. Marisa Dupree claims she didn’t take any files. I can prove she did. She worked in a department that has security scans at the entrances. She cards in and out, so we know when she was there.”
I had an urge to take notes, but instead just listened.
He continued, “Kostas downloaded most of the data over several weeks. Ms. Dupree had only one download, but it was a big one. She was in her department at the time of the theft, entered her password into the main computer system, and used a special flash drive that’s protected by its own password, which was assigned only to her.”
“And the new computer security chief I just met, that Mr. Gunther, figured it all out?”
“Well, the former guy apparently wasn’t doing a great job. Mr. Gunther will likely be my star witness.”
“So, it had to be Marisa Dupree that one time.”
E.J. said, “That one time, yes.”
Being at the location where a client’s case had evolved felt increasingly odd. All these events occurred somewhere in this sleek black building, somewhere down the labyrinth of hallways where naval weapons were developed under tight security and in a realm of shadows. Usually, the place where a client’s case arose was a mental exercise for me at trial, left only to my imagination during testimony. But I was here now, deep inside the corporate headquarters of Benton Dynamics.
E.J. put his elbows on the conference room table. In the center of his gold cufflinks were silver Roman coins.
He said, “I’m helping you understand our case, so you’ll speak with Marisa Dupree and convince her to come clean. If she agrees to hand over my client’s flash drive and lets us know what happened with the data, then we can hammer out a deal.”
I felt exhausted, even though it was only midday. “I’ll talk with her, but it might take me a couple of days before I can get back to you.”
E.J. cocked his head thoughtfully and said, “Call me Monday. The judge will appreciate a consent order over a court fight. To tell the truth, I’d rather play golf next Wednesday, anyway. And Benton Dynamics will be fair to your client, based on the facts.”
“I’ll let her know that.”
He said, “We’ve all been in your shoes, Bryce. A client isn’t exactly forthcoming. The evidence is stacked heavily against her. She’s in denial. All you can do is the best you can. No lawyer wins every case.”
“I learned that a long time ago. And with Kostas dead, I assume you’ll be dropping him out of the case.”
“No, we’ll substitute his estate as a party, though probably not before Wednesday. We’ll drag his family into this, depending on how the case moves forward. You’re not representing them or his estate at this point, right?”
“No,” I replied. “So why do you think Kostas ended up dead?”
“Killed himself, maybe. Everyone has their limits. There are other possibilities.”
“Those possibilities aren’t all good.”
“No,” E.J. replied. “They’re not.”
“Look,” I said, “you’ll probably get a preliminary injunction. But a piece of paper signed by a judge doesn’t guarantee you’ll get the files back. The power of the courts is limited.”
He squinted at me as I placed both hands on the edge of the smooth conference table.
I said, “You can get my client cited for contempt if she doesn’t hand over the files, but she’s adamant that she doesn’t have them. So she’ll sit in the Chester County Detention Center, and your files are still out there. To resolve this case, we should consider the endgame.”
He set his jaw and rubbed his knuckles. “What do you mean by ‘endgame’?”
“Whatever those files are, they’ve got to be time sensitive. The sooner you get them back, the better
