“How are you feeling?” she said. “You look like you’re favoring your shoulder?”
“Shoulder’s not doing too good,” I said with a snort.
“Can you say how you got it that way?”
I shrugged with my good shoulder.
“Depends on if I’m talking to Angela, the lawyer, or Angela, the woman.”
I gave a slight smirk when I said it, which I think was enough for Angela to get the hint. She knew better than to ask me anything else and let the issue slide.
“So anyway,” I said, quickly getting us focused. “I wanted you to come here so we could help with the issue for Shannon.”
“Absolutely,” she said. “What’s up?”
“Well,” I began.
I suddenly felt compelled to tell her everything that was going on. It was more than a little stupid, especially since a full confession could implicate myself somehow. But I just... I just wanted to talk to her about everything. I couldn’t believe I was actually doing this.
But, thankfully, I wasn’t a lustful teenager in love. I was an adult who had enough self-control to protect myself. I could confess everything, but word it in the right way.
“I’ll tell you everything going on, I’ll tell you the deal with the Saints, if... ” I said, letting the word hang for a second. “You can keep things quiet, and you agree to ratchet up pressure on the Saints.”
“Okay,” she said, apparently in much more control of herself than I was of myself. “You know I fight for justice, right? So if the Saints killed Shannon, then I’ll fight them and put pressure on them.”
“Right,” I said. “But, I need to know if the means matter to you.”
Of course they mattered to her. She was a lawyer. Procedure and protocol were everything to someone in her position.
It was no surprise that she hesitated, looking visibly agitated. It was akin to asking a cop if they wanted to shoot criminals. Well, yes, they wanted to bring justice, but they couldn’t just go shooting anyone that opposed them. Much as some of the Reapers wanted it the old school way, this wasn’t the Wild Wild West where anything went.
“Look,” she said. “Just don’t tell me everything. You already know that the means matter to me, and you know that if you say something illegal, you know I have to take it into consideration. Okay? Be smart about it.”
I nodded, bit my lip, and made sure I chose my words very carefully. It was like I was in a courtroom, though at least the courts wanted to give me a favorable ruling. I just had to make sure I stayed on their good side.
“Am I being recorded right now?”
“No,” Angela said emphatically. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Did I trust her?
Just because we’d had a long, empathic conversation the night before didn’t mean that we were friends. We had just had some unexpected bonding moments over fighting for the memory of Shannon. I didn’t think that suddenly meant that we were going to hang out all the time and like each other.
But when we hugged, and when we locked eyes...
The only other person who made you feel that way was Shannon. You’re not an idiot, Lane. You may be arrogant and hardheaded, but when you let that head be a little more malleable, you’re not dumb.
“Okay, I believe you,” I finally said.
“Like I said, just remember I have a job to do.”
I nodded. I spoke very slowly and very carefully from here, taking great care not to implicate myself.
“My job puts me in some dangerous situations from time to time,” I said.Technically, my job is owner of Carter’s Auto Repair. And yes, it’s not the safest job.“I’m always concerned that death could be on the other side. I don’t want to die. I want to bring honor to my father and Shannon. And to do that, I need all the help I can get. You see? The thing that might bring me danger may not be afraid of me, but it’s not going to be so stupid as to go after a government official.”
I felt ridiculous speaking like so. I decided to drop my guard a little bit.
“The Fallen Saints did something a couple nights ago that has raised alarms among my group,” I said. “It’s clear that there are going to be more serious issues going forward. I need to do everything I can to eliminate them or minimize their strength sooner rather than later. And seemingly the only way I’m going to do that is with pressure from all angles. So... whatever dirt you need, whatever intel you need... you got it.”
