She rolled her eyes. ‘Wake him, because I’ve been doing some research into drug possession.’
Hamish stiffened. ‘I thought you’d changed your mind about him?’
‘I have. But that doesn’t mean I’m a pushover.’ She wrinkled her nose. ‘Sorry, I know I’ve given Ethan a hard time. It’s just, after years of dealing with Mum, I don’t want to step into that world again. She was …’ She trailed off, unable to put the flood of emotions into words. Would there ever be a time she could recall her mother’s betrayals without reacting?
‘I know,’ Hamish said, pressing a kiss into her hair. ‘I know, Jem. And, honestly, I’ll be happy to never meet your mother, because I’m furious with her for hurting you so much that you’ve had to build a shell to protect yourself against the world.’
Jemma was silent for a minute, not trusting herself to speak. Hamish was the only person to recognise the survival instinct she’d needed to develop so many years ago. And instead of prying, demanding details or questioning the impact, he was simply holding her close, imparting strength and the unspoken promise thathewould be there for her.
‘Anyway,’ she said, swallowing the tremor in her voice and stoically returning to business. ‘I started by checking for mitigating factors, but I needed to take the case right back to basics. The facts would seem to be that Ethan was arrested with drugs in his possession.’
‘But lawyers can manipulate facts, right? So, as the drugs weren’t his, you could get him proven innocent?’
‘He’s not innocent of possession. In any case, there’s no such thing as being proven innocent in Australia.’ She tapped his forehead with one finger. ‘I warned you that American show was going to screw with your mind. Best you get here is found not guilty.’
‘Isn’t that the same thing?’
‘I’m sure it’s not to people who are looking to clear their name. It can just mean that the evidence wasn’t there to find them guilty. Doesn’t make them innocent, or prove their innocence.’
‘Jem, I know lawyers operate on a different wavelength to the rest of us but, honestly, none of this is sounding like good news.’
‘Bear with me.’ She led him to the couch, curling herself against his side. She loved the feel of him there, so solid, sopresent.‘I know this can seem daunting, but it’s not as dire as you think. It’s just a little messy, a bit time-consuming, but Iwillsort it. So, if Ethan was only charged with simple possession, the police can refer the case to an assessment service and that acts as a stay of proceedings.’
‘Which is good?’
‘Which is good,’ she confirmed. ‘And it’s one avenue we can pursue. Honestly, it would be better if Tara took accountability; she’d get away with being referred to the drug diversion program. But I respect that Ethan wants to keep her out of it. I just hope this was enough to scare her straight.’
‘There’s enough of us who know now to keep an eye on her,’ Hamish said heavily.
Jemma nodded, although she didn’t want to share the true depth of her doubt: again, her mother had coloured her willingness to trust. ‘It may take more than that. Ethan might have some leads for voluntary counselling for her. As it stands, though, I believe the maximum Ethan will be looking at will be a couple of thousand dollars’ fine, no prison time. Even better, if there’s no conviction, there’d be no mandate to report the incident to his employer. It’s the supplier at the piggery that we need to take down, not some guy trying to save a friend.’
Hamish ran both hands through his red-gold hair and blew out a tense breath. ‘And can we afford to have GB&A take this case?’
‘Wouldn’t matter how much you offered, Gerard wouldn’t take it on.’
‘Ah.’ Hamish slumped. ‘Look, if you can find someone who’ll handle it, Settlers Bridge will put their hands in their pockets. We can’t mention Tara’s involvement, but Ethan’s one of us now and everyone will ante up.’
‘There’s no point doing a whip around.’ She could feel the excitement building in her chest, but she wanted to draw out the moment.
Hamish frowned. ‘I thought you said the case was defensible?’
‘Just a common bread-and-butter case. You don’t need a barrister, never mind a damn good one, to sort this out.’ She drew away a little so she could watch his reaction. ‘However, Ethan will have the best representation with Di Angelis Lawyers.’
Hamish froze. She saw his throat move convulsively, the hope shining from his eyes.
‘Jem—’
Her name came out broken; she couldn’t tease him any longer.
‘I emailed my resignation to Gerard tonight. You’ve helped me realise there’s a bit more to life—and to this job—than simply winning.’
Hamish shook his head. ‘That’s amazing, Jem, I’m so proud of you.’ Despite his words, she could sense his reticence. ‘I guess it’s too early for you to have checked out new … chambers, but do you have any idea what suburb you’ll be looking at? Or will you stay close to GB&A?’ He gave a slightly lopsided grin. ‘Just trying to work out the travel time.’
‘I don’t think we’ll need to factor in a long-distance relationship.’
‘Oh,’ he said flatly.
‘Because it’s really not that far, is it?’
