Inverno stared at me for a moment, and then a little malicious smile barely touched the corners of his mouth. “It means that if you insult the lady like that again, he will consider doing so viable grounds for physical attack, and will presumably follow through,” Inverno replied.
Tripp laughed. “In front of my attorney? That’s a fuckin’ slam dunk assault charge.”
Inverno didn’t like Tripp any better than me. That wasn’t how fighting words worked in law, but he let it play out. “While true, there’s at least some chance that he can get away with it legally afterward.” Inverno glanced at Tripp calmly. “Given how you present yourself, I’d say he has a better than average chance. Perhaps you should moderate your tone where the young lady is involved.”
“I got the right to speak,” Tripp said stubbornly.
“And he has the power to strike you if you continue in the vein you have been,” Inverno replied with a sigh. “Which is, admittedly, an egregious one.”
Tripp didn’t look like he understood the word ‘egregious,’ and maybe that was what made him subside. “Fine. We’ll pretend she’s a square and not a… what she is.”
Inverno eyed me and lifted an eyebrow.
“Thank you,” I said. We exchanged a small nod, and I sat down again, slowly.
Max cleared his throat, bringing the conversation back on course. “Your client’s offer is not a reasonable one.”
“No,” Inverno said. “It isn’t. However, it is his prerogative to decide what to offer. Perhaps you have a counteroffer in mind?”
“Ten thousand,” Max said calmly, “for which your client will be expected to sign a document quitting any further claim of any kind toward my client or her business. Live and let live.”
Inverno took this in with a nod and glanced at Tripp.
“Ten thousand,” he scoffed. “I know she made more than that.”
“That money is gone, Tripp,” Maya said in a calm, steady voice. “We spent it on kids who couldn’t afford to pay for services.”
“Your fuckin’ mistake,” Tripp replied. “The money got made. I want what’s mine.”
I glanced up and saw Ms. Lapland standing in the doorway. She came in with coffee in a cup and a look of disgust on her face and gave them both to Tripp. He leered at her openly, patted her utterly inappropriately, and said, “Thanks, baby.”
The look she gave him could have peeled paint and made her glares at me seem friendly by comparison.
Tripp didn’t seem to notice he’d gotten it.
Lapland gave Inverno an absolutely furious stare, even if it only lasted a second. She glanced at the bookshelf. Then she turned and left.
Huh. I glanced at the bookshelf and back to the door. What had that been about?
“We can go as high as fourteen thousand,” Max said reasonably. “That is all the money my client has.”
“Fuck that,” Tripp said, and sipped at his coffee. “I want what’s mine.”
Inverno turned to lean into Tripp and spoke quietly.
Tripp snorted. “Not just no. Fuck no.”
Inverno leaned back, glanced at me without any kind of shame or regret, and spread his hands. “I’m afraid your offer is rejected.”
Max nodded. “I can see that. I’m more than willing to work this out in court.”
“Of course,” Inverno said. “As am I, obviously.”
“Obviously,” Max said. He eyed Tripp with open loathing, shook his head, and said, “I think we’ve exhausted the possibilities here.”
“I concur,” Inverno replied. “We shall settle this before a judge. Though feel free to contact me should your client change her mind.”
Max nodded and stood up, gesturing for us to join him. I made sure he and Maya got out before I left the room, never quite turning my back on Inverno.
