“Did you refer them to a different practice?”
Jackson shook his head.
“Did you tell them I was emigrating to the Seychelles?”
“That would be a lie.”
“No, it wouldn’t, because if you agreed to take on another case from them, I will be emigrating to the Seychelles and sending you a postcard from the beach while drinking my Paloma cocktail and being fed grapes. David Hartford is not worthy of the label ‘human being’.” There wasn’t much I felt strongly on: I could accept it if people got my coffee order wrong or bought me the wrong size T-shirts, but working with the Hartfords again was a hard limit. They were two brothers who owned a chain of mid-range jewellery stores across the country. Both were arseholes.
The sigh from Jackson was enough to power a wind farm for two weeks. “I’ve said yes. It’s a big case. It will be high profile. You wanted a high-profile case and given what it entails, I think you’ll be the best person to lead it. And you have Georgia starting - and she’ll be able to help.”
“Who are they trying to sue now?”Georgia, that was her name. I’d had Georgie in my head. Glad to know it now so I didn’t cock it up on Monday.
“Each other. They’re selling the business, only neither are agreeing to a fifty-fifty split. I’ve left a message for Ebby to see if he can act as the forensic accountant for us.” Jackson pinched the top of his nose. “Anyway. I need coffee and to let Van know you’re babysitting tonight so we can go somewhere to sleep. Thanks for that, Seph.”
I shook my head, watching his back as he walked away. “When are you giving me the rest of these details about the Hartfords?”
“Later. Monday. You have a meeting with David at midday.” The last word was pretty much lost in a yawn. “Coffee. Need coffee.”
I watched him go, grinning, but at the same time feeling a pinch of envy that he’d been kept awake all night by his son. I was looking forward to a Friday night boys’ night with my nephew. I knew that said it all.
My twin was studyinga photograph on her phone when I found her in the archives to take her for lunch. Payton wasn’t always the best at taking breaks from her work; she’d forget to eat regularly, which meant she’d turn into some angry six headed beast mid-afternoon who was significantly hangry. I’d promised Owen I’d try to keep an eye on her during the day, as a pregnant and hangry Payton wasn’t what the world ever needed. We were trying to keep the arrangement from Payton, as any form of planning that she wasn’t involved in, was likely to send her into a category four storm, where Owen and I would become chopped debris.
“Everything okay down here?” I’d tried to walk as noisily as I could. For some reason I’d inherited some stealth-like gene that meant I was regularly accused of scaring the shit out of my family. I didn’t do it on purpose, not most of the time anyway.
“Urgh.” Payton turned around to look at me. “I was trying to dig out a file that Dad led on about twenty years ago it settled and it wasn’t uploaded to the shared drive.”
I folded my arms. “This is what we have juniors for. They do shit like this, just like we had to.” I wanted to yell that being down here, in the cellars where it was damp and cold, was not the best idea. Plus, the steps weren’t even and Payton could easily trip over her own feet. Yelling, however, would do no good whatsoever. It would only get me sworn at.
“True. I might send Portia down here later.” Her expression turned evilly joyful.
Portia was one of the juniors, employed because her father knew ours and owed him some sort of favour or had taken pity on the fact that Portia hadn’t had any success in landing a job and hadn’t managed to get on a legal practice course yet. She was young and entitled, used to having people to wait on her, rather than her being at someone’s beck and call. Payton had very much enjoyed having her in her department so far.
I nodded. “That’s what she’s there for. Fancy grabbing lunch?”
Payton’s face lit up. “Yes! Food. I forgot I was getting hungry when I came down here. How about gyozas with soy sauce from that place around the corner?”
My own stomach rumbled. I’d happily eat anything. “Your call, you pay.” That was the usual rule, even with pregnant women.
She grumbled and shot me daggers, but less than five minutes later we were out of the office doors and walking at the speed of marathon runners to a little eatery whose tables and chairs were plastic but the food was gourmet.
She didn’t start talking until she’d inhaled three of the gyozas and gulped half a bottle of water.
I ignored her lack of table manners. Mine were no better and I didn’t have the excuse of being a hangry pregnant woman.
“I met Georgia on Monday.” She pushed another gyoza into her mouth.
“Georgia. The new partner.” I popped open a can of cola. “What’s she like?”
Payton swallowed. I was convinced she had the jaw skills of a boa constrictor with the rate she was eating. “She’s really nice. Smart. You’ll get along well with her and I think she’ll bring a lot to your team. You won’t have to nanny her through cases either; she’s had tons of experience.”
“Good. I need someone to help out with the fee earners who still need their arses wiping.” We had three, decent, recently-qualified solicitors who all had great skills and amazing potential, they just needed my opinion before proceeding with anything, and by anything, getting a phone call at eight in the evening to check through an advice they’d written wasn’t unusual.
Payton nodded, her mouth full again. I busied myself with the noodles I’d ordered and wondered whether I had enough food. It was a common issue I had.
Payton gestured to the server for more gyozas, giving him a big smile. “How was Shay after his big night out?”
I shook my head, despairing. “It’s like he has a magic hangover cure. He sent me a selfie this morning of him at the top of the London Eye. Apparently, he’s gone off being a tourist for the day. There was a blonde in the selfie, not one I recognised from yesterday either.”
