“You don’t suppose you might be just thetiniestbit prejudiced, do you?” Colin asked, using Joshua’s hold on his hand to draw him to his feet.
Joshua scrunched up his nose and shook his head, then plopped down onto Colin’s lap. “Who me?” he said, grinning as Colin’s arms wrapped around him. “Naaaah!”
Chapter 3
Esther
Esther Jackson, elected Commonwealth’s Attorney for the city of Charlottesville, leaned over her desk and stared at her schedule for the day. Attend two meetings with members of the Charlottesville City Council, spend at least three hours with a grand jury presenting exculpatory evidence regarding a felonious assault case, supervise the dockets of four Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorneys, and handle one annoying meeting with a brand-new Assistant Attorney, a recently graduated lawyer named Colin Campbell.
She had heard of Campbell, of course. Anyone connected with Charlottesville government knew of the tough Irish cop who had nearly died defending a University of Virginia student. His reputation for courage and integrity had preceded him to the point where several university board members and at least two city council members had recommended him for the freshly vacated Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorneys position.
Whether Esther liked it or not—and she didn’t—recommendations proposed by city council members had to be taken seriously. She had poured over Campbell’s personnel and academic files hoping to find some reason to refuse him the position, but his record both as a campus police officer and as a law student was exceptional. Thus, much as she despised having politicians meddle in her hiring practices, she had little choice but to hold the position open until Campbell could pass the bar and be sworn in as an attorney-at-law.
This placed her in the aggravating position of welcoming a member to her team who had already raised her hackles because of the political maneuvering that had taken place on his behalf. She’d seen her share of hotshot attorneys who arrived at city hall full of piss and vinegar and green enough to think they could blaze a trail through hundreds of complex criminal cases within a month of passing the bar. The difference between the reality of practicing law as opposed to the abstract philosophies they were taught in law school had yet to be made clear to them. But they would be.
As she sat, her assistant’s head popped in the door. “A Mr. Campbell to see you, Mrs. Jackson.” Esther nodded and the assistant pushed the door open, waving Colin into his boss’s presence.
Without giving him a glance, Esther stared at his personnel file. She did not ask him to sit. She did not welcome him to the profession. When she lifted her head, she saw a handsome, well-built young man who stood before her without a sound, his hands clasped in front of him. His bearing was confident, and when she finally met his eyes, he bowed slightly. “Ma’am,” he said in greeting.
“Mr. Campbell,” she replied. “I’ve been looking over your personnel and academic files. Most impressive. But you’ll find that your duties here will challenge you in areas that may not have been covered in Professor Meyers’ contracts class.”
“I hope so, ma’am.”
She indicated a box that bulged with manila folders, all stacked on top of one another in a disorganized pile. “Those are your cases. Get them organized. Two will require a continuance so I suggest you make them a priority. Sheila will show you to your office.”
Certain it would not be a good idea, Colin fought off the urge to smile and moved to pick up the box. “Thank you, ma’am. Have a good day.” He turned his back and was halfway out the door before he heard her speak again.
“Welcome to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office, Mr. Campbell. Be here at eight o’clock sharp tomorrow morning.”
Colin turned to face her, and this time he allowed his dimples to show. “Would it be possible to arrive a bit earlier than that, ma’am? I appear to have a lot of work to do, and I’d rather come in early than stay late.”
For the first time Mrs. Jackson looked at him with interest, the suggestion of a smile curving her lips. “Building security arrives at 5:00 a.m. Once they open the building, you can use your own key to get into our office.”
Colin bowed over his box of files. “Thank you, ma’am.”
“Rest assured, Mr. Campbell, you’ll have the place to yourself.” She motioned to the door. “See Sheila out front. She’ll show you around.”
He lugged his box back to the reception area, then followed Sheila to an office containing a desk which held a lamp and a phone, three office chairs, one filing cabinet, and one small bookcase.
“This is you,” she said, ushering him in. “It’s the smallest office here,” she said, shooting him a sympathetic glance. “But the conference room is available to all staff. See me about reserving time to use it.”
Colin looked around and nodded. “Thank you.” He whipped off his suit jacket and hung it over his chair, then turned back to Sheila who appeared to be waiting. “Something else?”
“Would you like coffee, Mr. Campbell?”
Colin grinned, then opened his briefcase and yanked out a large thermos. “It’s Colin. And my husband sent me off with enough caffeine to last all day.” He leaned toward her and muttered in a conspiratorial manner. “We weren’t sure there’d be coffee here, and he didn’t want me to kill anyone on my first day.”
Sheila grinned. “There’s coffee and sometimes doughnuts in the break area.” She gestured him forward. “C’mon. Let me show you around a bit before you bury yourself in cases.”
Colin followed her down the hall and past her desk to a small break area where a rather dingy coffee pot sat, still half full. “Feel free to help yourself to coffee,” she told him. “Help yourself to doughnuts too, but the rule is: if you eat them, you buy them.” She glanced his way. “We all chip in for the coffee,” she said, pointing to a large plastic cup holding several dollars in cash.
“Will do,” Colin told her. “But my husband usually stuffs a ton of protein bars in my briefcase and in my pockets too.”
“I’m liking this husband more all the time,” she replied with a quick grin.
“Yeah, he’s a keeper that’s for sure,” Colin replied.
As they toured the office, Sheila introduced Colin to two of the three other attorneys on Esther’s staff.
