Point to Prefect.I bit my lip to hide a rueful grin.
“So you’re here to investigate what we’re doing?” asked Mr. Bright Eyes.
Prefect snorted. “It’s not hard to guess. Your boss here is taking her revenge against her partner—the one she cofounded Lawyerbot with. I did my own research into your app. Lawyerbot was founded by two people, one of whom was forced out in a corporate takeover.” He nodded at Avery. “Her. Which is why, years later, she has now retaken the app by hostile means. I assume all the payments are going to you now, too?”
“No,” said Avery.
Prefect frowned. “No?”
“What kind of criminals are you?” I said, giving the plastic handcuff a little yank.
“We’re not criminals,” said Avery. “Well, not really.”
“Not Really Criminals explains why your security sucks,” I said. “So… what are you doing here?”
“Winning cases,” said Avery. Her gaze remained warily on Prefect. “And that’s all I’m going to say without a lawyer.”
Oh.Oh.
And that’s when I got it.
“Oh.” This time I said it aloud. “You’re—you’re not in it for the money. You’re… you’re legal hacktivists. Or hacky legal counsel. No, wait, the first one sounds better.”
“Exactly,” said Mr. Bright Eyes. He must not have gotten the memo not to talk to the feds. “The app was supposed to help people who needed it. We’re just… returning it to its real purpose.” He gestured at all the other workers, still hastily packing up their things. “It’s all pro bono.”
“Way to incriminate yourself,” said Avery, with a sigh. She looked at Prefect. “Lawyerbot—the initial idea, at least—was mine. It was supposed to provide people with help. But it was co-opted as a way to make a rich man even richer. And then I was forced out of the company.”
Prefect looked as though he wanted to bang his head against a wall. Under normal circumstances, he probablywould have just handcuffed them and been done with it. But something kept him talking. “Then you should have staged your own corporate takeover. But this—this is still illegal. You and your team co-opted the app when you do not in fact own the app.”
“We were just trying to help,” said Mr. Bright Eyes.
“Then start your own app,” I said. “Don’t try to supplant Lawyerbot. Do your own thing. Call it ProBonoBot.”
He blinked at me. “That’s… actually not bad.”
“I assume you called for backup?” asked Avery.
“They’ll arrive in five minutes,” said Prefect. “I am going to have to arrest you.” With a perfectly robotic intonation, he said, “You will be charged for your crimes.” He cleared his throat. “It is unfortunate that only two of you were here.”
The lawyers gaped at us.
Prefect spoke a little louder. “Unfortunate that only Avery Hendricks and her much younger associate were here to arrest. And then the associate managed to escape because I had to rescue my asset.”
Mr. Bright Eyes paled. He turned, picked up one of the moving boxes, and ran for the back door.
Avery’s forehead wrinkled as she looked at Prefect.
He stared back, expression opaque. “You going to make this hard?”
She shook her head. “No.” She reached down and uncuffed me. I rubbed at my wrist.
“And as for me?” said Avery.
“Ironically,” said Prefect, “I am going to recommend you call a lawyer.”
I leaned against the stakeout van. The late afternoon was blurring into evening. Prefect spoke into his phone, then flicked the screen back to transparency. Avery was handcuffed inside the van.
“Bosses happy?” I asked.
