Brad Meltzer - Dead Even

Although Jared was authorized to settle the case for two hundred thousand, he was hoping for a far smaller number. And with the right information, he knew he could bring it down to fifty thousand. The only problem was, he still didn’t have the information he needed. “I don’t know,” Jared hedged, hoping to stall. “Maybe we should just go to trial. You and I both know your client completely overreacted.”

“So what if she did? You guys still better think long and hard about going to trial. These kinds of cases bring lots of bad press with them.”

Jared’s eyes narrowed and he shot a cold stare at his opponent. “Y’know, Hartley, you just revealed a whole new side of yourself. You don’t think there’s a case here – you agreed to represent this nut because you know discrimination cases lead to easy money.”

“Don’t judge me, son. You have to feed your family; I have to feed mine.”

“I’m not your son, and I’m certainly not coming close to seven hundred thousand. So pick another number.”

“Do I look nervous?” Sara asked, wiping her hands on her blue pantsuit.

“Nervous isn’t the right word,” Guff responded. “I’d say ‘outwardly calm, but internally terrified’ is the best description.”

“What do you expect? My job’s on the line here.”

“Don’t think about the job. Now, do you remember our plan?”

“Absolutely. You introduce me; I schmooze; she hands over the case.”

“Perfect.” Guff opened the office door and stepped into the hallway. “Here we go.”

Sitting behind a small oak desk in the reception area, Evelyn Katz was up to her elbows in paperwork. Knowing that the ADAs usually got back from lunch at about two o’clock, she moved as fast as she could – logging in the newest booking sheets and preparing them for distribution.

“Hi, Evelyn,” Guff said as he approached her desk. “How’s everything today?”

“Do I know you?” Evelyn asked.

“I’m Guff – one of the TPAs from next door. I used to work for Conrad Moore, and I just wanted to introduce you to my new boss.” As Sara approached Evelyn’s desk, Guff said, “This is Sara Tate. She just started with us today. It’s her first time in ECAB.”

“I’m happy for both of you,” Evelyn said, turning her attention back to the booking sheets on her desk.

Before Guff could say another word, the office door opened and a man wearing an olive-green suit walked in carrying a small stack of booking sheets.

“More?” Evelyn asked.

“The afternoon’s just warming up,” the man said as he left the office. “See you soon.”

When the door closed, Evelyn put the new sheets in her in-box and went on with her work. She continued to ignore Sara and Guff.

Sara shot Guff a look, then addressed the receptionist. “Listen, I’m sorry to bother you. It’s just that I’m new here and-”

“Actually, why don’t you listen,” Evelyn said, putting down her stapler. “I know you’re new here, and I know you want a good case, but I don’t know you from Adam. So if I let you cut the line, I’m jerking over all the people who I not only like a whole lot more, but who bother me a whole lot less.”

Stunned, Sara didn’t know what to say. “I didn’t mean to be a bother. I’m just trying to save-”

Once again, the door to ECAB flew open. But it wasn’t the man in the olive suit. It was Victor Stockwell. Striding across the reception area, Victor looked at Sara. “Still not fired?”

Sara forced a smile. “Can you believe it? I made it through another whole twenty minutes.”

“Hiya there, Vic,” Guff said. When Victor didn’t respond, Guff added, “Love you, too, baby. Kiss ya, hug ya, squeeze ya.”

Without another word, Victor headed for the ECAB supervisor’s office. Evelyn picked up a stack of booking sheets and followed him.

When she was gone, Sara leaned on Evelyn’s desk. “I can’t believe this.”

“It could be worse,” Guff reasoned.

“How? How could it possibly be worse?”

“You could be on fire, or you could have poison ivy. You could even have chicken pox – that would be a whole lot worse.”

“Guff, not now,” Sara begged.

“I’ll tell you what: Let me go beg to Victor. Maybe he’ll take some pity on us.” Before Sara could object, Guff headed off behind Victor and Evelyn.

Now alone, Sara closed her eyes and started to massage her temples. Once again, the front door opened. It was the man who delivered the booking sheets. “Where’s Evelyn?” he asked, holding the newest pile of crimes.

“She’s in the back with Victor,” Sara explained. As he put the booking sheets in Evelyn’s in-box, Sara asked, “Anything good in there?”

“No idea,” he said. “But the one in the folder is a request for Victor. You can bet that one won’t suck.” Sure enough, on the top of the pile was a booking sheet in a plain manila file folder. On a yellow Post-it attached to the folder were the words Request for Victor Stockwell .

“That’s great for him, but do you have anything for me?” Sara asked.

“Let me guess: You need a good case so you can wow your boss.”

“Something like that.”

“So hasn’t this city taught you anything? If you want something, take it.”

“I don’t get it,” Sara said.

“The case,” he said, pointing to the folder. “If you want it, that’s your case.”

“What do you mean that’s my case? It’s marked for Victor.”

“It’s not marked for him – it’s a request. That just means the arresting officer, if he had the choice, would like to see Victor on the case.” Looking down the hallway, the man checked to see if he could spot Evelyn. He turned back to Sara. “If they request Victor, it’s a good case. You should take it.”

“Are you crazy?” Sara asked. “I can’t take it – it’s not my case.”

“It’s not anybody’s case. It hasn’t been assigned yet.”

“But if it’s marked for Victor…”

He pulled the yellow Post-it from the folder and crumpled it up. “Not anymore. Now it’s marked for no one.”

“Wait a minute-”

“Half the cases in this city have requests for Victor. Trust me, he can’t do them all. Besides, Victor’s a real asshole. He could use losing a few good ones. If you really need it, just take it.”

“I don’t know,” Sara said nervously.

“Listen, it’s your life. I can’t tell you what to do,” he said as he walked to the door. “But I can tell you that Victor won’t miss it. He has dozens of cases.” Leaving the office, he added, “Hope it works out for you.”

Once again alone in the office, Sara stared at the now-unmarked folder. She couldn’t move. It’s a guaranteed great case, she told herself. And Victor will never miss it. Unsure of what to do, she could hear Guff and Victor arguing. From the sound of it, Victor wasn’t offering his assistance.

“It’s not my fault,” Victor said from his office. “Welcome to life.”

Seconds later, Guff returned to the reception area. “What’s wrong with you?” he asked, noting the concern on Sara’s face.

Sara pointed to Victor’s case. “The delivery guy said that one was an absolute winner.”

“Oh, man,” Guff said with a smile. “You’re thinking of taking it, aren’t you?”

Sara didn’t say a word.

“Are you sure it’s a good case?”

“Yeah, pretty sure,” Sara said. “Why? What do you think?”

“Take it. Without a doubt. Believe me, if you want a winner, you’re not getting any help from this office.”

From up the hallway, Sara could hear Victor and Evelyn wrapping up. Tentatively, she approached Evelyn’s in-box. “I shouldn’t be doing this.”