Private Agendas: A Victoria Rodessa Legal Thriller

by Katherine Smith Dedrick

  “I thought you might want to have that call, so I checked yesterday. Anytime works for her,” Mary responded, handing Victoria her morning cappuccino. “Apparently, Mona has her working on a few of her divorce cases, so she’s spending the day going over those files and getting up to speed.”

  “God, this tastes good. Thanks, Mary. I have no idea how people start their day without coffee, or for that matter, end their day without wine. Always makes me suspicious,” Victoria noted, taking a seat at her desk. “I’d rather get any scheduling problems out of the way first thing, then I can focus on my cases the rest of the day.”

  “I’ll be back in as soon as I get her on the line.” Mary poked her head into Victoria’s office five minutes later. “Okay, she’s on the line,” she said, walking over to Victoria’s desk and pushing the button on their new conference lines.

  “Jenny, hi. I’ve got Victoria with me,” Mary said.

  “V! How are you? Are you ready for your big Asia tour with Hollywood?” Jenny exclaimed.

  “Jenny, I swear you are the happiest person I know. Aren’t you ever cranky?” Victoria answered, sitting back in her chair and sipping her coffee.

  “Well, Victoria, let me see if I can paint a picture. It’s seven in the morning in California, I’m holding a freshly brewed cup of coffee, my sliding glass doors are open, and I’m looking out past my deck to an unobstructed view of the ocean. The morning sun is just beginning to reflect off the water, and in about thirty minutes, I’ll walk down my flower-lined stairs to a rarely-used and so, essentially private beach, where I will swim laps with the sea creatures. Does that answer your question?” Jenny finished with a laugh.

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake. Enough. I get it, and in the future I shall do my best to remember never to question your cheery disposition,” Victoria responded sarcastically.

  Mary tapped her watch. “Victoria, you’ve got a new client coming at ten thirty. Unless you’re completely ready for that meeting, we should begin. We have quite a bit to go over.”

  “Mary’s right. Okay, Jenny. Welcome aboard. I’m very happy you’ll be working with my firm. Having you on an of counsel basis will be a huge help. I’ve drafted and set for hearings all the motions to have you added as counsel on my cases until you can be admitted to the Illinois bar. Since you’ve passed the California and Georgia bars, I doubt you’ll have much trouble getting reciprocity in Illinois. Until then, though, I’m advising the judges you’re in the process of filing your character and fitness paperwork, and I can’t see any problem in getting those motions granted.”

  “It looks like, at least from the material I’ve reviewed, I’ll be handling discovery matters on your cases, which is exactly what I’m doing for Mona. Must be contagious,” Jenny said, smiling to herself. She was well aware most lawyers practicing civil law hated discovery because it often involved reviewing hundreds of thousands of mind-numbing documents to find one piece of relevant information.

  “I can’t think of anything I like doing less. I’m sure Mona feels the same, but I want you far more involved than that. While I’ll be available and have electronic access to the files, I’ll be in a different time zone and hard to reach. I’m hoping you can handle any client issues that arise if I can’t be reached immediately.”

  It felt good to be needed and back in the game after all those years of being a wife to Big Bill. Big indeed. Big body, little dick, she smirked and laughed out loud.

  “Umm, something funny over there in la-la land?”

  “Victoria, yes. I’m sorry. I was just thinking about how amazing it feels to be in the thick of things again after being married to that jackass for so long,” Jenny answered.

  “No worries. I get it. It’s a win-win for both of us.”

  “I know you’re trying to get out of town, but I do have a few questions. If you have some time now, I’d like to go through them,” Jenny said.

  Victoria looked at Mary and waited for her say-so. “You have about an hour now and then your schedule clears again near the end of the day,” Mary answered.

  Victoria nodded. “Okay, let’s get through as much as we can now. Mary will set another call for the end of the day if we need it. I also want to introduce you to three of our clients who need to have their hands held more than the others. Mary,” Victoria said, looking up, “you know who they are. If you’ll set those calls for tomorrow and then send the client background information to Jenny so she can review it before the calls, that would be great.”

  “Got it,” Mary said.

  “Jenny, the stage is yours,” Victoria said, feeling a bit of her anxiety ease about leaving both the country and the day-to-day of her practice for a few weeks.

  * * *

  Three hours later, Victoria came up for air. She walked out of her building and down the street to grab another cappuccino and hopefully, if she could maintain some semblance of self-control, avoid the pastries and eat something healthy. Taking one of the open tables by the window, she sat down and flipped through her notes from the morning. Pressing her speed dial, she waited.

  “Ms. Fontaine’s office. How may I help?”

  “Emma, this is Victoria. I thought this was Kat’s private mobile, not that I’m not always happy to chat with you. She too fancy to pick up her own calls now?” Victoria asked.

  “Ms. V! It is so nice to hear your voice. The press has been hounding her day and night about that lil ole lawsuit she filed against the insurance company. She’s had calls from reporters from almost every state. Two days ago, she walked into the office, threw her phone on my desk, looked at me, and said, ‘Handle it.’ So, I am. Anyway, she’s getting a new private number to give you, Armond, her family—all the people that matter.”

  Victoria had to laugh. Kat had hired a little Texas Southern belle to be her new assistant at Fontaine Development since Cassie had been promoted and was now her right hand. “Does that heavy Southern accent work on everyone?” Victoria asked.

  “I believe it does, Ms. V. Yes, ma’am. I believe it does,” Emma answered, enjoying their banter. “Hold on and I’ll put you through to her office line.”

  “V! How the hell are you?” Kat let her excitement rush through the phone.

  “I’m great, Kat. I just called to check in. You know I leave for Asia with Armond in two days. Remember I told you I was considering having Jenny babysit my clients and cases while I was gone?” Victoria asked, not bothering to wait for an answer. “Well, we just had a call to go over any questions or concerns she might have, and she was fabulous! Not only had she reviewed all the material, but in some cases, she even subtly suggested different investigative paths and legal theories I might want to pursue.”

  “I’m glad you hired her, V. I know she’ll be a solid addition.”

  “Me too,” Victoria agreed. “I can’t think of anyone with her experience who would be willing to start at the bottom, so to speak, and accept the modest wage I can afford to pay right now.”

  “She’s a millionaire ten times over, V. She doesn’t need the money. What she needs is her self-esteem. And you and I, along with Mona, are just the ones to give that back to her.” Kat paused. “I don’t think I told you, but I flew Jenny out to Houston to take a look at my case against the insurance company and its board members. I wanted her knowledge, from a former prosecutor’s perspective, on other strings we could pull. I figured with the kind of wealth the board members have, there’s likely something in their past they’d want to hide—sex, money, or drugs.”

  “Wow. That’s a cheery outlook. Couldn’t they have earned their wealth through hard work and lucky breaks?”

  Kat snorted, “Okay, V. Sure. I know you’ve led a rather sheltered life, but come on!”

  “All right, my smart-assed friend. Continue, please,” Victoria responded.

  “Well, as I was saying before Pollyanna interrupted”— Kat laughed—“she actually did find quite a few strings we could pull. I’m paying these E
ast Coast lawyers, supposedly the best in this area, a shit-ton and they never come up with any of these ideas.”

  “So, what’d you do?”

  “Well, Jenny and I had a conference call with my apparently overpaid lawyers, and she nicely told them about all the holes for them to drill down. Of course, the head partner pushed back with some nonsense about why her ideas wouldn’t work because of this or that bullshit.”

  “How did she handle that?” Victoria asked.

  “Like a champ! She revved up that sweet Georgia accent of hers and took them through it, piece by piece, until the last one was like soft butter to her knife. By the end of the call, they were hightailing it to do her bidding. It was one of the sleekest maneuvers I’ve ever witnessed.”

  “I’m so glad to hear that!” Victoria happily responded. “But wait. Here’s the capper. As soon as we were off the call, she looked at me, batted her eyes, and said, ‘You see, Ms. Kat. That is how we Southern women get things done.’”

  Victoria and Kat burst out laughing, happy to have a new member in their group, one who could obviously teach them a thing or two.

  “Aha! Is that why you hired Emma?”

  “No. Emma came highly recommended and was already in the works.”

  “On a serious note,” Victoria continued, “while we’re quickly learning Jenny can handle herself, I’d appreciate it if you would call and check in on her and Mary while I’m gone. I know I’m being anal, but I’d feel better if I knew you were touching base with them. I’d also like to tell them they can call you if they need help and can’t reach me. I assume that’s okay with you?”

  “Of course. In fact, I’m scheduled to be in Chicago next week to check on our developments. It would be great if I could work out of your office. I’d much prefer that to driving out to the corn fields and working out of a construction trailer.”

  “Perfect! Mary will be thrilled to have you. She’s a big fan of yours, you know.”

  “Well, it’s a two-way street. Ever since she gave you a heads-up before you were escorted out of the firm and didn’t immediately cut off your electronic access, she’s been one of my heroes.”

  “Plus, she left a high-paying job to follow me out the door and potentially off a cliff,” Victoria added.

  “The only one who thought you were anywhere near a cliff was you, but Mary does deserve credit for leaving a job that had a high-quality, industrial-grade cappuccino maker. What is that thing you have in your office?”

  “Oh my God!” Victoria answered snidely. “You know I actually forgot how funny you are.”

  “No need to worry. I’m happy to remind you as often as necessary. Now, are you going to buy a decent cappuccino maker for your office, or shall I?”

  “I’ll have Mary coordinate with you, and you two can chose whatever fancy machine you feel you need. But no rearranging my office furniture. It’s where it is for a reason,” Victoria warned.

  “Oh, yes, I’m sure there’s a real feng shui reason for your amazing furniture arrangement choices. By the way, do you yet have even one picture of anything or anyone on your walls?”

  “Ha ha. You know very well I don’t. I’m practicing law, not running a design firm.” Victoria hated decorating. Even her apartment was devoid of the knickknacks most people think necessary to make a house a home. For her, they were unnecessary clutter. “If you and Mary want to do my office, so to speak, have at it. You know what I like.”

  “Fine, but since you’re headed to Asia, why don’t you use some of the time on that long-ass plane ride to browse the Internet for some new furniture.”

  “That’s not happening. The only things I’ll be boning up on are the potential investors for Renoir Productions,” Victoria answered.

  “You know, it’s interesting.” Kat thought out loud. “We’ve been getting a number of hits from wealthy Asian investors’ representatives wanting to buy our pricier condo units and penthouses.”

  “And?” Victoria asked, wondering if Kat had learned something that might help her and Armond in their upcoming meetings.

  “We have quite a few under contract, and we’re happy to do more. The deals are typically all cash, and the money’s come through on time and without problems. As long as they’ll agree to your terms and don’t want their little girl or boy to star in the film, it might be a good source of funding for Armond’s family.”

  “Great. If you don’t mind, I’ll let him know about your family’s experience,” Victoria responded.

  “Don’t mind at all. Give Armond a kiss for me when you see him, and make sure he shows you some of the sights while you’re there. I’ve got to go. I have about fifteen minutes before I need to charm another banker into loaning us funds for a new project.”

  “Good luck with that, and thanks for watching over my firm. Call if you need me—anytime, day or night.”

  “Will do. Have fun!”

  CHAPTER

  23

  AS USUAL, BILLY was early. He had developed that habit years ago, and it had served him well. During his late teens, his father had finally summoned him out of the back-breaking field work he’d been forced to do every summer since his ninth birthday and into the white-collar aspects of the family tobacco business. He remembered two things about his first day in the plantation office. The first was his mother dressing him in an incredibly uncomfortable custom suit, and the second was Big Bill’s only instruction: arrive early.

  As Billy grew into a young man, he began to understand the importance of his father’s directive. Arriving early often resulted in access to information others didn’t yet have, which was key to coming out ahead of the curve in business. Over the years, Billy had received information simply because he’d arrived early and was included in a pre-meeting discussion or more often than not, he’d simply overheard others talking.

  Taking a seat at the darkened bar, Billy was surprised to see Adam in a back booth, involved in what appeared to be a serious conversation. When Adam noticed Billy, he motioned that he would join him soon but made no effort to bring his companion over for an introduction.

  “So far, so good.” Trever took a seat at the bar next to Billy and gave him a pat on the back. “Your little golf outing really paid off. I guess I’ll have to stop bitching about the firm paying for your ridiculously expensive club fees.”

  “You should join me sometime, Trever. I think you’d learn to enjoy it.”

  “I prefer our family hunting trips. When the senator invites the lobbyists and their company representatives out to our family ranch, the amount of sucking up that goes on is more than a baby calf does to her mama’s tit.”

  Billy winced. “Charming.”

  Looking around the bar, Trever nodded his head in Adam’s direction. “Who’s that?”

  “No idea. Adam was already here with whoever that is when I arrived. I thought you might know.”

  “Judging from the amount of work Adam is bringing from Asia, I bet it’s one of his contacts.”

  Glancing at his watch, Billy responded, “Well, whoever it is, we need to leave soon. I’m not about to be late to a dinner with the Japanese consulate and prime minister’s representative. They’ll be insulted if we’re even a moment late or if all three of us are not at the dinner.”

  Standing, Trever signaled to Adam and nodded at his watch. Adam nodded in return. “He’s ending the meeting. He’ll be over in a minute. So, what’s your estimate of billable business the firm will rake in, courtesy of the Japanese government, through the end of this year?”

  Billy smiled, relaxing for the first time in days. “Since it’s the end of October, there are only two billing months left, and December is always a crapshoot, with clients trying to delay payment until the new year. But since we’re having our first billable meeting with the Japanese team tomorrow, I’m projecting an optimistic additional mil.”

  “That would mean your projections will increase to be around what—ten million�
� through the end of this year?” Trever asked.

  “I think that’s conservative. My gut tells me these boys want a significant increase in trade with the US. To do that, they’ll need our Washington, D.C. office almost full time. Let’s see what they say tonight. But all the indictors are there.”

  “Well, congratulations, Billy!” Adam walked up to the bar. “The meetings couldn’t have gone better this afternoon. You’ve done an amazing job. Who would have thought a golf game could lead to this?”

  “Adam, that’s heavy praise from you. I don’t think you’ve ever given me a compliment in all the years we’ve known each other.” Nodding to the man leaving the bar, Billy asked, “Who’s that guy?”

  “One of the people I’ve developed a relationship with from Thailand happened to be here for business. We had a few loose ends to tie up before I head to Bangkok tomorrow night.”

  “What kind of business is he in?” Trever asked. “Exporting and importing, mostly one of a kind, rare pieces,” Adam responded.

  “I’d love to connect with him. The senator has quite a collection of rare antiques and is always looking to add more.”

  Cocking his head, Adam answered, “I’m not sure he deals in the type of merchandise that would interest your grandfather, but I’ll keep you in mind.”

  CHAPTER

  24

  “ARE YOU READY for our adventure, my pet?” Armond asked, throwing his arm around Victoria’s shoulder as they met in LAX after her flight from Chicago.

  “Armond! You didn’t need to pick me up, although I’m happy you did. I thought you were sending a car,” Victoria said, surprised as she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

  “It’s no problem and it gives me a chance to catch you up on a few things before dinner tonight,” he responded as he took her bags.

  “You look—uh—well, I was going to say fabulous, though now that I look at you—hmm—you have a bit of the rode hard and put away wet look. Out late with some starlet making her debut in one of your father’s productions, I presume?”