Longhorn Law

by Dave Daren

  More importantly, however, it was more than enough to make sure I had people to fill the new space.

  I hadn’t expected Brody or Evelyn to want to stay on with me following the proceedings. I’d yanked Evelyn from retirement and had all but forced Brody into helping me, but for some reason, they’d both seemed shocked when I’d suggested they could go back to their regular lives.

  I hadn’t admitted it to them, but their eagerness to take on this new path with me had filled me with a sort of warmth. I’d worked plenty of cases alone after coming to Crowley, but having Brody and Evelyn with me had been a blessing.

  And because of that, there was no way in hell we’d be able to keep working out of the first Landon Legal office. Evelyn had informed me in no uncertain terms that if she had to work one more day on her slapped together desk, she’d leave and never come back.

  The new space wasn’t fancy, and it wasn’t too big.

  Really, the new office was just big enough for the three of us to each have our own small office with enough space in the front room for a small waiting area. The small size didn’t mean I was any less overjoyed, however.

  I couldn’t deny that I’d made a difference, a real difference, in a lot of people’s lives, and I’d be able to keep doing that now without being elbow to elbow with at least two other people the whole time.

  I continued darting in and out of the empty Landon Legal office space to load my trunk before I slammed it shut. I probably squished a few boxes in the process, but I didn’t have the energy to be annoyed.

  I leaned against the trunk of the car and took a few gulping breaths of air. I’d have killed for something to drink, but unfortunately, Hazel’s bakery was closed for the day as she visited her grandkids.

  She regretfully informed me the day before that she wouldn’t be able to help us with the move and had given me a large basket of muffins as a going away gift.

  I was going to miss working next to Hazel’s bakery, even if I’d had to listen to the chaotic sounds that always came from next door at every hour of the day. Hazel had always been good to me, and I was going to have to make a point to go out of my way for her muffins now that we wouldn’t be working neighbors.

  The new Landon Legal office was only three blocks away, but I knew she was treating it like a whole ocean of space had spanned between us. But Hazel was just like that, I’d found in the time I’d known her, very prone to dramatics.

  I wiped at my face again to try and clear away the sweat on my brow, but it was pointless. Only a long, hot shower could get rid of the layer of grime coating me at that point, and the sooner I was done with the moving process, the sooner that could happen.

  I pushed myself off the trunk of my car and tugged my keys from my pocket as I made my way back up to the front door to lock up for what was probably the second to last time.

  Despite the fact I was only moving three blocks away, I couldn’t help the pang of… maybe not sadness, but some heavy emotion that settled over me. Maybe Hazel wasn’t the only one prone to dramatics.

  The office space hadn’t been perfect, but it had marked a new chapter in my life, and now, I was moving on to bigger and better things, or so I hoped. So I lingered for just a moment before I turned the key in the lock and stepped away as I exhaled a slow breath.

  When I turned on my heels, however, I nearly ran smack dab into someone at full speed. I took a stumbling step back and held up my hands in apology as I blinked.

  It took me a moment to realize who exactly I’d nearly toppled over on the sidewalk.

  Standing in front of me, in all his old-school cowboy glory was Samuel Higgins, the angel investor behind the class action suit.

  I blinked again and briefly wondered if I’d suffered from heat stroke before I caught sight of what I presumed was his car down the otherwise empty street.

  Samuel let out a deep laugh and reached out one hand to steady me as I found my balance again.

  “Easy there, son,” he said with a smile. “Would hate to damage that brilliant brain of yours.”

  Coming from anyone else, that would have sounded sarcastic, but from Higgins, it felt almost complimentary.

  I returned his smile with a small nod of thanks as he stepped back from me. In person, he looked almost startlingly like that actor who’s name I could never quite remember. They had nearly identical white mustaches to the point I almost wondered whether or not Higgins modeled his after the actor.

  I rubbed the back of my neck and extended my free hand toward him. The injury to my knuckles was still healing, but after a month or so of time, it had started to fade to a thick pink line, as opposed to the angry open wound it had been before.

  “Samuel Higgins,” he greeted as he shook my hand.

  I nodded before dropping my hand back down to my side.

  “I thought so,” I said with a smile. “Archer Landon, but you already knew that. It’s great to finally meet you in person.”

  I meant it too. Ever since Higgins had offered to bankroll the case, I’d wanted a time to actually thank him, though I’d pictured myself in a suit and maybe in a nicer setting. I knew I probably didn’t look like much in my old jeans and thinning t-shirt, drenched in sweat from the moving process, but there wasn’t much I could do about that now.

  Higgins, on the other hand, looked like I’d expected from the news broadcasts I’d seen him featured on, right down to the cowboy boots that looked like they’d never seen a day of hard labor. He let his hands fall down to rest on his gaudy gold belt buckle and leaned back on his heels in a relaxed pose that I knew I’d look like a fool if I tried to imitate it.

  “I’ve been looking for a chance to speak with you, Archer,” Higgins drawled. His accent was thick like molasses, and he spoke like he had nowhere else in the world that he needed to be.

  I raised my eyebrows and fought the urge to lean against the side of the building. The ache in my legs from the move was only compounded by the almost constant ache I’d been feeling since I’d started my morning runs again.

  “You have?” I asked without trying to hide the curiosity in my voice.

  Higgins gave a nod and reached up with one hand to smooth his mustache. He really did look like he’d wandered in from the set of some Hollywood western, though I wasn’t sure yet if he was a black hat or a white hat.

  “I have,” he agreed. “You did a great job taking care of Knox. I hadn’t expected much of you, I won’t lie, but you proved me wrong.”

  It was hard not to be offended at his statement, but I couldn’t exactly blame him. I was just some nobody lawyer from Arizona that decided to take on a local giant with some money from a man I’d never met, a disgraced lawyer, and a recently-widowed paralegal.

  Before I could tell him that I wasn’t offended, because I was sure a look of indignation had flashed across my face, Higgins held up his hand.

  “And that was my mistake for underestimating you,” he said like an apology.

  Whatever hackles of mine that had risen fell back into place, and I offered him another pleasant smile.

  “I don’t blame you,” I said honestly. “I didn’t think I’d be able to do it, either. But thank you for believing in me and for funding the case. We were able to help a lot of people that way.”

  Higgins had an odd look on his face that I couldn’t quite figure out. One side of his mouth was quirked slightly higher than the other in what I was only guessing to be amusement.

  “And you took down Knox,” he said. “He’s been a thorn in my side for far too long. I’m glad to have a lawyer like you on my payroll.”

  And just like that, I understood something I should have realized from the beginning. I squared my shoulders just a little more and cocked my head to the side.

  “Payroll?” I repeated, perhaps more incredulously than I intended.

  It took some effort for me to school my features back into something a bit less prickly. I thought of the soulless looking lawyers that had stood beside Knox in Jud
ge Calhoun’s office and felt sick to my stomach.

  Higgins cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow.

  “I’m all for charity,” he began. “But did you think that I was going to toss you that bone without having a reason?”

  He waited as if he really expected an answer from me. When I didn’t offer one, he continued.

  “And where do you think that handy little tip about the chemical drop came from?” he asked and the question sent a shockwave through my body.

  I was so astonished that I felt my eyes start to widen, and then I realized my jaw had dropped open as well. With a great deal of effort, I snapped my mouth shut and set my jaw as I tried to figure out what I even should say or how I was supposed to react to something like that. After a moment, I cleared my throat.

  “That note came from you?” I asked.

  The mental image of Samuel Higgins sneaking through the parking lot of the Houston EPA lab to deposit a mysterious note on my car was so absurd that I nearly laughed out loud. It felt too insane to be true.

  Higgins waved a hand as if to brush off my shock.

  “Yes, or rather, a contact at the EPA,” he admitted. “I heard from a little birdie that you were in the area and decided to help you out.”

  I felt a pit open up in my stomach. Not only did Knox have contacts at the EPA, but Higgins did, too. That information didn’t sit well with me.

  “Thank you,” I started once I caught hold of my voice again. “For bankrolling the case against Knox, but I’m not going to be on your payroll.”

  My voice didn’t waver as I spoke, and I kept my gaze firmly on Higgins and refused to look away, even as he cocked an eyebrow at me.

  He looked like he was waiting for me to fold, but I held my ground. He gave a long, seemingly weary sigh and waved his hand, as if brushing away some annoying insect that was crowding his space.

  “You’re still young,” he said with a shake of his head. “And new to the game to boot. You’ve still got time to learn how things work in Texas.”

  Higgins gave a tilt of his head then and stared at something over my shoulder for a moment.

  “I’ve got your number in case I ever need to call you again,” he said. “Have a good day, Archer. I’ll be seeing you.”

  With that, Higgins turned on his cowboy boots and started sauntering back to his car.

  The pit in my stomach didn’t disappear as I watched him walk away. Nor did it disappear as he slid into the driver’s seat of his classic muscle car, pulled onto the road, and then sped away in a dust cloud.

  I kept watching until his car was out of sight, and even then, I watched the dust settle back onto the road. I wasn’t sure what to make of his parting statement, but I knew I’d need to learn the ropes quickly if I wanted to keep my good reputation intact.

  I made my way over to my own car and cast one last look back at the empty Landon Legal building before sliding into the driver’s seat. Next to me in the passenger seat was the burnished sign I’d happily mounted next to the door when I’d opened up shop in Crowley.

  A fond smile made itself comfortable on my face, and I reached out to touch the top of the sign. Things were just beginning for me in Crowley.

  But as I started to drive off to my future, I couldn’t help but hear Higgins’ words echo around my head.

  I’d learn how things worked in Texas alright, but I was going to do things my way.

  End of Book 1

  Author’s Notes

  Thank you for reading my novel! If you enjoyed it, and you’d like to read another story about Archer’s new practice, please leave a quick review by clicking on this link.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2021 by Dave Daren