Wilderness Borne

by Mikayla Gabby-Green

  She closed her mouth and swallowed, wiping her lips off with the back of her hand. She was covered in a layer of sweat, as well as her own and James’s juices.

  “You drive me fucking insane,” James said.

  Daphne felt that warm throbbing between her legs again. “Night’s still young, but I need a shower.” She stood up slowly, taking pleasure in the way his eyes followed her every movement, as if she were the only thing in existence.

  She didn’t miss how he twitched either.

  She moved to the bathroom, flaunting her body, each step making her assets shake. She glanced over her shoulder as she reached the doorway. “This one’s big enough for two.”

  “Shouldn’t let that go to waste then.” James moved toward her.

  A thrill filled her, knowing that she was desired and she desired.

  The night is still young.

  ***

  Daphne woke up slowly. For a rare change, James was still asleep.

  Her breasts hurt from being so stimulated and she was left with a satisfying feeling between her legs.

  She was thankful for her blinds that kept out all but thin rays of light coming through the windows.

  Daphne looked over at James. She realized that she could lie there, watching him sleep, forever. That she could be beside him forward. She liked Julia; she liked the lazy weekends, the way that she and James worked together.

  And he definitely knows how to work me. Daphne smiled, thinking about last night with a satisfied, deep breath.

  It seemed to have summoned James from his sleep. He shifted slightly, getting a ray of sunlight in his face. He cracked an eye at the intruding light and saw Daphne. His frown turned into a smile as he reached out, pulling her closer.

  “Hi,” Daphne said.

  “Hi,” James said.

  The two of them lay there, looking at each other.

  “Hungover?” Daphne asked.

  “Sorry—can’t hear you past my skull cracking from the inside,” James said with a half-closed eye.

  Daphne shook her head as James stretched.

  “Want to come over and recover with me?” James asked.

  “I have to work in two days,” Daphne said.

  “Movies, couch, order in and blankets,” James tempted.

  Daphne pursed her lips. It sounded good but she didn’t want to leave bed.

  “Come on. In two days, we’re going to be busy as hell and I just want to spend another lazy day with my two favorite girls,” James said.

  “Trying to guilt me into it?” Daphne poked his chest.

  “Maybe. Is it working?” The corner of James’s mouth curled up into a mischievous smile.

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Ugh, I feel like a damn brewery.” James made to move before he rolled back and kissed her. “Happy New Year’s.”

  “Happy New Year’s.” She looked into his eyes, satisfied, secure, and happy.

  Chapter Mera Corporation Fights Back

  Daphne had everyone together—Dom, Reggie, and James—in Wilderness Outreach’s office.

  “While we were away, the Mera Corporation’s legal team wasn’t sitting back. As soon as they could, they filed for extensions. It looks like they wanted to keep on pushing this forward.

  “Thankfully, there were some high-profile political leaders who were looking at the case and putting pressure on the justice system to get a speedy result.” Daphne smiled. If they want to play rough, we can too.

  “They also sent a round of people talking to the community and looking to get them to drop the case and give them a sum of money. I’m not going to lie. It appears that a number of people took this and it has weakened our case.” Daphne frowned.

  “The courts are pushing for us to be in court for us to present all of our facts in six weeks. At that time, we will be able to put real pressure on them. This case won’t be simple and it’s going to be high profile, so we need to make sure that we’re covered.”

  The others nodded. They didn’t want to lose the case due to negligence.

  “How is it looking for us?” Dom asked.

  “We’ve got the soil samples and we’ve got the health results. We’re looking good. The fact is that the people in the community who took the money already won’t be able to say anything, and we will have to remove them from the case as well as their medical data, which will make this harder but not impossible,” Daphne said. “The biggest thing was that the corporation’s extensions didn’t continue and they are being forced to come to court. This is no small matter and it gives us more power with the immediacy of it all.”

  “Then we’ll see them in court in six weeks.” James stood. “Good work, you two. You guys and your team have done some amazing work. I know that we and the people remaining are thankful that we have you on our side.”

  “It’s why you pay us the big bucks.” Daphne smiled as the meeting came to a close.

  Daphne and Reggie were seen to the elevator lobby by James and Dom.

  They reached the lobby when Daphne got a text message.

  You’ll kick their ass in the trial. Do you want to come over for dinner tomorrow?

  Daphne smiled and started to type out a reply.

  “James?” Reggie asked casually.

  “Hmm?” Daphne looked up from her phone.

  “You two—very sneaky,” Reggie said with a knowing look.

  “Better not say anything,” Daphne said.

  “Looks like it’s serious. I was wondering what you two were doing when you wandered off at that gala,” Reggie said with a saucy wink as they left the Outreach building and hailed down a taxi.

  “We weren’t doing that. We needed to figure things out,” Daphne said.

  “Too bad.” Reggie pouted before holding up a finger as Daphne was about to speak. “Don’t worry, dear. Not a word from these lips.” He made a zipping motion over his mouth.

  “Thank you. If this came out, then the Mera Corporation would try to file something to get both of us to look bad,” Daphne said, knowing she was treading a thin line.

  “I can just imagine what the kids are going to look like!” Reggie said, getting an unamused look from Daphne.

  Chapter Unknown Source

  “It looks like someone wasn’t telling the whole truth,” Reggie said as he entered Daphne’s office. “The Mera Corporation has dragged up a source, someone they think strengthens their case. We don’t know who it is or what their aim is.” He passed over his tablet with the email summoning them back to the court.

  “So we’re going in blind,” Daphne said. “We’ve got two days to prepare at least.”

  “I haven’t found anything yet and I don’t think that I will,” Reggie admitted.

  Daphne focused on the information and let out a deep sigh. “Then I guess we’ll find out who they are in two days.”

  ***

  “Morning.” Daphne gave James a weak smile. She didn’t like walking in unprepared and she hadn’t been sleeping well the last couple of days.

  “Have fun getting through the reporters downstairs?” James smiled.

  “Always a blast,” Daphne said.

  “Shall we see just who this mystery source is?” James asked.

  Daphne and Reggie looked at each other before they headed for the courtroom doors. James followed them in but took a seat in one of the rows to watch the proceedings.

  Daphne and Reggie smiled and nodded to the judge and the other people they knew in the room, setting up at their table.

  The people from the Mera Corporation arrived a few minutes later. They headed for their own table as James looked around, trying to pick out where their source might be.

  The court was quickly brought into session.

  “Mister Hardie, I have heard that you have a new witness you wish to put on the stand today?” the judge asked the leader of the Mera Corporation legal team.

  “That is correct,” the man said.

  “Very well. We will begin with their testimo
ny and then the prosecution will be free to cross-examine. Is this fine, Miss Thomas?”

  “Yes, Chief Justice,” Daphne said.

  “Proceed,” the judge said.

  “We would like to call Mister Aubier to the stand.”

  There was a shuffling in the rows as a simple-looking man in worn jeans and a hoodie with a hat on his head and sunglasses on top of the brim moved toward the stand. He looked to be in his fifties but living in harsh conditions made him look older. He didn’t look as if he’d washed in weeks. He had to remove his hat and the sunglasses on top of it before being allowed to enter the stand.

  The Mera Corporation representative stepped forward to ask his questions. “Mister Aubier, you are located in the Kashechewan community where the Mera Corporation plant is located, correct?”

  “That’s right.” Aubier nodded.

  “You say that you are a man of odd jobs. Would you say that is correct?”

  “Yeah, that’s right. Can do a bit of everything. You have to up in the north.” Aubier nodded.

  “Have you ever burned anything, Mister Aubier?” the representative asked suddenly.

  “Yeah, of course. It’s the best way to get rid of garbage and crap,” Mister Aubier said.

  “What kind of things do you burn?” the representative said.

  “Garbage.” Aubier shrugged, as if the representative were dumb.

  “Like food, paper, or electronics, empty bottles and other items?”

  “Anything that I don’t need goes in the piles,” Aubier said.

  “We put before the court that it was not the Mera Corporation that created these issues. It was in fact the people of the Kashechewan community who were burning their own garbage that have affected their own health and the quality of their soil, water, and air,” the representative said.

  James could see that the judge frowned, looking over Mister Aubier.

  “I have no further questions, Chief Justice,” Hardie headed back to his seat.

  “Prosecution?” the judge asked.

  Daphne stood. “Thank you, Chief Justice.” She stepped into the area in front of the judge and looked at Mister Aubier. “Mister Aubier, you have said that the increase in pollution in the air was caused by you burning items in your yard. Is that correct?” Daphne asked.

  “That’s right.” Aubier nodded.

  “How much would you say you burned on average?” Daphne asked.

  Aubier glanced over to the Mera Corporation legal team before looking thoughtful. “Lots. I’m not sure.” Aubier shrugged.

  “Okay, and you were doing this for how long?”

  “Must be for five years,” Aubier said nonchalantly.

  “Did you ever check what you were burning?” Daphne asked in an exasperated tone.

  “No. Is there a point to this? I burned the garbage I had and some of the stuff that I found for a long time. What does it matter?” Aubier asked.

  “I will have to agree with Mister Aubier. I do not see where you are going with this line of questioning,” the judge agreed.

  “Sir, the reason that I have asked Mister Aubier these questions is because, if what he says is true, then the soil contamination, the declining health of the people in his community, could be because of him and his burn piles. He did not follow proper measures in removing and destroying his garbage, creating a public health disaster,” Daphne said simply.

  The judge’s expression turned severe as he looked to Mister Aubier. “Mister Aubier, you will be held by the court as we look over this information and an investigation will be carried out to ascertain you are the one at fault for this issue.” The judge was already under a lot of pressure from different people. If it was all because of this man, then it would end there. If not and it was Mera Corporation pulling his strings, would he be willing to serve the prison time for them?

  James sat back in his seat, seeing this all frowning and watching everything happening in court.

  “What are you doing?” Aubier said as two officers moved to secure him.

  “You are under arrest by your own admission for putting the public’s health under threat and failing to abide by federal and provincial laws on destroying hazardous materials. More charges might be added at a later date,” the officer said as Aubier looked to the Mera Corporation.

  “You didn’t say anything like this would happen!”

  The legal team looked pained at his words and they only increased in their whispered conversations.

  “Taking into account Mister Aubier’s admission, we will return to court in one week to check over the different information provided.” The judge stood up. The court stood with him.

  James was confused but he didn’t say anything as the legal team from the Mera Corporation stared daggers at Daphne and Reggie.

  James stood out of the row and waited for them. “So—what just happened?” James asked, confused by it all.

  “Well, it looks like our case is no longer against the Mera Corporation, but against Mister Aubier,” Reggie said in an innocent voice.

  Daphne sent him a look before guiding James away to a discreet corner. “With Mister Aubier’s admission, the court will start to check him over, his background and history to see what extent of the damage he has caused and bring up any further charges. If he was told by the Mera Corporation to say certain things or that they said they would look after something or pay him. What do you think—will he be willing to take the payout and serve the jail time?”

  “Not likely,” James said, seeing it work out in his mind. “If he says that the Mera Corporation paid him, or that they put him up to it, then it comes right back on them and they’re going to be in a weaker position and prove that they were tampering. Right?”

  “Yes, but the other side is that it might be actually the people in the community who have brought on these health risks,” Daphne said.

  James paused, his excitement dying.

  “He probably wasn’t the only person who was burning his garbage. Now I need to talk to some experts and see if I can get information if the amount that they are burning up there and what they’re burning will have the effects that we’re seeing in the Kashechewan community. If that is the case, then we withdraw our charges or else it could come back on the people in the community,” Daphne said.

  “All right, we need to know as fast as possible,” James said.

  He couldn’t help but frown. He knew that he didn’t know the conditions in the Kashechewan community, what they had to deal with every day; still, he couldn’t help but lament over how they were affecting the environment with their practices. If they were the ones who had poisoned the land, water, and air, then it was on them; if it was the Mera Corporation, then they would fight to the end.

  He was disappointed in them, but he knew that it might be something that they needed to do up in the north. All they could do was wait on the results.

  “See you tomorrow night,” Daphne whispered in his ear and then headed off, picking up Reggie and walking away.

  Chapter Forced to Submit

  “Coming!” Daphne said as she heard a knock at her door. She opened the door to find James with his tie loose and a bottle of wine in his hand.

  “Hi,” he said.

  Daphne wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, letting the past couple of days go by the door.

  James could see that she was stressed out as he was with everything that was happening. There was the possibility that they would have this case come back on the people who had started it and they had supported. James didn’t think that they were at fault—that was his gut reaction. It remained to be seen, though.

  He hugged Daphne. Even with all of that, he felt safe with her in his arms.

  “I’m going to owe Lucy a big one for looking after Julia all these times,” James said.

  “Good thing that her daughters and son go to the same school,” Daphne said.

  Lucy had been covering for James, looking after Julia when James went off f
or a date with Daphne or stayed over. He had looked after the kids for Lucy plenty of times when she and her husband wanted to go down to Niagara or have some alone time.

  James walked into the apartment and closed the door.

  “You made it just in time,” Daphne said as James saw the array of Chinese food on the counter.

  “We’re going to have to teach you some cooking skills,” James said.

  “Well, if someone wasn’t working me so hard, even getting me to do overtime, I might be able to cook something up.” Daphne giggled. It was clear that she wasn’t talking about the overtime for the legal case, but their dates spent together.

  “Well, one must always seek counsel before moving forward.” James smiled. He ditched the coat and moved to get some food. “How’s it going with the new client?” He helped himself to food and Daphne found glasses for the wine.

  “Clearwater Solutions? They’re really good. Got a smart plan to clean up waterways and it seems that they’re going international. There are groups in Bali that are interested in using them to clean up the plastics at different tourist attractions.” Daphne grabbed the glasses. “Thanks for putting me in contact with them.”

  “No problem. I just sent them to the best legal team I knew,” James said. When it came down to work, they didn’t sugarcoat it for each other. He didn’t mess around and neither did she. They were both motivated; they had their own goals and they wanted to pursue them together if it was possible.

  Daphne handed him a glass as he finished loading his plate.

  “Thank you.” James took the glass as Daphne pulled him back. She surprised him with a kiss that was slow as she explored his mouth with her tongue before pulling back.

  “Just wanted an upfront payment.” She smiled at James.

  “Upfront, huh?” James smiled and moved to put his food down at the table.

  They talked about work over dinner, and Daphne asked after Julia and James eagerly replied. They quickly went through a few glasses of wine. James’s eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to her unbuttoned blouse and the faint hint of her black bra, or look at her stocking-covered legs.