In my line of work but, certainly in most aspects--if not all--of life, trust is the most important thing to have. I haven't met many people that have betrayed my trust because most people, when they meet me for the first time, know immediately that would be an unwise choice. So you can imagine my shock and disdain when those closest to me betrayed my trust in one felled swoop. It wasn't just anybody, either. It, unfortunately, happened with my girls. This will not be an easy tale to tell. I am still deeply wounded and I can assure you that they are, too.
It all started with a phone call I got last week from Michelle, the now acting D.A. that I passed the torch to after I resigned. I had made a deal with her and the Seattle Police Department as she had taken on one of my former cases. Terry Hoskins was a huge political voice fraught with scandal not only in Seattle but in D.C. as well. When I took him to trial, he was accused of money laundering and embezzlement of which we had solid evidence but, as is so often the case with political playboys, he was found innocent. He ended up back through the court system donning the same untouchable and arrogant demeanor he had when I tried to bust him many years ago. It would seem they were trying to peg him, once and for all, for his crimes but they needed more dirt. During my time as the D.A., I was the major player in political law and taking down crooks within the government kind of became my winning hand. So I gladly took on the role as advisor to Michelle as she tried to take this piece of shit down. Unfortunately, I knew that was going to take my time away from The House and, of course, Daniel...but he used to work for me so he more than understood why this would be a bit of passion project. Terry got away from me once. I was going to make sure he wasn't going to do it again.
Friday morning, I knew I was going to be between the courthouse and the police station talking to the judge, Michelle, the captain of the police force, etc. all day long so I had left a note on the podium in the parlour before I left. It read:
My dearest girls,
I'm going to be gone all day. I will return tomorrow afternoon. Please take care of the house and yourselves.
Always,
Kathryn
I would have been back by that night but I didn't want to be bothered. I knew this case would be very wearing and tiresome so I thought to give myself a few extra hours to sleep in and have some solitude before attending to business on Saturday. Turns out, those few extra hours turned much less restful than I had imagined.
***
"Alright, what do we got?" I said as I sat down at the conference table with Michelle and Peter Danville, the Chief of Police.
"Lisa, honestly...I don't know how he's gotten away with any of this." Michelle said, exasperated. "I mean, you'd think he'd gotten away with murder. The evidence is outstanding but it's all swept under the rug! What are we gonna do here?"
"Calm down, Michelle." I said. "We already know he has people paying others off to cover this shit up and keep quiet about it. All we need is someone to talk and it's curtains."
"Well, ladies," Peter said, "Today is your lucky day. Apparently, John Monroe wants to come forward."
"Wait," I said, with hushed excitement and surprise, "John Monroe? You mean...Terry's right hand man? Why does he want to talk all of a sudden?"
"Apparently, Hoskins tried to rip him off for some deal they made about an upcoming election. Hoskins told him to talk to some private investors that would provide lobbyists and Monroe backed down 'cos he didn't think it was right...some shit like that. Anyway, he's pissed off and wants to help us take him down. Giving us his full support."
Michelle looked like she had seen a ghost. "Oh my god," she said. "That's our ticket in!! How soon can we bring him in for questioning?"
"Gotta play this one safe for now, Michelle," Peter said. "If he's willing to talk, we have to operate on his terms. Let him come to us. This isn't time sensitive...all we know is that it's going on and we can finally nail this son of a bitch for rigging our city. You both need to be quiet. If Monroe reaches out to me or to either of you, that's when we have the meeting. He might still be fragile or second-guessing things. Let him make the move. Do you understand?"
Michelle and I both nodded in agreement. "Okay, we're done here," Peter said, exhausted. "You girls go home and get some rest. I want to meet with you both here at 7 AM sharp to talk about this further. We need to have a solid game plan in case Monroe comes through. I don't really know how this is gonna play out but we need to have every move in place...got me?" Peter looked at us, concerned.
"Yeah, understood," I said, "But how long do we let Monroe stay quiet? It could be weeks or months...weeks or months that that fucking asshole is still doing what he does. This isn't okay, Peter. Michelle, I'm surprised at you, too. Come on, you guys...what are we doing here?!" I was clearly frustrated and wasn't trying to hide it at this point.
"Lisa," Peter said. "I know this means a lot to you. Monroe is fragile. He could switch at any minute. We need to play this one safe."
Michelle piped up. "Lis, look. I am so grateful that you came on to advise but Peter's right. We have to move slow. We'll get him...trust me."
Trust. Trust I have. I looked at both of them dead in the eyes. "No disrespect to either of you...but please do not fuck this up."
They both smiled their consent. I had faith that this would, eventually, go well; however, a 7 AM meeting meant that I had little time to sleep. I thanked them for their time, got in my car and went right to The House. I took the usual back way and went up my private staircase to the back door of my room at the top.
When I had settled in, I heard some music playing downstairs which put a smile on my face. My girls work so hard that, whenever we're done for the night, I always encourage them to relax any way they see fit. Have a couple of drinks, put on some music, talk...whatever they want. It warmed my heart that they were taking advantage of a quiet night but I was supposed to be sleeping and couldn't...I was just too riled up. So there I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking about the day ahead of me.
***
"Who wants another Jäger bomb?!" Beth said as she immediately poured three.
"Oh god, I don't think I can!" said Elise. She was a lightweight but decided to cut loose as there were no clients on Saturday which was rare for them. They had worked very hard all week and decided to have a party all for themselves.
"Oh come on, Elise. Grow a pair." Marisa was definitely three sheets to the wind at this point. She took the cup from Beth. "Cheers, bitch." she said as she downed the whole thing.
