21 The Backyard

Dash

Usually, a closed-door meeting inside my office implied direct attention to a certain subject matter. Interruptions, both in person and by phone were expressly prohibited. Especially while I spoke to Stone about anything. He took care of me, always focused. He was a dog with a bone, but a lot of the times, his vision became singular. We had to talk it out to help him understand the bigger picture.

When Stone and I scheduled time together, mostly during the day, I alerted my family by text, asking for the quiet time.

So when my cell phone rattled on my desk, Stone lifted an eyebrow. Carter’s name appeared.

“Hey,” I said, after swiping my thumb across the screen and lifting it to my ear. I stared directly at Stone unbothered by his annoyance. “Are you around this afternoon for a meeting at the fence line?”

Since he was now my backyard neighbor, he and I regularly talked privately by stepping outside, leaving all recording devices inside. He and I had the best conversations, usually ending up at one of our houses, drinking a cocktail.

“In about an hour, I have a few minutes. Is that correct, Lisa?”

“Yes, then fifteen minutes at about three.”

The first time I heard Lisa answer a question over a phone call between Carter and I, it startled me. Now, Stone was my Lisa, but he never made his listening presence known.

“I’ll meet you there in an hour,” I said, glancing at the wall clock. I was close enough to quitting time, meaning mid-afternoon, that I could wrap up the day. Maybe grab the boys from school and be home for the rest of the night. It’d show Beau I was serious about jumping in when I was able.

If it were possible, Stone appeared more frustrated with me.

“We don’t allow distraction,” Stone disciplined, frown in place. His back ramrod straight, suit pristine, and polished shoes. How had I not known he was gay when I hired him? “What if I have questions?”

“I don’t believe you do. We’ve been thorough in your assigned tasks.” With my fingers I started to enumerate what I had requested of him. “Draw up an engagement letter with the terms we discussed. Schedule a conference call with Lucia and Teresa. You’ll, of course, need to be present on the call. I’ll have you outline the terms. If it goes well, we’ll send them the engagement letter to sign. Then gather all relevant data regarding court cases filed against Richmond Holdings and all of its subsidiaries. Identify and report every terminated employee on record from Richmond Holdings who filed a complaint with the TWC or EEOC. Work your magic. Be crafty, though. Try to get the info through public channels so we don’t alert any employees directly at any agency that might send info back to our potential defendant. Fill in the blanks as they arise. Make an effort to locate Teresa’s complaint with the DPD. I’d like to review it.”

It seemed easy enough. I tilted my head at Stone as if asking what more I could say.

“What about traveling?” Stone asked, pen in hand.

“Where I go, you’ll go, and you’ll schedule it. Schedule time with Brianne. Again, you’ll be present for that meeting,” I said, rising to my feet.

“I guess that’s enough for now. Be available by phone for questions.” Stone finally rose from his seat. “Time frames?” he asked, his notebook still open as he jotted notes and went for the door.

“As soon as possible. Forward any findings to me in real time.” I opened the door, allowing Stone through first. I don’t know how he walked through the office, lost in thought, and never tripped over anything, including his own feet. Those were Jedi powers I’d never fully mastered.

“Hey,” I hollered over to Carter, waiting on the other side of the fence line. I took a quick pit stop to swap out of my professional wear into something more comfortable, athletic shorts and a T-shirt. I charged across the manicured lawn in a pair of slide-on sandals. The sun beat down relentlessly, but I convinced myself the warm ocean breeze made a difference.

“What’s happening?” Carter asked. Beau and I had an aluminum fence surrounding our property. It came to about five feet tall. A sliding gate was a new addition since Carter and Linda built their home behind us.

“So what’s the scoop on my father and brothers being sexual deviants?” I threw the question out, watching his face morph through a series of expressions as the gears in his mind churned.

“He’s had long-term mistresses. Those old-school guys tend to keep that tradition alive. Is that what you’re asking?” he asked, raising a single brow.

“No, I’ve had a couple of women who worked in the executive offices of Richmond Holdings approach me with accusations of some truly awful acts. There’s enough evidence that I believe I’ll begin to take a deeper look,” I explained, my arm coming to the top of the fence, helping to support me there. “How does this look for me to handle a case against my family? Am I coming off as vindictive or vengeful?”

Carter stayed silent for several long moments. “I can’t say. Can you keep your cool with all the baggage between you and them? The next question: do you have the resources to cover such an investigation? I envision he’ll bury you—”

I rarely cut him off, but did this time, lifting a hand between us. “When I dive in, I’ll handle the pre-suit. If we do have a class action, Lon’s agreed to partner. I spoke with him this morning. I’ve beat my father before over my Dallas home. He fought me for years. With him, I’ll have to cut through the emotional bullshit, and stay focused on the task. It’ll be hard.”

“I can ask around,” Carter offered. “Someone has to know something.”

I shook my head. “I don’t want this on anyone’s radar until I get through the investigation and build the case. I can’t imagine pulling it off, but I’d really enjoy throwing Richmond Holdings for a loop.”

“It’d be something if you surprised them. Keep your cool and remember you have a family who loves you,” Carter said, my support system through all of my adult life. “Have you told Beau?”

“We tossed it around last night. At first, Beau was a hard no, then I released more information than I normally would, and he changed his mind. I’ll have some rules to follow, but he’s good.”

“I’ll talk to Linda. She loves feeling useful to you all. Kailey was shocked and happy to have Livie doing her same homework,” Carter said. “That’s quite an achievement in a school known for their academic success.”

“Livie’s struggling with the friendship side of being so smart. We heard of a Mensa support group in Houston. It’ll be a lot for Beau to handle while I’m traveling. I need to hire someone to help him and Amelia. I wish Belle hadn’t gone on to bigger and better,” I said.

“Ask Linda for what you need. She’s already picking them up from school. I’ve never seen her so happy as being here with the grandbabies. She’s patient with West, Fisher and Hunter, and handles them very much like Beau does, kind yet firm. It’s remarkable to watch. I can see the teacher inside her. I’m certain she’ll make herself available for anything you need. Beau’s become chopped liver to her since the grandkids arrived.”

I couldn’t help but beam. I understood the sentiment. These bursts of joy that we called children taught me love was not singular—centered only on Beau, but infinite.

“I believe Lon’s your best choice. He has a whole department dedicated to employment law. They’re go-getters,” Carter said, giving my shoulder a friendly squeeze over the fence. “Keep me updated with whatever can be shared. I’ll pay closer attention in my circles.”

I watched him walk away, feeling more confident after our talk. Carter wouldn’t steer me wrong. He never had.

“No, I’ll get the boys,” I said to Beau, hearing the distinct sounds of the churning ocean lapping in the background. Beau’s voice jostled in and out. I swore I heard the zip of a fishing line being cast. My guy never tired of being on the water.

“Then go inside and find out why the school wants to talk to us about Fisher.”

My brows knitted together. That was news to me.

“They want to talk to us?” I asked, watching the rear camera as I backed out of a garage.

“Yeah. They asked me to come inside this afternoon when we were in the drop-off line this morning. I didn’t ask if it was negative or positive. I can only assume…” I waited for him to finish his sentence, but he didn’t.

“What’s the assumption?” I asked, again feeling left out of the loop. And my family was a circle I tried my best to stay within.

“Amelia had to sign a couple of notes about Fisher bein’ disruptive in class. When I found out, I upped the way I work with him to learn to contain his urges. He’s such a sweet guy, full of energy. He can’t help his outbursts right now. He knows he’s annoyin’, but he’s tryin’, and that’s all we can do until he learns to control himself.”

Again, all of this was news to me. I was at a loss for words.

“I think they believe it’s ADHD. I feel like they’ll want our approval to have him evaluated for their special ed program,” Beau said, as if we were in a typical Tuesday where life happened and I didn’t know about it. Oh wait, we were. Fisher was barely more than a baby. Sure, he could have ADHD but that was an awfully young age to pin him down like that.

Instead of going in that direction, I stuck with my thought on why this was the first time I’d heard about this. Amelia was getting a talking-to too. A simple updating text message wasn’t too much to ask for.

“Well, if you know the problems, and it’s news to me, why do I need to go in?” I said with hostility. Except, I recognized that was the exact opposite of what I wanted to happen.

“Slow your roll,” Beau said in a mix of compassion and authority. “We all know Fisher has some energy and focus problems. I was the one who happened to be droppin’ them off this mornin’. You’ve got a lot goin’ on…”

“Oh come on, being late one night…” I shot out, ready for one of our rare arguments. If he and I were a team, I needed to be informed no matter the situation.

“No, that’s not what I’m sayin’. I just forgot. That’s it. You were preoccupied. I gave you space then forgot to say anything. We had a nice night. I don’t know anything except he’s gonna be fine because we’ll take care of him. Now my head’s occupied with everything you got goin’ on. The idea of bringin’ your shitty family back into our lives is a worry. Not for me but for you.” Beau stopped and took a breath as I pulled the SUV to the side of the road. He wasn’t appeasing me, only causing me to worry more. “And I fuckin’ hooked myself this mornin’. It hurts like a bitch.”

I let go of a heavy sigh. Beau was always doing things that caused him physical pain, and I freaked out every time.

“Sorry about that. I don’t know how you deal with that kind of pain every day.”

Stone’s contact number appeared on the screen interrupting the call. Thank goodness that Stone called to save us from any further discussion over Fisher.

“I’ll let you know what they say once you’re home. Stone’s calling,” I mumbled.

Or I’d let Beau know whenever I remembered to tell him.

“Tell them we’re workin’ with him and we want him to have the tools he needs to be successful in the classroom. He’s gonna be fine,” Beau said. Damn right he was going to be fine. “Bye, good luck.”

“Bye.” The phone automatically connected to Stone’s call. “Stone,” I said and gave an inward chuckle. It always threw him off when I answered the phone using his name.

“Not today,” he said, after several seconds. “You’re working me entirely too hard to deal with your shenanigans. I’m connecting Teresa and Lucia with you.”

“Hang on. I haven’t read the document you sent to me. I will once I pick the boys up. I’ll make the pitch then pivot questions to you.”

“Sure. I’ve created a list of independent counsel, a few we’ve worked with before, who can help them understand what they’re signing,” Stone said. A common practice we regularly used. I tried to have integrity in the way I handled my legal practice. In today’s world, it was hard, but still incredibly important.

“Good. Let them through.”

The call fell silent for several moments as I drove into the preschool Fisher and West attended. The call connected as I backed into a parking spot facing the school.

Until this moment, I had clung to the hope that I could back out if anything indicated a scam. I wouldn’t know either way by the end of the call, but the more steps I took made the potential backlash more difficult to deal with.

“Teresa?” Stone asked. “Are you present?”

“I am,” she said.

“Lucia, are you present?”

“I’m here,” she said, her voice shaky with apprehension. That needed to end right now. We had a long way to go and shaky confidence wouldn’t help anyone.

In that same vein, I had to remove the emotion from this case. My only focus needed to be on finding the truth. Getting on the road to learn the facts was in my future. I absolutely had to get off Beau’s back. He’d be carrying my load for the foreseeable future.

“Good afternoon,” I said, pausing as they echoed my sentiment. “I spent much of the last twenty hours reviewing your evidence. If you agree to our terms, I’d like to proceed with representing both of you. While I’m optimistic, it’s important that you understand the potential challenges and uncertainties that come with any litigation, especially in a case of this magnitude. This won’t be easy on either of you. If we’re able to incorporate the additional women, it will significantly strengthen your class suit. We’ll begin there.”

I grinned when the school doors burst open. Eventually, I saw my boys standing with their teacher holding her hands. I waved to let them know I was there. A little Dash and a little Beau were excited to see me, even while being reined in for the meeting today. “Stone has an engagement letter, a beginning contract that outlines everything. Stone will overnight the letter to each of you to receive tomorrow, I believe. Correct, Stone?”

“Yes, sir,” Stone said.

“I’m cautiously optimistic. We’d like to begin assessing the scope of services and responsibilities involved. We’ll keep you updated as we go. The letter we’ll send overnight to each of you needs to be read thoroughly and carefully considered. It will also clearly break down the fees and payments associated with the case, and how we’ll be paid for representing you. If you have a legal professional in your life, I urge you to have them read it and answer any questions. Stone or I can do that as well. Once you decide to proceed, we’ll begin the investigative phase. Please take as much time as you need to feel comfortable with the services we’ll offer you.”

“At this point, I don’t trust anyone,” Teresa said. “Lucia, how about you? Do you know an attorney you trust?”

“No, I don’t either.”

“Then after you receive the engagement letter and have read it over, Stone’s always available to answer questions until you’re comfortable enough to sign. I also have a law professor at SMU. Dr. Harris is one of the finest men I know. He’ll be candid with you. I promise that we’ll always be honest with you. You’ve been through more than enough.”

I’d probably label her tone as one of hesitant excitement. “Thank you, Mr.—”

“Please call me, Dash. I’m embarrassed by my last name,” I said truthfully. “I’m going to leave the call. I have a pre-scheduled meeting to attend. Stone can answer any additional questions. From this point forward, every communication is recorded to protect both of us.”

“Yes, sir,” Stone said. “I’ll remove you from the call now.”

“Thank you,” Teresa managed before the call disconnected.

I climbed out of the driver’s seat with Fisher bounding forward, running across the yard to me. The problem was the parking lot between us. In theory, he’d stop before hitting the pavement, but I questioned whether that would actually happen and jogged toward him.

Hunter stayed with the teacher weirdly.

Fifteen minutes later, we were headed back to the SUV, hand and hand. Five of those minutes were spent waiting for the office to meet with us. The administration team wasn’t happy with the disruption Fisher caused throughout the school. I reluctantly agreed to have him minimally evaluated, always reminding them of the cost Beau and I paid the private school for six children. My boy needed to be treated with care and compassion while we worked him through his struggles. The frowns the admin team greeted me with needed to turn upside down if we were going to continue attending this school.

Honestly, I felt like the annual income they received from us could fund the new annex in Sea Springs. I clutched Fisher’s hand a bit tighter. He was always happy, a joy to the world, never a hindrance. At least now, this school was on my page.

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