Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cassius
I call Cammy the moment I’m out of Harmon’s driveway. She answers on the second ring.
“What happened?” I ask.
“Chrissy is still at the trailer. She assured me she’d be fine.
She has her phone. She didn’t want to make more of a scene, thinking the same thing you did—that mom’s high and will forget it tomorrow.
I offered to stay, but she said Mom was going off about both of us.
Chrissy was worried that I’d set her off if she came back and I was there. ”
“This is so fucking crazy,” I growl.
“Yeah, it is,” Cammy says.
“Are you home?”
“Yeah, lying in bed. It’s so weird. And quiet and big.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, real problems.” I clear my throat. “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Did you lose your job?” she asks dryly.
“No, thank you very much. This is serious, though.”
“What’s going on?”
“Before I left Harmon’s, he offered to get us a lawyer to, uh, take Mom to court.”
“For what?”
“For me to be Chrissy’s guardian, this way we can—”
“Did you tell him yes?” she blurts.
“I said I would think about it.”
“What’s to think about, Cassius? This would fix everything.”
“I don’t know, Cammy, it just hit me all at once that I’d be responsible for her. Like… actually responsible like a parent.”
“You’ve been doing that anyway, you dimwit!”
“That’s what he said,” I mumble as I come to a stop sign, look both ways then keep going.
“Well, if you don’t do it, I will, but I think you’ll have more luck.”
“Why’s that?”
“You’re way more charming than me. Plus, you’re older.”
“Harmon said it in a way that it wouldn’t matter who it is. He’s rich. He knows powerful lawyers. If we do this, it’s a sure thing regardless.”
“Then call him back and tell him you want to do it tomorrow.”
“I am not calling him back tonight, but I will let him know tomorrow. Do you need anything before I get home?”
“No, just hurry up so I can fall asleep to your snoring. It’s too quiet.”
“Put on the TV you lunatic.”
She groans. I laugh as I end the call and hurry home.
I’m lying in bed, listening to Cammy’s snoring coming from the other room as I stare at the ceiling.
I can’t sleep. My mind is going and I can’t shut it off.
Too many things happened today.
This shit with the witch and Chrissy would normally keep me up at night, and even though I am worried about Chrissy, it’s not my concern.
At least, not my biggest concern. I’m relieved about Harmon offering the lawyer.
This could be the last and final thing that puts us in the right direction.
It would make everything better. So yeah, I’m relieved about things starting to fall into place.
What I can’t stop thinking about is kissing Harmon and how stupid it was.
What the hell had gotten into me? What was I thinking?
I honestly don’t even know. I can’t think of a single reason as to why I thought it was okay to do that.
He was talking to me about family stuff, and I guess I wanted to see how he would react…
I wanted to see what he would do if something unknown happened.
And also, maybe I wanted to kiss him to see what it would be like, period.
I had a bad day. I wanted a kiss. I wanted to feel something.
And I did. Even more so the second time when he kissed me willingly.
Sort of. I was being a smart ass. I didn’t think he cared enough about my family problems to kiss me like that, because after the first time, he looked like he’d rather have his leg sawed off than ever do it again.
But… I was wrong. I don’t know what it means.
It’s almost one in the morning, but I still consider texting Harmon. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep until I do. I need to get this off my chest. It needs to feel in motion.
I pick up my phone and send him a quick text.
Me
Yes to the lawyer.
Maybe to the trip.
Thank you.
I put my phone down and close my eyes, only for it to vibrate a few seconds later. I see a text waiting for me from Harmon.
Shit. I woke him. Now I feel bad.
Only when I look at the text, I think he was already awake.
Harmon
I can’t stop thinking about your lips.
That’s unexpected.
They’re very nice lips.
Yes, but that’s not what WE do.
We do what we want.
We have a contract and a list of things to follow.
Why am I the one arguing this? What does it matter to me? They’re his rules. I’m just following them to get a paycheck.
If you actually read it, you’d know that we follow my lead.
I kissed you first.
That’s fair. Did you hate it?
Sighing, I stare at his words. Did I hate it? No. Not even close. Should I tell him that? Is this a test? I don’t know. I don’t want him to fire me because he thinks I’m getting emotionally involved.
No, I didn’t hate it.
So we can do it again?
I stare at the text, shocked.
I’m sorry. Forget I asked that.
I’d love to do it again.
Good.
And I’m happy to help with the lawyer. I’ll reach out to someone tomorrow and give them your number.
Thank you. It means a lot.
You’ve given me a lot to think about.
With what?
A lot of things.
Like?
Let’s talk about it another time. It’s late.
Good night.
I know I’m not getting anything out of him now, so I text him goodnight and go to sleep.
The lawyer reaches out to me first thing in the morning. My eyes are gritty when I open them. It’s not even seven yet. I need more sleep. I can barely understand what he’s saying, but then it hits me that this is the lawyer so I jerk up, suddenly wide awake.
“—and this should be a simple process from the information I’ve already gotten on your mother, but you will still have to prove that you want it in order for the judge to vote in your favor.”
“I do,” I blurt. “I want it.”
“Judges don’t like to take custody away from parents, but they will if they have to. And if I can get this case seen by a particular judge, we will have zero problems getting what we want.”
“Yes, whatever it takes. I’ll do it. My sister isn’t safe there.”
“Let’s set up a time to meet and go over everything. Are you available this afternoon?”
“Any time. Just tell me when and where—I’ll be there.”
“I will be at my office in about an hour… I have a few morning meetings. Let’s say one o’clock?”
“Perfect. Where?”
“The Timeworks Building. Thirty-third floor. See you then.”
The call ends and I sit there staring at my phone for way too long. There’s a knock on the door, and I look up to see Cammy standing there all sleepy.
“Who were you talking to?” She shuffles into the room and climbs into bed with me. Her eyes fall closed and she may be sleeping again already.
“The lawyer. I’m meeting him at one.”
“This is a good idea, Cass. Don’t get in your head about it,” she mumbles.
“I’m not.”
“You are because that’s what you do.”
“What do you mean?” I look at her, feeling offended.
Her eyes slowly open.
“You always think you aren’t good enough for anything.
That you have to do your absolute best to prove something, but you don’t have to.
Just being you, doing what you can, that’s enough.
” I can’t think of anything to say back.
Her eyes fall closed again. “And you deserve good things too,” she says sleepily.
Of course I have to do my best. There is no other option.
Of course I deserve good things. We all do. We all do. Not just me, but us. Of course I have to do my best, go above and beyond, to make sure we all have the best life possible.
Careful not to wake up Cammy, who is snoring, I get out of bed and jump in the shower. I make breakfast and while I eat, I open up my text thread with Chrissy and debate sending her a text.
I’m sure she’s put it on silent at this point, if the witch hasn’t already found it. Chrissy may be young, but she isn’t stupid. She’s dealt with our mother all her life too. She knows what to do to keep herself safe. I send her a text.
Me
Are you okay?
I stare at the screen even though I know I won’t hear anything back for a while.
There’s no way she’s lying around and staring at her phone.
She has it hidden away somewhere and will check it when she can.
That doesn’t ease my anxiety at all, and I almost jump out of my seat to rush there and take her back here. But even I know that’s stupid.
I finish eating, clean up my mess, then spend some time organizing the bathroom while I wait for the time to leave.
“Morning,” Cammy mumbles as she walks by the bathroom.
“Morning,” I call back. “I’m leaving in twenty minutes.”
“Can you drop me off at work before you go?”
“Sure can.”
I finish putting away our stock pile of soaps and shampoos into the small closet in the bathroom, then grab my stuff. Cammy is already waiting for me by the door.
“You need to schedule a road test,” I tell her.
“I’ll do it today. You going to let me drive this fancy car of yours?”
“Maybe if you’re lucky.”
I drop Cammy off at work, which gets her there an hour early, but she said it’s better than having to ride the bus.
My drive into the city takes a while, thanks to traffic, but I make it there with time to spare.
Being able to park in the underground lot that’s only for employees makes things easier.
It also feels a little weird, because I don’t fit in at a place like this.
In the elevator, I use the shiny wall surface to check my reflection and make sure my tie is straight and my vest doesn’t have any lint on it.
The doors open and I step into a hallway. Across from me is a glass wall, and on the other side are working people at desks. They’re well-dressed, on phones, typing on computers, doing all the stuff you’d expect someone in an office to be doing.
On the door in fancy gold script lettering is Law Offices of Hamel and Kohler. I don’t even know which of them that I spoke to this morning, which may be a problem when I don’t know who to ask for.
Still, I won’t let that stop me. I pull open the door and go to the desk with a receptionist plaque on it, to find a smiling woman who is very pretty.
“Good afternoon. You must be Cassius Carr,” she says as I reach the desk.
“Uh, yeah. That’s me.”
“Wonderful. I’ll let Mr. Kohler know you’re here.
You can have a seat right over there.” She gestures to my left, where there are a few cozy armchairs and a table with magazines that are laid out too nicely.
I sit but don’t touch anything because it feels like it isn’t supposed to be touched.
I’m sitting for less than a minute when she calls my name.
“Mr. Carr, he’s ready to see you.”
I get to my feet and follow her down the hallway and into a small conference room.
“Can I get you anything? Water, tea, coffee?”
I recall the iced tea I had when I met Harmon here. “Do you have any iced tea?”
“Sure thing. I’ll be right back.”
She brings me the familiar bottle a moment later, and I smile as I crack it open. I need to figure out where I can buy this stuff. It’s so good.
“Mr. Kohler will be here in a moment. Make yourself comfortable.”
I take a seat at the corner of the table that puts my back to the door but can face the windows to see out into the city. It would be beautiful to see what it looks like at nighttime with all the lights lit up, the city wide awake.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Carr. Thank you for meeting me so quickly.”
“Of course,” I say, shaking his hand when he offers his. “This is extremely important to me.”
“I can see that,” he says, taking a seat at the head of the table, so he’s at my right. He puts a legal pad on the table, along with a pen. “I’m going to take some notes while we talk. Once I have all the information, we will come up with a plan, and you can be on your way.”
“And payment, right?”
“Excuse me?” he says, looking up at me after writing my name and the date on the pad.
“I, uh, need to know how much this is going to cost.”
His eyes narrow slightly, giving me a confused look. “There is no cost for this.”
“There’s—huh?”
“Mr. Stone has handled everything, Mr. Carr. Payment is all set. Let’s just focus on getting you custody of your sister, okay?”
We spend the next hour going over years’ worth of shit we’ve dealt with from my mom.
I emphasize my sister’s condition, making sure he understands how serious it is.
A lot of people assume that because she’s on meds, she’s fine.
But it doesn’t work that way. There are so many other factors that come into play.
She’s stable because of the meds but the disorder doesn’t go away.
When we’re finished and he has ten pages worth of notes, he sees me to the front door and promises to be in touch within a few days with an update.
I’m hit with a wave of relief when I step on the elevator. But it soon turns into emotions that I can’t handle, and my eyes fill with tears. They’re still pouring out of my eyes when I reach the car, but I manage to get my phone and send Harmon a text.
Me
Just left a meeting with the lawyer. Again… thank you for this. He said I have a great chance at getting Chrissy.
I don’t expect him to answer right away because he’s working, but those dots start to dance, so I wipe my eyes and wait for his text to come in.
Harmon
I’m glad I could help. Let me know if you need anything else.
See you soon xo