Chapter Thirty
Just after one o’clock on Friday afternoon, Isabela stood outside the smaller conference room at Walker and Doyle.
Her hands were clasped so tightly her knuckles ached.
She'd been pacing the corridor for the past ten minutes, the motion doing nothing to settle the wildfire in her chest. Her mouth was dry, her stomach twisted, and every cell in her body screamed that this was either a masterstroke or a career ending disaster.
Marcus was being discharged today. He'd sworn that he would stay home, maybe take the call from the hospital bed or the back seat of the car. God help him if he showed up. She’d personally block his wheelchair at the door. Jasmine would never allow it, though. Isabela was counting on that.
Still, she couldn’t stop herself from worrying. They hadn’t caught the person behind Marcus’s accident or her harassment. That made her feel particularly protective of her boss.
She peeked through the small glass pane on the conference room door. Andrea was already inside, sitting alone, twisting her fingers in her lap. The girl was visibly nervous but resolute. That gave Isabela a jolt of strength. Andrea was braver than she had any right to be at nineteen.
Then, voices echoed from down the hall, pulling Isabela’s spine taut. Nicole led the arriving group. Lorenzo Torres looked immaculate and smug, as expected. His wife Mariana was once again pale and tense. Keith Stewart looked happy to be included, and Luke Barrett was all sharp edges and disdain.
Once they noticed her, the polite masks from their first meeting were removed. This time they looked annoyed, angry even.
Luke reached her first. “Ms. Cruz,” he said tightly, “we hope there’s a very compelling reason for dragging my clients back here. Their time is not to be wasted.”
Isabela opened her mouth to respond, but Lorenzo stepped in, all false warmth and flashing teeth.
“We are always happy to assist,” he said smoothly. “Ms. Cruz, it is an absolute pleasure to see you again. Although I must say, I was quite saddened to hear about you and Mr. Walker’s unfortunate accidents.”
Isabela’s jaw clenched. “It wasn’t an accident.”
Lorenzo’s eyes widened in surprise. “Who would do such an awful thing?”
“I’m confident the police will find out soon.”
Nicole cleared her throat loudly and opened the door. “Let’s get started, shall we?”
Isabela exhaled and pulled out her phone. She hit the “FaceTime” button and Marcus’s face filled the screen. He was in a car, hopefully on his way home from the hospital. He looked alert, his game face securely in place.
“You ready?” she asked anyway.
“Let’s do it,” Marcus replied.
From inside the conference room came a gasp.
Isabela stepped inside and studied the dynamics unfolding before her.
Mariana had her daughter Andrea wrapped tightly in her arms, eyes wet and wide with shock.
Luke Barrett’s face had drained of color, and he was furiously typing on his phone.
He was probably trying to call Marcus, unaware she’d already looped him in.
Lorenzo, on the other hand, looked ready to explode.
He took a single step toward her before Keith jumped up and gripped his boss’s arm. “Lorenzo, let’s sit. I’ll get you some water.”
Lorenzo didn’t move, didn’t blink. The intensity of his stare made Isabela’s pulse jump, a cold prickle skimming her skin as she forced herself not to look away. Eventually, he let himself be guided back into a seat, his eyes never leaving Isabela’s.
“What the hell is this, Cruz?” Luke demanded, snapping his head toward her.
It was Andrea who spoke. “I wanted to help,” she said softly, but with surprising clarity. “I’m finally telling the truth. Uncle Hector wasn’t a good person.”
“He was misunderstood,” Lorenzo barked bitterly.
“No.” Andrea’s voice cracked. “No, he wasn’t. He was a predator. He would not have stopped.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she turned to her mother. “Maybe ... maybe if I had been braver. If I had told the police what really happened, he wouldn’t have been free to hurt those kids here in Seattle.”
Isabela was in awe of the vulnerable young woman’s strength.
“There is no proof he hurt—” Lorenzo began.
“Stop it, dad! You always chose your reputation over me. Over us.” She squeezed her mother’s hand. “I’ll talk this time,” Andrea’s voice trembled. “You can’t shut me up forever. This is my choice, and I’ll choose to take the stand. I’ll say what Uncle Hector did, what he tried to do to me.”
“Enough!” Mariana’s voice rang through the room like a gunshot.
All eyes turned to her. She stood, hands protectively braced on her daughter’s shoulders. Fury was etched into every line of her face, but not at Isabela. At her husband.
“This is enough,” Mariana repeated. “I will not have Andrea dragged into this circus. Her name will not be flung through the mud for a man like Hector. He is dead. Let him rot.”
A long, tense silence followed.
Finally, Luke exhaled through his nose and stood. “Well, that was as thorough a fuck as I’ve had in years.” He leaned closer to Isabela’s cell. “Marcus, I want you on my phone in ten minutes.”
He turned to the room. “Unless anyone has more families to implode, I believe we’re done here.”
He strode out, Mariana and Andrea trailing behind. Andrea gave Isabela’s arm a soft squeeze as she passed. Nicole hurried after them, phone already pressed to her ear.
There was only Keith, Lorenzo, and Isabela remaining. Lorenzo approached her slowly, his steps measured. Isabela held her ground, though her limbs trembled with adrenaline. Her fight or flight instinct screamed at her to flee. When he was toe to toe with her, Lorenzo’s expression turned sinister.
“You’ll pay dearly for this,” he hissed, the words as much a promise as a threat.
Isabela swallowed hard, then forced her chin up. “It would be awful for Mariana and Andrea,” she said evenly, “If you were arrested for orchestrating the hit and run and harassment targeting Walker and Doyle attorneys.”
He stepped even closer until their bodies touched. His breath was hot on her cheek. “Ten cuidado, querida,” he spat.
Isabela didn’t flinch. Not this time. She met his glare with one of her own, unblinking. Finally, Keith cleared his throat and Lorenzo turned, storming out.
Only once the door clicked shut did her knees give slightly. She sat on the edge of the table, body buzzing with fear and something raw she couldn’t quite name. She had taken the risk, and the outcome was exactly as she had hoped. The family did, in fact, implode.
Mariana despised Hector and adored her daughter. When forced to choose between them, she had no problem throwing her late brother-in-law under the bus. Isabela had expected Lorenzo to be upset, but the wrath in his eyes was something else entirely. Something she hadn’t seen before.
There was no going back. Either she was about to make partner, or she'd just started the countdown to the end of her legal career.