Chapter 12
“I started the business close to thirty years ago and we’ve built it primarily on word-of-mouth referrals,” Donna said proudly.
“Did you have the same focus when you started?” Hannah asked as the bartender at the Chatham Squire set down a second round of drinks for them. Natalie had texted her while she was at the coffee shop writing to see if she wanted to meet everyone at five thirty for drinks. They were seated at a corner of the bar, which made it easy to talk. Spencer and Donna sat along one side, then Hannah and Natalie. The bar had been empty when they first arrived but it was packed now, as it was prime time for dinner.
Donna laughed. “When I started the firm I was all of twenty-six and newly married. I’d worked in Boston at a law firm for a few years but Bill and I both had family on the Cape and when he decided to take over his father’s business here in Chatham, I took the leap and hung out my shingle. It was just me at first, and I did whatever came my way. Anything from family law to real estate to criminal. I liked the variety. Still do. We are a little more focused now, though.”
“When you do a good job for someone, and they tell their friends, they tend to refer the same kind of business, so after a while, that’s how you develop a specialty,” Natalie said.
“There’s never a dull moment,” Donna said. “We’ve had all kinds of interesting cases come our way. Some of them are pretty incredible stories.”
“I like the variety,” Spencer said. “I’d get bored if I was doing the same thing all the time. I have friends who do that. They work for big law firms in Boston and just do tax law all day or patent stuff. They say they like it, but it sounds monotonous to me.”
“I don’t think I’d like that, either,” Natalie agreed.
“What did you do before writing books?” Spencer asked Hannah.
“I was an assistant in the marketing department of a technology company. I didn’t love the work, but it was a fun group of people. That’s the one thing I miss—having coworkers,” Hannah said. “Although a few of my friends work there and I still see them often, so it’s not too bad.”
“I have friends that are totally remote. I don’t think I’d like that. I like having an office to go to and coworkers,” Natalie said.
“We do work from home sometimes,” Donna said. “If the weather is bad, for instance. These two know that if there’s even a hint of snow, there’s a good chance I won’t want to drive in. We can easily work from home if we need to.”
“Except for court appearances,” Spencer added.
“I’m looking forward to going to court with you tomorrow,” Hannah said. It would be her last day shadowing Spencer and she was sorry to see it end. The week had gone by quickly and she liked being around people again, especially as it was just in the morning.
“Tomorrow is your last day?” Natalie seemed sorry to see her go, too.
“It is. This has been a fun week. Thanks for having me,” Hannah said.
“Did you learn everything you need to know?” Natalie asked. “If you want, I’d be happy to have you shadow me next week. If that’s okay with Donna?”
Donna took a sip of chardonnay. “Of course. It’s fine by me. You can sit in with me on one of the days if you like, too. I have a few interesting clients coming in next week.”
Hannah glanced at Spencer before answering. She didn’t want him to be stuck with her for another week if he didn’t want her there. But he looked amused.
“You might as well,” he said. “I think you said your attorney is a woman, so it might be helpful to get their perspective.”
“I’d love to come in for another week then, as long as it’s not too much trouble.”
Natalie smiled and lifted her glass. “Good, it’s settled then.”
After Donna finished her drink, she excused herself to head home to have dinner with her husband. Spencer, Natalie, and Hannah decided to order some nachos to share.
“I miss this,” Natalie said. “My best friend, Taylor, got a job in Boston and she and her husband moved there a little over a month ago, so I haven’t been getting out as often.”
“It’s fun for me, too,” Hannah said. “Other than my sister I don’t really know many people here anymore, and my sister has her hands full with four young boys. She hardly ever gets out.”
Spencer didn’t say a whole lot. He just sat there listening and eating nachos as Hannah and Natalie chatted away.
“I haven’t been out since I dragged Spencer to a networking thing at the Chatham Bars Inn last week,” Natalie said. “He really didn’t want to go, but I think he had a good time?”
Spencer laughed. “She’s right. I really did not want to go. I usually end up having a decent enough time once I get to those things, though.”
Natalie turned to Hannah. “Maybe I’ll bring you along the next time one of those comes up. It’s something to do.”
“I would totally go. Especially if it’s at the Chatham Bars Inn. I haven’t been there in years.”
Natalie looked thoughtful. “And you’re here all summer, right?”
Hannah nodded.
“We will definitely have to get together then. Summer is so much fun in Chatham.”
“Uh-oh,” Spencer said. “This sounds like trouble.”
Natalie laughed. “Spencer, you know you’re always welcome to come out with us, too.”
Spencer just grinned and opened his wallet. He took out an American Express card, set it on the bar, and waved to get the bartender’s attention. “I should probably get going. I need to be up early tomorrow for that court case. If you guys want to stay and have another drink, feel free. Just have the bartender put it on the tab. Donna is paying so you might as well.”
“I don’t think I want another whole drink,” Hannah said. “But we could split one maybe?” She and Natalie were both drinking the same chardonnay.
Natalie nodded. “That’s perfect. Let’s split a glass.”
The bartender topped off their glasses and Spencer paid the bill and said his goodbyes. After he left, Hannah asked Natalie about her boyfriend.
“When does he come back from Dubai?”
“Not soon enough. In about a month he’ll be back. He has some cute friends. We’ll definitely have to make a plan to do something when he’s back.”
They stayed at the bar for another half hour or so, sipping chardonnay and laughing. Hannah was glad that she was getting to know Natalie. She seemed like a lot of fun and she had so many funny stories about clients and just in general. Hannah looked forward to shadowing her next week. She was already getting a lot of good material that she might be able to use in her book.
When they both yawned at the same time they decided it was time to head home.
“I don’t have a court case in the morning,” Natalie said, “but I do need to get a good night’s sleep as I have a busier day than usual for a Friday.”
“I want to make sure I’m on time for Spencer tomorrow, too. I’m not sure when he plans to head out to the courthouse, so I want to make sure I’m there early.”
“Well, this was fun,” Natalie said as they walked out to their cars. “I’m glad you came out with us.”
“Thanks, I am, too. See you in the morning.”
The next morning, Hannah rode with Spencer to the district courthouse in Orleans, the town immediately to the east of Chatham. Spencer was quiet on the ride over and Hannah didn’t want to bother him with idle chitchat so she gazed out the window as they drove.
When they reached the courthouse, Gerry was waiting for them just inside the door. Spencer introduced them and Gerry shook her hand. He was wearing a navy suit, his hair was short and neat, and he looked freshly shaved. He had a friendly smile and Hannah found herself rooting for him immediately. Spencer had also told her how important it was that the defendants show respect to the court.
“It goes a long way. When people show up looking like bums it just makes it harder on themselves. I always advise my clients to look their best.”
They waited their turn and at a little after eleven, Gerry’s name was called.
The police officer was there, seated by the prosecutor. Hannah paid close attention as Gerry was called to the stand and questioned by both the prosecutor and Spencer. Gerry stated that he’d been pulled over on his way home because of the broken taillight.
The prosecutor walked through the events of the evening, asking Gerry a series of questions, and then the police officer took the stand and the prosecutor asked him to walk them through the conversation he’d had with Gerry.
Hannah watched with fascination as Spencer expertly walked Gerry through the details of the night. In his closing summary he reminded the court that Gerry had a clean driving record. “In fact, Gerry Easton drives for a living. He has no priors of any kind. He is a family man with two children. He had a broken taillight, which he repaired the next day. He didn’t do anything wrong here. There is no evidence that he was driving under the influence. The officer stated that is not why he pulled him over and that his driving was, in fact, fine.”
Spencer spoke with passion and conviction and Hannah was impressed. She glanced at Gerry and he sat tall in his chair as Spencer spoke. He looked equally impressed and hopeful as Spencer sat back down.
The judge, a man who looked to be in his late sixties, took a moment to gather his thoughts and then spoke.
“After listening to both sides on this and looking at the defendant’s record, the court is comfortable dismissing these charges. Case dismissed.”
Gerry high-fived Spencer and looked so relieved. As they walked out of the courthouse, Gerry thanked him profusely.
“This is so huge. I can’t thank you enough. I don’t know what I would have done if I’d lost my license. There would have been a good chance I’d have lost my job, too.”
“I was happy to help.”
Gerry went on his way and Spencer and Hannah headed back to the office. It was almost noon and Hannah planned to see if Natalie wanted to grab a sandwich.
Spencer was in an unusually good mood and was chatting about another similar case that was coming up. He felt good about his chances for that one, too.
It made Hannah wonder, though, and before she could stop herself she blurted out, “That’s good. But what if they do it again and this time they hurt someone or even kill them?”
Hannah quickly realized that she’d killed Spencer’s good mood. She saw a muscle clench in his jaw before he spoke. “If that were to happen, they’d pay the consequences. Loss of license and likely jail time.”
“That doesn’t help the person they killed though,” Hannah said softly.
Spencer sighed. “No. It doesn’t. The system isn’t perfect. All we can do is operate within the laws as they exist, present the facts, and let the judge decide. That’s our job.”
“I suppose. I think it would be difficult sometimes to defend certain clients if I knew they were guilty.”
“It’s rarely that black and white. There is a lot of gray, in everything. Even murder. It may seem black and white that if you kill someone you should go to jail, right?”
Hannah nodded. “Yes, of course.”
“Right. But what if the victim was actually a burglar that entered your home with a gun and you shot him in self-defense? Or what if it was your husband and he was abusive and you defended yourself?”
“Well, that would be different.”
“Exactly. Every case is different and the judge looks at the whole picture. For what it’s worth, we don’t do a lot of criminal cases and I personally couldn’t defend someone accused of murder unless I believed they were innocent. I wouldn’t be the right choice for that person because I wouldn’t be able to defend with conviction. So far, we haven’t had any cases like that come in and we aren’t likely to as it isn’t our strength.”
Spencer reached the office and they walked back inside. He immediately went to his desk and Donna and Natalie waited for an update.
He grinned. “We won!”
“Excellent!” Donna said.
“Congrats!” Natalie turned to Hannah. “Do you want to run and grab lunch?”
They walked to their usual place and ordered two sandwiches and took them to a table by the window.
“So, what did you think? Was it helpful to go to court with Spencer?”
“It really was. Though I think I may have insulted him on the ride home.” Hannah relayed the conversation and Natalie was quiet for a moment.
“Spencer actually does the most pro bono work of all of us. He’s helped quite a few elderly clients that were taken advantage of. And he does the most immigration work, helping people get their visas and green cards. He’s a good guy, Hannah.”
Hannah felt even worse now for grilling Spencer. “I know he is.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. You were just asking questions to better understand how it all works, right?”
“Yes, exactly.”
“So, we’ll see you Monday morning then? I have a new client coming in and you can sit in with me. It’s a divorce.”
“Yes, that would be great.”
“Any fun plans for the weekend? I’m heading up to Boston to visit with my best friend at her new place.”
“I’m going to my sister’s tonight, I think. We need to celebrate her new job. She starts Monday at the bookshop.”
“Oh, fun! See you on Monday, then.”