A Good Kind of Trouble (A Trouble in Twin Rivers Novel Book 1) (23 page)

"None come to mind," Dave said with a shake of his head. "Look, it seems to me that Stanton's in cahoots with O'Bannion to buy up that property. If Corcoran is also involved and if there's a link to why he's harassing Lindsey, well...I don't want her to get hurt. But there may be a lot more at stake here than Lindsey's tires."

Ben let out a frustrated sigh. Dave was right. If Stanton was using the firm to do something illegal, they were all at risk. The firm could be shut down and everyone working there would have that stain on their reputation. But Ben wasn't about to stop digging. He'd already compromised his ethics to try and help her. Why stop now?
 

“You should know something,” Dave said, his shoulders tense. “Stanton owns quite a bit of commercial real estate. And he’s not above using inside information to make a profit.”
 

Ben stared at his friend. “How do you know this?”
 

Dave lowered his gaze and shifted in his chair. "When I met Kath, she was leasing her store space from Stanton. He was a terrible landlord. Waited for her new business to take off, and then once it was established, tried to triple the rent. Plus, he was always hitting on her."
 

"How horrible for Kath," Ben said. What kind of ego did the little man have to think he had a shot at Kathleen? Kath was beautiful and sophisticated. Stanton was neither of those things.
 

"Yeah, so I sort of pulled a fast one on Stanton. Got him to sell the building... to me and Kath.”

“A fast one?” Ben asked, dread settling in his stomach.

“Don’t worry, nothing illegal. I planted a rumor that a prominent developer was buying up land north of town for an entertainment complex," Dave said, running a hand through his hair. "At the time, I was assisting on a team doing tax work for Sterling Carter."

"The former district attorney?"

Dave nodded. "He had just left office and was getting involved with the Pine Springs Tribe, who were seeking approval to open a casino."

Ben exhaled. "You leaked this to Stanton?"

"God, no," Dave said, shaking his head. "I was researching Carter's corporate holdings to make sure they were structured appropriately in light of new corporate tax regulations. I knew nothing about any casino. But there was a lot of talk floating around. I let Stanton think I knew something and I was going to try my hand at real estate, that I planned on investing in land north of town."

"He thought you had inside information."

"Right. Conventional wisdom was that a casino going in on the north end of town would suck the oxygen out of the downtown area, driving down rental rates and property values there as people started spending their money elsewhere. So when an investor approached Stanton about buying one of his commercial holdings downtown for market value, he was in the mood to sell before the bottom dropped out."
 

"You were the investor?" He shook his head at his friend’s secret history with Stanton.

"An anonymous corporation out of Nevada was the investor," Dave said. "Turns out that Kath and I were the only shareholders of that corporation. What can I say? I learned from Stanton's playbook."
 

That certainly explained the hostility between Stanton and Dave. "When did Stanton figure it out?"

"My guess? A few months later when he learned I was engaged to Kathleen. But you can imagine how angry he was a year later when Sterling Carter announced that his casino would be constructed west of the city."
 

Ben shook his head and laughed. "No wonder he hates you."

Stanton's history in real estate fit with what Ben found in the law firm files and billing records. Stanton knew about buying and selling commercial buildings and creating real estate holding companies and could be advising Bear O'Bannion.
 

"Why are you telling me this?"
 

Dave shifted, his mouth set in a straight line as he met Ben's gaze. "Lindsey's looking into the arena, which is causing another real estate bubble in the downtown, just like the casino did. She's getting harassed by Corcoran. You see Stanton hanging out with Corcoran. Stanton's also been working for Bear O'Bannion, who has a lot at stake with this arena deal."

Ben ran a hand through his hair. There were a lot of loose ends, but he still didn’t know how he could help Lindsey.
   

"But why would Stanton be down at Lonnie Corcoran's office? What's his interest in Lindsey? We're missing something here. We should be talking to Lindsey."
 

Dave raised his gaze to Ben, then shook his head. The tension built in Ben’s shoulders.

"We can't talk to Lindsey," Dave said quietly. "O'Bannion's a client of the firm."
 

Ben took a deep breath, his head pounding. "But Stanton could be doing something illegal."
 

"Or not," Dave said. "Look, I hate Stanton as much as the next guy, but all we know is that he once worked for O'Bannion and he’s hanging out with a sketchy P.I."
 

"A sketchy P.I. who is harassing Lindsey. What if Stanton is just the go-between for Bear and Corcoran? Bear could hide the fact that he hired the investigator by going through his lawyer, keeping it under attorney-client confidentiality."

Dave shook his head. "You need to step back, Ben. You can’t accuse Stanton of doing something illegal or unethical. Not unless you have proof. And even then, you're going to be bound by attorney-client confidentiality. And think about it—you're about to be a partner in this firm. Are you willing to take it down? We'll all get hurt if Stanton's done something illegal and it gets out."
 

Ben stood and shoved his hands in his pockets. He was supposed to sign the partnership agreement soon, but every time he reviewed the document, he pictured the bustle and camaraderie at the Fields Law Group, the team atmosphere, the enthusiasm. Even in the short time he had spent there, it was clear that the people working there shared a sense of purpose.
 

That's what he wanted. But did he want it more than being financially independent and getting out of debt?
 

"Unless, of course, you plan to take Jude up on his offer," Dave said.
 

Ben didn't answer, just met Dave's gaze. He hadn't told Dave of the offer yet and wondered if Jude had told him. He felt a twinge of guilt at leaving the job that Dave had helped him succeed in. But the offer was tempting.
 

"Well, if you were to enter discussions with Jude, you might want to wait until December, when rumor has it you're going to get a fat bonus check," Dave said.
 

"I got invited to lunch with the senior partners."
 

Dave raised an eyebrow. "What are you going to do?"

Ben sighed. "I really don't know."

"You know, most people don't try and pay off their student loans in just a few years. It's fine to carry the debt for a while longer. You've put more of a dent in your loans than any of your classmates, I'm sure. Hell, I've been out of law school fifteen years, and I just paid off my last loan."
 

"If I leave early, no bonus?" Ben asked.
 

Dave shook his head. "They'll totally screw you on it if you leave before December."

"How fat is the bonus?"

Dave shrugged, then dropped a figure that would reduce Ben's debt to an amount that might enable him to sleep soundly on a regular basis. But the price would be staying at Stanton & Lowe and looking the other way while a partner possibly committed fraud with a client. Not to mention, he'd be working with the guy who was very likely harassing Lindsey.
 

His hands clenched into fists and his mouth tightened. Every fiber of his being rejected that thought.

Chapter Nineteen

Lindsey’s stomach tightened at the scowl on Judge Chinn's usually expressionless face.

The last time she'd stood in this courtroom, he’d ordered her held on contempt charges for refusing to testify. Now he was going to hear Lara Petrie's argument on why Lindsey shouldn't be held in contempt of court.
 

She glanced around the nearly empty courtroom, then over at the smug face of Frank Derry, ValCorp’s attorney. Swallowing hard, she lowered her gaze, focusing on her deep plum suede pumps, the ones with the three-inch heel and peep toe. They were her favorite shoes, the ones that always made her feel confident. Now she doubted her decision. Compared to the navy blue pumps with the sensible heal that Lara Petrie was wearing, Lindsey's feet looked like they were ready for a walk on the wild side. Or a walk back to that holding cell.
 

She took a deep breath and her chest constricted as the clerk called her case. Lara Petrie walked up to one of the two podiums that faced the judge. She stood in front of the podium on the left and gave Lindsey an exasperated wave to join her. Lindsey followed reluctantly.
 

Frank Derry, who had started this whole mess when he tried to call her to the stand, walked briskly up to the podium on the right and stated his name into the microphone. He was a huge and imposing man with a head of silver hair and a deep baritone voice that commanded attention.
 

Lara Petrie stated her name in her wavering, reedy voice and informed the judge she was representing Lindsey at the hearing. In contrast to ValCorp's attorney, she was pale and thin. Lindsey’s stomach rolled and the sour taste in her mouth grew. ValCorp had sent a real attorney into battle, while she was represented by a celebrity impersonator.

Judge Chinn lowered his glasses and stared at Lara, who raised her face and stared back with a cool expression, waiting for a question. Still filled with doubt, Lindsey nonetheless admired her lawyer's steely resolve. The judge's withering stare made her want to crawl under the counsel table behind her.

"Is your client going to testify?" the judge asked.
 

"Ms. Fox was never subpoenaed to testify. And even if Mr. Derry's office had properly issued a subpoena to Ms. Fox, that subpoena would be quashed under California Civil Code 1987.1. As Mr. Derry well knows, a journalist cannot be compelled to testify. And he has yet to produce any proof of service, despite several promises to do so."
 

The judge turned back at the defense attorney and raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Derry, is that true? Can you show the proof of service?"

The proof of service, Lindsey had only recently learned, was the paper that was filled out by the person who served the subpoena. She'd nearly had to swear on a stack of bibles to convince Lara Petrie that she didn't get served anything. If Derry produced one today, she was going to look like an idiot. Lindsey didn't put it past him to manufacture that proof.
 

Derry straightened his jacket and stood tall. Lindsey could see why ValCorp trusted him to defend the corporation's interests in court. He appeared solid and trustworthy.
 

"Your honor, there does seem to be some issue with the proof of service for Ms. Fox's subpoena, but I can assure the court she was properly subpoenaed to testify in this matter," he said.
 

Lindsey stared in disbelief as the lawyer continued to lie to the judge. She opened her mouth to object, but Lara shushed her.
 

"The fact that she was in court on the day that I called her to testify is proof that she knew she was to appear," Derry said.
 

"Ms. Fox is a journalist covering this trial," Lara snapped. Lindsey's head swiveled to look at her attorney. Gone was the tentative voice. In the face of Mr. Derry's lies, Lara was taller, more confident, and definitely louder. Not to mention supremely pissed off.
 

"Her articles on this civil suit and other inappropriate conduct by Mr. Derry's client have been on the front page of the newspaper multiple times in the last year. It is natural that she would appear in court to cover testimony in this trial. It does not indicate that she was summoned here by court order," she said.
 

Mr. Derry and Judge Chinn also appeared taken by surprise with the sudden show of strength.
 

The judge rubbed his hand across his face. "You have no proof that you served Ms. Fox with the subpoena?"

"No, not exactly, your honor," Derry said. "I mean, no, I don't have any proof other than the fact that she was here on the right day and at the right time."
 

"Which is no proof at all," Lara said.

"I agree, Ms. Petrie," the judge said. "Ms. Fox, I am vacating the contempt charge against you. However. If you ever disobey an order in my courtroom again, I won't be happy."
 

She nodded but kept her mouth shut, following Lara's stern instructions before the hearing.
 

The judge recessed the court and Lindsey’s knees wobbled. It was such a relief to know she wasn’t going back to the jail cell, her eyes watered and her breath hitched in her chest. Lara motioned for Lindsey to follow her into the hall.
 

"Thank you, Ms. Petrie," Lindsey said, following the attorney down the hall away from the courtroom.
 

"It's my job," Lara said. She stopped near a bench and slipped a folder into her briefcase. "Derry may try to actually subpoena you, just to show the judge he wasn't bluffing. If you get served, call me immediately."

"Of course, I will," Lindsey said. "I don't know why he would even want me to testify in his civil trial. I don't know anything about the dispute between the subcontractor and ValCorp."

Lara’s eyes narrowed. "He probably just saw an opportunity to harass you, maybe get you under oath and ask you about your previous coverage of ValCorp and those stories he and his client complained about."
 

"Those weren't about this case," Lindsey said.
 

"Derry's a bully, like his client," Lara said. "And he's a liar. So tell me if he contacts you in any way and do not, under any circumstances, talk to him."