The Veiled Cage (Lady Lawyer Series Romantic Suspense Novels Book 1) (31 page)

“
I will
.
”

“I’
ll walk you out. Before you get used to the layout, i
t’
s a bit of a labyrinth. But firs
t
—
”
Emilio guided her into the kitchen, and gestured to steaming mugs on a tray
.“
Another Saturday night ritua
l—
a hot drink to go with the story
.”
He poured a mug into a travel container and handed it to her.

“
It smells like heaven
.”
Ruby sampled
.“
And tastes like it smells
.
”

“
Hot Spanish chocolat
e—
one of the finer things in life
.
”

“
This is my kind of fancy
.
”

“
I
t’
s an old family recipe. My grandmother safeguarded it. Back when we lived in Spain, this was one of my mothe
r’
s small comforts. She did
n’
t have enough of them in those days
.”
He unclenched his fist and gripped a mug.

Rub
y’
s brow furrowed
.“
What do you mean
?
”

He forced a smile
.“
I
t’
s time for fairy tales and happy endings. Everything else must wait. Thank you again for coming, Rubina
.
”

“
Tell Gabi I had a wonderful time
.
”

“
So did she. Sh
e’
s already taken you in as one of her own
.
”

They stepped onto the sidewalk.

He waved a cab, and opened the door for her
.“I’
ll see you tomorrow, Rubina, under much less pleasant circumstances
.
”

“
Yeah
.”
Ruby sighed
.“
Let me know how your fairy tale ends
.
”

“
I imagine Aragon and Tabitha will do something like this
.”
He leaned down for a gentle kiss and the heat soon melded them together. Breaking contact first, he stayed close, waiting for her response.

“
Well, try to keep it G-rated for the kids
.”
She nudged him back and yanked the door closed.

With a wide smile, he watched until her cab disappeared around the corner.

Ruby returned to her office, sat at her desk, and wondered at the strange feeling. Sh
e’
d wanted to stay. Shoving it aside, she dove into her work, surfacing at eleven to drag herself home. She thought of a man wh
o’
d build a castle for his mother and weave fairy tales for children. Happy endings mattered most to those wh
o’
d witnessed the dark. She figured, if nothing else, they had that in common. It was a start. One she was uncomfortable with, but she was
n’
t one for denial. Mind occupied with Emilio, she drifted into a dreamless reprieve from the monsters that haunted her while asleep and awake.

Chapter 16

Ruby walked into the meeting room, and stopped at the sight of her potential client.

A young woman clicked the long, swirled orange nails of one hand on the table and twirled her elaborate curls with the other. Her bronzed face hinted of beauty beneath a look-at-me mask. She shot icy daggers at Ruby from beneath a curtain of lashes
.“
Did you have to meet up so early? I sleep in
.
”

Ruby sat and returned the frost
.“
Under the supervision of the Minnesota Department of Corrections, yo
u’
d be up at seven, every day
.
”

“
Yo
u’
re going to keep me out of prison
.
”

“
No guarantee of that
.
”

“
My last lawyer promised he would
.
”

“
Empty promises must not be what yo
u’
re after, or you would
n’
t be here. Would you like to start over, Rebecca? Maybe we could set a friendlier tone for this meeting
.
”

“
Sorry,
I’
m not usually such a bitch.
I’
m on edge
.”
She offered her hand with a small smile
.“I’
m Rebecca. Thanks for seeing me
.
”

“
Apology accepted
.”
Ruby shook her hand
.“
Pleased to meet you, Rebeccca.
I’
m Ruby. Welcome to my law firm. Thank you for sending your case materials over in advance. It gave me a chance to review your file. Yo
u’
re organized
.
”

“
So are you
.
”

“I’
m a lawyer. What did you expect
?
”

She pressed her lips together and puffed air
.“
I had low expectations after Peroni. And he was the best of the creeps I met with before the hire. If h
e’
d have put as much effort into my case as trying to get laid I would
n’
t be here
.
”

“
You did
n’
t want to be told yo
u’
re too beautiful to be a criminal
?
”

“
No, or suck his small dick for payment
.
”

“
Ah, I see. You did
n’
t want to pay him in sexual favors. Many of my colleagues have
n’
t earned my respect. And many do
n’
t play by the rules
.
”

“
Do you always follow the rules
?
”

“
Yes, always. If you ca
n’
t work with that,
I’
ll be happy to show you out.
I’
ll even send you on your way with a travel cup of coffee and a scon
e—
no hard feelings
.
”

“I’
ll have my coffee here, if you do
n’
t mind
.”
She reached forward and lifted her mug.

“
Good. Wha
t’
s Anthony Priestley like
?
”

Pain clouded her sapphire eyes. She swallowed hard before answering
.“
He never missed a Friday night dinner. My parents . . . Well, the
y’
re out of the picture. When he found that out, he started bringing me around. Not as his girl
.
”

“
Would he rabbit
?
”

“
No, not without telling me and Lizzie
.
”

“
His mother
?
”

“
Yeah. H
e’
d at least let us know when w
e’
d see him again. His dad bolted on his mom. Tony would never do that to her. We had plans
.
”

“
Which were
?
”

“
He wanted to get out of the life
.
”

“
Drug dealing
?
”

“
Yeah
.
”

“
Coke
?
”

“
Yeah
.
”

“
Go ahead
.
”

“
Friday was going to be the big night. He wanted to meet before dinner, just the two of us. He had mag news
.
”

“
When was the last time you saw him
?
”

“
Tuesday morning. He wanted to make Friday night special
.
”

“
Was it someon
e’
s birthday
?
”

“
No, it was because of his big news. We went to the antique store
.
”

“
Alfre
d’
s
.
”

“
Yeah. Ho
w’
d you know
?
”

“
Lucky guess
.
”

“
He sprang for a present for his mo
m—
a necklace
.
”

“
Wha
t’
s she like
?
”

“
Sh
e’
s fiery with curls like mine. Well, hers are natural, and red. And she has green eyes like yours, but brighter. Like a cat, Tony says. Sh
e’
s Irish, and quick to get worked up
.
”

“
And quick to forgive
?
”

“
Yeah
.
”

“
Wha
t’
d the necklace look like
?
”

“
Rubies and emeralds. I could sketch it
.
”

“
You notice if he wore any jewelry
?
”

“
Yeah, a ring. It was mag. I
t’
s all he had left of his dad. I can draw that, too
.
”

Ruby handed her a stylus, and opened a sketch app on the guest tablet.

“
No, I free style
.”
She held up her nails
.“
My work. I need real tools
.
”

“
You mea
n
—”

“
Real paper, heavy stock. Charcoal pencils. Do
n’
t I look like an artist
?”
She smirked at Ruby.

“
You do
n’
t, Rebecca
.”
Ruby tapped a message into her PSC, and sent it before looking up
.“
Have you worn something like this . . . attire to court
?
”

“
Yes. Skirt, heels, shirt. Wha
t’
s wrong with it? I look like a vid goddess
.
”

“
Of the porn genre. Court is conservative. I
t’
s serious business. Your future is in the hands of the judge making decisions about your life. I think ther
e’
s more to you than this made-up front. You have an eye for detail. Yo
u’
re organized. You must have paid attention in school. Where did you go
?
”

“
Jefferson. I graduated with honors
.
”

“
Did you always dress like this
?
”

“
No, I was a real Miss Goody. That was before I grew boobs and boys noticed me
.
”

“
Let me put it this way. We do
n’
t want the judge to notice your cleavage and nothing else about you
.
”

“
Prude
.”
She looked Ruby up and down.

Ruby mirrored her
.“
Prostitute
.
”

Rebecca glared at her.

“
Rebecca, I know looks can be deceiving, but some people do
n’
t take the time to see past their preconceived notions. Do you want them to imprison you for looking like a hooker? Some people think tha
t’
s an offense worthy of a long lockup. They would
n’
t be too concerned about getting the specifics about this case. Tramps like coke. Case closed
.
”

“
You know, I have a whole lot to say about your frumpy-ass suit
.
”

“
Yo
u’
d have to get in line. And
I’
m more interested in figuring out what happened to your friend. It sounds like Anthony saw more in you than cleavage and legs
.
”

“
Yeah. Are you going to take my case
?
”

“
Depends
.
”

“
On what
?
”

“
On whether yo
u’
re going to do your part as a member of your own legal team.
I’
ll explain wha
t’
s going on, and what I find.
I’
ll answer questions. But you have to trust
I’
m the expert on case strategy. You may think yo
u’
re more clever than the cops, but yo
u’
re charged with felony drug possession. Le
t’
s start with something simple. Are you willing to dress conservatively for court
?
”

“
You know, this is
n’
t what that prick Peroni told me to do
.
”

“
What did he tell you
?
”

“
The more skin, the better
.
”

“
Can you think of a reason h
e’
d tell you that? A self-serving one
?
”

“
Sure,
I’
m not an idiot. I figured he was getting off on it. But I had no reason to think the old guy behind the bench did
n’
t think just like him
.
”

“
No, I suppose you would
n’
t
.
”

“
So I was righ
t—
Peron
i’
s no good
?
”

“
No on
e’
s been able to catch him falling below the bare minimum, nor rising above it
.
”

“
He did
n’
t even know the name of the cop that took me in. I tricked him, and asked if h
e’
d talked to Mahowald. He said h
e’
d played tag with him
.
”

“
I see your point. Officer White arrested you
.
”