Chapter Two
1336 Words
Monday morning came to New York City with the usual hustle and bustle of people going to work. The city is always on the move. So are the people who live here. Kate Lawson is one of them.
She walked into the office building where she works at Sterling & Pierce with a leather briefcase of papers about her new client, Donald Hayes. There is a lot of talk about him because people think he did something with money. Every day, people on TV discuss whether he is guilty or not, and investors are worried about what will happen to his big technology company.
Kate spent the weekend looking at papers, emails, and bank statements to learn more about Donald Hayes. By the time the sun came up, she had an idea about what was going on.
Donald Hayes is innocent. Someone made it look like he did something with money.
She went to the conference room. Found Donald already there.
"Morning," he said, standing up.
" Morning, Mr. Hayes," she replied.
"I have been waiting for twenty minutes," he said.
Kate raised an eyebrow.
"Are you nervous?" she asked.
"A little," he said.
She smiled.
"That is normal, but I do not lose," she said.
Donald laughed.
"I have heard that, " he said.
She put some files on the table.
"Let us start," she said.
For the three hours, they talked about everything that had to do with the case. Kate asked him a lot of questions. He answered them honestly. By the end of the meeting, Kate liked something about Donald Hayes that she did not expect.
He is a man of integrity. He does not lie. He says sorry when he makes a mistake. He takes responsibility for what he does.
It was nice to see.
When they got up to leave, Donald looked at her thoughtfully.
"You really think I am innocent?" he said.
"I do not think it; I know it, " Kate replied.
For the first time in weeks, Donald felt hopeful.
Meanwhile, across town, Andrew Lawson was getting ready for a meeting about his company, Lawson Global. His assistant came into the room with some papers.
"Mr. Lawson, your interview with Business Elite Magazine is now on Thursday," she said.
"That is fine," he replied.
"What about your charity meeting?" she asked.
"Keep it," he said.
Andrew thinks that being successful is not about having money; it is also about helping other people. He has a foundation that gives money to schools, hospitals and other good causes.
His phone rang. It was Kate.
"Hi," she said.
"I just wanted to say hello," she said.
Andrew smiled.
"I should be asking you that," he said.
She laughed softly.
"My client meetings are keeping me busy," she said.
"I know you will win," he said.
"I always try to," she said.
"I will see you tonight?" he asked.
"Definitely," she said.
After they hung up, Andrew leaned back in his chair. He never doubted Kate's love for him.
Across Manhattan, Victoria Hayes was having dinner with Donald in an Italian restaurant. The place was fancy. Something did not feel right. Donald seemed distracted.
"You have not eaten much," Victoria said.
"I am just thinking about work," he said.
"The lawsuit?" she asked.
He nodded.
Victoria reached across the table. Held his hand.
"We will get through this together," she said.
Donald looked at her. He had always told her the truth. Now he could not. He thought about Kate Lawson sometimes. It was not because he liked her; it was because he respected her.
"I have hired the lawyer in the country, " Victoria said.
"I know," he said.
"And she thinks you are innocent," she said.
Donald smiled.
"She does," he said.
Victoria noticed something. Whenever Donald talked about Kate, he smiled a little. It was hard to see. She noticed.
She did not think much of it.
That evening Kate went home tired. Andrew had made dinner for her. The room was nice with candles and soft music.
"You cooked?" she asked.
"I thought you needed a break," he said.
Kate smiled.
"Thank you," she said.
While they had dinner, Andrew talked about his plans to expand his business to Europe. Kate listened. Part of her mind was still thinking about Donald's case.
Andrew saw that she was not paying attention.
"You seem distracted," he said.
"I am sorry," she said.
"Tough case?" he asked.
She nodded.
"It is more complicated than I thought," she said.
Andrew held her hand.
"I know you will figure it out," he said.
She squeezed his hand.
"I hope so," she said.
For a moment she felt guilty. Andrew trusted her completely. She was thinking about another man's problems.
Days went by. Kate and Donald met many times to get ready for court. They were professional. They started to become friends.
They talked about their childhood dreams and the hard work they had to do to be successful.
One evening after a long meeting, Donald saw Kate looking out the window.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked.
She smiled a little.
"How strange life is," she said.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"We spend years planning what we want to do," she said.
"He asked.
"Then something unexpected happens, and everything changes," she said.
Donald looked at her quietly.
"I have thought about that too," he said.
Their eyes met for a moment.
Kate looked away quickly.
"So..." she said.
Donald cleared his throat.
"We should get back to work," he said.
"Yes," she said.
Neither of them said anything about the silence that followed.
Else someone was watching Victoria Hayes. A black car was parked across the street from her office building every evening.
A man named Victor Steele was inside the car. He used to be Victoria's boyfriend. She broke up with him because he was violent and obsessed with her.
Victor never accepted that she did not want to be with him. To him, she did not just break up with him; she betrayed him.
Now he watched her every move.
He had a folder with pictures of her.
He looked at one picture for a time.
"If I cannot have you..." he said to himself.
The day of Donald's court hearing arrived. There were reporters outside the court building.
Kate got out of her car wearing a black suit. She looked confident and elegant.
Reporters asked her questions.
"Mrs. Lawson, do you think your client is innocent?"
"Can you guarantee that he will be found not guilty?"
Kate stopped for a moment.
"My client deserves a trial," she said.
She kept walking.
Inside the court, the lawyers presented their arguments.
Kate stood up. Calmly showed that the other side was wrong.
Andrew watched the hearing on his computer. He was proud of Kate.
"She is amazing," he said.
One of his workers smiled.
"Mrs. Lawson is the best," he said.
Andrew nodded.
"Yes, she is," he said.
That evening, Donald called Kate.
"I just wanted to say thank you," he said.
"You do not have to thank me," she said.
"I do," he said.
"You gave me hope today," he said.
Kate smiled.
"We are just getting started," she said.
After they hung up, Kate sat in her office for a moment. Something had changed, but it was not Donald; it was her.
She liked him more than she should. It scared her.
She got up, turned off the lights, and went home.
"I need to remember who I am," she said to herself.
Outside, it started raining
Away, Victor Steele watched Victoria through the windows of her apartment. He was obsessed with her.
He opened a book and wrote five words.
"She will be mine again," he said.
Then he closed the book. Smiled.
None of them knew what was going to happen. The lines between being loyal and being tempted were getting blurry. Once those lines were crossed, there would be no going back.
- Writer
