AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What else did you see?”
“Dad. I didn’t really see him. I felt him.”
Walter stares down into his cup. “Oh.”
“He told me it wasn’t my fault.”
“What wasn’t?”
“Elaine’s death.” She hesitates. “The car accident, too. It was just like those visions I had of Dad in Peru. But maybe it’s always just been wishful thinking? Like you said, self-fulfilling hallucinations. Projecting what I wanted to hear because I’ve never been able to remember what happened.”
Walter says nothing. He won’t even look at her. Her grandfather is never someone to shy away from difficult conversations or emotions. Except when it comes to the memory of his only son. Especially the circumstances of his death.
CHAPTER 20
Saturday, April 13
There was a time when, after a call like the one he had had with his lawyer the previous evening, Simon would have trashed his own room, smashing the artwork off the walls and destroying the furniture along with one or more of his own guitars.
Not anymore. The new Simon—more like the very old one—sits quietly in the waiting room of the law firm in downtown Newport Beach, waiting on a second opinion.
He has been at the office for almost twenty minutes, and without looking up, he senses the eyes of the receptionist on him. She doesn’t look old enough to recognize him or his music. But he finds her attention distressing. At this point, he’s afraid that if he as much as makes eye contact with her, it might lead to another complaint.
Reese finally steps into the waiting room in another dark business suit. Despite her deep-set hazel eyes and almost triangular shaped face, Simon finds her distinctive look attractive, intriguing even. But she also intimidates him. Those keen eyes give him the sense that she sees right through him.
Also, Simon finds it disorienting to see a tribe member in another office, outside of Dr. Danvers’s clinic. Especially when Reese extends her hand and greets him as if they’re meeting for the first time. “Good morning, Simon,” she says and then turns back the way she came.
He follows her down a hallway to a spacious corner office with floor-to-ceiling views of the marina. “Someone’s a big shooter,” he says with a whistle as he sits down across the desk from her.
“Your call made it sound urgent.”
“Right to business, huh?”
“I don’t have long,” she says unapologetically. “I have an urgent closing today.”
“On a Saturday?”
She snorts. “As if that matters to my clients.”
His gaze falls to her marble desktop. “Someone else has come forward.”
“Come forward?”
“Another complainant.” He clears his throat as he looks back up at her. “Allegations and such.”
She squints at him. “About Dr. Danvers?”
“What? No. Not her. Me.”
She looks skyward. “I’m not following you, Simon.”
“Earlier this year, I had to settle out of court with this woman. She made certain claims that I—”
Reese shoots up a hand. “Whoa, let me stop you right there. I’m not that kind of attorney, Simon. I practice corporate law. Primarily M&As. Mergers and acquisitions.”
“I get that. I’m not an idiot. I just wanted to get your opinion. As a friend.”
“A friend?”
