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“All right,” I said, hesitantly. Then I sat down on the couch next to my mother. “What’s this all about?”
Will checked something over Jager's shoulder on the computer and agreed to something he said. “Oh, nothing. Since we were all here, we thought it best to debrief on everything that happened and discuss next steps all together.”
Feeling relieved that it wasn’t anything more serious than that, and definitely not as serious as Jake’s face had shown earlier, I settled more comfortably into the couch. “Sounds like a good plan,” I said.
“Great. So, as Jager has just confirmed with police, Chapman was taken into custody and charged with several counts including kidnapping. He has a bail hearing tomorrow morning. Maxine is cooperating with the police, and since your mother has no objection, they will not be charging her in this case. Instead, she will be a witness for the prosecution.”
I was a little surprised by this, but then again, maybe not. Maxine seemed genuinely remorseful.
“In an unexpected turn of events, Mr. Chapman has requested you as his defense attorney.”
“What?!” I shouted incredulously.
“Yes,” replied Will with a smirk. “We found it amusing as well. But he said he has heard that you’re a great trial lawyer.”
“You can tell Mr. Chapman that despite his compliments, I will not be representing him.”
“I’ll relay that to the police,” said Jager. “Unless you want to tell him yourself?”
A shiver ran up my spine remembering the gunshots. “No. I don’t ever wish to lay eyes on that man again.”
“Fair enough,” said Will. “Which brings us to our final discussion. Our services.”
Jake’s services were definitely a more pleasant topic. I smirked in Jake’s direction, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was staring straight ahead at Will with a blank expression.
“Now that Chapman is behind bars, and his uncle joining him there soon, we have no reason to believe there is any imminent threat to the governor or any members of her family. Ed Chapman’s computer has been confiscated and from what our police sources tell us, he was the one sending the threatening emails. We also recognize him as the delivery man and I’m sure we’ll find his fingerprints in Nikole’s apartment.”
Except for the part about Chapman’s uncle, the rest I had concluded as well.
“So, we feel that our services are no longer needed for this case. As of today, Jake and Christian will be reassigned to new cases. It’s been a pleasure serving you both, and we hope you are satisfied with our services.”
“More than satisfied,” I said and smiled.
“Yes,” said my mother. “You gentleman did a wonderful job.”
Christian grumbled something under his breath, and Will coughed. “Chris still isn’t too happy with himself. But he’ll get over it.”
My mother stood from the couch and extended her hand. “Thank you, gentleman. For not only finding me, but risking your lives to save mine. I will be forever in your debt.”
I stood up, too, and hugged Will and Jager. Christian was a little standoffish, but only slightly more than Jake. When I put my arms around him, he hesitated to hug me back, but only for a second. Then he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. He rubbed his cheek on top of my head and my anxiety melted away. I’d been worried there for a minute, but all felt right again. Everything was back to normal.
Crap.
“How much of this does my boss know?” I asked Jake.
“We filled him in. We managed to keep this from the press, but after Chapman’s bail hearing tomorrow, I think everyone will know.”
“I don’t mind,” said my mother. “I can spin this to my cause. I’m not worried.”
I frowned. I didn’t think my coworkers would feel the same about all the publicity, but it was a part of me, and I wouldn’t be ashamed of it any longer.
“I think I’ll go into the office this afternoon and speak with Marty and some of my colleagues. They should hear it from me first.”
I grabbed my purse and kissed my mom on her cheek. “I’ll call you later, Mom.”
“Love you, sweetheart.” She kissed me back.
As I walked toward the door and grabbed my coat, I turned and looked for Jake. He walked toward me, leaned over, and kissed my cheek. “I’ll see you later,” he said.
