Daisy McDare and the Deadly Legal Affair (7 page)

While Daisy was caught up in her thoughts, Amber Robertson approached her from the reception desk.  Amber was wearing another low cut, form-fitting dress.  Her attitude however was noticeably different.  Her trademark snark was gone.  She almost looked like she could even flash a smile. 

“Some sweaty guys are here to see you,” Amber said.  

Chapter Eleven

The “sweaty guys” in question were workers from the furniture store.  They were coming to take out the old couch and chairs in the waiting room and replace them with the new ones Daisy picked out.  The workers carried the couch out of the office and towards their truck in the parking lot just as Roland Smith entered the waiting room. 

Roland looked just as agitated now as the other day when he’d made a huge stink about his legal bill. 

Daisy could see Roland had nothing but trouble on his mind, and she wanted no part of it.  She kept to herself in the corner of the waiting room as Roland strode up to the front desk.   

“I need to talk to a manager,” Roland demanded.

Amber took a deep breath.  “About what?”

“My bill.”

Amber rolled her eyes.  “I don’t know if you realize it Mr. Smith, but this really isn’t a good time right now.”

“I don’t care,” Roland fumed.  

“Our boss was just murdered a few days ago.  Have a little respect.  Do you really think this is the right time to be coming in here making trouble about your bill?” Amber asked. 

“Actually, I think given the circumstances, this is the perfect time.  Now I want to talk to a manager, or the accountant that handles the bills” Roland said. 

Amber sighed, then paged Peter over the phone.  “Peter, I need you out here right now.”

While Amber waited for Peter to come to the waiting room, Daisy’s mind was racing with suspicion. 

Amber seemed like she had a completely different personality all of a sudden.  She still had no concept of the meaning of customer service, but her demeanor had changed.  She didn’t look so jilted anymore, so bitter, so biting. 

Instead relief was on her face.  As if a Max-sized weight had been lifted off of her shoulders.  It made Daisy wonder, could Amber have committed the murder?

She had a motive.  Amber dressed like a woman wanting to sleep her way to the top.  Instead her tight dresses got her nowhere.  She’d gotten beaten out by Chloe. 

Amber didn’t look like the kind of woman that dealt well with being spurned.  Nor was working at the reception desk her forte.  She made no secret of her misery answering phones and greeting clients. 

If the nine to five drudgery wasn’t enough, Daisy also remembered hearing Amber complain about how stingy Max was about giving pay raises.  Max told her to be happy with her twelve dollars an hour or take a hike.  Amber then pleaded that she needed the job. 

When their livelihood was threatened, people did extreme things. Now with Max dead, Amber’s misery was nowhere to be found.  Interesting. 

Amber wasn’t the only suspect in the waiting room however.   

Roland Smith was a wild card.  He’d already proven he had the anger to do it.  Daisy hadn’t seen him be anything but furious.  She wasn’t sure the man was even capable of smiling. 

Roland also had a doozy of a motive.  Money drove people to do crazy things.  Apparently he owed the firm enough that he’d have to sell his brand new pickup truck to settle his debt. 

That was a whole lot of motive for one little waiting room.  Would he really resort to murder though?  The more Daisy thought about the case, the more she realized how difficult it would be to solve. 

Just then the new law partner Peter Simpson entered the waiting room.  He was none too delighted to see Roland.  It was clear Roland was determined to become a thorn in the side of everyone at the law office. 

Peter tried to get rid of him as quickly and painlessly as he could.  “Oh—Mr. Smith.  What can I do for you?”

“Tear up my bill,” Roland said. 

Peter scoffed.  “Why would I do that?”

“Because I owed it to Max Cash, and he’s dead.”

“First of all, have a little respect.  The man was murdered.  Second, you didn’t owe it to Max, you owed it to the law office.  And I’m running this practice now.”

“You can’t really expect me to pay this.”

“Why not?”

“It’s outrageous,” Roland said. 

Peter couldn’t believe Roland’s outlandish bravado. 

“You’re lucky you’re not in jail.  You should be happy to pay this bill.”

“You’re crazy.”

“It’s better than being behind bars, isn’t it?”

“If I would have known I’d have to sell my new truck to pay this bill, I would have gotten another lawyer,” Roland insisted. 

Peter wasn’t going to back down for anyone, especially when money was involved.  “Then you definitely would have gone to jail—where you’d have lost your freedom and your truck too.”

Roland snarled.  “How can you be so sure?”

“Because you were guilty.  You may have fooled the jury, but you didn’t fool me.  I helped Max with that case.  We earned every penny of that bill.  And you’re going to pay it,” Peter demanded.

Roland looked like he could spit fire at that moment. 

Peter held his ground.  He went toe to toe with Roland, staring him down.  Peter had a killer instinct about him.

Roland was at a make or break moment.  Daisy could tell Roland wanted to punch Peter out right then and there, but that would have landed him in jail for assault.   

Instead Roland narrowed his eyes.  “You ain’t heard the last of me.”

“Oh no.  Don’t you come in here again.  If you set foot in this office again, I’ll have the police haul you into the station for harassment.  And this time, our firm won’t be there to defend you,” Peter said. 

Roland stormed away and slammed the door behind him. 

There was a tense moment of silence in the waiting room as everyone tried to calm down.  Daisy was in shock—not just from seeing the fire in Roland’s eyes, but also the ice water that was in Peter’s veins as he stood up to the hulkish brute.   

Peter then turned to Amber to comfort her. 

“Are you ok?” Peter asked. 

Amber was nearly trembling.  She looked so vulnerable.  Her voice was nearly quivering as she answered.  “He’s not coming in here again, is he?”

Peter shook his head.  “He’d better not.  Don’t worry.  I won’t let anything happen.”

Peter and Amber then exchanged gazes.  She smiled at him. 

Meanwhile off in the corner, Daisy couldn’t believe her eyes.  They didn’t have the look of two co-workers.  That was the look of something more. 

Peter then saw Daisy out of the corner of his eye and addressed her.  “By the way Ms. McDare, I’m sorry you had to see that.  Our clients are usually much better behaved.”

Daisy made joke to try and lighten the tension.  “They certainly couldn’t be worse behaved.”

Peter laughed.  “Anyway, I should get back to work.”

Daisy was now more anxious than ever to question Peter about the Max Cash murder, but seeing what a killer instinct he had, she knew she’d have to approach him gingerly. 

The conversation would have to wait however as the furniture store workers entered the waiting room with the new couch.

***

What an exhausting morning.  Daisy was in desperate need of a break.  As she stepped outside to get some air, she riffled through her purse for a chocolate bar she’d packed. 

Rats. 

She must have left it in her car by mistake.  With her taste buds calling, she started walking to her car.  That’s when she saw the legal assistant Chloe walk out of the building with a cigarette in her mouth.  Much to Chloe’s surprise, she wouldn’t be taking her smoke break alone. 

She had an unexpected tag along--her ex-boyfriend Jackson Madsen.  Chloe didn’t seem very jazzed to see him.

Daisy knew listening in on the former couple’s conversation could reveal some clues in finding the killer.  She hid behind a car to remain out of their sight, yet still in earshot of their conversation. 

“Need a light?” Jackson asked. 

Chloe pulled a lighter out of her purse and lit her cigarette.  “I’m good.”

“How are you doing?” he wondered. 

“What kind of a dumb question is that?  I’m awful.”

“Let me know if there’s anything I can do.  I’ll do it.”

“In that case, can you go back inside?  I really want to be alone right now,” she insisted. 

Jackson grimaced.  “Anything but that.”

“Look, I know what you’re trying to do--”

“I’m trying to be there for you.”  He opened his arms to hug her.  “I know this is a tough time.”

Jackson gave her a hug.  He looked so happy to be holding her again.  That’s when he decided to make his move. 

He then leaned in and gave her a kiss. 

Chloe wasn’t having any of it.  She pushed away from him and gave him a look of outrage. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” she demanded. 

“Chloe, I love you.  I want us to get back together.”

She shook her head.  “That’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?  Think of all the amazing times we had.  It could be like that again.   You just have to be willing.”

“I’m sorry, but the answer is no,” she said. 

“How can you be so sure?  It just feels so right.  And now that Max is out of the picture--”

“Jackson, I still love Max--”

“Why are you talking in the present tense?  He’s gone.  Max is dead,” Jackson replied. 

“Don’t you think I know that?  Do you have any idea how hard this has been for me?”

“What do you think it has been like for me?  I recommended you for the job here, then I lose you to my boss...who by the way, didn’t even love you enough to leave his wife for you.”

“Are you trying to twist the knife deeper?  Is it your goal to hurt me?” Chloe fumed. 

“No, I just want us to be together again like we used to be.”

“Don’t hold your breath.  It’s over between us.”

Chloe then dropped her cigarette and put it out with her shoe before walking back into the office. 

Jackson put his head in his hands, then groaned.  He looked like he wanted to punch a hole into the side of the building.  Instead he trudged back into the building. 

Daisy meanwhile stood up from behind the car she was hiding behind with her mind more on fire than ever.  The day had proven fruitless in narrowing down the suspects.  If anything, everyone looked even guiltier. 

Daisy had already gone over Chloe’s motive in her head.  She hadn’t spent much time thinking about Jackson until then.  He had plenty of reason to hate Max. 

Jackson had a rare double motive.  He was doing the work of two people while only getting paid the salary of one.  Even more than that, he had lost the love of his life to Max. 

The man was an emotional hot mess.  Not to mention, judging by the conversation Daisy just witnessed, he clearly thought Max’s death would pave the way for him to get back together with her.  Boy was he dead wrong. 

In all honesty, both Chloe and Jackson looked guilty.  So did everyone else at the office.  This called for chocolate.  Daisy finished walking to her car, grabbed the chocolate she’d packed for a snack, and did a lot of thinking.  Unfortunately, when she was done, she still had far more questions than answers. 

Chapter Twelve

Before getting back to work, Daisy made a stop at the ladies restroom.  She wasn’t in a hurry to get the redecorating done anyway, not with a case to crack.  Her job was a perfect cover for hanging around the office and investigating.  If she finished the redecorating too quickly, she might not have enough time to find the murderer. 

As Daisy went into a restroom stall, she tried to piece things together as best as she could.  Little did she know her head was about to start spinning again. 

Her time to herself was short lived.  She was just about to leave the stall when the door to the restroom opened and Daisy heard two different voices.  It was Amber the receptionist and Jennifer Webster the mousy paralegal.

Daisy was sure to be as quiet as possible.  She wanted to hear everything the women said.  Amber and Jennifer were too wrapped up in their own lives anyway to pay attention to their surroundings. 

“You’ll see, things are going to turn around,” Amber said to Jennifer. 

Jennifer groaned.  “I sure hope so.”

“You have nothing to worry about now that Peter is running things.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Trust me, I know.”

There Amber was again, talking Peter up.  Daisy was convinced something was going on between them. 

“I’m just tired of doing everything myself.  I’m pulling my hair out back there.  Did I tell you I spotted a wrinkle on my forehead this morning?” Jennifer asked. 

“I don’t see it,” Amber insisted.

“It’s small, but trust me, it’s there.  And it is terrifying.  I mean I’m only thirty-four.  I should be trying to find a date, not worrying about whether I’m going to get an ulcer.”

“By the way, how is that going?”

“What, getting an ulcer, or trying to find a date?”

“Finding a date?”

Jennifer scoffed.  “Have you seen the stack of work I have on my desk?  I could drink ten cups of coffee a day and still not get through it all, no less have time to find a date.”

“Let me talk to Peter.  Let’s see if I can get him to hire another paralegal to ease your work load.  Maybe get you a raise in the process.”

“Amber, is there something you’re not telling me?  Like, since when are you and Peter so friendly?”

“I don’t know if I’m ready to talk about this yet,” Amber revealed. 

“Come on, this is me you’re talking to here,” Jennifer said.

“Alright. Just don’t tell anyone, alright?  Peter doesn’t really want this getting out.”

“Getting what out?”

“We’ve been seeing each other,” Amber revealed. 

“How much of each other?” Jennifer gasped. 

“Enough to make me believe that he might be ‘the one.’”

“Seriously?  Wow.  I can’t believe you’ve been holding this back from me.”

“We didn’t want Max to find out.”

“Yeah, because Max was a saint, right?  He’d never have an office relationship,” Jennifer joked. 

“Come on, you know how much of a hypocrite he was.  He made loads of money, but never threw us a raise.  He had an affair with Chloe, but didn’t want anyone else to have an office relationship--”

“He’d take all the credit for cases that I did the majority of the work on,” Jennifer interrupted.  

“Exactly.”

Jennifer groaned.  “That used to burn me so much.”

“To be fair, he didn’t give anyone credit.  He was a glory hog.  Take Peter for example.  The man won case after case, but Max refused to make him a partner,” Amber said. 

“Well yeah, of course not.  That would mean he’d have to pay him more,” Jennifer joked. 

“I know, right?  Why should anyone get a raise when he could keep all the money to himself?  Of course, he had no problem working us into the ground.” 

“Tell me about it, I practically live here.” 

Amber grimaced.  “I remember when my father died, I wanted to take the rest of the week off to be with my mom and be given proper time to mourn.  Max only gave me one measly day off for the funeral.  He said if I didn’t come back on the second day, not to bother coming back at all.”  

Jennifer narrowed her eyes and shook her head.  “I’m so sorry.”

Amber’s voice turned bitter.  “I never forgave him for that.”

“The sad thing is, we all have stories like that.  I used to just seethe at my desk as he’d pile the work on.  He was an unappreciative little jerk.  You know, I started having panic attacks because of this job?”

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t know that.”

Jennifer nodded.  “I’ve had to start taking medication.  Not to mention I’ve gone into therapy.  One day I thought I was going to have a heart attack right at my desk.”

“Well look, those days are over,” Amber insisted. 

“Thank God.  You know, I used to sit at my desk wishing Max would get what he had coming to him.  That all of his bad behavior would come back to haunt him…then it did.”

“Don’t feel bad about it.  He was horrible to all of us.”

“That’s the thing.  I don’t feel horrible about what happened to him.  I feel relieved,” Jennifer admitted. 

“I know what you mean.  You can try to sugarcoat it all you want, but face it—this is a better place with Max gone,” Amber said. 

“Here’s hoping things are better with Peter running things.”

“Trust me, they will be.”

“Good luck with your secret relationship too,” Jennifer said. 

“Thanks.  I have a really good feeling about this one,” Amber admitted. 

Jennifer and Amber then left the restroom and got back to work. 

Daisy meanwhile sat in the stall and let her mind run wild.  Both Jennifer and Amber had bigger motives than ever.  Before overhearing their conversation, Daisy considered them to be dark horse suspects.  Now Jennifer and Amber moved to the top of the list. 

As the day went on, a couple things were clear.  First, that the case was far from being cracked.  And second, that Max Cash sure knew how to make enemies. 

***

With the cat now out of the bag on Amber’s secret relationship, Daisy knew she had to pay Peter a visit.  There were some lingering questions she needed to find a way to ask, not to mention a nagging motive she couldn’t get out of her head.   

There was so much at play now—between both Max and Peter.  Max was a temperamental man, not to mention a hypocrite.  Despite Max’s affair with Chloe, he didn’t want anyone else to have an office relationship. 

Peter was all too aware of that.  It was why he was keeping his relationship with Amber a secret.  If the secret got out, Max could have made serious trouble for both Amber and Peter.  It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility to think Max would fire Amber.  He’d already threatened to do it before over other matters. 

There was more.  Max was already dragging his feet on making Peter a partner.  If he found out about Peter’s secret relationship, he could stall even further.

The real elephant in the room was the partnership itself.  It was a contentious issue for Peter and Max.  So much that Peter threatened to leave the practice.  Maybe Max’s threat to ruin Peter’s reputation was enough to throw Peter over the edge.  

Max’s threat put Peter in a bind.  He was flanked by no win situations.  If Peter stayed at the firm, he could go years without making partner.  If he left, he could have his career ruined by Max. 

If Max was out of the picture however, Peter knew Brooke would inherit the practice.  He also knew she had no legal education, experience, or interest in the day to day operations of the law office.  With Max dead, Peter would be the default choice to take over the firm.  That was a killer motive. 

Judging by how cold and cunning Peter was with the irate customer earlier in the day, Daisy was convinced Peter had just enough ice water running through his veins to pull off the crime.  The question was, did Peter do it? 

Daisy took a walk over to Peter’s office to fish around for answers. 

“Can I talk to you for a second?” Daisy asked.  

Peter stared out the window, distracted.  He had a faraway look in his eyes.  Clearly something was weighing heavy on his mind.  Was it the weight of murder?

Daisy knocking on the door pulled Peter’s head out of the clouds.  He turned to her. 

“Sure.  Is everything going alright with the redecorating?” he asked. 

Daisy nodded.  “Everything is fine.”

“Then what can I do for you?”  

“I just wanted to congratulate you on the promotion.”

“Oh, thanks.”

“It must feel good to have your own practice.  I know you’ve been waiting for this moment a long time,” Daisy said. 

“The best things in life don’t come easy,” Peter replied. 

“The question is, how hard was it waiting in the wings all that time?” Daisy asked. 

“None of that matters now.”

“You’re right.  It’s better to leave the past in the past, right?”

“Exactly.”

“Of course that’s easier to do when everything worked out for you.”

Peter got short with her.  “What are you talking about?”

“Timing is a funny thing.  I can’t imagine you’d have this partnership if Max hadn’t have been murdered, can you?” Daisy asked. 

Peter narrowed his eyes.  “I’d be careful what direction you take with this conversation.”

“Are you threatening me?”

He glared at her.  “I just don’t like your accusatory tone.”

Daisy got chills in her spine all of a sudden.  Peter had a serious icy glare to him.  It was amazing how quickly he went from charming to cold in the span of one heartbeat. 

Peter’s short fuse was on clear display.  Daisy saw it in the waiting room with the irate client before, and now she was witnessing it again.  When she looked in his eyes, she felt there was nothing he wasn’t capable of.  Whether that included murder, she wasn’t sure…yet. 

With the conversation turning hostile, she knew she had to diffuse the tension.   Peter had the power to throw her out of the law office.  If he did, it would make it infinitely harder to continue investigating the case.       

She decided to play dumb.  “I’m sorry if you heard me wrong, but I certainly didn’t accuse you of anything.”

“Oh.  Well, my mistake then.”

Daisy tried to butter him up a little.  Maybe she could glean some information out of him with that approach.  “It’s okay.  We all make mistakes.  For example, I think it was a big mistake for Max not to make you a partner while he was alive.  I heard you’re an amazing lawyer.”

Peter smiled.  There was nothing men liked more than having their ego massaged.  He gobbled the compliment right up.  And, like all cocky defense lawyers, he didn’t hesitate to brag. “I do have a nearly flawless record.”

“In that case, I want to pick your genius legal mind for a second,” Daisy continued. 

Peter smiled.  “Genius.  I like the sound of that.”

“Alright, now just say Angela Franklin was your client and you were trying to convince the jury she didn’t murder Max.  How would you do it?”

Daisy looked into Peter’s eyes to see his reaction as she finished the question.  He tried to keep his cool, but there were stress lines on Peter’s face for a split second. 

Peter was hesitant and slowly deliberate with his answer.  “Ms. McDare, people pay a lot of money to get that kind of advice.”

“You’re right.  Just between you and me, do you think she did it, or do you think the killer is still out there?” Daisy pressed. 

She once again broke though his façade and got a candid reaction out of him.  He had a look of panic in his eyes briefly.  He quickly recovered and put his tough exterior forward again. 

Peter gave a vague non answer.  “It doesn’t matter what I think.”

“Why not?”

“Because, it only matters what the jury thinks.  Her fate is in their hands.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.  But just imagine if the killer was still right here in this office thinking they’d gotten away with murder.  How unsettling would that be?” Daisy speculated. 

Peter gave her an awkward forced smile.  “Ms. McDare, you sure have an active imagination.”

“You’re probably right.  It’s all just my imagination.  That’s because I’m in the creative field.  We types tend to get dramatic about things.  Anyway, I should get back to work.  Congratulations again on the promotion,” Daisy said.

If guilt could be proven on looks alone, Peter would be in deep trouble.  Daisy only lobbed a couple of questions his way and he bit on them hook, line, and sinker.  If he wasn’t a murderer, he sure had the face of one.  Of course evidence was still in short supply.  But Daisy felt like it was only a matter of time before the killer slipped up.