Chapter One
"What are you thinking?"
"I'm in" Alicia said, giving Cary a short, decisive nod.
"Okay" Cary smiled, stepping into Alicia's apartment and following her into the kitchen. He took the glass of wine she offered him. "Cheers."
Their glasses clinked and the deal was struck.
They spoke for one hour, then another. About the name and billing, about their new premises. She heard no word from Peter and could only assume that he and Eli were passed out under a table somewhere, celebrating their victory.
"And the other fourth years, what do they think of me coming?" Alicia asked, circling her empty wine glass with her ring finger, contemplating the diamond. "I find it hard to believe they want me."
"Hey, you're the First Lady of Illinois. They'll want you, trust me."
"As a name partner though?"
"You're name means more than anyone else's Alicia. But more important than that, you and I can do this. We work well together, and we're damn good lawyers."
"Yeah we are" Alicia laughed.
They spoke about logistics for another hour before Cary put himself into a taxi and stumbled home. Only then did Alicia allow herself to think of Will.
It had been two days since the election, two days since she had kissed Will and told him things she shouldn't have. And pulling this on him, not only choosing Peter but also leaving him for Cary – she knew that it was mean and selfish, but it was also the right thing to do. Because she wanted this for herself. Cary was right – Lockhart/Gardner was too top heavy. And why bother spending years scraping her way to the top, where even then she would have to fight to be heard, when she could go with Cary and be in control?
She also knew that Will deserved better from her, but as he constantly said, "business does what business does", and in Chicago it came with a price. Will was that price for her, and she would pay it. This was the right thing to do. It had to be.
"Honey, I'm so excited for you" Peter said, loosening his tie and throwing it on the bed. Alicia had agreed to let Peter stay the night, for the sake of moving their relationship forward. Although the sight of him in her bedroom felt a little strange.
"Peter, I wanted to ask you a favour."
"Anything."
"About Hawaii. I was wondering if we could postpone that, just until I have everything sorted with Cary. There's so much to do."
"Yes, I understand, of course there is. So do I. Maybe delaying our trip isn't such a bad idea. There'll be plenty of time to renew our vows once you're settled into your new office."
Alicia doubted that, but she said nothing. Renewing her vows with Peter was the last thing she wanted to worry about.
"To be honest, I'm just glad you're getting out of Lockhart/Gardner. Have you spoken to Will and Diane?"
"No, not yet. First thing tomorrow. I have Will, Cary has Diane. It could get ugly."
"You bet it will" Peter said, lying down under the bed covers. "Let me know how it goes. Be brave, this is a great thing. Alicia – I'm proud of you."
Alicia wore a simple black dress, nothing too elaborate. Professional. She rode up in the elevator with Cary, clutching her hands together nervously. When the doors opened and she saw the Lockhart Gardner sign, possibly for the last time, Cary whispered a brief "Here we go. Good luck." And they set off on their separate missions.
Alicia felt her chest freeze with the momentary urge to pull back, to stop herself from making this official. Will had always done right by her, protected her and cared for her, but that was a bad thing. People gossiped about their relationship, insisting that she was only promoted to partner for sleeping with him. No one at Lockhart Gardner could ever respect her. But given the chance, Alicia knew that she would make a great leader. That's what she told herself as she walked up to his glass office doors and knocked, mimicking the actions of Cary behind her at Diane's door.
"Hey" Will said, giving her a warm smile as he let her in. "We were going to talk weren't we?"
"Yes" Alicia said, giving him a look of such blank and cold determination, that he was taken aback. She knew he was expecting to talk about their kiss, but instead she would get straight to the point. That kiss was irrelevant now.
"What is it?" Will asked seriously, gesturing towards the couch. Alicia saw the disappointment in his face. He thought she was going to reject him. He had no idea. She sat down noticeably distant from him, in the armchair across the coffee table. Will sat on the couch.
"I have decided to leave the firm".
Will took a moment, trying to understand her words. "What?"
"Here is my letter of resignation" Alicia said, handing him a white envelope.
"Alicia" Will said, that one word full of compassion. "You don't need to do this. We can work this out. I don't want you to leave."
"No, you don't understand. I'm leaving Lockhart/Gardner to start a new firm – with Cary. We move into our new premises two weeks from today."
Will didn't answer. His elbows rested on his knees, his hands clasped together. He stared down at the table.
"I don't understand" he said, after a life time.
"We can't be together. And working here, with you, makes it too hard. If we don't see each other every day, there's a chance we can both move on."
"I don't want to move on. I want to be with you. Alicia, I – "
"Will, don't. Please."
Will looked up at her, his eyes pleading with hers. Alicia saw the moment they changed from vulnerable and scared into understanding. The harsh, cruel reality of what she was saying crashed down on him.
"I asked you about Cary. I asked you if I had anything to worry about, and you said no. You were lying to me all this time."
"Will – "
"Do I really mean so little to you?"
"What –no. You mean a lot to me. I don't want you to think I've betrayed you."
Will didn't like that; he opened his mouth in disgust, as if he had just eaten dirt.
"Betrayed me? This goes way past betrayal Alicia, it doesn't even begin to describe what this is."
"Will, I didn't –"
"No, you lied to me! You lied about Cary because you were in on it with him, and you used my feelings for you against me."
"Will don't –" Alicia couldn't keep the falter from her voice, the tears from running down her cheeks. He shook his head, waiting for her to finish. "Don't hate me" she whispered, looking down in shame.
"Go to hell Alicia" he said softly, standing up and walking over to his window, looking out but seeing nothing.
The office door thundered open and Diane swept into the room, looking down at Alicia in rage. Cary followed close behind her, his hands in his pockets. Alicia stood up and walked over to him, the two of them making a united front. Diane walked over to the desk where Will joined her, facing their former employees.
"All right" Diane said, crossing her arms over her chest. "I want everything laid out on the table. Cary has already informed me which of our employees are leaving, all twelve of them. Now I want to know which clients you're taking."
"You want an itemised list?" Cary asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Who are the top three?" Will asked Cary, refusing to make eye contact with Alicia.
"Sweeney. Bishop. Chum Hum" she said, looking at Diane who gave her stare for stare.
Will groaned.
"I am disgusted by both of you" Diane said, dropping her arms to her side, the anger rising from her like steam. "The lack of loyalty, the backstabbing and betrayal is abhorrent. You will fail, both of you, and miserably. Maybe not right away, but in fifteen years there will be knives in your back very much like the ones you've just put in ours. I want you both to pack up your things and be gone by the end of business day today. Please inform your co-conspirators to do the same."
Cary and Alicia gave a slight nod, and left.
Two weeks after they had declared war, Alicia and Cary sat across from each other in Alicia's new corner office. Cary had a partial corner across from hers, with more square footage, very similar to Will's. Alicia unscrewed the top from a whiskey bottle and poured two glasses, offering one to Cary.
"To Florrick, Agos and Associates" Alicia said, clinking his glass.
Authors Note:
A new story to keep me occupied until Season 5! Takes place after the season 4 finale and includes perspectives from almost all the main characters (Alicia, Will, Cary, Diane and Kalinda so far). I'm a Will/Alicia shipper at heart, just a word of warning, but this is more a story about my theories on what is going to happen next season on a large scale, not just a romantic one – although romance will be a massive factor for me to write about later, because I love Will. Anyway, I hope you like it!
Disclaimer:
This is a work of fan fiction using characters from The Good Wife television show, which is trademarked by Robert and Michelle King and CBS. Alicia Florrick, Will Gardner, Diane Lockhart, Cary Agos, Kalinda Sharma and Peter Florrick are all characters created and owned by Robert and Michelle King and CBS. I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of The Good Wife. The story I tell here about The Good Wife characters is of my own invention, and it is not purported or believed to be part of the King's story canon. This story is for entertainment only and is not part of the official story line. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. I am grateful to Robert and Michelle King, and all the other writers for The Good Wife, for their wonderful show, as without her it, my story would not exist.