Chapter One: G/G & L
In a moment of pure frustration and desperation, Alicia sat down at her desk and whacked her head on the table. Very calmly, she sat up and got back to work.
Florrick, Agos and Associates had officially lost its title as the shiny new thing. Two months into their new enterprise, they had already managed to lose three minor clients and Chum Hum. Deena Gross-Lampard, Neil Gross' new wife, had returned to David Lee at Lockhart/Gardner. What was worse is that Alicia had just got off the phone from Cary. They had lost their first case against Will, in a really big way. Their client was out-of-pocket in the millions and Will Gardner, the bad boy of Chicago law, had made sure of it. That's why she hit her head on the table. She felt better while the pain lasted, mere seconds, and decided that she needed a wine.
Picking up the phone, she dialled and after two rings, Peter answered. "Hi, are you free for lunch?" she asked lightly, not wanting to sound upset and therefore mention why she was upset. She preferred to avoid speaking Will's name aloud; it only made her choke up.
"Sorry hun, I'm drowning in paperwork. This stuff is impossible without Eli, none of its organised."
Peter and Eli had not been speaking to each other for almost eight weeks now. A few days after election night, Alicia came home to find them swearing and screaming bloody murder at each other. Why? Peter did not say, and nor would he. She hadn't pressed him on the matter, because Alicia had problems of her own. But now she was curious, and looking for a distraction.
"What happened between you two Peter?" she asked softly, shaking her head. "I wish you'd tell me."
"Sweet heart I can't, I told you" Peter insisted firmly. "And you wouldn't want to know. It's confidential, campaign stuff."
"Well is there any way to fix it?"
"No" Peter acknowledged in defeat. "I don't think he'll ever forgive me. Alicia, just know that I did the right thing, okay? It's probably for the best, considering his ties with Lockhart/Gardner anyway."
"It won't be Lockhart/Gardner for much longer" Alicia said, opting to change topic rather than push her husband for details. "Since Diane has been appointed Justice Lockhart."
"Yes she has, it's all very exciting" Peter remarked, sounding distracted. He was probably skimming over one of his speeches; there were so many coming up.
"How is she - when you speak to her, I mean?" Alicia wondered curiously.
"She's always very warm and polite, unless the topic of you or your firm comes up" Peter acknowledged. "Her wedding will be interesting. You're coming with me aren't you?"
"Oh Peter, I really don't think I should" Alicia faltered. "Will's going to be there."
"You're going to have to see him sometime Alicia. And a controlled environment, like Diane's wedding, would be better."
"I still can't believe I was invited."
"Of course you were invited, you're my wife. And I'm the one who made her a judge, so that's why I'm invited. Please come, I'd appreciate it. It's not like I can ask Eli to be my date instead."
"Well, you know he'll probably be there too."
"Yeah" Peter mumbled, realising the horrible truth. "Maybe we should both bail. But no, I can't. It would be bad form. So you'll come?"
"I didn't say I would. I don't want to ruin Diane's wedding."
"Oh, come on, you won't ruin it. It'll be fine, you can just ignore Will and the others."
Alicia sighed, defeated. "Fine" she said, "but when I want to leave, we'll leave, okay?"
"I'll think up some emergency in advance" Peter smiled, Alicia could hear it in his voice over the phone.
Peter's problems with Eli, and hers with Will, had made them fierce comrades over the past few weeks, making their marriage a little stronger. And their marriage could use all the strength it could get.
"Oh, before you go" Peter caught her in the midst of saying goodbye. "Did you hear about Lockhart/Gardner getting rid of four equity partners?"
"I did" Alicia hushed, she had been amazed when Cary told her. Howard Lyman, the useless oxygen thief, and three other equally useless partners had been severed from the pack. "I guess they're not so top heavy anymore."
"Getting rid of them would have cost a fortune though" Peter marvelled. "They must have some big clients coming in."
"Well, they got Chum Hum back from us" Alicia replied. "And with Diane leaving soon, there will be a few big changes there anyway. I wonder if they'll have another named partner."
"Well, Will has enough of an ego that I bet it'll be Gardner and Associates" Peter scoffed, but Alicia didn't respond with laughter. She remained silent. "I should go" Peter said after a moment, bidding her goodbye.
Alicia hung up and stared at the phone in her hand for a moment. She hadn't deleted Will's number from her speed dial, and she skimmed to his name now.
Will Gardner.
Opening her voicemail, Alicia skimmed down and found his named again.
Will Gardner. 56 days ago.
She clicked and holding the phone up to her ear, she listened.
"Alicia, hi. I know you must be busy, with the election celebrations and everything, but just give me a call when you have the chance. I meant it when I said we should talk. So let me know when you're free and...we'll talk. Okay, bye."
Alicia had saved it on purpose. A recording of Will's voice that was so full of hope and respect for her. He wasn't yelling like in the last image she had of him, stored at the very top of her mind. She kept seeing his face, angry and hurt and betrayed, every day. It came out of nowhere, when she was doing some random, menial task. She needed that recording to make her feel better, to remember that single last moment that they had been friends.
That voice mail had been sent seconds after Cary had asked what she was thinking, moments after she had answered with an "I'm in", after she had chosen Peter over Will. Because that was the whole reason she had called Cary. She wanted Will to be mad at her, to hate her. Because the only way Alicia could stay away from Will was if he wanted her to.
After Cary had left, and Alicia listened to the voicemail, she didn't call Will back. She waited for the morning. Then she went to his office and she told him she was leaving and he had not spoken to her since. That was 56 days ago, but it may as well have been yesterday, the image of him in Alicia's mind was that clear.
Alicia picked up her phone and, closing her eyes, listened to his voice again.
Cary walked straight from the court house to the bar across the street. He had really screwed up. He had let his ego get too high, his confidence too strong, his abilities too dull. Take one month off from court to start a firm, and you put yourself back at square one like a first year. Constant practice was necessary.
At least for Cary and pretty much every other lawyer it was necessary. But not for Alicia, she was special. She could take fifteen years off from the law and come back sharper than those who had never taken so much as a sick day.
But Will Gardner was the sharpest one of all. He could take hundreds of punches and remain standing. He could topple his opponents just by nudging them. That's what he'd done to Cary, who was now beaten, bloody and bruised. He had lost his client's case, and a lot of their money. So he ordered a whiskey, downed it, and then ordered another.
Robyn found him drowning his sorrows and ordered him another drink. "You're going to need this when I tell you what I have to tell you" was all she said.
Alicia had finally put her phone and Will's voicemail down, and got stuck into a case file. Cary burst into her office so fiercely that the glass walls shook violently. He didn't bother to close the door.
"Have you heard?" he demanded.
"Heard what?" Alicia asked.
"Gardner, Gold and Lee" Cary thundered.
Alicia looked at Cary questioningly, refusing to believe the import of those three words, those three names together. "No" she whispered.
"I'm dead serious" Cary replied. "Lockhart/Gardner is no more. Do you know how screwed we are? If Will Gardner, Eli Gold and David Lee can put aside their differences for one another, it must be for one hell of a reason."
"They're coming after us" Alicia said.
"They're coming after us" Cary agreed.
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, Kurt McVeigh, Laura Hellinger 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 it, my story would not exist.