Chapter 12
"Come on Nora," Bo protested.
"Bo, it just wouldn't look right," she complained.
"And so many other things on this case look right?"
"Bo. . ."
"Come on, Nora, you know that I'm right. Things weren't handled correctly."
"Why? Because a Buchanan was convicted of a crime?"
Bo stared at her for a moment while he reined in his temper, "were you sitting in the same courtroom that I was?"
"Bo. . ."
"You think that things were done correctly? Up to par?"
"What you're suggesting? . ." she shook her head.
"Is right. You know as well as I do that Evangeline wasn't at the top of her game, to say the least."
Nora looked away, feeling slightly guilty, as she started to move files: "There are times. . ." she began, then stopped.
"It was personal," he said bluntly.
"Evangeline's too much the professional."
"We all slip sometimes, Nora. You did with Todd."
"That's totally different!"
"Then you and Lindsey."
Nora inhaled sharply at the well aimed hit. "That's a low blow Bo."
"Maybe, maybe not."
"All right," Nora conceded. "But you don't take her. In fact, so that you can see just how wrong you are, send John with her."
Emily stood in the doorway to Richard's study wringing her hands. "Well?" she demanded as he hung up the phone.
"It went as expected," he admitted as he took off his glasses and put them on the top of the file that lay open on his desk, watching her stager slightly at the news.
"I knew we should've been there!"
"And what would that have changed?"
"She wouldn't be alone."
"She said that her uncle is trying to help her."
Emily sighed in exasperation, "how much time do we have?"
"Till Monday morning."
"Do you think that we can manage to get things done by then?"
"Jackson and his partner are reviewing the records. I have a man of my own from the company looking into things."
"Insurance fraud is a far cry from murder."
"Considering his rather diverse resume, I'm sure that he's more than capable. Now, why don't you let me get some work done? Didn't you say earlier that you had to get some things done before dinner?" he pressed as he put his glasses back on.
"Yes, because that's ever so important," she complained before turning. As she reached the door she paused and looked back at him over her shoulder: "Richard?"
"What Emily?" he asked without looking up.
"We're not going to loose them both, are we?"
"Why would we?"
"If we can't fix this. . ."
"And what about Lorelai?"
Richard paused and looked up: "I honestly don't know."
"If she thinks we were replacing her. . ."
"We weren't."
"Weren't we? At least at the beginning? And how do we explain not telling her about Natalie?"
"The truth tends to work."
"It's at least easier to remember," she muttered as she walked out of the room, leaving him shaking his head at her retreating form.