JENNIE
"The mayor is on line one for you."
April's voice startles me. I'm busy working on Seamus Williams's sentence, reviewing the pre-sentencing investigation for what feels like the thousandth time. With a record like his, the sentence is going to lean on the heavy side. Rehabilitation isn't working for him. After a five-year stint for armed robbery, he was thrown back in for twenty-seven months for a previous arson charge and then three years for sexual assault. The most I can give him is fifteen years, and honestly, I want to do that.
"Sterling. How are you?"
"I'm great. How are you?"
We exchange pleasantries. I hate small talk, so I move my hand in a circle as if we're in person and he can see that I want him to hurry up and get to the point. However, in real life, I'm not that rude.
"Do you have time for a quick lunch today?"
I wonder if he knows I'm not in court. He has to or else he wouldn't be so cavalier about going to lunch in the middle of the week. "Sure. Where are you thinking?"
"How about The Providence? In an hour? They have great food."
It's close but not within walking distance. Thankfully, I'm pretty sure they have valet. "Sounds great. I'll see you there."
I'm confused. What does the mayor want with me? I'm too busy to attend a lunch, but nobody turns down the mayor. I'm visiting Nayeon and Orlando this Labor Day weekend, so I'm staying late every night this week getting through motions and reviewing upcoming cases. I have meetings with two lawyers tomorrow and am at a point where I think all parties can come to an agreement and not go to trial. I take two more pages of notes before my phone alarm dings, telling me it's time to meet Sterling. I grab my suit jacket and head to the parking lot. When I approach my SUV, it seems off balance.
"What the fuck?" My front tire is flat. I quicken my step out of panic, even though what I see is true. I kick the rubber out of frustration and glance at my watch. I can't have it changed and still get to lunch on time.
"Oh, flat tire? That sucks." A lawyer I've seen around the courthouse is standing behind me. She's pretty, if a little on the thin side."It really does." I glance at the time again and sigh.
"Can I give you a ride somewhere, Judge?" she asks.
"No, thanks. That's sweet of you to offer."
"Everything okay here?" I turn to find Chanyeol idling behind me in a silver sedan.
"Yep. I just have a flat." I scowl at my misfortune. "I'll have to call the car company after lunch."
"Hop in. I'll give you a ride," Chanyeol says.
"I already offered. She said she's okay," the pretty lawyer says.
Chanyeol looks at me and sees my discomfort. "It's okay. We're going to lunch at the same place."
I smile at the lawyer. "He's right, but thank you for checking to make sure I was okay."
"Of course." She waves at Chanyeol and continues to her car.
I walk to Chanyeol's car. "Thanks for that. I didn't want to be rude, but it didn't seem appropriate either."
"Of course. I'm just glad I saw you here. Where are you headed?"
"You really don't need to give me a ride."
"It's not a problem. Get in."
"Okay. Just around the corner to The Providence, if you don't mind."
"Not at all. Let me throw this stuff in the back." He gathers a stack of files from the front seat, not seeming remotely embarrassed by the mess.
"Thanks so much." I could've asked April or Samuel to drive me and only be a few minutes late, but this way I'll get there on time.
The entire drive takes four minutes. We spend the time discussing his docket.
"I'd pick you up, but I'm not going back to the courthouse today," he says.
"Trust me, this has been a lifesaver. Thanks again. I owe you a drink or a cup of coffee."
"Sounds good. I'll definitely take you up on it."
I enter the restaurant and find the mayor immediately. He's the one charming the staff and patrons. I smile when I catch his eye, and he excuses himself and greets me with a kiss that catches the air beside my cheek. I pull away before it lands. It's an awkward moment, but I don't appreciate people who assume I'm okay with them in my personal space.
"Jennie, it's so good to see you again." He motions for me to sit down.
"I was surprised to hear from you. What's going on?"
"What did you think of the fundraiser? I thought it was a big hit." He nods for more iced tea. From the looks of it, he's been here a while. Two empty sugar packets are folded into tight squares, and an unused lemon wedge is soaking through a cocktail napkin.
"It was wonderful. I hope Harvesters received enough donations to make it through the holidays." We're two days into September, and it's hard to think about Thanksgiving and Christmas with sweat still trickling down my lower back every time I go outside.
"I'm told the fundraiser was a success. We raised almost twenty percent more than at last year's."
"That's wonderful, but I don't think you called me here to talk about Harvesters."
He laughs. "You're right. I like to know what kind of new judges we have in our court system. Congratulations on winning your big case."
"You did some research."
"You're tenacious and tough. I like that. You won't let anybody get away with anything."
I study him over the rim of my iced tea. He seems relaxed and his smile is charming, but he wants something from me. "I fought hard for that case, and leniency isn't really in my vocabulary. MedPharmo was a danger to society."
"That's what I want to talk to you about."
He clams up when the waiter arrives to tell us about today's lunch specials. After listening attentively, he orders the smoked salmon with a cucumber side salad. I opt for the Waldorf salad and breadsticks.
After the waiter leaves with the menus, Sterling leans back in the booth and drapes his arm across the cushion. Nobody's sitting near us. In fact, we're the only ones on this side of the restaurant.
The tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand up as I survey the area.
"What's going on, Mayor?" I paste on a fake smile and lean back in the booth, too.
"I have a favor to ask."
And there it is. "I can't imagine what I can do for you unless it's to donate more money to Harvesters."
He waves that off. "Oh, I'm sure you donated plenty." I have a feeling he knows exactly how much. He takes another drink and leans forward. "I know you're going to deliver sentencing for Seamus Williams on Friday, and I just ask that you don't throw the proverbial book at him."
I hold my hands up. "I'm sure you know both parties have agreed upon a predetermined sentence."
He nods repeatedly. "I know, I know. I just want you to lean on the lighter side of the sentencing." He looks around again to ensure no one can hear us. "He's a friend of the family, and I told him I'd see what I could do. I'm only asking you to keep my request in the back of your mind."
Nobody like Seamus is a family friend to any family unless your family is dirty. Holy shit. Maybe Nayeon's right, and corruption's more prevalent than I realized. "A family friend?"
He nods and tries to look sincere. "A friend from a long time ago when I wasn't the mayor or out to change the world."
"So, like a friend you hung out with growing up and you two ended up falling on different sides of the law?"
"Just like every crime movie ever filmed. One goes legit, and one tries to but gets sucked into the wrong crowd," he says.
He's lying, but I nod like I understand. "Must be rough seeing your friend behind bars for a quarter of his life."
"My mom is still friends with his mom." He shakes his head.
"I can't make any promises, but I'll consider it. With a preset amount of time already determined, it's hard to get around it." I'm not going to sentence him any differently than I decided earlier today. I'd rather not have to explain why I didn't throw the book at a repeat offender. That's the kind of shit that happens.
"Thank you. That's all I can ask." He squeezes my hand, and it takes my best effort not to pull away in disgust. Again with the personal-space invasion. Sterling is creepier than I remember.
Lunch arrives, and we change the topic to weekend plans. I don't tell him I'm leaving town because, truthfully, I don't trust him. I wonder if he's like this with all judges or just me because I'm a woman and new to the circuit. He probably thinks he can schmooze me into being one of his minions. I didn't come this far to be squashed by a politician who's using his position as a stepping-stone. Chanyeol had mentioned he overheard Sterling discuss running for governor next major election. Again, not a surprise.
"I have a pop-in at Children's Mercy on Saturday, but after that, I'm going to a family barbecue and watch fireworks down at Union Station," he says.
"I'll stay out of the heat and probably read things that aren't about the law, like a good thriller." In reality, I'll be with Nayeon at Orlando's pool or at a bar somewhere in a totally different time zone. I leave Friday night and get back Monday afternoon. Nayeon and I have even more to discuss after this surprise lunch. After ten more minutes of polite conversation, Sterling motions for the check and thanks me for lunch.
"Do you need a ride back to the courthouse?" he asks. He stands by the car that magically appears the moment we walk out of the restaurant.
"I'm good. My car's not too far away."
Surprise flashes across his face before he smiles. He must have seen me get out of Chanyeol's car, which explains his confusion. "Okay. Have a great weekend. Thank you again for taking time out of your busy schedule for me."
I turn and walk the other way after he gets in the car. Fuck. I still have to deal with the tire. I hit the Lyft app, and a car appears in two minutes. "I'm sorry it's not a longer drive."
The Lyft driver shrugs. "It's too hot for anyone to be out walking in the middle of the day."
I tip him heavily and call Audi's roadside assistance. They promise to send somebody within the hour. I look at my tire again but can't see a nail or screw. I head up to my office and wait until they contact me. It's too hot to wait for them, and I've already missed out on valuable time because of lunch with the mayor and his attempt to strong-arm me.
My phone rings. It's an unfamiliar number. "Hello?"
"Ms. Kim?"
"Yes."
"This is Audi Roadside. I'm down here in the parking lot."
"Okay. I'll be there in a few minutes." I slip my shoes back on but forgo my jacket. I have a feeling I'll be out there in the heat longer than I want.
The service engineer greets me with a handshake and says,
"Did you piss somebody off?"
I'm confused. "What?"
"Your tire?" He points to the flat black rubber that's barely keeping the rim from touching the asphalt. "Someone slashed it."
Panic rushes through me. "Okay, let's talk about your delivery.
Never tell a woman her tire has been slashed. Maybe use words like punctured deliberately." I'm taking out my fear on him. Deep breath. "Why do you think that?"
He bends down and shines a flashlight that reveals a definite line in the tire that I didn't see earlier. "Right here. It looks like there's a two-inch cut in the sidewall. Don't worry. I have a new tire for you. It won't take long to change it."
"Thank you."
"Maybe you can check security to see if this was a single incident or if other people had damage to their cars."
"I'll do that. Thanks for the advice," I say.
He walks back to his truck and pulls out an industrial jack, then stops in front of me. "You don't have to stand out here. I'll call you when I'm done. It's too hot to wait."
I march into the courthouse and ask Wayne to take me to the security office. He waves over another officer to take his place and escorts me down the end of the hall, where I'm ushered into a room full of cameras.
"Hey, Boss. Judge Kim needs to speak with you," Wayne says."What can I help you with?" His boss towers over me and crosses his arms in front of him as though I'm about to complain about something security did wrong.
"My tire was slashed in the parking lot, and I want to see if there's anything on camera." My anxiety ramps up when he directs us over to a monitor and pulls up video from this morning. He finds my space in the lot and fast-forwards through the video.
"Son of a bitch." Sure as fuck, there's a guy who sticks a blade in my tire. When he yanks it out, he pulls up on the knife for emphasis. He hides his face from the cameras, so we don't get a clear shot of him when they zoom in. I shiver. My blood feels ice cold. I shake my hands because everything feels surreal. I've never felt fear like this before.
"Look. He slashes the tire four cars down from yours, too. And in the row behind you. And another car."
"How did nobody see this happen?" Wayne asks.
I'm thankful he asked the obvious question. Under two minutes pass from the time the man enters the lot until we see him leaving.
When the cops show up, I have nothing more to add. If it were just my car, they would have treated it as a personal attack against a judge, but he also slashed a lawyer's tires, an unmarked cop car, and a delivery vehicle for the coffee shop on the first floor. They tell me it's random and take my statement before advising me to get an escort out to my car at night and maybe leave before dark.
Wayne turns to me. "If I'm still around when you leave, I'll be more than happy to walk you to your car." He stands a little taller and puffs out his chest.
"Thank you, Wayne. I'll keep that in mind. I plan to leave about the same time as everyone else for a while. Thanks for your help on this."
"Just doing my job," he says.
His boss motions for him, and he excuses himself. There's nothing left for me here, so I grab my keys and head back to my office."Glad you're back. Where've you been?" April asks.
I first think something must've happened besides my tire getting slashed. My second thought, which pops up right behind the first, is that it's none of her damn business. I choose the professional response. "Downstairs working on a security issue. What's going on?"
She hands me a stack of unimportant messages, and I review them as I walk to my desk. I can't wait to leave this weekend and hang out with Nayeon. I need it after such a draining day. I have two days until I sentence Seamus Williams, and honestly, Sterling really threw me for a loop. I wasn't ready for the political games to begin so soon. I'm having a shitty week and it's only Wednesday. I haven't heard from Lisa since the weekend, not that I really expect to. I regret being so direct with her because she gave me everything I wanted and needed sexually. Selfishly, I should've waited before dropping the ultimatum, but I don't need a messy entanglement while dealing with a career change. My life needs to slow the fuck down sooner than later.
