My receptionist picked up, chirping “Pallida and Associates” into my ear with far too much cheer for my tastes.
“Vinnie, please.” My voice was a raspy croak. She didn’t realize it was me.
“Sure, may I ask who’s calling?”
I rolled my eyes. “Amanda.”
“Amanda who?” she trilled.
“Huckinkiss.”
“All right, Ms. Huckinkiss, I’ll connect you.”
A few moments of hold music later and Vinnie picked up. “I’d like to know who is ‘a-man-to-hug-and-kiss.’” He sounded better than the last time we’d spoken, at least.
“It’s me, Evan, and keep it down. Don’t let anyone know it’s me.”
“Hang on, I’ll close my door.” He set the receiver down, and I heard the click of the door latch, then the scrape of the receiver and his voice. “Okay, boss, what’s up? Where are you? Judge Crane put the trial on hold until you’re found. The phone’s been ringing off the goddamn hook. Castille is losing his mind. I’m pretty sure Wash fucked Jena last night. We need you here now.”
I sighed. “Remember when you said you hoped I knew what I was doing?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I don’t. Shit just got real. DiSalvo tried to have me killed.”
His breath whooshed out, causing static over the phone. “Are you shitting me right now?”
“Shh! And no, Vin, I’m not shitting you. I have the concussion to prove it.”
He let out a long string of expletives. Pride bloomed in my chest at his ability, but it was quickly stifled by the reason for my call. “Vinnie, I need you to watch your back. I don’t think DiSalvo will come after you. He would have already done it if he suspected you were a threat. He knows I hold all the power in the firm and keep his secrets. There are still a lot of things you don’t know about him.” I took a deep breath. “Or about me. Things that I never wanted you to find out. I didn’t want you to think, well, to think less of—”
“Evan, not possible. You know the family I come from. I know the way the world works. There’s nothing you could do, not a goddamn thing, that would ever tarnish you in my eyes. Fucking ever. Know that.” The conviction in his voice pierced me like a bullet.
“I’m in real trouble, Vin.” I couldn’t help the quaver in my voice, the tears that threatened. “I’m afraid.” There, I said it.
“I’ll make some calls.”
“No. I don’t want you involved. I need you to stay clear of me. I need you and your wife and baby to be safe. Understand? I can’t talk my way out of this. If I pop my head up, DiSalvo will take it off. I can’t let you run the same risk.”
“Evan, you know the connections I have. I can arrange protection. Whatever you need.” He was pleading now. I looked to the ceiling, bidding the tears back down.
“The firm is yours, Vin.” God, it hurt to give it away, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I knew because I hadn’t done the right thing in a long, long time, so the feeling was alien to me. It felt wrong, so I knew it had to be right.
“No, Evan—”
“Yes. It’s yours. You’ll need to rebrand. Cut the dead weight, get rid of some associates. I’d keep Cassie and Drew for sure. Revamp your client list. The rest is up to you. As soon as I get off the phone with you, call Castille and tell him I said that his retainer never went through and that we need him to pay it again. Now, of course, it did go through, but he probably won’t check and will just repay the same amount over again. That should cover your costs for the work so far and give you a little cut on top of it. Once it goes through and you’ve got the money in hand, fire him. He’s a ticking time bomb. Wash your hands of him. Ship all his records back to him. Destroy the files in our computers. Burn that shit if you have to. If he threatens to complain about the double retainer—”
“Give him the Pallida treatment.” Vinnie finished for me.
“Exactly. Tell him you have no problem spreading his filthy laundry out for all to see.”
“Okay.”
“Good. I’m going to need you to dump any clients that are tied up in Castille’s mess. Get the cross-check list Drew made and go through it on a slash-and-burn basis. Cut anyone ever connected with DiSalvo or with any families you don’t know or trust. It’ll keep you safe, though it will definitely hurt your bottom line. But you’ll get new clients, so I’m not too worried. You know the back storage room with the double locks?”
“The forbidden zone?”