Page 11 of Timeless Pages
“Coffee, Brandy,” he snapped over his shoulder.
As the door closed, I could hear Brandy muttering under her breath. The sparkle in Mr. Calvert’s eyes told me that was the exact reaction he was looking for. “Please sit,” he said, indicatingthe chairs in front of his desk. I sat and took the folded conservatorship papers from my purse, smoothing them out.
“Mr. Calvert, I need your help,” I started as soon as he sat in his chair on the other side of the wide black walnut desk.
“Please, call me Daniel,” he replied quickly.
I nodded. “Isa,” I replied.
“What can I do for you, Isa?” he asked with a kind smile.
“My father got conservatorship papers filed without notifying me that there was a case,” I replied, handing the court order to him. “I need help fighting it before he sells my bookstore.”
Daniel took the papers to look them over as the door swung open. Brandy marched into the office and offered me my coffee with a smile before turning and slamming Daniel’s down on his desk. “Your coffee,Sir.”
“Thank you, Brandy. You may leave,” he replied without looking up. A growling sound came from Brandy as she all but stormed out of the office. “Don’t slam my door,” Daniel warned. I heard her huff as the door clicked shut softly. Daniel looked at me over the top of the papers and winked, bringing a small smile to my face at their antics.
“The first thing I need to know is why you think your father is doing this?” Daniel said, leaning back in his chair to sip his coffee.
I took a deep breath. My lawyer needed to know everything if I wanted to fight this and win. I couldn’t hold anything back. But I wasn’t comfortable sharing my story with him until he was officially my lawyer. “Before we get into that, are you taking my case? I was told you were doing pro bono work, but that didn’t seem right.”
“I will take your case, Isa, pro bono. What you say to me remains between us unless you agree to allow me to use it in your defense,” Daniel replied. He leaned forward and slid a paper from an open folder across his desk. I picked it up and sawthat it already had my name typed on it. “This is a short-form contract. It states that I am representing you as your lawyer, free of charge until we agree otherwise. As such, any communication between us will be covered under attorney-client privilege. Once you sign it, I will officially be your lawyer.”
I read through the contract. Everything seemed in order, and there wasn’t anything hinky that jumped out at me. I plucked a pen from the holder on his desk and signed my name at the bottom of the page.
“Wonderful,” Daniel said as he took it back and placed it in the folder. “Now tell me everything.”
I took another deep breath and started at the very beginning, much like I did with Nate, Dom, and Evan yesterday. I kept closer to the facts, but by the time I finished, there wasn’t anything Daniel didn’t know about me.
“Ok,” he said, turning to a filing cabinet behind him and pulling out papers. “The very first thing we will do is file for a TRO. That’s a temporary restraining order. That will keep your father from coming back to the store and hurting you again. Next, we will file paperwork with the Sunflower Falls Courthouse. Since this is where you reside, where your uncle resided at the time of his death, and where his assets are located, Sunflower Falls is where this case should be heard.”
He filled out the forms while explaining what we would be doing. I nodded and tried to keep up with him as he continued. “This will also get your case out of the hands of that crooked judge he used. On top of the restraining order, we will hit him with a cease and desist order, telling him he can’t touch your assets or sell your store until this matter is resolved.”
Daniel paused to meet my eyes. “We’re going to fight this, Isa, and we’re going to win,” he assured me.
I shook my head as I blinked back tears. “I wish I could have your optimism. You don’t know my father. My entire life, he’sconvinced the people around him that he is a good person. The only person who ever believed me was my uncle.”
Daniel came around the desk and knelt before me, gently placing his hands over mine. “Well, now there are two people who believe you, Isa, and I won’t let him abuse you anymore. You are a grown adult, fully capable of handling your affairs. The courts will see that; I’ll make sure of that.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“It’s my pleasure.” He returned to his seat and continued filling out the necessary forms while I sat quietly. Fifteen minutes later, I saw him chew on his bottom lip thoughtfully and glance up at me quickly before looking back at the paper.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Well, for us to make sure getting the TRO is a slam dunk, it would be helpful if we had proof of the abuse,” he replied hesitantly.
Proof? Oh. “You mean pictures,” I replied. My hands started to tremble, so I clasped them together on my lap.
“Only if you’re comfortable with it,” he replied. “If it will make you more comfortable, I can have Brandy come in and take them.”
I nodded as my heart thundered in my chest. I had to do this. And if the only way I could stop my father was by having these pictures taken and shown to the court, then so be it. This happened to me. I didn’t mutilate my body; he did, and it was time the world knew the truth. It was time to stop being ashamed of my scars because each one was proof of my strength. Of my endurance. If I could survive that, I could survive this.
“Brandy can take the pictures,” I replied, my voice cracking.
“Good girl,” Daniel praised, standing. “I’ll be right back.”
He left the office, and I got up and started to pace to work through my nervousness. They were just pictures. It was no bigdeal. I continued to give myself a pep talk until the office door opened again, and Brandy stepped in.
