Jilted (6 page)

“Hey, kiddo, what are you doing here? I thought you had an early class.”

“I did but I got an email from the professor saying that classes are cancelled because he had to take care of some kind of emergency. I had planned on going back to bed, but when I heard you getting the kids ready for school; I thought I’d help you out by making breakfast.”

“Thank you so much. This is a big help. I was just going to give the kids some cereal and fruit but this is so much better.” Skylar gave her sister a quick hug.

“That’s because Auntie Izzy is the best, right, Harper?” Izzy directed to the little girl.

“Yep,” Harper acknowledged in between bites.

Skylar chuckled as she grabbed her coffee mug that said ‘Best Mom In The World’, courtesy of her three gremlins on Mother’s Day. Thankfully Izzy had brewed a fresh pot.

“I hope you have something more than coffee. That’s not substantial enough to get you through the day.”

“I usually grab a bagel on the way to the office. This is fine for now.”

“All right, pancakes!” Finn exclaimed when he came into the kitchen.

“Auntie Izzy, will you make pancakes for us every morning?” Tristan asked as he took his seat.

“If I made them every day, they wouldn’t be a treat. Now eat up.” She served both boys two flapjacks.

When all the kids had plates, Izzy joined them at the table with a stack of her own while Skylar enjoyed her coffee and watched them eat. It was moments like this that she appreciated the most. The last five years hadn’t been the easiest but she wouldn’t have made it without her mother and Izzy’s support. Even though her mother worked a full-time job and had gone back to school to get her Master’s in nursing, she helped Skylar through a complicated pregnancy that had left her bedridden for the majority of her term. Skylar made the best use of her time by studying for the bar.

The birth of the children had brought another set of problems. Besides being a new mother with multiples. Harper had some serious health issues and it was a stressful period, especially after Skylar had been turned down by every major firm in the city.

One of the partners at a smaller firm she’d interviewed for had been upfront about the fact that they didn’t need the drama she would bring with her. That statement had been vague and had made no sense but it dawned on her that the reason why she’d had trouble even getting her foot in the door for an interview anywhere, was because Ashley had made good on his threat. She’d left him alone but he’d set out to ruin her anyway. It sucked but Skylar refused to give up. She soon found employment in the city public defender’s office. The pay wasn’t the best but it was a job in her field that provided benefits for her and the kids.

Even as a brand new attorney, she attacked her job with the relentlessness of a shark, determined to give her clients the best representation, most of whom were from poor and disadvantaged backgrounds. It was a tireless and sometimes thankless job, but she did it with the same vigor of an attorney making $500 an hour. Her rate of getting her clients off was so successful, she’d garnered a bit of a reputation among the police department and the DA’s office as “That Bitch.” Skylar didn’t mind because her mother had taught her if a job was worth doing it was worth doing right.

After three years, she’d also caught the attention of another city attorney who had a small one-man practice who was looking for another lawyer to take some of his workload. Though she’d had a lot of success at her prior job, she jumped at the opportunity to work at the small law office. Her case load wasn’t as strenuous; it was more money and her schedule was a lot more flexible, enabling her to spend more time with her children.

The last five years had been a struggle but now everything was falling into place. She was at a job she loved, the triplets were thriving in pre-kindergarten and would be turning five soon. Her mother had earned her Masters and was now working as a nurse practitioner and making a healthy salary, while Izzy was on scholarship at the local university.

With Skylar and Priscilla’s salaries combined, they were able to put down a decent down payment for a house in a nice neighborhood with a great school district. Considering the mess her life had been in five years ago, she was proud of how far she and her family had come.

Later that morning after she dropped the kids off and picked up donuts and bagels for her office, Skylar pulled into the parking lot of a converted Victorian house that served as The Fine Law Office. There were five employees who consisted of the receptionist, an administrative assistant, a paralegal, Irving and herself.

“Morning, Gina,” she greeted when she walked inside the office. She placed the box of donuts and bagels on the desk and grabbed an “everything” bagel for herself.

“Hi, Skylar. Irving is already in. He said he wanted to see you as soon as you get in.”

“Sounds serious. What kind of mood is he in today?” she asked the brunette.

Gina shrugged. “He seemed to be his normal grumpy self, nothing out of the ordinary.”

“Okay, thanks.” Skylar grabbed a bear claw from the box to take to her boss.

Skylar stopped by her office to drop her things off before heading to Irving’s which was in the back of the building. She was surprised that he was in this early because he usually didn’t step foot into the office until at least 10. She knocked on the closed door.

“Come in.”

Skylar opened the door and stepped inside Irving’s office. “Good morning. What brings you to the office so early?” She handed him the bear claw.

Irving Fine was a pudgy, balding older man who looked like someone’s good-natured grandfather, but beneath his unassuming demeanor was a sharp legal mind. Whenever he stepped into a courtroom, DA’s were wary because he was relentless. Once a partner in a successful firm in California, he sold his share in the company and moved across the country to be closer to his grandchildren at his wife’s urging as a result of him suffering a massive heart attack. Not content to sit around the house and settle for early retirement Irving started his single man practice.

Though he could be blunt and grumpy, he was a big softie who looked out for his employees. He’d become a mentor and a father figure to Skylar since she’d worked here.

He grabbed the pastry from her and took a large bite. “Mmm, you’re a godsend, Skylar. Myrna won’t let me have any of the good stuff at home. She’s got me on a high fiber no-taste diet.” Irving took another bite of his bear claw. “Have a seat.”

Skylar sat down in front of Irving’s desk. “So what’s going on? You’re not usually in this early.”

“Because of this.” He tossed a newspaper on his desk. Irving was the only person she knew who still actually read physical newspapers instead of getting his news on the internet like most people did these days.

Skylar picked up the paper and glanced at the headline. It was about the emergency election to replace the seat of a state legislator who had passed away unexpectedly. “What does this have to do with anything?”

“Scroll down. It’s on the column on the left.”

Skylar found the story and quickly scanned through it and froze. “Another body?”

“Yep.” Irving agreed with a mouthful of pastry.

“It looks like the victim was murdered in the same style as the others. Does this mean there’s a copycat?”

“I don’t know, but it could mean the DA may send his people to start snooping at Solomon’s doorstep again. He wasn’t too happy you got this guy off.”

Skylar shrugged. “I was just doing my job. Besides, most of the evidence they had on my guy was circumstantial, not to mention we believe the real killer was the homeless vet. His DNA was found at just about every scene, Solomon’s wasn’t.”

“But you know as well as I do that the vet was found dead from an apparent overdose.”

Skylar nodded. “Right. Which makes me believe this is a copycat. Do you think I should be proactive and contact Solomon?”

“No. I just want you to be aware just in case. Let’s just hope this is a one-off and nothing else comes from this. But…nah never mind.”

“Nope. You don’t start a sentence like that and then leave me hanging. What were you going to say?”

Irving frowned as he seemed to wrestle with his words. “Like you said, the evidence they had on this guy was circumstantial, but I always got an uneasy feeling about him.”

“I think he’s just socially awkward. He was pretty harmless when I dealt with him.”

“When was the last time you spoke to him?”

“The day the verdict was read. He said he was going to head out of the country for a few months to get away from the press.”

“Hmm. Just be alert, will ya?”

“Aren’t I always? Was that all you wanted to talk to me about?”

“Yes, that’s all. I just wanted to discuss that with you before I forgot. You know how I get once I start going over briefs. By the way, Myrna wants to know when you and the kids can come over for dinner again. Please say soon, because if we have company, I’m actually guaranteed a meal other than that healthy garbage she passes off as food.”

Skylar giggled. “How about next week? I’ll give Myrna a call to make the arrangements.”

“Good. Now get out of my office.” He waved her off dismissively.

She didn’t take it personal because Irving was like that with everyone. As she settled down at her desk to look through her cases, her cell phone rang. She took a look at the caller ID and smiled. “Good morning. To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?”

“I just wanted to tell a beautiful lady to have a nice day and I thought of you.” It was Jeremy, a guy she’d started to casually hang out with within the last few months. After the disastrous end to her relationship with Ashley, Skylar had sworn off men, focusing on her children and career. She had no time for romantic entanglements nor was she interested in them. But she’d met him when Monica had dragged her to a local bar for drinks because according to her friend, Skylar needed to get out more.

That was where she’d met Jeremy who had asked her to dance. Skylar’s first instinct was to turn him down but Monica encouraged it. To her surprise, Skylar ended up enjoying Jeremy’s company. He wasn’t too pushy and he was easy to talk to. They found a booth where the two had ended up talking for hours. It turned out that he was a surgeon and was hanging out with his friends for the night. When it was time to leave, they’d exchanged numbers and their friendship had blossomed from there. She knew Jeremy wanted a deeper commitment from her but Skylar was taking things one day at a time. Whenever she did make that leap, she decided Jeremy was the guy she’d want to take it with.

“Aww, that’s really sweet of you. Do you have a surgery today?”

“I have office hours today, so no. Actually, I had another reason for calling.”

“Should I be worried?”

“Nothing that serious, but I do need a date to a charity event I’m attending next Thursday. My hospital is sponsoring it and the board members think it would be a good look for some of their key staff to be in attendance. What say you?”

“Next Thursday?” She hesitated for a moment. Jeremy was a sweet guy with a stable job and he wasn’t bad to look with his classically handsome looks. The product of a Scottish father and Korean mother, he had the kind of looks that would make any woman with a pulse swoon. He would send her “thinking about you” texts and when he was in the area, he’d bring Skylar lunch from her favorite take out. Several times she’d come to her office to find flowers from him. She truly enjoyed his company and there was no reason why she should say no.

“Okay, as long as either my mom or sister can look after my rugrats, then yes, I’ll attend.”

“Great. It’s a black tie affair.”

“Got it.”

“Let’s do lunch this week. I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” she replied. And to Skylar’s surprise she actually meant it. By the time the conversation ended she wore a huge smile.

Life was good.

Chapter Five

Ashley glanced at his watch impatiently. Time was money and his was being wasted. The only reason he’d set up this lunch date was because it was time he had a talk with his siblings. The twins were getting closer to 30 and yet they still hadn’t gotten their shit together. Colleen, who had decided that work was beneath her, lived the life of the party girl, clubbing every night like she was a drunken college student and hanging out with ne’er-do-wells who partied on her dime. He wasn’t sure where his sister had found the leeches that she called friends but he intended to put an end to it.

His brother Owen wasn’t much better. He spent his days lying around the pool getting drunk and parading bimbos in and out of their mother’s house. Frankly he didn’t care about that last part, but his mother’s constant nagging about it was getting old and taking up entirely too much of his time. He wondered what happened to the twins. At one point they had promising futures but sometime after their 21st birthday they decided to piss their life away. Granted he didn’t spend as much time with them as he used to but he was still concerned for their well-being.

Ashley was on the verge of pulling out his cell phone to call them when Owen came swaggering toward his table with a tall blond on his arm. The woman’s dress was so tight and short she might as well have been naked. Her heavily caked on make-up and platform lucite heels made her more suited for the strip club rather than the high-end restaurant they were currently in.

“What’s up, big brother?” Owen gave him a half-smirk as he pulled out the seat for his companion. He didn’t look like he’d shaved for days, his clothes were wrinkled and stained and he was in need of a haircut.

Ashley sneered in disdain. “Have you even showered today?”

“Nope.” Owen popped the “p” as he pronounced the word, seeming to take pride in his declaration. “Since I was ordered by your highness to be here by a certain time or else, I didn’t have a chance to stop by the house and change.”

Ashley glared at his brother. “What the hell is wrong with you coming out in public looking like that? Don’t you have any pride in yourself?”