Life Support (29 page)

“You could turn the living room into a multipurpose reception area and secretarial space. Clients could sit by the fireplace while waiting to see you, and your secretary could serve as hostess. I always thought it was a nice touch how we drank coffee or tea together when I visited your office. With a new coat of paint and the right rugs this could be even more homey.”

“You make a visit to a lawyer's office sound like a social call. Most people would rather go to the dentist than to a lawyer.”

“Not me,” Rachel responded. “You charged more but hurt less.”

“And I'm not sure I'm going to hire a secretary immediately.”

“Oh, as busy as you are, it won't be long before you need help. Doesn't Gwen Jones still work for you?”

Alexia didn't want to start any rumors that might get back to Gwen's bosses.

“Yes, but I shared her with another lawyer at Leggitt & Freeman, and she has a stable job with good benefits.”

They stepped into the dining room. It was covered with silver-striped wallpaper that was a cousin to aluminum foil. A brass chandelier hung from the ceiling. At the sight of the wallpaper even Rachel grimaced.

“This wallpaper would have to go,” she said. “But the chandelier is nice. You could position your desk under the light.”

“Are you sure the dining room would be a better office than the master bedroom?” Alexia asked.

Rachel nodded. “This room can be fixed up in a jiffy and would be very classy. You'd need to get it wired for your computer gadgets and bring in nice furniture. All the items you've collected during your travels would look great in here.”

Seeing the house through Rachel's eyes began to spark Alexia's own imagination.

“How long do you think it would take to get it ready?” she asked. “I would have to work out of my home and meet clients somewhere else until it was ready.”

“It depends on who does the work. You don't need a big contracting crew to do what needs to be done. Do you know anyone who does remodeling work?”

Alexia thought about Ted Morgan. “Yes.”

“If he's not too busy and can get started soon, most of the work could be done in a few weeks. It's all cosmetic. In the meantime, there is a vacant office at my place. You could rent it for a month or two while the renovation is going on here.”

“That would be ideal.”

“I'll get a blank sales contract from the car,” Rachel said.

Alexia held up her hand. “Wait. Don't rush me. I can see that the house might work, but I'd like to think it over.”

Rachel looked concerned. “I wouldn't wait. This place is going to sell fast. If you want it, you should make an offer now.”

Alexia smiled. “Are you using high-pressure sales tactics?”

Rachel feigned a hurt expression. “Never, but buying it would be a smart move. After seeing the interior of the house, I'm surprised at the asking price. It's in good shape.”

Alexia looked around and for the second time that day made a quick decision.

“Okay. Make an offer eight thousand dollars under the listing price.”

“That's quite a drop,” Rachel said dubiously.

“If the owners want a quick sale, they may bite,” Alexia replied. “I'll probably have to spend more than that fixing it up and want to keep my overhead as low as possible.”

Outside, Alexia looked at her watch. She had time to stop by Sandy Flats Church and find out if Ted Morgan was interested in a new job.

On the way she drove by Leggitt & Freeman. It was odd passing the parking lot without slowing down, but Alexia held the wheel steady. Never again would she stop and check her phone messages before going home for the day. When she came back to pick up her files, it would be like visiting a house where she'd lived in the past.

No sounds of piano music greeted her when she quietly opened the front doors of the church and stepped into the narthex. Ted Morgan was not in sight in the sanctuary. She took a few steps down the aisle and the wooden floor creaked beneath her feet.

A deep-throated voice said, “Who's there?”

Alexia jumped.

“Ted? Is that you?”

“No,” the voice answered in even deeper tones. “This is God.”

“Come out, Ted,” she said. “Your impersonation of God could use some work. Is that the voice you use to scare children?”

Ted peeked over the top of a pew where he'd been kneeling near the piano.

“No, only lawyers who interrupt my prayer time.”

Alexia was walking down the aisle toward him and stopped. “I'm sorry. I didn't know you were praying. Should I leave?”

Ted got up and sat on the pew. “No, I was almost finished.”

Alexia joined him and sat sideways with her arm on the back of the bench. “How did you know it was me?”

“A guess. You've been coming by regularly.”

Alexia suddenly felt insecure. “Is that okay?”

“Anybody who loves music like you do is always welcome. How are you doing?” he asked.

“Better. I had a good time in here yesterday. I can't say that I prayed, but I cried a lot, and it was an opportunity to let my feelings out.”

“That's healthy. Did anything else happen?”

“Yeah.” Alexia told him about the encounter at the window. “The expression on Jesus' face was similar to how you looked at me in the kitchen when I told you that I'd been fired. It was eerie.”

Ted glanced at the window. “Is that good or bad?”

“Oh, good. I should have used another word.”

Ted shifted on the pew so he directly faced her. “I hope people see a reflection of Jesus when they meet me. That's how God works. He uses people to show the world what he's like.”

Alexia mulled over his comment for a few seconds. “I've never thought about religion in those terms. I've connected it with going to church and believing in God.”

“That's part of it, but there's much more. Faith in Jesus is the first step, but what God does in a person's life after they believe is the exciting part.”

“Exciting?” Alexia asked dubiously.

Ted nodded. “Yeah. It's the beginning of the adventure of faith—the chance to be fully alive.”

“What do you mean by fully alive?”

Ted went over to the piano bench and sat down. He hit a few random notes. “Have you heard about the young man who fell from a cliff while hiking and is on life support in a Spartanburg hospital?”

Alexia gave him a startled look. “Yes, Baxter Richardson. But he's not in Spartanburg; he's at Greenville Memorial.”

“Do you know him?”

Alexia paused to frame her response. “Never met him, but I'm familiar with the situation. He's in a coma, being kept alive by machines.”

“That's what I heard on the radio. Do you consider that living?”

Alexia thought about the medical prognosis for Baxter's future. “Only at the most basic level. It's existing, but I can't call it living.”

Ted nodded. “It's the same for natural life and spiritual life. Without God, a person may be breathing and taking up space, but they're unconscious when it comes to spiritual reality. They're getting by on life support and don't even know it until they wake up.”

Alexia quickly saw where Ted was heading. “Is that what you're trying to do to me?” she asked with a slight smile. “Get me off life support?”

Ted grinned. “That's my job. Your eyes are starting to flutter open, and I want to encourage the process. Imagine the reaction of the Richardson family if Baxter woke up from the coma and got out of bed.”

Alexia wasn't sure how Rena would respond to a revived husband. “I'm sure it would be a shock,” she said truthfully.

“They would be ecstatic, of course, and everyone in town would be talking about it. It would be like someone coming back from the dead. It's the same when a person becomes a Christian.”

“You make it sound so dramatic,” she said.

“When it's real, it is.”

Alexia had heard enough. After her teary session in the sanctuary, she wasn't antagonistic to Ted's comments, but they made her feel uneasy. She decided to change the subject to the reason for her visit.

“I need to ask you a question about your other profession,” she said. “Would you be interested in working for me if I buy an older house in town and want to renovate it into an office?”

“Maybe. I don't do any big jobs.”

“From what the realtor tells me I need a painter and handyman, not a demolition and reconstruction crew. I've made an offer on the house. If it's accepted, I'd like you to take a look and tell me what you think it would cost to do the work.”

“Where is it?”

“On King Street near the courthouse. The house is about fifty years old.”

Ted closed the keyboard cover. “I'll be finished painting the parsonage by the end of the week and might be interested in another job.”

“Could you look at it before then?”

Ted hesitated. “Uh, okay. Just let me know, and I'll put together an estimate.”

Alexia stood up. “Thanks, I'll call.”

Ted nodded. “I'll look forward to the adventure.”

25

What authority and show of truth can cunning sin cover itself withal.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, ACT 4, SCENE 1

A
lexia had twelve messages on her answering machine. Number ten was from Rena Richardson.

“This is Rena. I'm sorry you lost your job. I had no idea Baxter's father would get you into trouble at your law firm, and I want to help by hiring you to represent me. There are several things I need to tell you, but I don't want to leave a message on your answering machine. Please call as soon as possible.”

The callback number was the same one Rena left at the office. Alexia wrote it down and put two question marks at the end. It might be better if Rena hired a large law firm in Charleston or Greenville to champion her cause. Wrestling with the multiple tentacles of the young woman's legal problems without the logistical support of a fully staffed office could overextend Alexia's resources. She listened to the final two messages. Neither call required an immediate response. She put the phone on the kitchen counter and weighed her options in the Richardson case.

If Alexia became involved, Ralph Leggitt and Ken Pinchot would be her adversaries; however, all three lawyers would have a conflict of interest because they previously served as attorneys for both sides of the warring Richardson family. For Alexia to litigate against her old firm would precipitate a crisis. She could demand that Leggitt & Freeman withdraw from representing Ezra because the firm had access to confidential information about Rena. Of course, the same problem existed with Alexia representing Rena in claims against Ezra. Alexia didn't know very much about the Richardson family's business affairs, but Ezra couldn't be sure what Alexia knew, and any reassurances by Ralph Leggitt to the contrary would be patently self-serving. This scenario would force both Leggitt & Freeman and Alexia to withdraw as counsel for either side—the exact step Alexia recommended in the meeting when she was fired.

Only a written waiver of the conflict of interest dilemma from both Ezra and Rena would allow all three lawyers to stay in the case. If one side balked on a waiver, it would sting Leggitt & Freeman a lot more to withdraw from representing Ezra than it would Alexia to give up Rena. At the moment, the thought of causing Ralph Leggitt a high level of consternation was not unpleasant.

Alexia picked up the phone and dialed Rena's number. She answered on the third ring.

“Thanks for calling back,” Rena said, sounding relieved. “I'd almost given up on you.”

“I've been busy,” Alexia said shortly. “How is Baxter?”

Rena told her about the conversation with Dr. Berman and the difference of opinion expressed by Dr. Draughton. “I know Baxter didn't want to live hooked up to a bunch of machines,” she concluded. “Do you think I could make them take him off life support?”

Alexia listened without comment until Rena finished. “It would be a battle of experts. If the doctors don't agree, it would be up to a judge to decide. Unless Dr. Draughton is very, very persuasive, I doubt a judge is going to grant a petition to suspend treatment if the regular treating doctors don't recommend it. Have you talked to him yourself?”

“Not yet. I wanted to discuss it with you.”

“And you'd have to overcome your father-in-law's use of the medical care clause in the durable power of attorney.”

“Which is why I need your help.”

Alexia was blunt. “Before we discuss my representation, do you believe you can make a decision about Baxter's medical care without being influenced by the fact that he tried to kill you?”

“Oh, I've forgiven him for what he did at the waterfall,” Rena responded in a casual tone of voice. “All I want now is to put an end to his suffering. It's the merciful thing to do.”

“You've forgiven him?” Alexia asked skeptically.

“I had no choice. Baxter wasn't mentally stable, and something must have snapped. It didn't come out while we were dating, but after we married, there were times when he was so depressed that he sat in a dark room for hours without coming out. If I tried to talk to him, he yelled at me and told me to leave him alone. I called them his ‘black moods' and learned to stay out of his way.”

“Was he depressed on the day of the accident?”

“Yes, and the more wine he drank the worse it got. You should have seen the look in his eyes; he was totally out of his mind. Even if he woke up tomorrow, I wouldn't want to press charges against him.”

Alexia tapped a pen on the edge of the kitchen counter. Rena sounded like a different woman. Very calm and collected. And, if true, her willingness to forgive Baxter was remarkable.

“What about the charges Ezra filed against you?” Alexia asked.