The Law of Motion (Law Series) (6 page)

             
The Morgan case was closed, and I was praying that it didn’t need to be reopened "We'd better go then. Thank you, Mrs. Flowers."

             
"Just let me know later,” she said sweetly.

             
"Yes, ma'am." He responded following me out of the door.

            
 
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When we pulled up to the office not even ten minutes later there were Channel 9 and Channel 7 reporters out front, not to mention a few that I didn’t recognize.

             
I went straight into a panic. “It’s not even
eight am
. What is news worthy at my office period, let alone at eight am?”

             
“Tink would have told us if anyone were hurt.” Adrian added rubbing the inside of my palm calming me like he always did.

             
He got out of the driver’s side and walked around opening the door for me while I took my favorite gun out of my side holster and tucked it in my bag instead. I took Adrian’s hand and walked towards the door. The second we passed the first news van I was blinded by flash bulbs, cameras were shoved in my face, and I assaulted with a long stream of questions.

             
“Alyssa Marshall, do you care to make a statement to the Washington Post?”
a balding man shouted shoving a mic in my face. He was the closest, voice that I could make out over so many people talking at once, other than that it sounded like white noise.

             
Adrian pushed it out the way the moment he realized that they were all there for me. I didn’t like that many strangers close to me and he wrapped his arms around me trying his best to shield me from the contact.

             
Tink and Macon met us half way through the parking lot, no one hesitating to let his massive frame through the crowd. “We’ll talk inside.” Macon suggested taking the other side of me, pushing our way through the twenty something reporters.

             
When I got inside I felt like I could finally breathe. Doc locked the door behind us, poor Kristen trying to soothe a crying Makenn
a
the phones going off keeping her awake.

             
“What the
fuck
is going on out there?” Adrian demanded closing the blinds. “What do they want with Alyssa?”

             
Tink was fuming, “Did you not read my text all the way or something? I told you
not
to bring her here.”

             
Adrian pulled out his phone re reading the message. “Ah hell, I’m sorry, baby.”

             
“What do they want?” I asked looking over at Kristen, who was passing the baby off to Macon so that he could take her in the back, hopefully away from the ringing phones.

             
Tink huffed hitting a few keys on her laptop, all the screens in the room switching to a different local news station. “It’s all over the fucking internet. At oh-seven hundred eastern standard time, Paul Neil publicly announced his
heir
to Neil Industries.”

             
“
ME
?!” I fumed running my hand through my hair in disbelief. I hadn’t seen Paul since I kicked him away the day we opened the Gravity office. I hadn’t heard from him since and was damn happy about it. “Why in the hell would he think I’d want to own that shit?”

             
Kristen picked up the phone screaming a very rude, “No comment!” into the other end before slamming the phone down. I looked at her wondering why she even bothered. “They have been calling all morning. Washington Business Journal, Post, Politico. They wall want to know about Paul Neil’s
secret daughter
.”

             
“I’m
not
his daughter.” I boiled.

             
Ross shrugged, “We know, tell them that.”

             
“Why would he even do something that drastic?” Jackson pondered.

             
Doc answered. “It’s obvious he is reaching out to her, he has to be desperate to do it so publicly though.”

             
“You mean raping her of her privacy?” Adrian corrected.

              Dario had been leaning against the wall looking at the screen, just as our website pictures were being broadcasted. “From the looks of it, not just Giselle is getting the attention. We need to find out what he wants; and we need to find out quickly. This could compromise a lot of our cases.”

             
“I don’t care what he wants; I just want those cameras out of my life. I don’t want his company, money or anything involving him. Anything with Paul is trouble.” I stamped my foot shaking my head.

             
Doc nodded rubbing my shoulder. “I know. It looks like you need to go down to Neil Tower.”

             
“I was just thinking that myself.” I agreed ready to kick some ass.

             
Macon came out of the back, flexing his arms. He and Dario were the front runners in a lot of our security jobs, mainly because it was the type of work they loved most. Jackson and Adrian both helped too when needed, but often made sure we were safe on our jobs. “You’ll need some body guards to keep the reporters off of you. Dario, let’s secure the boss.”

             
“I don’t think so.” Kristen halted tapping her foot. “Where is your daughter?”

             
“Sleep in your office.” He frowned.

             
Kristen smiled taking the baby monitor from him. “Then go kick ass baby.”

             
“Thank you.” He rushed kissing her on the forehead before grabbing his coat.

             
If I wasn’t so pissed about the shit with Paul I would have laughed at their exchange, finding it adorable.  Instead I pulled my coat back on. “Baby, you coming?” I could really use him by my side, now that I was used to him being there.

             
“You don’t even have to ask,” Adrian scoffed pretending to feel insulted. “I was coming anyway.”

             
“We might as well take the SUV then, because Jackson and I aren’t staying behind.” Tink announced pushing away from the reception desk and rolling over to the coat rack; a move that she perfected months ago.

             
Kristen hated it, mainly because she picked out the floors. “Will you ever respect the marble? If you’re going to slide around here at least use socks like Juan-Carlos.”

             
Tink ignored her, sliding her arms into the coat that Jackson was holding out for her. “Better make sure that Chance leaves her gun behind.”

             
I was already securing it on my side when Doc held her hand out for it. “Do
they
have to hand theirs over?” I asked gesturing to the four men trying not to laugh.

             
“There isn’t a probability they are going to shoot Paul Neil.” Doc smiled holding her hand out.

             
I sighed unclipping the holster from my belt and handing it to her. “I want that when I get back.”

             
“I know.” She grinned putting it behind the front desk.

             
After a fight to get outside and a fight to get to the office through the traffic downtown, the amount of reporters in front of the large building that was not just the electronics portion but Neil Industries as a whole, was going to make it
another
fight.

             
“Shit, it looks like this isn’t just local,” Macon noted looking at the vans for FOX, CNN, and shit load tabloid journalists.

             
“It’s a good thing we came
Giselle.
” Dario noted getting out of the front seat.

             
Tink looked out the window shaking her head, on the other side of me, muttering the word ‘parasites’ under hear breath. “You guys better do a damn good job keeping those people out of Chance’s face or Gravity is going to get a shit load of lawsuits for her ramming a fist into a few noses.”

             
Dario and Jackson were in the middle seats.  Dario smirked, “We’ve never had a problem before.”

             
I was sitting in the far back seat with Adrian’s arm around me, when we pulled up into the space that ran parallel with the street he whispered in my ear. “I’m with you every step of the way.”

             
“Remember, whatever you do, don’t give them
anything.
They’re like strays, feed them and they’ll never go away.” Tink cautioned.

             
The boys surrounded Tink and I expertly, Tink had her arms wrapped around my waist as we made our way to the door of the largest building downtown. At first, no one noticed us, until we got about four feet from the door and some idiot from the Post started shouting questions at me. Dario pushed me forward from one side and Adrian on the other, Jackson taking Tink’s hand and pulling her towards the door just as quickly.

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
             

             
“WHAT IN THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO PULL?” I asked as soon as the doors to his office were shut behind me.

             
Paul, who had looked upbeat at the sound of my visit until I opened my mouth, merely let out a sigh and pressed the intercom button. “Hold all of my calls please Sarah, and push whatever meeting I have back a few hours.”

             
“There is no need to do that; I’m only staying long enough for you to retract the little announcement you made at your press conference this morning.” I promised, my arms folded across my chest waiting.

             
“It’s good to see you too, Alyssa. Have a seat.” He offered. He also gestured to the guys behind me.  “I can have them bring in some chairs from the conference room if you five would like to sit as well.”

             
I responded with my eyes closed, trying really hard to stay calm. “I don’t
want
to sit. I want you to retract your statements and
get out of my life
.”

             
“That can’t happen, Alyssa. You’re my daughter, and it’s your birthday present. I can’t take back a gift.”

             
“My
birthday
is in
November
!” I stressed. “You don’t even know me.”

             
He let out a patient sigh. “I
know
your birthday Alyssa. I have been working on this since
last
November. And I am
trying
to know more if you’d let me.” He looked over my shoulder and smiled. “I heard you had met someone. Adrian isn’t it? Let me shake the hand of the man that was actually able to catch my daughter’s heart.”             

             
He walked around the desk and made a bee line to Macon. Dario and Tink had to cover their mouths to keep from laughing.  I was mortified. “Paul. That is
Macon
. Macon is
Kristen’s
husband. This only further proves that you know zero about me.”

             
“Simple mistake,” He grunted extending his hand to Adrian, who decided to glue himself by me, knowing my temper. “Nice to meet you, son.”

             
Adrian shook it firmly and I wanted to slap their hands apart. “I don’t want anything you have to give me. Not even your time.”

             
“Why is it so hard for you to accept the legacy that I am trying to leave you?” He asked going behind the desk.

             
That answer was simple. “Because I don’t
want
it. You have your wife, Stephanie and two other daughters for that.”

             
“Stephanie will understand, Rosalia and Scarlett have been given every advantage money can buy their entire lives without hesitation, even Marco did.” He sighed bringing up my “half-brother” that was killed last year. “You haven’t, and I wish it were different, but I can only change the now Alyssa.”

             
“So that’s what this is about? You’re leaving me Neil Industries because you weren’t around when I was a kid?” I scoffed at his gall.

             
He shook his head, “No Alyssa, it’s because
you
deserve it. You worked, and made your living with your bare hands never coming to me once. That’s what I need running this company.”

             
I am not going to
run
your company.” I spelled out. “I won’t want it.”