Lawyer up! (Janice)

[Sam Caraway]

Sam was very keen on market research.

It had been easy enough to ask a few well-placed questions to the right kind of people in the bar, and Sam had discovered that if one wanted to speak to a legal expert who knew a lot about (and was sympathetic to) meta-humans, they should go to a particular firm in Pilot Ridge, and talk to a Ms Adams.

Which was why Sam was sitting here now, feeling just a little awkward. He didn’t like lawyers. He didn’t like small waiting rooms. And he really didn’t like the fact that he was going to have to be even more honest with someone that he had never met than he had ever been to his best friend. Sam leaned back in the chair, unable to stop his fingers from tapping out a complicated rhythm on his knee. A nervous habit, one he found made it easier for him to think.

He knew very little about this woman – only her last name, and the fact that she came highly recommended. Nobody seemed to know if she was a meta herself, but that wasn’t the issue: she was good at what she did, so Sam wanted to see her. He’d phoned up, made an appointment, dressed smartly (and soberly – dark blue shirt, black jeans, smart jacket), and even turned up five minutes early, which was practically unheard of for Sam Caraway.

Sam settled back in the chair, lacing his fingers together in his lap in an attempt to keep his hands still – he was a little nervous, sure, but it wouldn’t do for anyone else to know that. Laying all of his cards on the table was not something he was used to doing, and the prospect made him jittery. He should have had a drink or something, before coming. He’d never actually been to a lawyer before – he’d never needed to – and as the hands of the clock made their way towards 2.30, the appointed time of his meeting with Ms Adams, Sam realised that he’d never actually hard anything nice about one. The people he’d previously been involved with had treated lawyers as something to be feared and distrusted, dangerous people who knew too much about your private business. Sam fiddled with the strap of his watch (so cheap it almost looked designer – he’d learned the hard way that expensive watches would be the first thing to go on a Bad Luck Day), and looked up with a smile as the door to Janice’s office opened.

[Janice Adams]

Janice was, miraculously enough, not running late for anything. In fact, she was feeling great as she shoved a sandwich in her face—a late lunch because she forgot to take lunch earlier—looking over the little information she had about her 2:30 appointment. Sam Caraway, interested in some advice on market research. All right.

She strode into the office and flashed a young man she assumed was Sam Caraway a bright smile. He looked nice enough, if a little nervous. Okay, more than a little nervous, but lawyers had sort of a bad reputation among the general public. One that Janice was all too happy to try to banish with the sheer force of her friendliness. Lawyers could be nice! They were just also very focused.

“Mr. Caraway, nice to meet you.” She held out her hand for a handshake, “I’m Janice Adams, how can I help you?”

[Sam Caraway]

The first thing Sam noticed about Janice was that she had a smile as bright as one of his own, and he matched it as he got to his feet. She greeted him and he was already feeling more at ease – until she introduced herself. Sam hadn’t come as far as he had without being able to pair a name and a face, even a face he had only seen briefly in a photograph.

This was Janice. Mason’s Janice.

Telling stories of your illegal deeds to a complete stranger was one thing – it would be even more difficult to tell them to your best friend’s girlfriend. The fact that they hadn’t previously met meant nothing to Sam: that wasn’t the point. The point was, this was not a good situation to be in. Cogs were practically whirring in his head.

Option #1: He could make his excuses and leave. The only problem? Next time they met, it would be when Mason introduced them – and Janice would be very unlikely ever to really warm to him after a bad beginning.

Option #2: Continue, and not say a word about their mutual acquaintance. But surely a bad beginning would be better than this?

Coward though he could often be, Sam realised that he was just going to have to man up.

He didn’t let it show, wasn’t thrown off-balance for even a moment – he just smiled and took her hand, shaking it firmly. ‘Thank you for seeing me,’ he replied, all easy Southern charm, smile warming as he made eye contact. Sam paused for a moment after he had released Janice’s hand. Go on, bite the bullet. ‘Can I just check – everything’s confidential, right?’

[Janice Adams]

The question didn’t particularly surprise Janice. A lot of people who needed consultation were concerned about privacy, so it made sense that this was something this new guy would be thinking about as well.

“Any and all information shared here is completely confidential, yes.” Janice nodded with a smile. He looked more than a little nervous. Janice figured he must have some pretty important things to work out. Hopefully she could give him a hand. “So! What do you need help with?”

[Sam Caraway]

Sam was always one for split-second judgements, and he made one now: he liked Janice. She was certainly the nicest lawyer he’d ever met (although that wasn’t really saying much), and she had a good handshake.

Her pronouncement that everything would stay between them was a relief, and he relaxed a little – not very much, though. ‘I was told you’re the person to go to about law concerning meta humans,’ Sam began, still hiding his nervousness as best he could.

Put your cards on the table, Caraway. He took a breath. ‘This is going to sound really strange,’ he warned her, a rueful smile appearing for a moment. ‘I’m a meta – a probability manipulator. I can make things happen.’ With or without meaning to – surely the fact that of all the lawyers in all the town, he had to end up at the door of the one who was seeing his best friend. ‘It’s not always voluntary. The thing is, I’ve spent a lot of time in Las Vegas – and I’ve used it to…give me unfair advantages in gambling.’

He’d never actually said it aloud, before. He’d never needed to – everyone who knew what he was had already guessed that was what he did, and nobody else needed to know. ‘I just need some advice, really. I’m not in any trouble at the moment, but I want to know how accountable I would be if anyone ever…took against me.’

[Janice Adams]

Janice listened to his situation intently, her face friendly and without judgment. After a moment, she rested her chin on the top of her hand, thinking. “Well, this doesn’t sound as strange as you might think,” she replied, smiling encouragingly, “Now, the problem here is if anyone ever tried to sue you, or bring charges against you for using your power in Las Vegas for gambling, it would be pretty impossible to win the case.”

“The thing is, using your probability manipulation to your advantage in gambling and other games of chance in a commercial environment such as Las Vegas is basically analogous to counting cards.” She spread her hands out in front of her, “It’s pretty illegal. My advice for you isn’t very helpful: just hope that nobody ever tries to sue you for that.”

Janice looked sympathetic, but there was ultimately nothing she could really do. It wasn’t as though she was going to report him, but there wasn’t much she could give in the way of advice. “I know this isn’t very encouraging, but it is what it is.”