Chapter One

Caroline adjusted the front of her blouse as she waited in the elegantly appointed reception area of the Law Offices of Chase and Chase.

She’d prepared for the interview much the same way a general might prepare for war. Every contingency had been planned for. Every possible question she might be asked needed to have an answer.

All the research and preparation kept her mind off being back in Petal for good instead of one of her usual visits, which tended to last just a few days.

The receptionist, as pretty and elegant as the walnut furniture and framed black-and-white photographs of Petal over the last century plus, spoke quietly over the phone and then turned her attention to Caroline.

“They’re ready for you now.”

She led Caroline into a small conference room where three men, all clearly related, stood upon her entrance.

“Ms. Mendoza, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” One of the men, she recognized from the pictures on the website—the younger of the Chase brothers who ran the firm—held out a hand. “Peter Chase.”

She took it. “Nice to meet you as well. Caroline Mendoza.”

The silver fox she knew was Edward Chase smiled at her, warm and open, as he held his hand out. “Edward Chase.”

She shook his hand and objectified him. In her head of course, she wasn’t a savage.

“Justin Chase.”

He was the next generation, she knew. Peter’s youngest son.

Edward indicated a chair. “Please sit. Would you like some tea or some coffee?”

“No, thank you.”

Clearly Edward was in charge as he conducted the interview. He led her through the interview basics. Asked her what drove her.

Finally, Peter Chase broke in. “Why then? Why make the move from a city where you’d built a successful practice, where you could bill nearly four hundred dollars an hour, to Petal where you’ll be lucky to make half that. And not even a third of that on those two or three cases we take on from the county?”

“Some things have happened recently that led me to reevaluate my life and my future. I was born and raised here. Lived here until I was sixteen. My sister and brother live here with my maternal grandparents. My brother is about to graduate high school and head off to college. I just want to be around them more than a few times a year. Life is too short to be halfway across the country. I’ve missed enough of their lives.”

“We’re the only firm in town. What would you do if we said no?”

“Well, I could hang out my own shingle. But that’s a lot of work, and though I’ve done it before, I don’t really want that at this stage in my life. I’ve got my resume in at firms between here and Atlanta. I sat for the bar here a few years back, just to have it in case I ever wanted to move to Georgia again, so I’m good to go. No matter where I end up.”

“You’re ambitious and accomplished. You aren’t averse to going down to the jail or out to the prison. We’d be fools to say no. We already have a client list that encompasses a fifty-mile radius or so. I do most of the criminal-defense work now, but with you on board, we could do a lot better. You have the appellate experience we’d like as well. You’re a hometown girl. You’re incredibly qualified and we’d like to offer you a job here. Partnership track if that’s what you’re looking for.” Edward pushed a piece of paper her way detailing salary, bonus structure, benefits and the steps to partnership.

She looked it over. It was exceptionally fair. She already had a nest egg from selling her share of her firm in Seattle. Most of it she wanted to hold aside for college for her siblings so this would enable her to live a comfortable life and not have to touch that other money.

“Before you accept though, I’d like to address the elephant in the room,” Peter said.

Ah. There it was.

“My father.”

All three Chases nodded.

“My father’s arrest, trial and incarceration are what sent me to law school to start with. I’ve spent the last fifteen years of my life in one way or another trying to prove his innocence. Despite his death, I plan to continue to search for my mother’s killer and to exonerate my father.”

Edward drew in a slow breath, probably trying to find the right words to bring up the other elephant in the room. “Your grandparents aren’t going to like that.”

“I love my grandparents, but we don’t agree about who was responsible for my mother’s murder. Regardless, the person who killed my mother is walking free, maybe even here in Petal, and I will not allow that to continue unchecked. My mother is dead. My siblings and I grew up without our parents. My father spent fourteen years in prison slowly dying. It’s offensive to me that the real killer has been free all this time. I’ll be careful to keep my actions separate from Chase and Chase, but isn’t something I’m prepared to stop pursuing.”

“We’ve discussed this, Peter, Justin and I. I’m of the opinion that if I were in your place, I’d do the same. You understand the difference between your personal search for justice and what we do as a firm. That’s the only issue we have any business caring about. You keep that distance and we’re just fine. Can you start next week?”

She agreed and found herself with a job.