Shape of Things to come

Shape of Things to Come

Part 3:Seeds of Time

Chapter 32

‘All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts'
...William Shakespeare. As You Like It

Perhaps because of her affection for him, over the last few months Leslie, in between her family and magic dramas, noticed changes in the way DJ acted. Some of the things he said to her about clients, and then about members of the practice, Erin and Clarissa, both of whom were very dear to Leslie, were neither witty nor funny. They were cruel, bitter, and vindictive. Leslie had been concerned with her own cases, the rape case, and several other witch problems, as well as the family magic concerns and had chosen to ignore his behaviour because she was half-hoping that DJ was just in the mopes about his parents’ disappointment or he was having some hook-up drama.

Despite her distraction, Leslie did notice that DJ seemed to be deliberately avoiding Cole during office hours, to the point where Clarissa was commenting on his absences. Admittedly in those weeks Cole was in and out of court as several judges insisted on his attendance, as well as chasing up P3 business. When he was present in the office, he was locking himself in his office to clear up grunt work, because Erin was insisting that he catch up on it if he wanted her to be a partner.

Usually while Cole did not keep a tight rein on him, he did watch what cases DJ was doing, and ensured his firm was not compromised. Normally, DJ stayed in touch Cole, when all the lawyers worked late, doing grunt work and research, and sharing ideas and opinions. Lately however, DJ had started doing his grunt work and research from home, avoiding Cole as much as possible, Leslie suspected.

This was because once Cole had been in the office with DJ, and Leslie saw Cole narrow his eyes suspiciously when DJ tried to wriggle out of a discussion of cases. DJ then rather abruptly turned away from Cole facing towards Leslie and she saw him surreptitiously fingering what looked to her suspiciously like a dark amulet, while mouthing words that from his lip movements seemed to be a dark chant. Cole pursed his lips but Clarissa was pushing him about time and he rushed off to a late court appointment and an angry judge.

Leslie walked over to DJ’s desk, and as he saw her, DJ hastily shoved the amulet in a drawer. Leslie had the power to detect Evil, as did her sisters but it was never as strong or as overwhelming as Fern and particularly Charlie experienced. It came to her as wafts of rather nasty smelling smoke. As Leslie approached DJ, she was aware of whiffs of Evil passing over her, and for a moment met his eyes and they gleamed pure, naked Evil. She supposed that she should have spoken up but with all the other things going, she pushed it to one side hoping she was wrong.

Then yesterday, Leslie had been annoyed at Cole for being right, not unusual for anyone who lived, shared family, or worked with Cole. Leslie was on the phone to her sister Fern, when Cole left his office, on his way to court. At the same time, she noticed that DJ was sitting at his desk fearfully muttering chants and his eyes seemed to flash Evil.

She deliberately ended the phone call, snarling a rough goodbye at Fern. Cole asked Leslie what was wrong and she admitted that she had been feeling low and shaky after hearing of Fern’s ‘discussion’ with Piper, and a little touchy about her brothers and sisters’ place in the family. Cole rather bluntly told her Fern was a grown-up and had to make her own decisions and get through her own consequences. Then he told Lesie in very specific unmistakable lawyer terms so she understood, that the more Leslie tried to protect her little sister the harder Leslie made it for Fern and everyone around, including him. Before Leslie could answer, Cole rushed out the door.

“That’s been said before” Clarissa, a witch who knew the family well, laughed. “Usually when he’s right.”

Leslie had snorted her disgust before finally saying “Well that may be true but he’s still an arsehole.”

Clarissa laughed again but then Leslie glanced toward DJ, who was sitting at his very crowded desk watching her and for a second Leslie had been aware of a complete sense of Evil and maliciousness wafting over her. Almost as if Cole had triggered some dark places in DJ’s soul, by being Cole. She gasped in horror but immediately decided it could not be true because seconds later he was cracking jokes like the DJ she knew.

Then later in the day DJ had asked her to assist him with a new client, almost ordered her to do it, although he had no authority. Even Clarissa looked up in surprise at his tone. ‘Assist’ was a word that Cole disliked in his practice. He had particular view about team work and recognising contributions. Before Leslie could express her annoyance, DJ flung some paperwork at her, then ordered her to take on some very specialist but still grunt work research, because he was too busy to do it. Leslie had been plain horrified when she saw the paper work and even more horrified when Clarissa went to lunch and very slyly DJ started talking about using this client to push himself into full partnership. Then something of her friend DJ showed in his eyes, as he said that would make his parents proud, because none of his classmates were partners in a firm yet.

After that DJ smiled slyly and he told her how he valued her input to his cases, like she was a junior law clerk. With absolute malice in his voice when he said Cole’s name, he told her that he had long since realised that Cole was blocking her potential, then followed with a litany of all the words that could be used to trigger someone who was ambitious, and insecure. Leslie recognised that she was confronting Evil and that DJ was using words that could tempt her down its path. She nodded and went to her desk and read the file and realised that it was a case that Cole would never touch.

In the fifteen years or so that Cole’s small practice had been in operation, many negative descriptions had been used to describe him, the firm’s clients, and its tactics. Police officers, law enforcers, opposition lawyers, especially those from large firms who had reputations to protect, district attorneys, judicial types, councillors, and government departments collectively described the practice by derogatory terms such as ‘cut rate suburban firm’ ‘arsehole’ firm or ‘shit’ firm. The things they said about Cole’s clients were far, far worse. The firm’s clients were generally those who had limited access to decent legal representation, either because of the cost or because they were considered no-win, or worse, no profit clients. They were often the dregs of the criminal types, or people who did not know how to deal with governments and who would have been monumentally screwed without help.

The description of these clients’ criminal activities by law enforcements were often accompanied by snide references to the firm’s lack of integrity, honesty and bloodymindedness, as well as Cole’s willingness to help and protect criminals and often added with a sneer ‘other dead-beat types’. Leslie took this to mean witches and women without support, or anyone who felt threatened by big businesses and then won against them in court with Cole’s help.

Nevertheless, despite the general view of their employer and his practice, those working in the firm knew that the reality was that Cole’s small practice had the highest standards, standards that generally Erin, Leslie and DJ were proud to support. And those standards were easy to follow. If you took on a client, you did your best, you never compromised the client’s needs over those of the firm, you stuck the case out to the very end, no matter the cost. Cole did not care if clients did bad things, he did not care if they were broke, on the streets, grifting, stealing for food, or gamblers. Cole did not care if it was necessary to bully, or manipulate the law to protect them. He was happy to, indeed he enjoyed, going toe-to-toe with top and expensive legal firms and Cole’s ability to find a good loophole in the law was considered legendary or even magical, which Leslie knew it was mostly not, because he had taught DJ, Erin, and her how to do it.

Leslie also knew that the small firm did not leave clients in the gutter. It quietly and with no reward kept Paige’s employment centre in business if anyone was looking for a way out. With Paige’s help they had tapped many very successful networks to give clients an opportunity to change. Nonetheless, if clients did not or could not take the opportunity, Cole sighed and still helped what were so often referred to as his ‘deadbeat’ clients again and again and again to the disgust of those legal, government and business types who did not think these clients were entitled to representation. Particularly when these institutions which were being screwed over by Cole’s legal loopholes.

Even so, despite all these ‘deadbeat’ clients, Cole’s limits on what he would or would not do were simple. He would not touch Evil and he would not allow anyone working for him to touch Evil. Bad yes, people hitting hard times yes, but not cold-blooded Evil, ever, under any circumstances and lord knows Evil did its best to tempt him and others in the firm. If money had been the aim or even making a profit the small firm would have fallen to Evil influence many times. But somehow it stayed on course.

Of all the Evil to keep away from, Cole had a most definite policy on drugs. The practice did help people in the streets, the ones who were victims as much as criminals, the supposed low life who needed help more than jail. But never ever under any circumstances would the firm deal with anyone who flogged drugs or made a living off them by tempting others.

When Leslie saw the new clients that DJ had taken on, she knew Cole would never tolerate them, and DJ would normally never go near them, and she had this vague feeling the clients were not even mortal Evil, something about the way the case was put together. Leslie became very certain that what DJ was doing to her that day was sending her an invitation to sell her soul to some very Evil clients.

Leslie had worried all night then on the way to work when Cole was driving, she asked him carefully “You can tell lost souls can’t you?”

“Generally,” he replied in between swearing at traffic conditions. “Unless there’s some strong magic to block it.”

“Not really” Cole admitted. He frowned suspiciously “Should I?” he asked.

“I think he has an amulet, and he was muttering Evil chants when you were in the office.” Leslie gushed out awkwardly. “I know he’s taken on a drug case you won’t like.”

She did not really know what happened next except that Cole disappeared for some time whilst DJ was in court. Clarissa explained Cole was also in court, and Leslie assumed he was watching DJ. Then when he returned, he went into Erin’s office, lounging back in her visitor’s chair in intense discussion. Erin was very sombre afterward and around three o’clock just before DJ was due back from court, Cole sent everyone home, closed the office and Leslie found herself with Cole’s car and at something of a loose end.

Feeling a little lost, she drove up to the Maritime National Park. She bought an ice-cream then wandered along the shore path, finally sitting on a bench watching the ships and the bay and contemplating events. After a few minutes, a tall woman with honey blonde hair sat beside her and almost immediately tried to engage her in conversation. It seemed innocuous enough as the woman laughed a throaty laugh at one of more ardent couples, lying on the grass and not worried about their public display. Leslie wanted to be alone and the attempt at conversation irritated her. What really concerned Leslie however was the very strong whiff of Evil coming from the woman, so strong even she had no trouble recognising upper-level demon. To the woman’s obvious annoyance, Leslie stood up and left immediately, quickly making her way back to the car. It struck Leslie that the demon was doing something Paige told her Mark did for Good, innocuously inserting herself into the charge’s, or in this case victim’s, world because she was almost certain she had crossed paths with the woman before. Being targeted by Evil did not improve her feelings about the day. So she went home, and curled on the sofa drinking coco which was where Paige found her.

Paige like Leslie was home early, partly because with all the drama and risks of darklighters, she was disappointed to discover the blocks she put on her office indicated that a few clients as well as the new staff member were Evil. Not only that but when called into a meeting at central she had had snuck over and put a block there and was very disappointed to see several empty chairs at the meeting. She decided to just go home, feeling overwhelmed and sick that Evil, if not completely invading what had been her safe territory, certainly had infiltrated it.

Finding Leslie home, she made herself coffee and sat in the living room with her while Leslie talked of her day. Paige listened with sympathy about discovering DJ was a lost soul but almost dropped her coffee in horror when Leslie described the woman in the park and said she would ask Cole about her.

“So am I” said Paige “And believe me we don’t want Cole finding out she’s hanging around.”

At Leslie’s concerned expression Paige explained, “I’m certain it will be Cole’s demon mother. She hangs around as close as she can ... to her grandkids and him when she can, or people connected close to them. Obsessed with them. They say Evil can’t love but her obsession is the next best thing. Still believes she can get the kids and Cole to turn Evil. She can’t, but well Cole’s not inclined to be rational about her showing up. Curious she turns up her when the Power of Three is wonky. A bit fixated on Phoebe too.

“Power of Three is fixed, isn’t it? Why don’t we just get rid of her with Power of Three?” Leslie asked, getting very tired of every aspect of her life being a magic drama.

“Its Cole’s mother” Paige sighed. “And Mandy and Patsy’s grandmother.”

“Cole has been advised by a VERY high authority that matricide is Evil. And he isn’t Evil and unfortunately neither are we.” Paige explained.

“We decided that it could be the slippery slope” Paige explained “You know summoning a particular demon because of what it MIGHT do.” She sighed “We decided a long time ago that fear of Cole and making sure the kids understand about Evil are the best protection” Paige explained “Scares the hell out of Piper though” She added. “Piper worries. So best not to tell her bloody Elisheeva is stalking you too.”

“Piper worries. No kidding” Leslie smiled. She summoned her strength “Speaking of Piper. With everything you and Piper and Phoebe have going on, and the way well with Fern …acting up, I need to say ...”

“Don’t you dare say it” Paige almost snapped. Leslie shut her mouth in surprise, “Don’t you dare thank me and don’t you dare say you owe me.” Paige told her forcefully.

“It’s not thank you’s I want” Paige insisted “it’s …the only thank you I want is… maybe Jade. Because I kept a promise to her. Do you think Patsy and Mandy owe Cole and Phoebe a thank you?”

“What I want” Paige told her forcefully. “I got”. Lelsie looked confused and Paige explained “Once years ago when your father was being a real pig, but before you came here, I took the boys to a local athletics thing. They were members.”

“I remember” Leslie murmured, always a little distressed at being reminded of the times after her mother’s death.

“Robbie was only a little kid and he was going to wear Charlie’s hand me down shoes. John was being pissy. So I bought Robbie some new ones and he won his age race. He ran over to me and flung his arms around me. You know I was his number one. Never could be with the kids here, parents of course had to be first. But for once I was number one. He said he loved me.” Paige swept away tears. “So no I don’t want thanks.”

“Leo told me that not owing, that being not in debt was far harder because you can’t pay it and walk away.” Leslie told Paige

“I thought that was Cole’s role” Leslie grinned. “I can say something though. I do love you Paige and I’m very, very happy to have someone in my life who loves me.”