An Invisible Client Read Online Free PDF

that I’d seen only a few times in my life: I was her last resort.
    I clenched my jaw, as if preparing for a blow, then slowly relaxed. “Okay, I’ll talk to them.”
    Jessica set an appointment with Pharma-K for six in the evening, and by five, I was actually itching to leave the office, but I didn’t want to go home. So I told myself the meeting would be a nice little distraction. I would joke around with the executive, maybe have a drink or two, and down the line, maybe he would even think of me if he had a case he wanted to send out.
    Marty came to the door. “Hey, I heard about that Pharma-K thing. You really thinking of taking that case?”
    “No. I just told the client I would meet with them.”
    He put his hands in his pockets and strolled into my office. “Might not be a bad idea to take a look. The company’s probably terrified right now. They might settle a suit just to get rid of us.”
    “Why would they possibly do that? I would fight tooth and nail if I were them.”
    “You’re not them. They have shareholders who get spooked easy. Cyanide in their children’s cough syrup is spooky. If there’s anything there, it might be worth exploring. If nothing else, it would get us some press. This Pharma Killer story is everywhere.”
    For some reason, I was annoyed that Marty thought the case was a good idea. “Do you know how much we would have to spend? Just on investigators and depositions alone, it would probably be two hundred grand. Maybe more.”
    “Oh, probably more, but we would take the first settlement and run. I’m just saying, if it seems like something they’d settle after we look into it, we should consider it.”
    “I’ll think about it.”
    “Okay,” he said, nodding. “Oh, almost forgot, that interview’s here.”
    “What interview?”
    “Raimi was supposed to tell you about her. BYU grad—he wants her in the bankruptcy division?”
    “Shit. Just freakin’ hire her. What do I need to interview her for?”
    “We agreed that all three of us would interview new hires, no matter how big we got. Has to be unanimous. One for all and all for one.”
    I chuckled. “You’re such a dork.”
    He shrugged. “I gotta be me. I’ll send her in.” He turned to walk out, then said, “If there’s anything there with Pharma-K, I might seriously consider it.”
    “I said I’d think about it.”

7
    When Olivia Polley walked into my office, I was reading the CV Raimi had sent over, but only to see what her hobbies were. No other part of a CV said as much about someone as what they thought others should know they liked to do. I’d seen everything from “stand-up comedy” to “exotic dancer.” I’d interviewed the exotic dancer and left the comic alone—too much gloom and doom in those people’s personal lives.
    Olivia looked younger than me and wore glasses. Her chestnut-brown hair skimmed her shoulders. She shook my hand, smiled widely, and said, “Hi,” in the way a teenage girl might say it. “I recognize you from the billboards.”
    “That’s my twin, actually.”
    “Seriously?”
    “No.”
    “Oh,” she said, as though she didn’t understand I was joking.
    “So Raimi is really impressed with you. He thinks I should hire you. Do you think I should hire you?”
    “Yes . . . wait . . . yes?”
    “It’s not a trick question.”
    “Oh, then yes. Yes, you should hire me.”
    “Why?”
    She swallowed. Her face flushed a light hue of red. “Um . . . I don’t know.” Immediately, she mumbled, “Dang it, that was so stupid.”
    I chuckled. “At least you’re honest. Look, I have nothing to do with our bankruptcy division. That’s Raimi’s thing. I only do PI and occasionally criminal defense. You’re going to be in Raimi’s division, so if he wants to hire you, I won’t stand in his way.”
    She sat there for a long time, staring at me.
    “That means you’re hired,” I said.
    “Oh, thank you. That’s great. I’m so excited. I’m sorry for being