The Associate Read Online Free PDF

there’s some in the bathroom.”
    Kyle jumped to his feet, walked between the king-sized bed and the credenza, switched on the light in the cramped bathroom, and ran tap water into a flimsy plastic cup. He gulped it, then refilled. When he returned to the table, he placed the cup somewhere around his own twenty-yard line, then checked himself on the monitor. “Just curious,” he said. “Where’s the football right now?”
    “Third and long. Tell me about the other job offers, the other firms.”
    “Why don’t you just show me the video so we can skip all this bullshit? If it really exists, and if it implicates me, then I’ll walk out of here and go hire a lawyer.”
    Wright leaned forward, adjusted his elbows on the table, and began gently tapping his fingertips together. The lower half of his face eased into a smile while the upper half remained noncommittal. Very coolly, he said, “Losing your temper, Kyle, could cost you your life.”
    Life as in dead body? Or life as in brilliant future? Kyle wasn’t so sure. He took a deep breath, then another gulp of the water. The flash of anger was gone, replaced by the crush of confusion and fear.
    The fake smile widened, and Wright said, “Please, Kyle, you’re doing fine here. Just a few more questions and we’ll move into rougher territory. The other firms?”
    “I was offered a job by Logan & Kupec in New York, Baker Potts in San Francisco, and Garton in London. I said no to all three. I’m still kicking around a public-interest job.”
    “Doing what? Where?”
    “It’s down in Virginia, a legal aid position helping migrant workers.”
    “And how long would you do this?”
    “Couple of years, maybe, I’m not sure. It’s just an option.”
    “At a much lower salary?”
    “Oh, yes. Much.”
    “How will you pay back your student loans?”
    “I’ll figure that out.”
    Wright didn’t like the smart-ass answer, but decided to let it slide. He glanced at his notes, though a quick review wasn’t necessary. He knew that young Kyle here owed $61,000 in student loans, all of which would be forgiven by Yale if he spent the next three years working for minimum wage protecting the poor, the oppressed, the abused, or the environment. Kyle’s offer had been extended by Piedmont Legal Aid, and the clerkship was funded by a grant from a mammoth law firm in Chicago. According to Wright’s sources, Kyle had verbally accepted the position, which paid $32,000 a year. Wall Street could wait. It would always be there. His father had encouraged him to spend a few years out in the trenches, getting his hands dirty, far away from the corporate style of law that he, John McAvoy, despised.
    According to the file, Scully & Pershing was offering a base salary of $200,000 plus the usual extras. The other firms’ offers were similar.
    “When will you select a job?” Wright asked.
    “Very soon.”
    “Which way are you leaning?”
    “I’m not.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Of course I’m sure.”
    Wright reached for the file, shaking his head grimly and frowning as if he’d been insulted. He retrieved more papers, flipped through them, then glared at Kyle. “You haven’t made a verbal commitment to accept a position with an outfit called Piedmont Legal Aid, in Winchester, Virginia, beginning September the second of this year?”
    A rush of warm air escaped through Kyle’s dry lips. As he absorbed this, he instinctively glanced at the monitor, and, yes, he looked as weak as he felt. He almost blurted, “How the hell do you know this?” but to do so would be to admit the truth. Nor could he deny the truth. Wright already knew.
    As he was lurching toward some lame response, his adversary moved in for the kill. “Let’s call this Lie Number One, okay, Kyle?” Wright said with a sneer. “Should we somehow arrive at Lie Number Two, then we turn off the camera, say good night, and meet again tomorrow for the arrest. Handcuffs, perp walk, mug shot, maybe a reporter or two.