“No?”
“Wel , I think it’s pretty clear that what happened with Dandridge was sabotage, right? It wasn’t a computer glitch. Someone deliberately screwed with our files.” That final y got Hannah’s ful attention.
“You think Pierce and his cronies hacked into our system?”
“Either that or it was an inside job.” The words were delivered so lightly, so delicately, that it was almost possible to miss their intention. They hung in the air between the two women as they walked down the busy sidewalk, and Hannah, working hard to keep a cool facade, tried to figure out how best to respond. She wasn’t capable of dealing with Camila this morning. She was far too distracted and conscious al the time of the looming deadline. It was now Friday, and the case was before the court on Monday. They were almost out of time.
Camila stopped short in the middle of the sidewalk. “Wait a minute.” She put a hand on Hannah’s arm. “Isn’t that Hazel? Just over there?” She pointed to the other side of the road and waved her free hand high in the air. “Hazel! Hey, Hazel.”
On the other side of the street Hazel El ison, hat pul ed low over her curls, cast a quick glance over her shoulder in their direction and then hurried in the other direction. Surprise froze Camila in place, then she exclaimed under her breath, tightened her grip on Hannah’s arm, and tugged her across the road.
“Hazel,” Camila cal ed again, hurrying her steps. Hazel final y slowed, defeated, and turned to face them.
“Camila.” Hazel’s voice and face were tight. Her eyes flicked to Hannah’s face, but showed no signs of recognition.
“You’re the last person I expected to see today,” Camila said, smiling tightly. “I thought you’d be in New York by now. Getting al set up for your big interview.”
Hazel drew in a breath, as if she had just been slapped. “So it was you then? You were the one who set me up? Man, you’re a good actor, Camila. I real y thought you were pissed I was leaving.”
Camila stood there, brow furrowed, looking utterly mystified.
“Don’t give me that innocent thing.” But Hazel looked unsure, and her eyes searched Camila’s face, looking for confirmation of her suspicions.
“Hazel, I have no earthly idea of what you’re talking about,”
Camila said.
Hazel blinked back tears of anger and disappointment. “There was no interview,” she said. “I went to New York. The woman who was supposed to be interviewing me had never heard of me. I asked to speak to Gabe, the partner I’d worked with in the summer. He came down to see me. He had no idea what I was talking about.
There never was any interview. Somebody played a hilarious, hilarious joke.”
Camila drew in a horrified breath. “Oh my God,” she said.
“It was awful,” Hazel said. “I could see that Gabe thought I had . . . I don’t know. Made it up somehow. That I was delusional, or hoping to . . . I don’t know. I got out of there as fast as I could, but the story is already everywhere.”
“I’m so, so sorry,” Camila said. “Are you going to speak with Rob?
Ask to come back on?”
Hazel shook her head, lifted her chin. “No point. He was so pissed at me and I can’t blame him. I’m not going to humiliate myself.” She wiped her eyes with the back of one hand. She hesitated. “It wasn’t you, Camila? You didn’t do this?”
“No. No way. I was real y upset when you said you were leaving.
And I know we haven’t always been close, but I wouldn’t do that to you, or to anyone.”
“No. No, of course, you wouldn’t. Sorry. I just keep thinking, who did I piss off this much, you know? Who hated me enough to do this?
I mean, I thought maybe Rachel, in the office, but . . .”
“She wouldn’t have the guts,” Camila said quietly.
“Yeah.” Hazel fished a Kleenex out of her pocket and blew her nose. “Look, I have to go. I’l see you around. And sorry. For what I said before.” She hurried away, and Camila and Hannah stood and watched her go.
“Shit,” Camila said quietly. “Poor Hazel. She was so embarrassed when she was the only one not to get an offer at the end of the summer. There was a rumor she’d been involved with that partner, Gabe, and it ended badly. You know stories like that are just so dangerous in law. Everyone knows everyone. People won’t hire you in case you’re trouble. So she had that fol owing her around. And now she has this.”
Hannah swal owed. “But she’s rich, right? Didn’t you say that, at the bar? Her family wil look after her.”
Camila flushed. “I was being a bitch, because I was angry.
Hazel’s parents are divorced. She lives with her mother. I don’t even know if she’s in touch with her dad.”
“Oh,” Hannah said.
“Yeah.” Camila didn’t move. “Funny how she thought it might have been Rachel though, right? I mean, yes, Rachel’s jealous and she’d love to have taken Hazel’s spot on the team. But I can’t see it.
Rachel would never have the bal s to pul it off. And Rachel didn’t get Hazel’s spot. You did.”
Hannah gave her a look that said back off, and started walking on toward the office. Camila fol owed.
“So you agree?” Camila asked.
“What?”
“That it wasn’t Rachel.”
“I real y don’t know Rachel that wel , but she doesn’t seem like the type.”
“No. No she doesn’t. You might be, though.”
Hannah stopped walking. “Excuse me?”
“I think you heard me. You’re the kind of person who takes ‘bold action.’?” Camila drew air quotes for the last two words. “Isn’t that what Rob said when he brought you on? That’s what he said to me and Sean. That you were a doer. That you weren’t afraid to be direct.”
“What exactly are you accusing me of, Camila?”
“I’m not accusing you of anything. I’m asking you—did you fake a job offer to Hazel to get her off the team so there was room for you?
And also—did you fuck with our filings? You came from out of nowhere, didn’t you . . . with this transfer from Maine right into the heart of our team. So, who are you, Hannah?”