Hannah nodded and left, closing the door behind her. She went back to her desk. The atmosphere in the office was strained for the next few hours. Rachel treated Hannah to an icy look and silence on her return to her desk. Rob Parekh’s office door stayed closed for half an hour, and when Camila and Hazel final y emerged it was clear that their argument was far from over. Hazel went straight to her desk and started packing up, emptying drawers into her backpack. Camila stood beside her, talking at her, and though she kept her voice low it was clear from her expression and her body language that she was angry.
“Leave me alone, Camila,” Hazel said, loudly enough that everyone in the open plan area who wasn’t already watching the drama raised their heads.
“You never cared about the Project at al ,” Camila said, raising her voice now too. “It’s al about you, isn’t it?”
Hazel just shook her head, lips tight. She shoved the last of her belongings into her bag, slung it over her shoulder, and walked out without another word to anyone. Hannah saw the anger on Camila’s face crumble to something else and for an awful moment it looked like she was going to burst into tears in front of everyone; moments later Sean Warner had ushered her outside and they were gone for at least an hour. When they came back they went quietly to their desks, and the morning wore on with no more drama, though it was hard not to be distracted by smal movements around the office.
HANNAH WORKED UNTIL LUNCH, THEN WENT OUTSIDE INTO
THE sunshine to eat a sandwich. She was back at her desk by two P.M. Rachel was gone, finished for the day by the look of her organized desk. Robert Parekh came by ten minutes later.
“No classes today?” he asked.
Hannah shrugged. “None today, one tomorrow. I have a very light class load this semester.”
He nodded, looked at her careful y. “Think you can keep up long hours here? Ful -time hours, even?”
“Absolutely,” she said firmly.
“Okay. Look, we’ve got an issue. One of the students I had put on the Dandridge case has had to drop out unexpectedly. We’ve got the preliminary hearing next week and we’re not as prepared as we should be. I need al hands on deck, but I don’t want anyone I have to carry. I need someone who is committed. Someone who can pul their weight without hand-holding. I would be giving this to a student with more experience than you, but”—he gave an almost imperceptible grimace in the direction of Rachel’s desk—“we don’t have the right fit right now. I’m thinking about bringing you on.” He paused and Hannah held her breath, trying hard to look cool and calm and not desperately eager.
“Look, Hannah, I’l give you a trial. Join us for the case conference at three o’clock today. Let’s see how things go.”
“Thank you,” Hannah said. “Thanks for the opportunity.”
“Let’s see if you make the grade before you thank me,” Parekh said. And he disappeared back into his office.
AT THREE O’CLOCK THE STAFF ATTORNEYS AND SEAN AND
CAMILA filed into Parekh’s office, and Hannah fol owed in their wake. She was the last to enter the room and she shut the door behind her. Robert Parekh crossed to the front of his desk and leaned back against it. Everyone else spread themselves around the room.
“Say hel o to our new teammate, Hannah Rokeby,” Parekh said.
He waved in Hannah’s direction. “Hannah, this is everyone.” He gestured to a slim dark-haired man with a close-cut beard. “Hannah, this is Jim Lehane. Jim is our senior staff attorney and he’s supervising the Dandridge case. You’l get to know everyone else in time, but after me, Jim is the boss. Got it?”
Hannah nodded. She was conscious of the surprise in the room at her sudden inclusion in the group, and of Sean and Camila’s reactions in particular, but she kept her eyes firmly on Parekh.
“Right,” said Parekh. “Some of you are new to the Dandridge case, so the purpose of this meeting is to get everyone up to speed and assign tasks. Jim’s going to start with a basic rundown of the facts of the case. After this meeting, Sean, Camila, perhaps you’d be kind enough to take Hannah out? Feed her—as far as I can see, she doesn’t leave her desk—and fil her in on everything she needs to know about how we work. She’l be taking over anything that Hazel was working on. Oh yes, for those who don’t know, Hazel wil not be available for the Dandridge case. A job interview, next week, apparently. As Hazel’s commitment to the Project is less than what I expect of our students, I’ve asked that she not return.”