Splitsville, page 26
Messie jumped out of the witness stand and raced toward the back door, but the bailiffs apprehended him before he was halfway down the aisle. He screamed and shouted and fought them, to no avail. Everyone in the gallery skittered away, gaping in disbelief.
Kenzi calmly approached the judge’s bench. “Your honor, I respectfully request that the charges against my client be dismissed. And I strongly suggest that the bailiffs prevent this man from leaving the courtroom. Mr. Harrington may wish to prefer charges.”
Chapter Forty-Six
Despite the fact that she couldn’t stand the man, Kenzi had to admit Harrington behaved like a pro after Messie’s testimony cratered the prosecution case. He did not object to dismissal of the charges and instructed law enforcement to take Messie into custody for interrogation. She suspected the Sentinel would be arrested by nightfall.
“Not a bad job,” Harrington said.
She almost blushed. “Thank you. I’ll admit I had—”
“For a dilettante. You got lucky and no serious damage was done. But in the future, I hope you’ll stay in family court. Criminal law is for the big boys.”
“But I—”
He walked away, leaving her gaping in mid-sentence.
Just when you thought it might be remotely possible to like him…
Maya’s reaction was completely different. She wrapped her arms around Kenzi and hugged her the instant the judge told her she was free to go.
“Thank you,” she gasped, tears streaming down her face. “You believed me. You fought for me.”
“I did my best.”
“You were brave. Strong.”
“You’re the strong one. You survived that nightmare father. Twice.”
“Will they let me see my daughter now?”
Michael had revealed Brittany’s location, a smart move since he now faced possible conspiracy charges for giving Messie the keys to LORE and Maya’s car. In the space of a few moments, Maya had been transformed from dangerous murder-mommy to the best parent available.
“I’ll stop by Judge Benetti’s office before I leave, Maya. But you know, he’s going to ask—”
“I’m quitting Hexitel.”
Thank God. “What brought you to this decision?”
“I should have done it long ago. I always sensed there was something…not right there. But I was so desperate for family. Support. Something I’ve never had.”
How true that was.
“After I heard Candy tell all those lies about me on the witness stand, I realized what a fool I’ve been. My stupidity almost cost me my child.”
“If I can tell the judge you’ve severed ties with Hexitel, I bet Brittany will be back in your arms before bedtime.”
“Thank you so much. I can’t say it enough.” She hugged like she never intended to let go. “Thank you.”
After a few more moments, Maya turned to Emma, arms outstretched. “And you too.”
Emma held up a hand. “Sorry. Not a hugger.”
“Oh. Right.”
“But.” Emma stepped forward and touched Maya on the shoulder. “I’m very glad about the way this turned out. So give Brittany a big hug for me.”
“I will.” She turned back to Kenzi. “Can I admit something? When I first met you…I didn’t like you very much.”
She didn’t blame her. “I was having a rough day.”
“I thought you were superficial. Self-absorbed. I was in the KenziKlan and that was fun and harmless, but in person, you seemed much more interested in yourself than your clients.” She offered a broken wet smile. “Look how wrong I was.”
“Thanks, but you weren’t entirely wrong. I have some soul-searching to do.”
Emma made a face of mock astonishment. “What? Kenzi Rivera admits to imperfection?”
“I know. Hard to imagine. Sign of inadequacy, I guess.”
“No. A sign that you’re glowing up.”
“Really?”
Emma nodded. “And I think the whole KenziKlan will agree. You’ve come a long way since high school, kiddo. And you still have some miles left on your journey. But don’t we all?”
Kenzi packed her briefcases and banker boxes and headed out of the courtroom. She was almost through the door when she spotted someone sitting in the back of the gallery.
Her father.
She started to speak, but felt tongue-tied. Why did he always have that effect on her?
“Did—Did you see how it ended?”
“I did.”
“And…”
He cleared his throat. “It occurs to me that I may have voiced some objection to you taking this case.”
That was putting it mildly. But she kept her mouth shut.
“And I may have expressed some…lack of confidence in your ability to handle a criminal matter.”
Wait for it…
He drew in his breath, then slowly released it. “It is just possible that I may have been mistaken.”
Not exactly an apology. But as close as she was ever going to get from him.
“And now,” he added, “I hear rumors that you’re going to use this high-profile success to start your own firm. Where you can be managing partner. And you won’t have to deal with…me.”
“Nope.” She wasn’t even sure where that came from. She had been thinking about leaving, but now she knew exactly what she wanted to do. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“You’re not?”
She stepped forward and gave him a friendly jab in the chest. “I’m not starting my own firm. I’m launching a hostile takeover of your firm.”
“You’re…what now?”
“And then I’m going to take over Crozier’s firm and merge the two to form the biggest firm in the state. With me as its queen. I’m going to own Splitsville.”
“That seems…rather unlikely.”
She pivoted on her heel. “You just wait and see.”
As she walked to her car, Kenzi realized it had been days since she livestreamed to the KenziKlan.
Had she outgrown it?
Should she put it in her past?
No. Put it to better use.
Maybe it was time she put her entire life to better use.
She set down her boxes, pulled out her phone, and started streaming. Since this wasn’t her usual airtime, she made sure copies would be stored on YouTube for later viewing.
And told the story of the case’s tumultuous final day…
“So that’s how it turned out, KenziKlan. Justice was done and a flawed but loving mother will be reunited with her daughter. Which is wonderful. Because we’re all flawed, but there’s nothing more important than family and never will be. Here’s what I’ve learned, and what I hope you will learn too, if you don’t already know it. You want to be religious—fine. If it helps you, I’m happy. But when people start exerting coercive control, look out. No one should dominate you, and if anyone tries, run. Immediately. I don't care what they offer or what they promise. Run. And if your husband tries to turn your daughter into a weapon he can use against you—shoot him.”
She paused. “Okay, I meant with a camera. Video the rant. Record the abusive phone call. Don’t resort to violence, but do collect evidence. Because you are important. You matter. And you don’t have to take that crap from anyone. Hashtag KenziKlan. Hashtag RiveraLaw.” She paused, then added, “Hashtag MeToo. Hashtag Time’sUp. Hashtag GirlPower. Hashtag InThisTogether. Hashtag…LoveIsAllWeNeed.”
Chapter Forty-Seven
That evening, Kenzi sat at her kitchen table and shared much too much pizza and wine with her friends.
“I propose a toast!” Sharon said. She hadn’t drunk that much, but Kenzi could see she was already a bit giddy. Maybe the exuberance arising from a successful day in court. “Raise your glasses!”
Hailee pouted. “I don’t have one.”
“You do.” Kenzi pointed. “Sparkling grape juice.”
“Ick. I’m not a baby.”
“You’re too young to drink.” And it might not mix well with her meds. “Just raise the glass.”
Emma leaned toward Hailee. “Just between you and me, this wine sucks.”
“That does not make me feel better.”
“You know how people say alcohol is an acquired taste? That means it tastes terrible.”
Hailee slowly turned. “Really?”
“Really. The grape juice is much better.”
“Well…okay.” Hailee raised her glass. “Who are we toasting?”
“Your mama, of course.” Sharon pushed herself to her feet. “Here’s to the mighty Amazon warrior. She took on the husband, the cops, the DA, Jesus 2.0, and the worst them all, her father. And triumphed. Let’s hear it for Kenzi.”
They clinked their glasses together. Lots of hooting and hollering ensued.
“Thanks,” Kenzi said. “But I couldn’t have done it without you. All of you.” She faced each colleague in turn. “Emma was my criminal law rock. I would’ve embarrassed myself a hundred times over if not for her. Sharon was my eyes and ears when I couldn’t be three places at once. Sharon, you are seriously under-utilized as an assistant.”
“Does that mean I’m getting a raise? We discussed—”
“You’re getting a raise.”
Her eyes bugged out. “You got Gabriel to—?”
“It’s coming out of my salary.”
“Kenzi, no!”
“Yes, and no arguing. I want you in my posse. I need you.” She turned. “And of course, I must thank the greatest joy in my life, my daughter. Hailee, you came through just when I needed it. You gave me proof of the strangulation. You gave me the goods on Messie. In fact, your murder board predicted the relationship between Michael and Messie. You proved you can do anything you want to do. You can be anything you want to be. Nothing can hold you back. Absolutely nothing.”
“Hear, hear,” Emma said. Another round of clinked glasses. “But I think I should get some sort of special commendation. I broke into that religious joint and copied the hard drive. And I don’t even like going outside.”
“Maybe Emma needs a raise, too,” Sharon suggested.
“She’s a partner.” Kenzi winked. “Talk to the boss, Emma.”
“You mean our brother or our father? Because neither of them has listened to a word I’ve said since the day I was born.”
“I can relate to that, sister.”
Sharon blinked. “Um…sister? You mean that metaphorically, right?”
Hailee tucked in her chin. “No, she means Emma is her sister. And my aunt. You didn’t know?”
Sharon looked as if she’d been smacked in the face by a bus. “She—now what?” She glared at Kenzi. “She’s your sister and I didn’t know? Even though I work at the same firm with both of you?”
“Emma likes to keep a low profile,” Hailee explained. “Doesn’t want people to think she got her job through nepotism.”
Sharon was still gaping. “You two are sisters?” She took a huge gulp of wine. “Guess that explains why you’ve known each other since high school.”
“And before that,” Emma added.
“But you have a different last name.”
“Marriage. Big mistake. Didn’t last.”
“Well, I’ll be—” Sharon paused, drinking it all in. “So everyone in this room is family except me?”
Kenzi laid her hand on Sharon’s. A moment later, the other two laid their hands atop hers. “We’re all sisters.”
Afterword
Thank you for reading Splitsville. If you enjoyed it, please post a review where you bought the book. And check out William Bernhardt’s other spellbinding legal thrillers.
Register to receive the free William Bernhardt e-newsletter and you will receive a free short story. To learn more about the author and his books, click here to visit his website. Or you can email him at: willbern@gmail.com.
Sneak Preview
William Bernhardt’s next Splitsville legal thriller will be released September 21, 2021.
About the Author
William Bernhardt is the author of over fifty books, including The Last Chance Lawyer (#1 National Bestseller), the historical novels Challengers of the Dust and Nemesis, two books of poetry, and the Red Sneaker books on writing. In addition, Bernhardt founded the Red Sneaker Writers Center to mentor aspiring authors. The Center hosts an annual conference (WriterCon), small-group seminars, a newsletter, and a bi-weekly podcast. He is also the owner of Balkan Press, which publishes poetry and fiction as well as the literary journal Conclave.
Bernhardt has received the Southern Writers Guild’s Gold Medal Award, the Royden B. Davis Distinguished Author Award (University of Pennsylvania) and the H. Louise Cobb Distinguished Author Award (Oklahoma State), which is given "in recognition of an outstanding body of work that has profoundly influenced the way in which we understand ourselves and American society at large." In 2019, he received the Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oklahoma Center for the Book.
In addition Bernhardt has written plays, a musical (book and score), humor, children stories, biography, and puzzles. He has edited two anthologies (Legal Briefs and Natural Suspect) as fundraisers for The Nature Conservancy and the Children’s Legal Defense Fund. In his spare time, he has enjoyed surfing, digging for dinosaurs, trekking through the Himalayas, paragliding, scuba diving, caving, zip-lining over the canopy of the Costa Rican rain forest, and jumping out of an airplane at 10,000 feet.
In 2017, when Bernhardt delivered the keynote address at the San Francisco Writers Conference, chairman Michael Larsen noted that in addition to penning novels, Bernhardt can “write a sonnet, play a sonata, plant a garden, try a lawsuit, teach a class, cook a gourmet meal, beat you at Scrabble, and work the New York Times crossword in under five minutes.”
Also by William Bernhardt
The Daniel Pike Novels
The Last Chance Lawyer
Court of Killers
Trial by Blood
Twisted Justice
Judge and Jury
Final Verdict
* * *
The Ben Kincaid Novels
Primary Justice
Blind Justice
Deadly Justice
Perfect Justice
Cruel Justice
Naked Justice
Extreme Justice
Dark Justice
Silent Justice
Murder One
Criminal Intent
Death Row
Hate Crime
Capitol Murder
Capitol Threat
Capitol Conspiracy
Capitol Offense
Capitol Betrayal
Justice Returns
* * *
Other Novels
Challengers of the Dust
The Game Master
Nemesis: The Final Case of Eliot Ness
Dark Eye
Strip Search
Double Jeopardy
The Midnight Before Christmas
Final Round
The Code of Buddyhood
* * *
The Red Sneaker Series on Writing
Story Structure: The Key to Successful Fiction
Creating Character: Bringing Your Story to Life
Perfecting Plot: Charting the Hero’s Journey
Dynamic Dialogue: Letting Your Story Speak
Sizzling Style: Every Word Matters
Powerful Premise: Writing the Irresistible
Excellent Editing: The Writing Process
Thinking Theme: The Heart of the Matter
What Writers Need to Know: Essential Topics
Dazzling Description: Painting the Perfect Picture
The Fundamentals of Fiction (video series)
* * *
Poetry
The White Bird
The Ocean’s Edge
* * *
For Young Readers
Shine
Princess Alice and the Dreadful Dragon
Equal Justice: The Courage of Ada Sipuel
The Black Sentry
* * *
Edited by William Bernhardt
Legal Briefs: Short Stories by Today’s Best Thriller Writers
Natural Suspect: A Collaborative Novel of Suspense
William Bernhardt, Splitsville
