The Lies We Tell (7/?)
Title: The Lies We Tell (7/?)
Pairing: gen, possible C/G
Rating: K
Category: Suspense/Drama, dash of angst
Disclaimer: LtM characters aren't mine, DEK owns Bobby. I own HT.
Summary: When Zoe brings a new case and a new partner to the Lightman Group, long-buried truths will be revealed as they work to defend an innocent man, while a side investigation may place one partner in mortal peril.
A/N: Large, chapter is large. Must be concise for next one. This chap is big on life and low on plot. Eh. Thanks for the feedback everyone! No beta, all mistakes are mine
SIX
.::.::.
It was interview day. Oddly enough, Gillian felt much calmer today than she had in weeks. She wasn't sure if this was the calm before the storm or what, but she wasn't going to make a fuss. Picking up her cell phone, she turned towards her window and dialed an increasingly familiar number.
"Allo? Inspector Toussaint's phone," the voice was smooth and feminine. For a beat Gillian contemplated hanging up.
"This is Gillian, is he available?"
"Ah, so you're the reason Henri's been smiling like a loon for the past week," replied the other woman, grin evident in her voice.
"Sorry?"
"Henri has been -" the woman was interrupted by another voice, presumably Henri's. Gillian heard the muffled sounds of a phone being handed over.
"Gillian? Forgive her, Vivi is just jealous because her marriage is boring and the only exciting phone calls she ever gets are her husband asking what's for dinner."
Grinning at his comment, she laughed as he said 'Ow', most likely receiving a lob in the arm from Vivi. She heard another shuffle and it seemed like he'd just closed a door since the background chatter dissipated.
"Sorry about that," Henri said again. "What can I help you with today, Miss Gillian?"
"After all these years, you're still going to call me that?"
"I'd say it's even more apt now than it was back then."
Gillian sighed loudly and shook her head. "I was curious if you could get in touch with the officers who interviewed Martin Thomas."
"To get their undocumented opinion on him?"
"Essentially. It's hard to read between the lines when you're unfamiliar with whomever wrote the report. I also want to know what the final result was in the case they'd been working at the time."
"Got it," Henri replied. "Anything else?"
"Not right now," Gillian replied, running through her mental list.
"Okay, we've got a busy afternoon, but I'll see what I can come up with."
"Thanks."
"So… did you look at that picture?"
Gillian frowned. Yesterday had been relentless. So much so that she'd forgotten to eat dinner until Cal practically sat in front of her and made her eat. A random picture didn't even make her priority list.
"Why not? Afraid of what you might see?"
"I know exactly what I'll see," Gillian replied. "Nothing but Cal getting irritated because I'm smothering him. He does it pretty often."
"If you say so," Henri replied doubtfully.
"I know so," she felt the air pressure change in her office and turned around to see Zoe sticking her head in questioningly. "I have to go, Call me later if you get anything?"
"As you wish."
Gillian smiled at his familiar reply and ended the call.
.::.::.
The elevator chimed innocently as it unleashed an impeccably dressed lawyer. She strode, nay - she sauntered down the hall as only she could. Never mind that the corridor of The Lightman Group wasn't a catwalk; she had legs to the ceiling and used them to their full potential as she continued to her intended destination.
Bypassing Heidi's desk entirely, Zoe stopped in front of Gillian's office and glanced through the glass. Gillian was facing away from the door, speaking on her cell phone. Deliberating quickly whether it would be too rude to interrupt the call, Zoe decided to go for it, hoping Gillian wouldn't mind.
Opening the door, Zoe heard the tail end of Gillian replying to someone in French. Gillian turned at the sound of her door opening and didn't bother hiding her surprise when she saw Zoe at the threshold. She held up a finger, indicating she was wrapping the call and Zoe nodded in understanding. Watching Gillian listen to the person on the other end was interesting, if only because of the smile she wore.
If Zoe didn't know any better, she'd say Gillian was flirting with whomever she was conversing. Unfortunately, the language barrier hindered her ability to eavesdrop. Still, a woman didn't smile like that unless… was Gillian seeing someone? Maybe there was truth to that Belgian lover comment.
Gillian ended her call and sat down, smiling briefly.
"Sorry about that," Gillian crossed her legs as Zoe took a seat across from Gillian. "Do you need help with something?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact," Zoe stated smoothly. "I was hoping that whatever charade you're planning to pull later could be put off for a bit."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Zoe found it amusing how Gillian didn't even bother trying to lie in a believable manner. Was the woman even capable of lying?
"I bet you don't," Zoe replied doubtfully. "Here's the deal. Bobby has a lot riding on this case. Actually, our entire firm does. Those tapes are probably going to be inadmissible in court, so Bobby needs to prove to the jury that Le Fort is innocent in the simplest manner possible."
Gillian nodded, "I understand. That's exactly why we're having this meeting, to prep Le Fort for next week. And besides, I wouldn't worry about Bobby. He's had much worse odds and still managed to pull off a win."
"That was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about," Zoe crossed her legs as she leaned forward, propping her elbow on her knee. "What is it exactly that you have against Bobby?"
"Why did you agree to work with him in the first place?" Gillian deflected as she cocked her head to the side. "Did you know he used to be married to my cousin?"
Zoe could feel Gillian's scrutiny and tried her very best to relax her face. "You're just as bad as Cal. And no, I didn't. I'd run into him several times at the courthouse and we got to talking. I made an extension and he accepted. All I knew was that he had an ex-wife and a son, but he kept his personal life private."
"You knew something the day you introduced us," Gillian fired back. It really was eerie how similar to Cal she could be.
"The truth? I'd already suggested that we bring the case you. We had the tapes and you're the audio expert. It just so happened that on the way over for our initial meeting, Lindsay called Bobby's iPhone and her face appeared on the screen. They talked about one of her cases, then he said something about Bobby junior and ended the call. When I tried to ask him about Lindsay, he clammed up."
Zoe leaned back in her chair as Gillian took in her words, buying her story. The majority of it was true, except the part in the car had happened the day before the initial meeting, but… semantics. It had given Zoe enough time to read up on the illustrious career of Lindsay Dole and make sure that Gillian wasn't somehow living a double life.
Gillian nodded at Zoe then sighed quietly. She appeared to be laboring over what to say next. "Does Bobby ever talk about Lindsay? Now?"
Smiling slowly, Zoe nodded. She'd had lunch with Bobby on Tuesday and they'd finally cleared the air regarding their exes. It made for an interesting afternoon.
"He does, actually. He says she's a great…" Zoe hesitated, not wanting to point out the main difference between the cousins.
"Mother? I know she is." Gillian offered and Zoe shrugged in agreement. Gillian sat up straighter and inhaled quickly. "With your client… What I'm trying to do is ensure that he isn't a dangerous man. If all goes well today, then clearly, we'll do our best to help make the case airtight."
"And what if it doesn't go well today?"
"For right now, let's hope for the best." Gillian smiled softly and Zoe had to stop from rolling her eyes. She hated non-answers.
"Don't forget that I'm a defense attorney. This isn't the first time I've had to deal with dangerous men."
"Yes, well, there's a difference between garden variety and pathological dangerous."
Zoe couldn't help but frown. She may not see eye-to-eye with Gillian on a great many things, but she did respect her and her abilities. If Gillian felt that Le Fort was a dangerous man, then she'd take heed. It didn't mean she'd drop the case, but she'd certainly be more careful.
"Does it ever bother you?" Gillian asked quietly. "Working with people that have committed heinous crimes?"
"Did it ever bother you at the Pentagon?" Off her hesitation, Zoe clarified. "Just because the government sanctions an assassination or the destruction of several lives, doesn't mean that it isn't wrong."
Gillian nodded, acceding to Zoe's point. Zoe felt there was more in that question that wasn't being asked. "I think the real question is how can I willingly defend a guilty person? Sometimes I don't even know why. But there's one thing that scares us all-"
"That one of these times, your client could actually be innocent?" Gillian finished Zoe's statement with a sardonic grin, having heard the saying before. "You're a baffling breed, you defense attorneys, I'll give you that much."
Zoe's eyebrow quirked upwards at the comment. "I think I'll take that as a compliment."
Gillian gave Zoe a smile that reached her eyes and Zoe found it nice to be on the receiving end for a change. Occasionally, especially when Cal wasn't involved, she could have a civil conversation with Gillian. It was rare, but they had their moments.
"Oh. I wanted to give you a heads up," Zoe said as she stood. "Cal's up to something."
Gillian grabbed a blue folder and stood as well. "Isn't he always?"
.::.::.
Lightman was up to something.
Loker frowned as he watched the scene unfold in the cube. First off, Lightman had taken over and was being his usual self, prodding Le Fort and being mildly hostile. Foster was sitting quietly, showing no outward signs of irritation, but Loker could tell she was pissed.
He knew Foster had planned another sneak attack on their client, but for some odd reason, Lightman had shut her down at every attempt. Obviously, Lightman had a plan of his own, but considering Foster was actively trying to diagnose this guy, it would be hard to do with Lightman's interference. Loker wondered why the sudden change.
Although he didn't doubt Lightman's ability to diagnose people, Loker gave Foster a bit more credit in that area, since she was the clinical psychologist. Regardless of how quickly Lightman had spotted that psychopath or the girl with multiple personality disorder, being a researcher hardly qualified Lightman in whatever he was now trying to do.
Then again, maybe Lightman hadn't seen anything and figured it was okay to proceed as normal.
.::.::.
Ria nodded at Bobby and Zoe as they passed, leading Le Fort down the hallway. She turned to watch as they continued toward the exit, curious as to how the interview had gone. She'd had a dentist appointment, but would have gladly traded a week staring at scary Lightman faces rather than return to the Chair of Torture. Le Fort seemed harmless enough, which was saying a lot, considering he was charged with attempted murder.
The door opening behind her caused Ria to turn around. Foster stormed out of the lab, looking… Ria didn't know how to place it; she rarely saw this expression on Foster. Oh yes. Furious. Foster was furious. Last time it had been directed at her. Right.
Just then, Lightman came out looking one part angry and one part guilty. Catching her wrist, Lightman tugged just as Foster rounded on him, pushing him forcefully in the chest.
"You had no right to do that," she said vehemently.
"You saw for yourself Foster, Le Fort had nothing to do with the trafficking. Nothing."
"What about the other stuff? The whole reason for bringing him back in? I can't get a solid read on him if you're going to bulldoze the entire interview."
As they continued back and forth, Ria watched the entire scene with the same awe that children had when agreeable parents got into a nasty argument. Even worse, she couldn't move from her position in the hall because she would draw attention to herself. Angry Lightman was one thing, she'd experienced him often enough to get the hang of the dynamics.
But angry Foster was a different machine entirely. Ria wasn't quite sure how to handle the fallout, primarily because Lightman was the one making her this way.
"I'm tellin' you right now Foster, all we need to be concerned about is the trial. After that, we wash our hands of him and be done with it."
"You're telling me?" Ria picked up on his poor choice of words before he did. "Or is that an order?" He flashed shame and Foster saw it as easily as Ria did. "Glad to know this is such an equal partnership, Lightman."
Foster yanked her arm from his grasp and turned sharply, heading toward her office.
"Foster, don't -"
Pulling open the door to her office, Foster stopped Lightman with a scathing look. "Bite me."
Eyes widening, Ria briefly wondered where or when Foster had picked up that uncharacteristic comeback. She then glanced at Lightman who gave Ria his own look of scorn before stomping off to his office.
Completely at a loss, Ria entered the lab, hoping Loker would have some sort of explanation.
.::.::.
It was mid-morning the following day. Cal and Gillian wisely stayed apart since their argument. Still, if it weren't so cold outside, he'd think Foster was the one producing the chill.
"Still angry with me?" Cal asked as he surveyed his partner from the entrance to her office.
"Yes," she replied succinctly. The way she held herself indicated that she was indeed still angry, but her resolve was weakening.
Cal knew she'd wanted to interview Le Fort, but he firmly believed that the more ignorant they played in the whole matter would be the best for all parties involved. He couldn't keep an eye on both Zoe and Foster at the same time. It was hard enough dealing with Emily. Once the trial was over and Cal didn't have to worry about all these women, he'd poke around Le Fort some more.
"Peace offering?" He watched as she auspiciously eyed the brown paper bag he held out. She glanced at him then took it warily. Shaking it, she carefully opened the top and sniffed. Cal couldn't help but smirk at her actions.
"For crying out loud. It's not going to blow up," Cal stated as she narrowed her eyes at him. He slouched into the chair and took a sip of his coffee.
"Never know when it comes to you."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Gillian didn't respond. She was too busy trying to figure out how to devour her entire chocolate chip muffin in one bite. Cal just shook his head in wonderment. If only all the women in his life were this easy to appease. Of course, he knew she wouldn't have even let him sit down if he had come empty handed.
Cal considered for the umpteenth time in their partnership telling her how beautiful she was in that moment of childish glee. He knew she'd just shrug it off. She always doubted his sincerity when it came to that kind of thing. He wasn't sure if it was out of self-preservation or because she genuinely didn't believe him.
"What's on the agenda for later?" he asked lightly. A little too soon to poke the sleeping bear. He'd save the heavy stuff for the weekend.
"I'm meeting Bobby to go over his witness list," Gillian replied. "Do you know if Loker will be free later? I wanted him to show Bobby what he and Torres were working on yesterday."
Cal wasn't sure which bothered him more: Zoe being partners with Donnell, or Gillian meeting with him all the time. At the moment, he was more distracted by Zoe's involvement, but that could change.
"Nah, Loker and Torres both mysteriously managed to have engagements this afternoon," Cal said. Gillian picked a chocolate chip out of her muffin and nibbled. Adorable.
"When do we need to worry about their thing?" mused Gillian.
"When it becomes a problem, I guess." Cal offered. "They're smart enough not bring it into the office. They must know that with all my cameras around, I'll put whatever they do here online."
Cal grinned at the reprimanding glare Gillian shot him. Then she seemed to realize how real that threat was and merely shrugged.
"What's got you so bothered about Zoe and Bobby?" she asked after a moment of quiet.
Quirking his eyebrows at his partner, he kept his face free of concern. Instead he slouched further into his chair and studied her carefully. She returned the gesture, a slow smile creeping across her face as she did so. Gillian was one of the few people who would let him just… watch, without getting self-conscious or nervous.
"You're still jealous?" Gillian asked. "I really think she and Bobby want to keep everything professional."
Cal didn't believe that for a second. He saw the way Zoe looked at Donnell, the way she smiled at him when he'd lean over and whisper something, the way they understood each other. They'd give in to that mutual attraction sooner or later.
"No, you hope that they keep it professional. I know Zoe," Cal replied as he shook his head, "I imagine by Christmas she'll have shagged him or they'll have dissolved the partnership."
"O Ye of little faith," Gillian chided, but shrugged all the same. "What about you? Busy this evening? Any sabotaging you haven't told me about?"
Ignoring her dig, Cal shook his head as he watched her finish her muffin. Taking a sip of his coffee, he pulled out his phone when he felt it vibrate with a text from Emily. Oddly enough, Gillian's phone rang at the same time. Busy responding to Emily, he didn't notice the unbidden smile on Gillian's face as she answered the call in English.
"Hey… maybe… that's okay, we've been busy anyway… what?... no I haven't looked at it… sure… thanks."
The call was quick, but he wasn't paying much attention. Cal was too preoccupied by Emily's request that she have two friends spend the night. Unless she was offering to drug him beforehand, there was no way in hell that was going to happen.
"Haven't looked at what?" Cal asked absently, still trying to figure out how to make sure his daughter wouldn't get arrested that evening. Maybe he could get Zoe to draw up a contract or something of that nature.
"A picture." Gillian turned back to him, not even bothering to get annoyed at his pestering.
"Of what? Do you have lewd photographs hiding around here somewhere?" Cal waggled his eyebrows at her, grinning lasciviously.
Gillian frowned at him and it wasn't in exasperation. "I'm not a fan of that kind of thing. There better not be."
Cal watched her closely as she cleaned up her mess and tossed it in the trash. Gillian's face was blank, too blank. They'd dealt with cases of voyeurism before; he'd never seen her react in such a way. Once again, Cal was struck by the fact that there were still untapped reserves about Gillian that he didn't know and probably never would. Of course, so did he. There was such a thing as knowing too much about a person.
Though, Cal doubted he'd ever reach that point in Gillian.
"Dr. Lightman?" Cal turned to see Heidi leaning through the doorway. "Your eleven o'clock is here. Shall I ask her to take a seat in your office?"
Cal glanced around Heidi and saw a tall, leggy blonde waiting patiently. Perfect.
"Oh, no, I'll lead the way," Cal replied quickly as he hopped up. "Wouldn't want to make a bad impression, would I?"
He looked back at Foster who merely shook her head at him and sighed as predicted. Just before he left her office, Cal remembered his entire reason for coming to her in the first place.
"You free for lunch tomorrow?" he asked quickly as he tapped the door frame.
She didn't even bother looking up from her computer as she typed away. "Sure, just give me a call before you want to meet up. My Saturday mornings are busy."
"Brilliant."
.::.::.
Gillian stared at the computer screen then watched Cal lead what could have easily passed as some Swedish model into his office. He didn't even bother trying to hide his attraction. The man could be so unrelentingly obvious sometimes. Despite her residual anger and frustration, she smiled anyway.
Cal may not want to pursue Le Fort as Martin Thomas, but that didn't mean she'd have to stop. She'd worry about that later though. She had other matters to attend to at the moment.
Just to get Henri to stop nagging, Gillian pulled up the stupid article that he wouldn't keep quiet about. The article had been in the Washington Post, which meant plenty of people saw it. All she knew at the time was that a photographer had been taking pictures of all the debris and rubble. Someone had approached them for a quote, but Gillian let Cal do the talking, choosing to stand by as he explained the situation.
Scrolling down, she scanned the article until she reached the image of her and Cal. After enlarging, she scrutinized it as objectively as possible, pretending she didn't know the people in it. There was a gaping hole in the side of a large building with flames licking up to the roof, bricks strewn everywhere, cars in bits and pieces. Firefighters jogged this way and that while officers kept bystanders at bay.
It seemed as though the photographer focused on them because they were the only two people standing still in the entire photograph. Gillian looked at herself first, observing one hand flat on his chest as the other was examining a cut on the side of his forehead. Cal's hand was wrapped around her forearm while the fingers of his other hand were just barely touching her waist. For all intents and purposes, it looked like he was about to push her away - mainly because he did.
But if she took away that knowledge and looked at the photo as a moment in time, it would appear a bit different to the casual viewer. It would look like a woman who cared or possibly loved the man whom she was examining. Not dwelling too much on those thoughts, Gillian looked once again at Cal. His face harder to read, she traced the slack eyebrows, the warmth of his gaze and crinkle around his eye, the slight quirk of his lip.
Gillian leaned back in her chair and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a bounding headache coming on. No, to the casual viewer, that wouldn't look like irritation at all.
If she didn't know any better, she'd say it looked a lot like love.
Considering Cal had just chased a model into his office, however, Gillian sited that as prime evidence that the image was a fluke. Never mind that her company had determined an entire personality based off one image, one look, one quick trip of the lip. She knew without a doubt that Cal Lightman was not in love with her. Care deeply? Yes. Love platonically? Of course. But was he in love with her? Definitely not.
She knew this to be true, if only because she spent about 75% of her waking hours with the man. If she hadn't caught a glimmer of it by now, then she never would. Though, if Cal ever looked at her the way he looked at his new client, she'd consider changing her opinion. Though that would only indicate lust and for the time being, Gillian was pretty sure that was all Cal was capable of anyway.
Gillian shut off her computer and closed her eyes, trying her best to stave off the headache. Glancing at her clock, she had forty-five minutes before she met with Bobby. Swiveling around, she took in the view as she let her thoughts wander for a few minutes.
.::.::.
Gillian was sitting on the floor with books scattered all around, scribbling furiously in a densely packed notebook. In her hands was a worn copy of Madame Bovary, in her ears was the voice of one bored young man.
"If you're so bored, then why'd you come?" Gillian asked absently as she thumbed through the book, looking for a particular passage. "It's not like you didn't know what they'd be doing."
Her roommate, Colette, was currently in the throes of some rather passionate sex in the next room with Henri's best friend, Luc. Henri sighed loudly, running his fingers through his floppy light brown hair.
"I thought that'd be obvious." Henri messed with the lens on his camera, focusing on the window just behind Gillian. "I want to lure you out into the great unknown and have an adventure."
"In case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to finish my paper. Then I have to study for my exam on Thursday."
"But it's only Monday!"
"Exactly."
"You already have the second highest grade in the class, Miss Gillian," he called her Miss Gillian with an English accent, almost in a taunting manner. "In my experience, the trick to school is learning how to be efficient with your time and letting go of some of that tightly fisted control."
"I am not a control-freak," Gillian shot back, clearly having had this conversation with others. "I like to do well in school. What's so wrong with that? And why do you keep calling me Miss Gillian? It's annoying."
"You remind me of an au pair I had when I was younger," he replied.
"You had an au pair? What else did you have when you were younger?"
"A great many things that I don't have now," he replied evasively. Uncurling from his upside down position in her armchair, Henri stood up and slung his camera over his shoulder. "C'mon Miss Gillian. I'll let you bring your book, but the day is young and beautiful and waits for no one. The time is ripe."
"For an adventure?" Gillian quipped as she surveyed him from her position on the floor. She pushed aside his outstretched hand, grabbed her satchel and tossed her book inside. "For the record, the only reason I'm doing this is so you won't even bother in the future."
"Why? Because you aren't any fun?"
"No, I'm plenty of fun. I'm just going to make you wish you hadn't asked in the first place." She trailed him as they descended the stairs and out into the open courtyard where several school kids were playing.
"Duly noted." Stretching out his arm for her to take, he gave her a lopsided smile and a wink. She ignored the flutter in her belly, but took his arm anyway.
"And away we go."
Hours later and night was falling with heavy drops of rain. The quick stomp of hurried footsteps on slick pavement could be heard among laughter and the struggle for air. Only when they reached the courtyard leading to Gillian's flat did they stop running.
"I can't believe you just did that," Henri replied in amazement. "I think I may have underestimated you Miss Gillian."
"You aren't the first, nor will you be the last," she replied smartly as she caught her breath. "You just have to make sure you don't get caught. My cousin always used to get so angry because we'd both be out doing the same thing, but she wasn't as good at being covert."
"Have you always been that good a liar?"
Gillian shrugged. Her ability to lie had been finely developed over many years. Though she'd just spent the entire afternoon and most the evening with Henri up to no good, she hardly knew him well enough to explain why she was so skilled at deception.
"Nah, I'm actually pretty bad at it," she lied smoothly as she brushed her hair out of her face. "That tutu is very flattering on you. Brings out your eyes." Gillian motioned to his gauzy pink skirt that was currently losing its fluff due to the rain.
"I can't believe I lost that bet," Henri replied. "Who knew you'd be able to collect so many numbers?"
"Once again, you underestimate me," Gillian smiled. She felt her cheeks growing hot at the way she'd approached all those men, flirting shamelessly as she collected their numbers. She glanced over at Henri who was shuffling through his backpack.
"Here," he handed her a postcard. She'd admired it earlier at a shop, but didn't think he'd been paying attention.
"What's this for?"
"To remember our first of many adventures. Turn it over."
6, Septembre 1990. Les adventures d'Henri et Mme Gillian, part une.
Gillian glanced up at him and grinned. "So you think there's the potential for more?"
"Of course. I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship, no?"
Gillian was a little too fond of the way he looked at her. Shrugging her shoulders uncertainly, she figured it was time to take her leave. "We'll see. Make sure you get Luc to watch The Princess Bride later, or Colette will cause bodily harm."
Henri gave her his lop-sided smile and a salute. "As you wish."
.::.::.
A/N:Watch every episode of LtM to know what happened in the cube. It was Cal being Cal. 2. Back in the day when I took French, I made Colette my french name. Truestory. 3. This last scene was one of the first I ever wrote for the fic. 4. For those of you who are too young or sheltered to know any better, The Princess Bride (circa 1987) is a piece of preposterous cinematic achievement that must be viewed by everyone. Once you have, you will understand the "As you wish."P.S.S.S. The "Bite me" is a Lindsay Dole thing, and completely OOC for Foster, but I wanted to throw that in there for sh*#s and giggles.
EIGHT