Everything about Liam’s stance, from his worried gaze to his bobbing Adam’s apple, indicated he was nervous. After Mick’s victory in court, the troublemakers who came to the city to whip up resentment against the U.S. Steel deal had gone home, including Liam and the other welders from Philly.

Now Liam was in New York again, and Patrick wanted to know why.

“Come on back to the kitchen. You can help me scrub pots.” Patrick led the way, and Liam followed.

It was sweltering in the kitchen, with the stoves and ovens working at full blast, but Liam rolled up his sleeves without complaint and lowered the empty pot into the sink filled with wash water.

Patrick grabbed a rag to begin drying bowls. “Out with it, then.”

“I need a lawyer,” Liam said.

“You came a long way, and I don’t practice law in Pennsylvania. I’m afraid you’ve wasted your time.”

Liam glanced at one of the ladies preparing a vat of coffee, then back at him. “It’s a New York problem and not something I want overheard.”

Patrick nodded. “Help me finish the lunch duty, and we can talk when we’re done.”

The cleanup didn’t take long because Liam worked hard. He scrubbed, dunked, rinsed, and dried. He was clearly no stranger to work, as he cleared dishes, swept the floors, and wiped down the tables. Patrick finished the chores an hour earlier than he could manage when working on his own.

“We can talk in the alley behind the kitchen,” he suggested.

Liam nodded and followed. Empty crates and dented trash cans cluttered the narrow brick alley. There was nobody else back here, but Liam glanced nervously up and down the street before speaking in a low voice.

“I don’t know who to trust,” he finally said. “Uncle Mick said you were a decent lawyer and you promised not to tell any of his secrets. Something about the rules of being a lawyer.”

“That’s right.”

Liam fidgeted, continually shifting his weight. “Yeah, well, the only lawyers I’ve met are shysters who work for the owners of the steel mills. You’re nothing like them. You seem like one of us, like I might be able to trust you.”

“Trust me to do what?”