The following morning, I go back to Nancy Leider’s office. She’s Nicholas’ lawyer and this time, I’m going to make her listen.

I didn’t fight hard enough for him before but now that I know the truth and I know that he is one hundred percent innocent, I have to make her understand.

Her assistant shows me into her office and brings me a cup of tea with an assortment of tea bags.

The office is plush and comfortable with thick carpeting, a luxurious upholstered sofa, the color of wheat, and a glass desk with very few things on it.

In fact, the office itself doesn’t really look like it belongs to an attorney at all.

There’s even a big faux sheepskin rug on the floor that I can’t help but touch.

“Thank you for waiting,” Nancy says, dropping her iPad on the table and folding her arms across her chest before asking me what she can do for me.

I hope that she’s not just being polite but will actually listen to what I have to say this time.

I remind her that I’m Nicholas’ girlfriend once again and start to review what I learned from Ricky Trundell and Robert Bortham when she interrupts me.

“You’ve already told me all of that before,” she says.

“I know but I just wanted to go over it again in case you didn’t hear me right before.”

“I always hear everything right.”

“Well, in case you forgot—“ I start to say but she cuts me off again before proceeding to review all of the facts that I learned from both of them in a much more succinct and detailed way than I could’ve ever explained.

“What is it that you really came here to tell me?” Nancy asks, turning on the large computer screen on her desk and pulling out the wireless keyboard.

“If I tell you this, can you promise not to tell anyone?” I ask. She narrows her eyes.

“I can only do that if I am officially your attorney.”

What is she doing? Is this some sort of ploy to get me to pay her?

“I don’t have much money,” I say.

She slides open the drawer in her desk and pulls out a single sheet of paper. I glance over it and it’s a very basic agreement saying that she will be acting as my attorney and everything that happens between us will be privileged information.

“Sign this and pay me one dollar and I will never reveal anything you tell me without your permission.”

I take a deep breath and write my name on the line. After I pay her in quarters, the only cash I have on hand, I tell her everything that happened.