Daddy's Little Girl

Defiance

Victoria whipped off her shades and shoved them into her purse as she followed behind the short stout black woman into the bank vault.

“May I have your key?”

Victoria handed over the small silver key  to the woman and proceeded to open the safe deposit box. She placed the silver boxed onto the mahogany table in the middle of the room and gave Victoria a polite smile and said, “Take all of the time you need.”

Victoria sat down and opened the box revealing her old mp3 player, a manila folder and two burned CDs. She emptied everything out into her bag and placed an office folder into the box, she knew that something big was about to happen and she was not about to just sit around defenseless. After leaving the bank she got into her rental and called Dante.

“Hey babe where are you ?”

“I have to drop something off I’ll meet you at your place in twenty minutes.”

“Okay, I hope you’re wearing something comfortable.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ll find out when you get here, see you soon.”

Victoria wondered what Dante had planned for her but pushed it out of her mind; she had business to take care of. She had taken the day off from work to prepare herself for what was to come. When she reached the small office building Victoria was surprised to actually feel nervous. There had never been a reason for her to be nervous, she had always been the one with the leverage and was looked up to for help. Now, she was the one reaching out for help and the thought of rejection made her very nervous. She walked into the building and let out a long sigh as she checked in with the receptionist and was immediately led to the office. The firm only consisted of a handful of attorneys and was much quieter than Victoria was used to but, she felt like the firm was upright. The woman who started the firm was once her mentor and a person Victoria had greatly admired once. When Victoria stepped into the office Martina’s honey colored eyes lit up as a warm smile spread across her face.

“Look at you, all grown up I see,” she said as she stood up from her seat and walked over to greet Victoria.

“It’s been a long time Martina; it’s nice to see you again.” Victoria said as she hugged her.

“You’re a lot shorter than I remembered,” Victoria said as she noticed how she could rest her chin on the top of her head.

“That’s because I no longer strike fear into your heart.”

“I wouldn’t say that.”

“Please have a seat.” She said ushering Victoria to the love seat. “I have to admit that I was surprised when you called, you must be in trouble.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Does it have to do with that lawsuit you’ve been working on?”

“Yes, you are the only one I can turn to. I should have listened to you and left when you did.”

“No, you did the right thing. Following me would have led to nothing but heartache and struggle. It’s taken me years to get to where I am right now, and even now it’s not that impressive.”

“But you’re happy aren’t you?”

“I am, what about you Victoria, are you happy?”

“I’m….working on it.” She said with very little conviction. The women sat in silence for a few moments before Martian spoke again.

“So tell me how can I be of assistance to you?”

“Jeffery is coming after me, and I am pretty sure I will be out of a job soon; if that is the case I want you to take over my case.”