#17 wall flower
#3 illegitimate
#25 heiress
#17 sisters
#47 lawyer
#1 dowry
"It couldn't be me," says Tess. "Frankly I agree. There's no way you could have been his daughter. Too stiff. Too innocent to be his offspring," mocks Lyons.
Lyons Ducane, a...
The windows are barred with sturdy iron bars. The door is locked. She knocks on the walls. No loose planks like in her novels. No secret exit.
She sits back on the bed.
(Oh, what should I do? No one would know I'm here...)
She thinks about her old parents. And she thinks about Lyons.
(I must do something! I don't want to end up as a skeleton in here! I never tell Lyons I love him. I'm not ready to die. Not yet...)
She tries to be strong. But finally she feels defeated and weeps bitterly.
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*****
"Where is she?" asks Lyons while barging into Dunwoody's office.
The fat rich man is smoking an expensive cigar. Blowing up smoke. One cigar could feed a hungry family in slum for five days.
"Who?" asks Dunwoody.
"Theresa Matthews. Your goons kidnapped her last night," says Lyons angrily.
"Don't know. Don't care," says Dunwoody.
"Listen, pal. If you hurt her..."
"Threatening me won't work, Ducane. If you really loved her, win the case. And maybe you would see her again," says Dunwoody after blowing some smokes to Lyons' face.
Lyons sighs. He says, "I will go all out in the next trial. You would win the case, Sir."
"Good to hear. I paid your law firm a fortune," complaints Dunwoody.
Lyons asks, "It would be cheaper to pay your employees."
"Nay! If I paid them too much, they would keep demonstrating for more. Leaving nothing for me. Now go and win, boy!"
Dunwoody makes a gesture as if chasing a dog out from his office. Maybe in his eyes, Lyons Ducane is nothing more than a filthy dog.
*****
A gun is fired. Curses and sounds of broken objects. And suddenly smokes are everywhere.
The house is burning!
Tess screams while hitting the locked door with her fists.
"Let me out! I don't want to die here! Let me out! Please, I beg you!" yells her desperately.
It felt like ages before a man asks, "Tess? Are you in there? Step away from the door!"
The door got rammed few times before the hinges broke down.
She calls, "Lyons?"
A man emerges out of thick smokes. He teases, "Nope. Sorry to disappoint you, honey. The devil is in court."
Her savior is Connor Donelly, her ex-boyfriend.
Connor says, "I'm still the best runner in town. Tracking you down was a cinch. These guys are a bunch of amateurs."
Tess asks, "Lyons?"
"He is battling his own battle in the courtroom. Let's get back quickly. My replacement won't be able to hold off Lyons Ducane."
*****
Lyons says, "And that's my defence,Your Honor. Like I said, Sir Richard Dunwoody is..."
A woman just walks into the courtroom. Her clothes are filthy, covered with soots. And some cobwebs on her hair. Yet, in his eyes, she looks as lovely as usual.
Lyons smiles widely. And he adds, "Like I said, Sir Richard Dunwoody is nothing more than a crook, a petty thief and a great liar. He burned money which belong to his poor workers. And I have solid proofs his factories dumped toxic wastes to Thames River."
There's a loud uproar in the courtroom. The peasants are cheering for the devil advocate for once. The judge has to hammer few times to restore order once more.
Sir Richard Dunwoody is cursing his solicitor, "You would pay for this insult, Ducane! No one would hire you! I swear it! You shall regret this!"
Lyons bows to him like an actor on stage whom getting praised for excellent performances.
He adds, "Your Honor, I hereby declared my ex-client guilty as charged. Thank you."
Lyons holds Tess' hand and kisses the back of her palm once. And he leads her out of the noisy courtroom.
"Is it okay to leave like that?" asks her.
"Tess, I just blew up the biggest case in history. No one would use me now. I'm fired. No, I quit my firm before they fired me," corrects him.
Lyons is heart broken.
All his life, his only dream was to be a partner in a big well-known law firm. To have money and live a comfortable life. Now he would be penniless.
He stares to Tess.
(Well, at least Tess is okay. I better get her home soon).
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