Chapter Twenty
Michael couldn't believe that he'd received a phone call from Lieutenant Colonel Biggs's attorney requesting a meeting. He hadn't had a chance to find his own attorney, but he decided to go ahead and meet with Biggs's attorney just to see what their response was to his complaint. Before the meeting, he picked up Madeline, who was going along with him for support. They stopped by the base so he could have a brief meeting with his therapist to discuss possible outcomes to the meeting and what he wanted the end result to be. Feeling empowered, Michael thanked his therapist for the unscheduled appointment, and with Madeline by his side, he headed toward Virginia for the meeting that he hoped would give him a permanent resolution to all the anguish he'd been holding in.
On the drive there, Madeline felt a little detached from the whole thing, but she wanted Michael to know she supported him. She reached over and put her hand on his and gave it a squeeze. Michael glanced over at her and smiled.
“Thanks. I needed that. I am a little anxious about all of this. I'm curious about why they've called a meeting.”
“I guess we'll find out sooner than later. I just want you to know I'm here for you. You're not alone in this, and it will be okay. We'll get through this.”
“I really appreciate your support. I was a little reluctant to let you come, but I'm glad I did, and for the record, you are wearing that navy suit. Your legs are spectacular, and you're making it hard for me to concentrate on driving.”
Madeline giggled and said, “Well, once we finish up here, maybe we should hop on a plane to Miami for a few days and take in some sun.”
“Don't you have to work?” he asked.
“I'm my own boss, remember? Besides, I can work and play at the same time.”
“That really sounds inviting, Madeline, but it all depends on how things go today. Nothing would make me happier than kicking that man's ass straight to hell.”
“I hope the bastard falls down dead,” she stated as she stuck a stick of gum in her mouth. “Do you want some gum, babe?”
Michael chuckled and said, “No thank you. You know, you're a hard sista.”
“I'm serious, Michael. He needs to burn in hell.”
“I agree with you on that one. I'm only doing this so I can get on with my life and so he can't hurt anyone else.”
“You're my hero, Michael Monroe,” she replied with a smile.
He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek as he exited the expressway. “I don't feel like a hero. I just want to serve out my time and retire so I can live my life.”
“It'll happen, Michael, but I don't want you to walk into this meeting unprepared. Let me act as your counsel. They'll never know.”
“Babe, these men are not stupid. What makes you think you can pull something like that off?”
“That's where you're in luck. My father is an attorney, and I spent a lot of time with him at his practice.”
“Yeah, but you'll be impersonating an officer of the court. It's fraud, baby.”
“Sweetheart, I promise I won't say a word unless it appears that they're trying to pull one over on you, and I won't say I'm an attorney. I'll just say I'm there to represent you. That could mean a lot of things.”
He pulled into the academy lot and said, “You really think you can pull this off?”
“I'm positive. I've done it before. Just trust me, babe,” she answered as she winked at him. “Just introduce me, and if I have to show them a business card, I'll show them this one from my dad's law firm.”
Michael shut off the engine and looked at the business card. It had
SAVOI LEGAL SERVICES
written on it, along with a telephone number and a fax number. He handed the card back to her and said, “Well, you sure do look the part. Okay, I'm going to go along with this, but I pray it won't come to you having to say something.”
She gave him a high five and said, “I got you, babe. I'm going to send Daddy a text to let him know I'm representing a friend, and I'll ask him to let me know if they get a call to confirm my association with the firm.”
In the conference room of the administration building, Michael and Madeline found Lieutenant Colonel Biggs, his attorney, and what appeared to be a legal secretary seated at the large oak table.
“Major Monroe, I'm glad you could make it on such short notice,” the attorney said, greeting him. “I'm a representative from the judge advocate general's office. We thought it was best that we handle the matter as delicately and discreetly as possible.”
Michael shook his hand and said, “Thank you. I just want to get this settled.”
The attorney turned to Madeline and held out his hand. “And you are?”
She gave him a firm handshake, something she'd learned from her father. “Madeline Savoi. I'm here to represent Major Monroe.”
The attorney's smile left his face as he glanced down at her firm grip. He hadn't expected Michael to show up with an attorney, but Michael was an academy graduate and it was a smart move. “I see. Shall we get started?”
Michael held his breath as they sat down across from Biggs and his attorney.
“The reason we called you here is to let you know that Lieutenant Colonel Biggs and I have read over your complaint and the terms that have to be met to make this matter go away. He has no plans to retire, because he still has a lot of work to do. However, he will consider seeing a therapist.”
Madeline could see Michael tense up, and he was making a fist under the table. She reached over and covered his hand with hers to comfort him. Michael was stunned by Biggs's refusal to retire, and so was Madeline. Biggs's retirement was critical to Michael, and he sat there like a deer caught in the headlights, leaving Madeline no choice but to jump in to protect her lover's interests.
“That's not good enough,” Madeline announced, startling Michael. “I'm sure you're aware that the state of Virginia doesn't have a statute of limitations on sexual assault.”
“We are,” Biggs's attorney replied.
“Refusing to retire is not an option, unless you want to take this matter to the courts.”
“Of course we don't want that,” the attorney replied.
“Then it would be in your best interests to get your client to agree to
all
the terms,” Madeline asserted. “Look, if you knew you were going to waste our time, you could've told us this bullshit information over the telephone and saved us some gas.”
The attorney put his hands up in defense and said, “Ms. Savoi, can we all just take a breath for a moment? The last thing we want is to drag this matter into court. However, don't forget that Major Monroe's accusations can't be verified, and all we have is his word against Lieutenant Colonel Biggs's.”
Madeline sat up on the edge of her seat and stared right at the lieutenant colonel, who had sat silent, along with Michael, the entire time. She pointed her finger at Biggs's attorney and said, “And don't you forget that all we need is one more victimâ”
“Alleged victim,” the attorney interrupted.
Madeline hesitated and then corrected herself and said, “
Alleged
victim to come forward to put this case on another level. The lieutenant colonel has had a long career here at your illustrious academy. I'm sure it won't take much to locate some of his former cadets who had encounters similar to Major Monroe's.”
“Now hold on, Ms. Savoi!” Biggs yelled.
“No, you hold on, Lieutenant Colonel!” Madeline yelled as she stood.
“There's no way in hell I'm going to let this liar come here and try to destroy my reputation and take my money!” Biggs yelled.
“I don't want or need your damn money!” Michael shouted.
“Counselor, control your client, or this meeting is over before it gets started!” Madeline yelled.
“Control yours,” the attorney replied, his voice slightly elevated.
“Counselor, if your client makes one more outburst, the next time you see us, you and your client will be in a courtroom, behind a defendant's table,” Madeline announced.
The attorney grabbed the lieutenant colonel's arm and did his best to silence him, even though he kept on mumbling.
Madeline leaned on the table and once again stared at Biggs. “Now, what's it going to be, Counselor? Is your client going to meet the terms Major Monroe laid out or not?”
“Could you two give us a moment so I can discuss this with my client?”
Madeline looked at her watch and said, “The clock is ticking. Make it quick. We don't have all day.”
Michael and Madeline walked out into the hallway and closed the door behind them. Michael exhaled and said, “You're a damn pit bull, Madeline. Hell,
I
was scared, so I know they have to be shaking in their boots. You should've been a lawyer.”
She sat down and crossed her legs and said, “I told you. My dad taught me well.”
“I wonder what they're talking about,” Michael said as he paced the hallway.
Madeline pulled out her compact, freshened up her makeup, and said, “I guarantee you that his attorney is trying to convince the lieutenant colonel to agree to the terms. Babe, they're not going to let us leave here unhappy. They have more to lose, and they know I'm not playing with them.”
He smiled at her and said, “I want to kiss you so bad right now.”
She giggled. “I want more than a kiss, but you'll have to wait until we get this settled.”
At that moment the door to the conference room opened, interrupting them. The secretary asked them to rejoin the meeting so they could finish the discussion. Madeline and Michael walked back into the room, took their seats, and waited for a response.
“Thank you for allowing us a moment to discuss our options,” the attorney said before shuffling some papers. “I advised my client that it would be in his best interests to agree to the terms in order to protect his reputation. This is not an admission of guilt, by any means. We thought your terms were fair, considering that you're not doing this for monetary gain. My client is prepared to retire from the academy effective immediately as long as he keeps his pension and other benefits. He also agrees not to have any other position of authority that will put him in charge of minors. Lastly, Lieutenant Colonel Biggs requests that you sign a confidentiality agreement so this won't come back to haunt him in the future and so the media doesn't get a hold of any of this information.”
Madeline put her hand up and said, “My client will consider a confidentiality agreement on a couple of conditions.”
Michael looked over at Madeline in disbelief. He had no idea where she was going with her request, but he had allowed her to control the direction of this meeting and he wouldn't stop her now.
“What conditions?” the attorney asked.
“First, Lieutenant Colonel Biggs has to admit to what he did to my client, and it goes on the record. If he reneges on any part of our agreement, it's a whole new ball game, and Major Monroe will file an official complaint with the local police department and sue him for punitive damages. Also, don't forget that your client must obtain and be treated by a licensed therapist outside of this establishment, with progress reports submitted to my office on a monthly schedule.”
“There's a doctor-patient confidentially problem with that request,” the colonel's attorney stated.
“Not in this case,” she answered quickly. “You can thank your client for that.”
The attorney stared at Madeline in amazement, and so did Michael.
“Third and last, we all know the lieutenant colonel is going to retire a very wealthy man with a huge pension and other fringe benefits, not to mention the money he can earn on the lecture circuit. Therefore, he will offer a full scholarship to this academy to one underprivileged youth each year for the rest of his life as the Major Michael Monroe Scholarship Fund. Major Monroe will review the candidates and will make the final selection of the scholarship winner.”
Biggs's attorney looked over at the secretary and asked, “Did you get all of that?”
“Yes, sir,” she answered.
Michael was in awe of Madeline and how well she knew her way around the legal arena.
Biggs shook his head and said, “This is some bullshit.”
Michael and Madeline both looked at the lieutenant colonel in disbelief. Madeline held her forefinger and thumb close together and said, “I'm this close to walking my client over to the local police station so he can file a complaint. That will take this to a whole other level. If your client makes one more condescending remark, all bets are off.”
“Lieutenant Colonel, please,” the attorney said, pleading with his client to refrain from his outbursts. He stood and held out his hand to Madeline and said, “You have a deal.”