The She-Hulk Diaries (28 page)

I said, “I thought the car ran green.”

“It does. I kept the rumble. I like a car that can roar,” he said, with a glance at me.

I thought there might be subtext to his comments, but I couldn’t figure out what it might be, so I just said, “Me, too” as he drove out onto the street.

“Um, who was that boy you were talking to?” I asked, sliding my hand along the side of the black bucket seat and wishing I was at the wheel. “The big kid.”

“Jordy,” Ellis said. “He hates being in the children’s ward, but he’s only fifteen, so pediatric medicine is the best place for him. Children’s bodies are different than adult bodies and need specialty care.”

“He seemed angry.”

“He
is
angry.” Ellis glanced me. “He’s spent the last six years in and out of hospitals. He hasn’t had a childhood and he’s afraid he’s not going to have an adulthood.”

“What’s wrong with him?… If it’s not confidential.”

“It’s not. He has invasive cancer. His entire body is compromised, and his organs are on the verge of shutting down. Kate tells me that hope helps.” Ellis negotiated a chaotic intersection. “Hope will keep him going while medicine looks for answers.”

“He seemed to like the story. What else can be done to raise his mood?”

“I know one thing.” Ellis didn’t speak until we were stopped at a light. “He really wants to meet She-Hulk.”

I kept my eyes straight ahead. “He told you that?”

“He saw a video of me with Shulky at Club Nice, and now he thinks I’m tight with her. I keep telling him that I don’t even know how to contact her,” he said. “She’s a friend of yours, isn’t she?”

Was he just using Jordy as an excuse to get to Shulky? “We’re colleagues. You can leave a message at the Avengers Mansion.”

“I suppose I can try. She probably gets thousands of messages a week.”

“She does, but she has staff to sort through them, and you can mention that I referred you,” I said. “Do you like her, She-Hulk?”

Ellis turned into the entrance of the office garage. “Jenny or Jennifer, what do you want me to call you? Inside every man is a teenage boy, and we’re
all
crazy in love with Shulky.”

This close, I could smell his aftershave again, or maybe it was his piney woods-scented sweat. Whatever it was smelled delicious, and I remembered it from long ago. I could see his strong wrists and large hands. I could make out the spot on his jaw that he’d missed shaving, which made me feel unexpectedly tender toward him, and see the variations of color in his thick hair.

I reminded myself that he’d never called me, but I couldn’t help saying, “Ellis, I can understand your loyalty to Max Kirsch, but why are you singling me out as the villain in the scenario, when your father and Amber also support the case against ReplaceMax?”

He parked, shut off the powerful engine, and turned to me. “Amber brought Sven Morigi to QUIRC, and my father trusts her business acumen. She is a consummate pro and I admire that about her.” His rough voice dropped, and he looked into my eyes and said, “But I thought you’d understand that sometimes you have to follow your instincts and swing from the rafters.”

I had an intense desire for him to lurch over, mash me to the seat, and kiss me so hard that he bruised my lips. I wanted us to bang our
elbows and our knees as we tried to maneuver to the backseat of a car that was a much bigger turn-on than a candlelit table at an elegant restaurant.

Could men tell when women were thinking the smexy thoughts about them? I didn’t want to take a chance, so I opened the door, practically jumped out, and hurried to the elevator.

As we were riding up to QUIRC, I said, “You can call me Jen. Most people do.”

“Jen, that’s better than Jennifer. Jennifer seems like another person,” Ellis said. “I’m sorry I got your name wrong… before. I feel pretty stupid. I called you Gin all weekend, didn’t I?”

Then I met his eyes, and he sure didn’t look sorry, but I said, “I thought that was just your way of pronouncing Jen. It was noisy when I told you.”

The corner of his mouth rose, and he said, “I like noise. All kinds of noise.”

If I’d had a court reporter with me, I could have asked that his last statement be read back to me and then asked for clarification. The words and implications jumbled in my brain, and I could feel my temperature rise.

We arrived at our floor and got out. “Thank you for the lift, Ellis.”

“Next week at reading time we’re making wizard hats and magic wands.” He put his hand out as if he was going to touch me, drew it back, and said, “Kate’s warned me that there may be glitter.”

I nodded, and we both said, “Bye,” at the same time, just as Amber, impeccable in a midnight-blue suit, came down the hall.

“Ellis, what are you doing here?”

“Hey, babe. I’m having lunch with my father.”

“Please no endearments at the office. I heard he was out all day. Was he expecting you?” she said.

“I was nearby,” he said.

“Doing what?” Amber didn’t wait for his answer before giving me an up-and-down look. “It’s not Casual Friday, Jennifer, and our Casual
Fridays are restricted to administrative and support staff. It’s in the HR manual.”

“I was visiting a client,” I said.

Her Botox was good enough to allow her to lift her eyebrows just enough to show contempt. I glanced at Ellis, who’d shoved his hands in his pockets and was looking somewhere over Amber’s head.

“Excuse me,” I said, and as I was leaving, I heard Ellis say to Amber, “Who made you hallway monitor, pumkin?” It was enough to make me grin.

Am trying to focus on cloning factoids, but I keep replaying everything Ellis said and did. Called D and told her about my Close Encounter of the Ellis Kind.

My docs for the ReplaceMax suit were ready yesterday, but I didn’t want anyone to think that the case was an April Fool’s prank, so I held off the announcement. As I always tell my clients, “Be sure to check the calendar for national holidays and festivities that may conflict with scheduled events.” I should have added, “And be sure not to schedule any kind of meeting with a party girl the day after her birthday because of the likelihood that she’ll hurl on your beautiful new shoes.”

Amber Hammerhead and I went to court to file
Sven Morigi, PhD, plaintiff v. Maxwell L. Kirsch, ReplaceMax Corp. et al
. with the court clerk. Quinty accompanied us, wearing that damn monocle. I keep expecting him to wear a top hat and spats, too, like Mr. Peanut. Then I made my plea for an expedited court date.

Even though the day was drizzling, several reporters and camera crews showed up, alerted by QUIRC’s PR rep. I’d rehearsed my talking points until I could say them smoothly and confidently. Sven joined us so that people could see that the case was about people, not money. He wore a camel-hair coat over a navy suit. His black hair gleamed in the crystalline morning light, and he looked somber, yet seemed intelligent and compassionate.

The reporters practically swooned as he stood on the courthouse steps and talked about the importance of the legal system vis-à-vis medical advances.

I can’t wait for the case to be over, so he can be my official PFLOML! I wonder if he has a smoking jacket with velvet lapels that he wears in the evenings. Does he ever dress casually? Would it be weird of me to ask him? I was thinking about this while Sven answered reporters’ questions, and Amber stepped in to speak on behalf of QUIRC.

As the hammerhead was being interviewed, Sven came to me and said, “You’re doing a marvelous job, Jennifer. Is it unreasonable for me to be jealous because my case takes up all your time?”

I repressed the urge to giggle because he gave me the jim-jams. “Amber’s got everything under control. I’ve got to get back to the office. I’ll call this week to update you.”

“Till then. Adieu.”

No shit, he actually said that, and I realized that an elegant accomplished man who said “adieu” was much more romantic than a confusing lumberjerk.

I returned to the office in Quinty’s Town Car. My boss removed his monocle and said, “You did an excellent job framing the case. ReplaceMax will immediately feel the pressure of public opinion, especially when Dr. Morigi’s cause is so sympathetic.”

“It’s going to be a challenge, sir, letting them squirm before settling, because the victims are suffering and we don’t need to add more stress to those on our witness list.”

Quinty gave me a somber look. “I made a decision last night, Jennifer. We’re not settling. I want to see ReplaceMax demolished in court.”

My mouth dropped open in preparation to saying “Whoa!” but Quinty had anticipated my reaction, because he added, “I believe you’ve met my daughter Kate. She has a degree of fortitude that astonishes me. She bears her grueling days with a smile, but when she talks about the ReplaceMax victims, I can see her anguish. We need to demolish ReplaceMax in court to tell the world that there is no tolerance when the lives of children are at stake. Can I count on you, Jennifer?”

I always tell my clients, “Never automatically reject advice from someone who has far more experience, even when the advice runs counter to your initial reaction,” so I said, “Yes, sir. I shall proceed with a jury trial as my desired outcome. However, I reserve the right to reassess my strategy if I feel that the health of the victims is being compromised by delaying a resolution.”

Quinty said, “The ReplaceMax victims are already doomed, and our priority is to see that others don’t suffer their fate.”

“Sir, I am not willing to abandon hope for the current ReplaceMax victims in order to protect theoretical victims.”

Quinty drew down his eyebrows and then said, “You can take the girl out of the public sector, but you can’t take the pro bono spirit out of the girl.”

“No, sir. Will that be a problem?” I asked as I felt my heart speed up. I
was trying to decide whether it would still count as meeting my goal if I lost this job, but Quinty said, “No, it’s not a problem.”

The driver stopped the car and opened the doors for us.

I wanted to jump out and shout “
Kapow!
” It’s really amazing when I can do the right thing
and
meet my goals.

My elation wore off by the time I returned to my office. I asked Donner to hold my calls, and then I went to my meditation room, locked the door, kicked off my shoes, took off my skirt, and sat cross-legged on the floor. I thought and thought, and this is all I came up with to help Mavis:

PROS: GR infection will cause her to be superstrong and will heal her damaged heart. She will also have great hair and an interesting fashion sense.