Summary:Helena comes to Murdock for legal help on behalf of a friend. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
Related LogsTheme SongNone |
  |
One would think that the Wayne family probably has an entire army worth of lawyers. One would be right, of course, but to be fair, at least some of them are currently trapped beneath a weird fairy dome. That's not really what brings Helena Wayne out to this little enclave of Hell's Kitchen though. She's not the one who needs a lawyer.
The motorcycle purrs up to the curb outside the building and she pulls off her helmet, locking it into the seat compartment once she's on her own feet and giving the building a look before checking her phone. The address matches, at least.
Perhaps one of the greatest lawyers in New York right now, at least in the top three, Matt Murdock is currently on the phone. He wears a rather casual-looking formal attire. white dress shirt with a red tie and suit slacks, his suit jacket coated around his chair as headjusts his red shades to hide his blindness. His stick is leaning against his desk in easy reach.
"Yes, I'm aware. Fine, I'll get it all sorted out for you. Pro Bono. I owe Jackson a favor anyway. Alright, have a good one." He hangs up the phone and pinches the bridge of his nose. A sigh later and he's back on his feet, walking around his office for a moment like he's searching for something.
But then he hears the sound of a motorcycle engine coming to a stop a short distance away and some steps walking up to building's door. He narrows his eyes a second. Heartbeat normal. Not a danger, or else the heart rate would be faster from adrenaline and thrill.
A remarkably steady heartbeat, this one. Then again, it can't be that abnormal for people to show up without being in a panic…right? When Helena reaches the door, she steps inside to check the directory, brows rising slightly when she finds the listing. All right. Definitely the right building.
She moves forward with a confident step then, until she reaches the door of the actual office, pausing outside to tap lightly on the door.
Matt had decided to essentially not be concerned about it, most of his enemies owuldn't even know where to begin to look for the Devil of Hell's Kitchen, but when the rapping of the door is so easily heard, even if its just the softest knock, Matt approaches the door to open it.
He looks at the young woman on the other side and he opens the door a little wider.
"Hi. Can I help you with something?" He way he doesn't really look -at- her, suggests that he might have a vision problem, but the shades covering his eyes prevents any sure bet.
"Hi," Helena responds, head tilting slightly as she gets a glimpse of the man on the other side. She's done her research enough to recognize the man, but it's not necessarily polite to act that way. So she smiles faintly instead, clasping her hands lightly behind her back and staying on her side of the door.
"I'm looking for Matt Murdock?" she continues. "It's sort of a…" Pausing, she looks up and down the hall, then back at him. "Private matter."
Matt looks in her general direction, really, and he seems to nod knowingly when Helena expresses a desire to keep what she has to say or what she wants, rather, private. "Well, luckily, you've come to the right place." He extends his hand to her. "Matt Murdock, a pleasure." Whether she shakes his hand or not, he'll invite her inside and close the door behind her.
Ironically, no one else was in the office, especially not Matt's occasional partner. "So, now that we have privacy, what do you have on your mind?"
"Helena," the girl introduces herself as she takes the offered hand with a small, relieved smile, her grip firm and brief. Practiced and professional. More than matches the sound of her age in her voice, at least. "Nice to meet you, Mister Murdock."
She steps inside at his invitation, taking a quick look around the office. "I have a friend," she says at his question, refocusing back on the lawyer. Her voice is steady, as is her heartbeat. It seems there really is a friend and not just 'a friend.' "From high school. She…sort of got into some trouble. Long story short, she got a scholarship to ESU here, but when the financial aid didn't come through in time she took a loan from someone she really shouldn't have, who asked her to pay it back by moving some drugs, and of course she got caught."
"Nice to meet you, Helena." the shake is firm and professional, not something to dismiss lightly. But as he walks, his hand seems to glide along countertops as he makes his way back to his desk. The mannerisms seem to be extremely apparent that Mr. Murdock is effectively blind. Something that she probably could've figured out on his wikipedia page if she dug deeply enough.
As he sits down, he gestures to one of the two seats in front of his desk that is clearly there for visitations and client interaction. But he clasps his hands together and rolls up his sleeves to his elbows as he listens to Helena's story.
He doubts this 'friend' she mentions is a lover or an enemy, there would've been a shot of nervousness, which would make her pulse a little quicker, even for a quick moment, so itsl ikely just a friend that she's truly worried about.
"So she was caught in a sticky situation and resorted to drug running to pay back a drug runner who lent her the money?" Just to make sure he has the story straight. Given, he's dealt with MUCH WORSE than this and got a successful turnaround in the courts.
"That's about the sum of it," Helena grimaces, nodding habitually as she settles into one of the chairs. "She can't afford a lawyer. And after borrowing money got her into this mess, she won't take a loan to pay for one either. And while I know people at the public defender's office in Staten Island, it happened here in Manhattan, so…"
She lets out a breath, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. "Okay, I'm going to be honest here." Which is good, because he'd know if she wasn't. "You've got a reputation for taking pro bono work. And," she adds quickly, "I'm not asking if you'd take it pro bono. I can totally pay. Just…if you could tell her it's pro bono so she'll accept it, I would really, really appreciate it. A lot."
Matt nods softly to Helena then. A tough situation indeed, she probably lost a ton of money in the process of this loan if they confiscated or locked her out of her funds. But he understands why she wouldn't take out another loan: she was screwed once already, why would she repeat history, so to speak? Doesn't make a ton of sense. Wise, for her.
But when she starts to get honest, Matt nods approvingly. "Good." And then she asks him to basically at least -say- its pro bono, Matt takes a deep breath for a minute before he rubs his forehead. He needs to eat too, ya know! But there's more to heroics than putting on a mask and kicking the shit out of goons at night. Its everyday things where people need help. Government, money, food for the day, clothes on the back. Everyone can be a hero in this way. "Alright. Since I have a bad habit of pity cases…" he leans back in his chair so he's sitting upright instead of leaning forward. "Pro Bono."
Helena lets out a relieved breath, slumping just a little in the chair. "Thank you. Seriously. She doesn't deserve to spend a decade behind bars because someone in financial aid messed up paperwork and school costs a stupid amount of money in the first place." She reaches into her pocket, taking out a small wallet and pulling out a business card. Sure, they're not usually great for blind guys, but this one is embossed heavily enough that even a blind man without Matt's gifts could probably use it.
Leaning forward, she slides it across the desk toward his hand. "I promise, not actually pro bono," she assures. "You can send the bill there, it'll get paid. Whatever it costs." Once he has the card, he can no doubt tell why. That's the Wayne Enterprises logo. And the last name to go with the first is Wayne.
"Don't mention it. American law surrounding the subject is kind of stupid when it comes to cash. Unfortunately, universities want you to go far in life so bad that they want to empty your wallet while they get you there." A poor attempt at a joke, but she puts a business card on the table and Matt doesn't even look at it, its like he could 'see' that it was there in a different way, but he does feel over the slightly bulged letters on the card.
Waynes are fancy. But she's a WAYNE?! arn't they stupid rich?
Regardless, Matt looks at the business card and shrugs. "If you say so, Miss Wayne. Or do you prefer Helena?" Either way, when the bill gets sent in the future, they will find that Matt is actually pretty inexpensive compared to the ridiculous amoutns of cash other lawyers pay.
"Helena's fine," the girl answers with another flicker of a smile. "I'd say Miss Wayne is my mom, but hey, famously not what she goes by, so. Sorry. Bad joke. But the good news is I'm totally good for it!" Also not a great joke. She tries.
"On topic, though, she's good people, Mister Murdock. She deserves a real chance. She put in the work, she did everything right. She was even trying to do this right. She got into a bad place, and…that's just not something that should change everything she's ever done and everything she could do. Not if it can be helped."
A small smirk from Murdock then. "Fair enough, Helena. Fair enough." Yes, he knows the news. They typically say "Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle." Not Selina Wayne or even Selina Kyle-Wayne. Its all very formal. Nonetheless, Murdock seems to nod like he gets what she's trying to say.
"I agree with you, Helena. Thats why I want to help you, pay or no pay." He gives a warmer smile then, like he's now her friend or something. Well, he might be if he's doing her this huge solid. "When do you think we could have her in my office so we could talk the specifics of what happened?"
"Yeah, so, about that…" Helena grimaces, reaching up to rub a hand at the back of her neck. "That whole not taking charity thing? Well, it's why she hasn't made bail and is still in jail. I've got all the info," she adds quickly, pulling out her phone. "I can email it to you, if you want? Or whatever is the best way to send it." Electronic accomodations for the blind are not something she's extensively read up on.
"Well, I'd preferably like to meet her either way, but if you want to email me the whole story, that'll be useful information that I can use to assist her case." Matt gives a more serious nod, since he's now set on helping her, he wants all the ammunition he can get, so to speak. But he nods. "Though, before we get any further, I think its customary and convenient information for my clients to know that I'm blind."
"Unless it's due to brain damage, I'm pretty sure your record indicates it has no bearing on your ability to practice law," Helena replies lightly, seemingly not all that worried about it. "Aside from the logistics. Also, sorry if it is because of brain damage, sometimes my mouth gets ahead of my brain," she adds, wincing.
Matthew smiles at this reply. It was a wise and honorable one. Some people are frankly just slightly uncomfortable that a lawyer with a 'disability' is representing them. Of course, most people assume its due to some kind of brain damage or some such. Then again, New Yorkers are generally a rude and rowdy bunch, anyhow.
"Excellent, then there will be no problems. No, not because of brain damage. Natural causes." Of course, he just says this because saying 'I got acid spilled on my face when I was a tween' isn't exactly a five star rating for helping ease consciousness.
"Perfect." Helena grins, standing up from her chair. "Mister Murdock, it's been a pleasure, and I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help. I know she will too. I'll make sure to get the information to you so that you can meet with her. Any other questions, please don't hesitate to call. I may not know everything, but I'll do my best to find out."