"Hey, Henry, thanks for agreeing to meet me," Jack said, standing in the foyer of Darrell's Steak House. He'd invited Henry to meet him for lunch so he could discuss a business proposition.
"No problem," Henry replied. "I'd be a fool to turn down a free lunch at Darrell's," he continued with a grin.
"True, true," Jack nodded.
After being seated and placing their order, Henry asked, "So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"How would you like to open your own law practice?"
Henry leaned back with a look of surprise, and a hint of hunger, then asked, "As a founding partner?"
"Yes. I think we both agree that it's best if Dan and Summit Partners handle matters related to Plutus Financial, at least for now, but there's no reason why you can't take the lead on North Star. I don't think I'd be keeping you very busy initially, so we'd go with a modified retainer so that you have a guaranteed minimum monthly income regardless of actual billable hours. That should allow you to work pro bono cases if you want to stay busy."
"Would it be just me, or are you looking to bring in other lawyers?"
"Just you to start, unless you know someone you want to bring in with you."
"Hmm. What is your long-term vision for the practice?"
"I don't expect you to be an expert in every field, so initially I'd expect you to act as proxy between me and any expert we need. But, eventually I think we'll need to bring the expertise in-house."
"Whether you generalize or chose to specialize, it's up to you. Either way, I think over the next ten years you'll get plenty of opportunities to grow."
"Can you give me some idea of what kind of cases I can expect to handle for you in the future?"
"Real-estate, obviously, trusts, formation of subsidiary companies, tax law, patent law, medical research law, and anything else a large conglomerate might need help with."
"And, you trust me to decide when to handle the matter myself, or seek help from other law firms?"
"Yes, you've already proved your willingness to seek help."
"Alright, I agree, in principle, to your proposal." Then he grinned, "If nothing else, I can tease Dan and tell him I made partner first."
They both laughed, then spent the remainder of their lunch talking details.
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As Jack was entering the kitchen from the garage, he heard Madison yell from the living room, "Hey, you're on the news!"
"What?!" Oh, god! He thought. Please don't tell me it's about me kicking that bank robber. He rushed into the living room and sat next to Madison.
"Here, look," she said. Then she turned her laptop so he could see the screen and started playing a video from a local news station website.
The video began with a female newscaster saying, "The most recent Redball lottery jackpot reached a staggering one point five billion credits. The second highest jackpot in Redball history, and only the fifth time in Redball history to ever exceed one billion credits. According to the official Redball website, the sole winning ticket was purchased at the Fast-Mart on the corner of Cedar and Elm in Cedarbrook."
"According to lottery officials, the winnings were claimed by a lawyer acting on behalf of a limited liability company registered in New Sonora. We now turn to our own legal correspondent, for more on why this is noteworthy. Greg?"
The view switched to a middle-aged man in glasses. "Thanks, Vivica. Every state that participates in the Redball lottery is required, by law, to disclose the name of the person, or legal entity, that claims the prize. Puget State, and five other states, allow incorporated entities, like a limited liability company, to claim the prize."
The screen split, showing Greg on the left and Vivica on the right. Then Vivica asked, "Why would anyone want to do that?"
"Great question, Vivica," Greg replied. "There have been many cases where past lottery winners were harassed by family, neighbors, and coworkers after their windfall was discovered. There have even been cases of jealousy fueled murder."
"Oh, my!" exclaimed Vivica. "Is that why someone might want to hide behind a corporation? To avoid revealing their windfall to the world?"
"Correct," Greg replied. "By forming an incorporated entity and transferring the winning lottery ticket, a lawyer representing the company can claim the winnings. However, there are potential problems with this strategy. Problems that the most recent winner has neatly avoided."
"What kind of problems?" prompted Vivica.
"In most states, the details of registered corporations are a matter of public record. This means a determined person might still be able to trace the winning lottery ticket back to the original winner. The one exception is entities incorporated in New Sonora, because, unlike every other state in the Federation, New Sonora does not require the corporation to reveal any of its owners or officers. And, if the registered agent is a lawyer, or law firm, attorney client privilege applies."
"Ah. So, by registering the company in New Sonora, the most recent lottery winner has made it nearly impossible for anyone to identify the actual winner."
"That is correct, Vivica," Greg smiled. "This winner is the first in Redball history to use a New Sonora corporation to collect the jackpot, but I suspect they won't be the last."
Vivica's side of the screen expanded, pushing Greg off screen, "Thank you, Greg, for your insights. Now, while we may not be able to track down the winner because of their sneaky legal maneuvering, we might still be able to identify them from the Fast-Mart security camera footage! The owner of the Fast-Mart that sold the winning ticket has graciously granted us a copy of the footage believed to show the winner purchasing their ticket. Let's watch that now."
Then, the screen split again, Vivica on the left, and on the right appeared four camera views of the inside of the Fast-Mart where Jack had purchased his ticket. The upper left view looked down at the cashier from above the entrance to the store. The upper right view looked down at the cashier from somewhere inside the store. The lower left view showed the entrance of the store as viewed from above the cashier, and the lower right showed a view of the store from a perspective behind the cashier.
The footage started moving, and Jack saw himself enter the store. Then the security footage paused for a second and Vivica said, "Here we can see the person we believe purchased the winning lottery ticket."
The security footage started moving again and when Jack's figure on the screen stopped in front of the cashier, Jack was surprised to hear the cashier say, "You're smart!"
He could see his mask and glasses covered face in the lower right panel! Oh shit! He thought. I am so glad I wore that disguise, otherwise I'd be fucked! He was doubly glad he remained silent. No wonder the cashier praised him for keeping his gob shut. She probably knew the store was also recording audio.
After the security footage finished playing, the view changed to just show Vivica, "There you have it. Our experts say the person is probably two meters tall, and weighs between one hundred and twenty and one hundred and fifty kilograms. Our experts were divided as to the person's gender."
"The Fast-Mart also has high resolution exterior security cameras, but the person in question either walked from home or parked their vehicle outside the range of the Fast-Mart security cameras."
"So, there you have it, folks, a mystery wrapped in an enigma. If one of you amateur, or professional, sleuths manage to uncover the true identity of the newest federation billionaire, please be sure to share your discovery with this news station."
The video ended with an info panel showing how to contact the news station.
"Fucking whore," Madison cursed.
"What?" Jack asked. "I mean, sure, it seemed like she was disappointed she couldn't identify me, but..."
"She's a greedy little bitch is what she is," hissed Madison. "She's just angry that she couldn't find you. If she had, she'd come running so she could butter you up, suck your brains out through your cock, then empty your back account. "
"Ah. I wondered why she seemed a little bitchy about the whole thing."
"Yup, witchy bitchy bitch. Cum guzzling media whore." Madison's inventive cursing about Vivica eventually ran down. Then she got a thoughtful expression before turning to Jack and saying, "I want you to go put on your disguise, then whip out your cock and get it hard, so I can take a picture."
Jack sputtered, "You want me to do what!?"
"What?" she asked innocently. "I want to taunt that bitch. I want to anonymously send her the picture with the caption, 'Suck it!'"