"Sometimes, things are exactly as they seem. The unlikely maneuver is just that; unlikely."
"You just have to trust people."

Alicia shuddered as Collin Sweeny's eerie words echoed in her head, watching as he walked out of her office. For several moments she sat perfectly still, unable to move or even think. She was completely numb.

How she was possibly supposed to trust this man, who was clearly guilty of killing his wife? There was, of course, no possible way she could prove it, but she could feel it deep inside, even if her colleagues felt otherwise about his innocence.

Her head ached and tears stung her eyes, but she would not cry, choosing instead to blink them away. Alicia Flockhart simply did not cry. It just did not and would not happen. Not today, not ever. Her head ached and she covered her eyes with her hand.

"Alicia?"

She looked up, trying to focus on her visitor. But before she could conjure up his face, he walked right in. His voice should have tipped her off, for she knew it well. It was a voice she'd heard every day, for years, not only here at the office but years ago, in college. But at that moment she was in such a state of perplexity that she had no idea who it was. And then he moved further into the office, his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey...You all right?"

She smiled as Will's handsome face came into view. She could always count on him to care about her, even when it seemed that no one else did. But her smile quickly disappeared when she remembered what had happened just moments before "No, actually I'm not. I… Oh God, this is horrible."
Will crouched down, as though wanting to be able to look her in the eyes. He'd always been that way; caring, considerate. "What's horrible?" he was asking now.

"This! This… murder case, with Sweeny! He was just here and-."

Will immediately stood upright. "Alicia what did he do? Did he threaten you?"

"No, I-."

"DIANE! CARY!" Will yelled, sending the two flying into Alicia's office.

Alicia felt a slight panic. "Will, don't."

"Alicia, if he threatened you in any way-."

"Who threatened you, Alicia?"

She looked at Diane and Cary who wore concerned expressions. "No one, it was just…"

"Call security, Diane. And get Kalinda on this." Will ordered.

"Will, I'm fine, I promise."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. It was just… Look, I'm fine, all right? You don't have to worry about me. I'm a strong person!"

Diane smiled. "Of course you are, Alicia, but we all know how Collin Sweeney can be and-."

"Collin?"

Kalinda appeared in the doorway. "What's going on?"

"I think he was threatening Alicia." Will explained.

"Will, I swear he wasn't! He just said some things and…"

"What did he say?"

She looked at Diane and sighed deeply, wishing she hadn't been so freaked out about the whole incident. She hated drawing unwanted attention to herself.

"Nothing." She lied. "Just that…I asked him about the skull buried in the yard and if he was trying to make it look as though Charlotte was the murderer, and he said…." She drew in a breath, prompting Will to gently put his hand on her back.

"Just take your time."

"God, why can't I get through this?"

"What did he say?" Cary was asking.

"H-he said that things are sometimes as they seem and that I should just trust people."

Diane chuckled softly. "Good advice. But we'll keep an eye on him."

Alicia smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Diane."

When the three were gone, she tried to go back to her work at hand, but noticed that Will was still there. She put her hand on her forehead. "God, what's wrong with me?"

"Nothing." He said quietly. "You just need to relax."

His words made her bolt out of the chair. "How can I relax when I've been going crazy, Will? Sweeny murdered his wife! I know he did! How could someone do that to someone they love… or loved? I don't understand it! I don't-"

He pulled her into his arms and held her. "Hey, hey… Come on. It'll be all right. I promise."

She clung to him, relishing the feel of being in his arms, no matter how ethically wrong it was. For a moment she wasn't a lawyer defending a man whom she knew was guilty. She was at Georgetown, in the arms of a boy who cared about her. She melted against Will Gardner and closed her eyes, while his hand moved slowly up and down her back. "Better now?"

Slowly, reluctantly she pulled out of his arms and smiled at him. "Yeah, thanks. I'm sorry about that. Freaking out the way I did."

"Don't apologize. It's what I'm here for."

"Thanks." She said again. For a split second she wished there was something more between them, but she quickly pushed the thought away. He was her boss. And besides, it was ridiculous, wishing for something that would never happen, couldn't possibly happen. But as she watched him stop to talk to Diane and Kalinda, the hopefulness returned, stronger than ever.

Once again she forced all thoughts of Will Gardner from her mind. His friendship was enough. It was more than enough. It had to be.

THE END