The Orphan
Copyright© 2025 by A Well Traveled Man
Chapter 9
Nicolas went to the pool and swam laps early Thursday morning. When he finished, a young lady was sitting in a lounge chair by the pool. She said, “I’ve been watching you, and you have excellent form.” Nicholas thanked her, and introductions were exchanged. Her name was Megan Peterffy, and she asked why he was in Jacksonville. Nicholas said he helped his aunt, Kelli Kratos, a lawyer in the law firm Collins and Kroft in Beverly Hills, win a big case.
To make a long story short, the firm sent us here for his aunt to brush up on her golf game. I’ve never played, so they included me as a punishment to learn how to chase a golf ball around the course. Megan laughed and asked what case they won. Nic said it was confidential, but it involved Croft Industries. She wondered if that was the one involving the City of Los Angeles. Nic laughed, saying,” You’re trying to get me in trouble.”
If you want to discuss an issue with Kelli Kratos, she will be back in the office on Friday afternoon. She’s representing Jackie Devore in a murder case. Megan said, “Oh my god, that poor woman.” Nicholas said he needed to go, but meeting you was nice, and he said goodbye. Returning to the suite, he showered, dressed, and met Kelli in the living room. They went to the hotel restaurant for breakfast, and he told her about meeting Megan Peterffy at the pool while they ate.
Kelli said, “Oh my god, do you know who she is?” Nicholas said no. Kelli said she’s related to the owner of one of the biggest brokerage firms in the US. Nicholas said, “Well, she may be calling you because I told her your name and the firm’s name. She heard about the City of Los Angeles case, but I told her nothing about it or the Croft cases.” I did tell her about representing Jackie Devore.
They drove to the training center, and Kelli said meeting her could indicate her interest in retaining my services. David will have a heart attack if she visits our office and arrives at the training center. Kelli reminded Nicholas she would be gone when he finished, but would call this evening. They separated, and he went with Todd to the indoor training area. They videoed his swing again, and it didn’t need adjustment. Then Todd took Nicholas to a nearby golf course and said that playing different courses tests your golf skills.
Todd got a course guide, went to the practice range, and warmed up. Before teeing off, they reviewed the course guide and discussed his plan. Nicholas finally teed off, and Todd gave him advice when needed, but left Nic alone otherwise. One area he needed advice on was the greens and how to read them. Todd told Nicholas that most courses regularly change hole placements. So, learning to read the greens is critical to your success. They finished the round and added his scorecard. He shot a one-under-par, and Todd said he passed his training. He recommended returning for advanced training within a year.
Nicholas thanked Todd for his help, and they shook hands goodbye at the hotel. He carried his clubs to the suite and put them in the travel bag. Then, he called the airline and changed his flight to Friday morning. Nicholas was anxious to get home away from the East Coast. The mob was known to be in Florida, and although the authorities cleared him, the mob may still be interested in him.
He ordered room service for dinner, and Kelli called and said she had arrived home. She asked how his training went. Nicholas said he passed the ball-chasing test, and Todd told him he had graduated from the course. Kelli laughed and asked if he had really passed the course. Nic said yes, and he changed his flight for Friday morning. She asked his score on his final round, and Nic said he was one under par on another course. Todd took him to another course to test his skills.
Kelli said that scoring a lower round than her was unfair, and they laughed. Nicholas said he would let his auntie win if they played together, which caused them to laugh again. Kelli told Nicholas to take a Lyft from the airport to the law office, and they would go home together. Nic agreed if he didn’t have to work, and they said goodnight. He ate dinner, packed, and crashed.
Nicholas took a hotel shuttle to the airport and made his flight with time to spare. He went to the gate agent and requested an upgrade, and he was surprised she gave it to him free of charge. Nic slipped her a $100 bill, and she was happy. The flight was six hours, but with the time change, they landed at LAX at 11 a.m. He arrived at the law office before 1 p.m. with lunch from the In-N-Out Burger drive-thru. The Lyft driver was happy Nicholas bought him lunch, too.
Tammy welcomed him back, and he stored his luggage in his office and ate lunch. After lunch, Nicholas lay on the couch, pretending to be asleep, when Kelli entered. She asked why he hadn’t come to her office when he arrived. Nic said he was tired from the trip and his exhausting training and needed a nap. She laughed and said the discovery arrived for the Jackie Devore murder case, and there were boxes to examine. Nic called her a slave driver, and they went to her office.
They went through the discovery boxes and read the reports. The investigation focused on Jackie, and no other suspects were interviewed, just as they thought. The coroner’s report was interesting as it said Don could have ingested the erection drug between 5 and 7 p.m. Nothing detailed Don’s schedule for the day, if he had a late meeting, or where he ate dinner. As they thought the ex-wife and children weren’t interviewed or asked where they were that day.
Kelli made a list of interviews and depositions she needed to do. Don’s secretary was one, and they needed his appointment calendar. She doubted the ex-wife, daughter, or son would come for a deposition voluntarily. Kelli asked Nicholas to find all he could on Don’s ex-wife, Marlene, daughter, Misty, and son, Don Jr. Nic said he would try to get it done between rounds of golf. Todd, his trainer, said he needed to practice three times a week. Kelli laughed and said it won’t hurt to miss a few rounds of golf.
David entered Kelli’s office and asked Nicholas how the golf training went. Nic thanked David for sending him and said it was “Great. He graduated early, having mastered chasing the ball down the fairway.” David laughed and asked for his best score, and Nic said two under par. Kelli complained that Nicholas did better than her causing more laughter.
Kelli told David that Nicholas met Megan Peterffy while swimming at the hotel pool. David asked what she said, and Nic told him not much. But she wondered why I was there, and I told her about Kelli and the law firm winning a big case. Megan asked if it was the lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles. I told her it was confidential, but said Kelli was representing Jackie DeVore. Megan knew about the case, and David said this could greatly benefit the firm.
Nicholas offered to hang around pools, beaches, and golf courses and solicit customers for a commission. David and Kelli laughed and said No. Kelli asked to meet with David at the end of the day, and they returned to work. Nic looked up Marlene, Misty, and Don Jr. DeVore’s social media accounts. He saved them to his cloud account for later research. Kelli left to meet with David, and Nic returned to his office.
When she returned, they took the case file boxes to the Range Rover, returned, and got his luggage. On the way home, they stopped for Chinese takeout. After unloading the Range Rover, they ate dinner, and Kelli told Nicholas about her meeting with David. He was irate, and she presented him with a few options. Next week should be interesting. They finished dinner, said goodnight, and went to bed.
Nicholas teleported to the basement gym early Saturday morning and practiced martial arts on the heavy bag. It felt good working out after his layoff from playing golf. Nic moved fifteen-pound dumbbells with his mind and returned to his room. He showered, dressed, and went to the kitchen. While they ate breakfast, Kelli asked Nicholas what he had planned for the day. Nic said I’m doing some PI work and going by Marlene, Misty, and Don Jr.’s houses.
Kelli asked what he would do, and Nic said to take pictures and get an idea of how they live. She said not to do anything illegal and not to get caught. Nicholas said You know I would do anything illegal and they laughed. He grabbed his camera accessory bag, drove the Bronco to the office, picked up his digital camera, and went to Marlene DeVore’s house. He parked at the end of the street and put on the telephoto lens. Nic saw Misty leave the house in a BMW and followed her to the Beverly Center.
Once Misty entered the center, he got close enough to tag her phone. Then he followed her to the food court, where she met a friend. Nic got a drink and a muffin, sat at the next table, and recorded their conversation on his phone. Misty told her friend Erika that once the bitch was convicted, she and Donny would be set for life. Erika asked if she was worried about the police finding out she spiked her dad’s drink with Viagra at dinner.
Misty said the police never suspected or interviewed them, so there was nothing to worry about. Erika asked if they could live together and get their own place. Misty said yes, and no one could say shit. They hugged and kissed, and Nic discreetly took their picture. They left holding hands, and Nicholas left laughing and returning home. Kelli asked if he had gotten anything interesting, and Nic played the recording. Kelli said, “Holy shit, they discussed it in the Beverly Center food court.”
Nicholas said yes, and here’s a photo of them kissing. It’s hot and they laughed. Kelli said they needed to find out where Misty and Don had dinner. Once they confirm the time and date, Misty is toast. Nic asked if she would get the charges dropped against Jackie DeVore. Kelli said no because they can charge her again. Once the trial starts and she presents the audio while Misty’s on the witness stand, the trial will end. The charges will be dismissed, and they can’t retry the case.
Kelli said this recording and picture are top secret, and no one, not even David, can know. We can’t discuss it in the office or Range Rover. Daily bug sweeps for my office and Range Rover until the trial ends. Once David lays down the law on using the firm’s resources, there will be pissed off people, so that anything can happen. Nicholas said Good, I’ll warm up my foot and they laughed.
After lunch, Kelli worked on the case, and Nicholas went to his room to check his cloud account. He had Misty’s phone there, and he checked it out. There were texts to her brother, Don Jr., and her lover, Erika. He tagged Don Jr. and Erica in Misty’s phone contacts so he’d have their phones too. Then he read the texts and found out she had made the reservations for dinner with her father at 6 p.m. at The Italian Bistro.
Nic logged off his cloud account and did the homework for his online college courses. When he finished, Nicholas changed clothes and went downstairs. Kelli asked why he was dressed up, and he said they were going to The Italian Bistro for dinner. She asked why, and he said it was a surprise. Kelli changed clothes, and upon arrival at the restaurant, Nic asked to see the manager. Mike Bloom, the manager, showed up and asked what the problem was.
Nicholas said it was better to discuss this privately, so they followed him into Mike’s office. Once the door was closed, Nicholas introduced Kelli Kratos, Jackie DeVore’s attorney. He said Don DeVore ate dinner here on July 20th at 6 p.m. with a guest. We need the security video from 5 to 8 p.m. on that date. Mike said they could get it when they are served with a court order. Nicholas said if he wanted to play hardball, they would name The Italian Bistro in court as uncooperative in the murder investigation of Don DeVore. Nic thanked Mike for his time, and they started to leave.
Mike Bloom said, “Wait, I’ll get our security video and copy it for you.” Nicholas said, “Great. We’ll eat dinner in the restaurant and look forward to receiving the video.” They left, and Kelli asked what that was about. Nic said Don had dinner with his daughter, Misty, here at 6 p.m. the night he died. If the security video shows them entering and exiting the restaurant, it nails down the time Don consumed the Viagra. Kelli asked how he found out they ate here, and said Don’t ask and they laughed.
While eating dinner, Mike Bloom delivered the security video. Nicholas thanked him and said, “We’ll avoid naming your restaurant, but if it comes up, we’ll say you cooperated.” Mike thanked them and left their table. Kelli told Nicholas he handled the manager like a professional. No restaurant wants bad publicity. They finished dinner, and Kelli left a generous tip. Upon arriving home, they watched the video showing Don and Misty entering the restaurant at six and leaving at 7:20 p.m.