Chapter 257: Lawyer Goodman
"I see what you're saying. Maybe I can help figure something out," Frank said after grasping the situation with Walter.
Skyler's suspicion that Gretchen and Elliott were behind the donations was actually a minor issue — a simple phone call could clear that up. But the real problem was that all the donations came from the same account name. That would raise eyebrows.
Still, even this wasn't unsolvable — Frank just didn't know the right person for the job.
He picked up his phone and called a certain plump female lawyer he knew. "Hey,Dekner…"
Lawyers tend to have wide-ranging connections, and this one — who often handled borderline legal cases — knew people from all walks of life.
"This kind of high-tech problem isn't really my thing," she admitted. "But I know someone who might be able to help."
"You're in New Mexico, right? Coincidentally, he's there too. I'll give you his number. Ready?"
"Got it. What's his name?" Frank asked, jotting it down.
"Saul Goodman. Bit of a wildcard, but he's good — very good."
After finishing the call, Frank headed to the bathroom. While he was in there, he heard the front door open — Jesse Pinkman must've come back.
As Frank stepped out, he saw Jesse already on the couch, holding the piece of paper with Saul's contact info.
"Why do you need a lawyer? One of your friends get busted?" Jesse asked.
"Huh? Why would you say that?" Frank was a little puzzled.
"Then why else are you calling him?" Jesse waved the note.
"You know this guy?" Frank raised an eyebrow.
"Hell yeah. Remember Emilio? This guy got him out twice. Emilio was this close to the death penalty, and Saul still managed to pull some miracle. Dude's like the Houdini of criminal defense."
Emilio, of course, was Jesse's cousin — one of the two bodies they had dissolved in acid.
"You ever met him?" Frank asked, curious now.
"Nope. Just heard the stories. He's supposed to be a wizard with this stuff. If I ever get caught, I'm calling him before I call my mom."
The next day, Frank brought Walter to meet with Saul Goodman.
Saul had some local fame, and his office waiting room was packed. Elderly folks, women with kids, people in casts — all noisy, with the faint scent of despair and desperation in the air.
Clearly not the clientele of a high-end law firm — these were people barely scraping by.
Frank didn't bother waiting. He called Saul directly, and they skipped the line, walking straight into his office.
"Hey, great to finally meet you! I got Lola's call, she told me all about your situation — been expecting you," Saul said with a wide grin.
Lola, of course, was the full name of the chubby lawyer: Lola Dekner.
Frank eyed Saul up and down — a man in his mid-30s, clean-cut in a suit and tie, slick hair, and a smile that walked the line between charming and scheming. Not handsome, not ugly — but easy on the eyes, the kind of guy who grows on you. And clearly a hustler.
As Frank and Walter sized him up, Saul was doing the same — his eyes immediately locking onto Frank, correctly sensing who was in charge. And Frank could tell right away — Saul was the kind of guy who thrived in legal gray zones.
"I've got a bit of a situation. I was hoping you could help," Frank explained.
"Ah! If you'd gone to anyone else, they'd probably tell you it's impossible. Lucky for you — I know just the person."
Saul leaned forward, voice dropping conspiratorially.
"My buddy's buddy knows this girl — still a teenager — but she's a top-tier hacker. She can get into any system on the planet. All she'd need to do is hijack a bunch of computers and send out small, anonymous donations — ten bucks here, twenty bucks there."
"Pretty soon, you'd have donations coming in from all over the U.S., even Canada — hell, the whole world. Tiny donations from kind-hearted strangers trying to help Mr. White fight cancer."
"No one will question a thing. Totally anonymous. Completely untraceable."
"Imagine it — a global outpouring of sympathy. It's practically a human interest story. Doesn't that sound uplifting?" Saul smiled brightly.
Frank glanced at Walter. Walter nodded. He was in.
"Alright then," Frank said. "Get in touch with your buddy's buddy's… hacker prodigy."
"Hah! I like a man who makes fast decisions. Now, let's talk about my fee," Saul said with a sly grin.
The three of them spent about thirty minutes in Saul's office hashing out the details before Frank and Walter left.
Later that day, back at home…
"Where's your mom?" Walter asked his son, glancing around.
"She went to work," said Walter Jr.
"Work?" Walter blinked. He thought he'd misheard.
"Yeah. She got a job. Today's her first day."
"And no one told me?" Walter asked sharply, his tone rising.
Skyler was heavily pregnant. It wasn't safe for her to be working, especially not this close to the due date.
"She didn't want you to worry. Told me not to say anything," Walter Jr. mumbled.
Walter inhaled deeply, forcing himself to stay calm.
He waited all day at home for Skyler to come back.
When she walked in, he immediately confronted her: "Why did you take a job?"
"Do you want me to show you our checkbook? Have you seen our finances lately?" Skyler shot back.
They were nearly broke. Skyler had no choice — they needed another income.
"There's money on the donation website," Walter said.
"That account won't release the funds until next month. And don't tell Walt Jr. — right now there's a little over a thousand dollars in there. But after that, donations might slow down to a few bucks a week." Skyler said softly.