Sam Reveals Kensington Past, Privilege Blocks Testimony
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Sam enters Ainsley's office, noticing her decorating changes and recognizing Bach's 'Air on a G String' playing softly.
Sam reveals he needs a lawyer, shifting the conversation to serious matters.
Sam proposes testifying against Kensington, risking disbarment, but Ainsley shuts him down, citing attorney-client privilege.
Sam reluctantly accepts Ainsley's legal advice, ending the conversation with a mix of resignation and confidence.
Sam exits Ainsley's office, leaving the unresolved tension hanging in the air.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Tormented by past ambition's consequences, feigning casualness over churning guilt and frustrated redemption drive
Sam enters casually, banters lightly about office decor and Bach's 'Air on a G String,' then confesses procuring the faulty Indio tanker for Kensington at Gage Whitney, details his late scuttled warning on steering flaws, proposes plaintiff deposition despite interruptions, and exits after rebuff.
- • Confess role in tanker deal to seek absolution and legal path forward
- • Expose Kensington's negligence via deposition to compel corporate safety reforms
- • Massive punitive damages are essential to incentivize companies like Kensington to prioritize safety
- • His ignored 11th-hour warning proves the deal's inherent recklessness
Composed authority masking surprise, shifting to firm protectiveness over Sam's ethical peril
Ainsley greets Sam warmly, engages in playful banter on decor and music, briefs on Attorneys General suits against Kensington, reacts with stunned 'Wow' to confession, then authoritatively halts his spilling details with repeated 'Stop talking' commands, invokes privilege, warns of disbarment, and lightly challenges his deal-making prowess.
- • Protect Sam from self-incriminating breach of privilege and disbarment
- • Uphold legal ethics by enforcing attorney-client confidentiality post-Gage departure
- • Attorney-client privilege persists indefinitely, barring deposition testimony
- • No judge would admit privileged info, rendering Sam's plan futile and destructive
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Bach's 'Air on a G String' plays softly throughout, bantered about by Sam and Ainsley as a shared appreciation point that humanizes their entry into grave confession; its serene strings ironically underscore the pivot from light intimacy to taut ethical confrontation, amplifying subtext of fragile trust amid crisis.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Ainsley's warmly personal office hosts Sam's unannounced visit turning confessional showdown; personal decor and Bach foster initial rapport before tension mounts over spill-linked sins, serving as rare White House sanctuary for unguarded vulnerability and legal brinkmanship amid broader MS and crisis tempests.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
Gage Whitney Pace haunts as Sam's former firm where he sealed the Indio deal for Kensington partners, laughed off his safety warning; privilege endures post-departure, blocking testimony and embodying ethical bind between past ambition and present crisis loyalty.
Kensington Oil emerges as villainous target via Sam's confession of procuring their spill-causing Indio tanker cheaply despite known flaws; Ainsley affirms their liability exposure, but Sam insists shields protect them, fueling his deposition push to pierce corporate negligence in Delaware catastrophe.
Attorneys General for Maryland and Delaware drive narrative urgency via joint press conference and $400M+ damages suit against Kensington for Indio spill; Sam eyes deposition for them to expose flaws, positioning them as justice vehicles against shielded negligence.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Sam's sharp reaction to the Kensington Indio's name reveals his past connection, which he later confesses to Ainsley, showing continuity in his guilt and ethical dilemma."
"Sam's sharp reaction to the Kensington Indio's name reveals his past connection, which he later confesses to Ainsley, showing continuity in his guilt and ethical dilemma."
Key Dialogue
"SAM: "Cause I'm the one who bought them the boat. I bought the Indio for them when I was at Gage Whitney.""
"SAM: "I was thinking, if I could be deposed for the plaintiffs...""
"AINSLEY: "Stop talking right now! ... If you gave that deposition, you'd be disbarred. And even if you were willing to be disbarred, there's no judge in the country who'd allow privileged testimony.""