Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75323 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 377(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
“His name wasn’t on anything. He had access to the account we opened for the LLC, but he took no actual financial risk.”
“Let me guess the next part. He stopped answering his calls, and you never saw him again.”
“I had nothing but a mental image and paperwork that was forged. His name isn’t actually Drake Holland, as far as I can tell.”
“What were you doing in Florida? Did you track him there?”
“I think I did, but too late. I feel like I’ve been several steps behind this whole time.”
“To be fair, that was by design, wasn’t it? He’s a scammer. He planned this whole thing so he could stay ahead of you. He’d be a piss-poor conman if he didn’t.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Can I ask something?”
“Sure.”
“Why not just sell it?”
“The land?”
“Yeah.”
“Because it’s mine. Because I worked hard for that. Because I want to build a home there. Because he sparked an interest, and now I want to see it through.”
“I get that. How in the hole are you?”
“The market isn’t as good as it was when I bought, but I made back a decent chunk. Enough to keep anyone from coming after me for money they were owed. But… but there’s nothing left. I even sold furniture and some handbags, jewelry, and shoes that I didn’t really need.”
“I hate to point this out,” Raff started.
“But why am I chasing him so hard? When he has probably already spent or hidden all of my money?”
“Look at us, thinking the same way.”
“I want him to know he didn’t win. That I could find him. I want him confused and scared and frustrated. I want him to pay.”
“I get that. He should pay. Though, my kind of payment comes in a shade of red you might not be comfortable with.”
“I just… he can’t get away with this. Especially not another time. If me tracking him down prevents him from ruining someone else’s life by running this scam again, that would be worth it all.”
“Plus, to see the look on his face when he sees you’ve tracked him down, am I right?”
“You’re not wrong,” I said, giving Raff a small smile.
“Alright. I have another question.”
“I expected no less.”
“Why are you keeping this a secret? Are you really that embarrassed about getting scammed? It could have happened to anyone.”
“But it shouldn’t have happened to me. My job is money. How the hell did I miss that it was happening?”
“I don’t think you’re giving Cillian enough credit.”
That was also true.
Cillian was fiercely loyal to those closest to him. And as the one who controlled his money, I was considered close. In fact, I was the one who placed and reinforced any of the walls and boundaries there were between us. He was the one who invited me to all his family functions. I was the one who turned them down.
When one of the bartenders broke their leg and couldn’t tend bar for months and was freaking out about their college loan payments, Cillian quietly covered them. When he caught a teen trying to rob the place, he gave him a job. When the dishwasher’s wife got sick, he hired a temporary replacement for him while paying him his full salary so he could be home with her for the months she was seeking treatment.
Cillian was a good man.
He wouldn’t judge me.
He wouldn’t even think twice about helping me if I asked.
It was my own pride that was in the way.
“I don’t want anyone to know. I know it’s stupid and prideful, but I just don’t. I don’t want them to know I got in bed with someone without vetting them enough. Or that I got screwed over. Or that I’m living like… this.” I waved out at the room.
“For the record, there’s nothing wrong with living like this. But I can see how far of a fall this must feel like. Even if it’s only temporary.” He paused, looking me over. “It’s got to be hard. All the lying.”
“Harder than I imagined,” I agreed. “And all the sneaking around, trying not to be seen. I know, financially, I should just sell the car…”
“But you want it when things turn around again.”
“I guess, yeah.”
“You can’t sacrifice everything. You have to have some of the things you love. I mean, you have me,” he said, shooting me that boyish smirk of his. “And, arguably, I’m more than enough to love. But I can’t begrudge you some creature comforts.”
He was good at that.
Breaking down mountains into molehills, making everything feel a lot more tolerable or figure-out-able.
“You do, you know that, right?” he asked.
“Do what?”
“Have me. And I won’t tell anyone about this. That’s not my place. But I’m here. If you want to vent. Or if you want to plan.”
“Plan?”
“Two heads, I figure, are always better than one.”
Maybe I could use some fresh eyes on this. Ones that weren’t clouded by rage and grief and a growing sense of hopelessness.