Page 81 of Dirty Reads

TWENTY-FOUR

Dick

NOT knowing Jess’ status weighed down on me hard. I sat in the kitchen sipping whiskey feeling that the recovery of the diamond – and my investment money – wasn’t as important as I had previously believed.

Had she been gone shopping or at work, an hour would have passed in what seemed like a matter of seconds. Having no idea if she was safe, however, seemed to make time stand still. I began to regret the heist. Forfeiting Jess and gaining the diamond wasn’t a trade I was now willing to do.

But the deal was done.

I found out through the course of everything that trading Jess for $3,500,000 wasn’t a trade I was willing to do.

Jess was priceless.

I grew up in a very wealthy home, the child of a father who made his money off of other people’s investments. When the recession of 2008 hit, people under my father’s financial watch lost everything, while he continued to get even richer. Many lost their jobs, homes, and other material possessions. Yet others lost their ability to see a bright enough future to continue, and committed suicide.

Respect was something my father never earned from me. As a child, being alone because none of the other children were financially worthy of being my friend made some sense at first, but as I grew older, it made no sense. I grew to despise my father’s prosperity, his belief that the gap between the rich and the poor was never great enough, and his manner of feeding his growing wealth.

I sat at the bar drinking my whiskey and staring at the diamond wondering if I was slowly becoming more like him. The proceeds from the diamond were never going to be used for personal reasons, only for causes I believed to be worthy of receiving the wealth. Nonetheless, Jess’ absence made me feel I had paid the ultimate price for the stone.

My phone buzzed.

I jumped from my seat and ran to the end of the bar.

Seton.

“What the fuck?” I asked as I answered.

“Five minutes out.”

Damn, that was quick.

“Everything good?”

“Everything’s great.”

I had Jess’ purse, cell phone, and all of her personal items, so I realized she couldn’t call me. But. I just wanted to hear her voice.

“Let me talk to Jess.”

“I don’t have Jess.”

“You what?”

“I’ll see you in a minute, I’m 60 seconds away.”

“Where is she.”

“I’ll see you in a second.”

“Where the fuck is she?”

“Police station.”

“God damn you, Seton. I’ll slaughter your entire family if something happens to her. I swear.”

“Pulling in now.”

The phone went dead.