Chapter 3 #2
I carried everything over to the counter and started sorting through it.
I was halfway through documenting everything when I picked up the hoodie and noticed it felt heavier than it should’ve.
At first I figured the extra weight was coming from the blood, but when I shifted the garment in my hands, something inside moved.
I couldn’t help but to become curious so what I do?
I turned the hoodie over and ran my hand along the interior lining until I found a hidden zipper pocket sewn into the fabric.
As soon as I unzipped it and reached inside; my entire body froze.
Three thick stacks of cash held up in rubberbands were stuffed inside the compartment.
I immediately looked up from the counter and glanced around the department realizing nobody was paying attention to me.
Everybody was focused on whatever emergencies was happening around us.
I slowly pulled the money out and stared at it because I didn’t need to count it to know it was a ridiculous amount, and it was the kind of money most people didn’t carry around in a checking account, let alone inside a damn hoodie.
My stomach did flips as I looked back down at the stacks.
The timing couldn’t have been worse or better depending on how somebody wanted to look at it considering the fact that just a few days ago Rome had emptied my account and left me feeling completely trapped.
Even when I called the bank it wasn’t shit they could do about it.
Every damn plan I’d made depended on money I no longer had access to, and now I was standing in an emergency room holding enough cash to make a difference.
I hated that my mind immediately went there, but it did.
The longer I stood there holding the money, the harder it became to ignore what was running through my head.
I swallowed hard and closed the zipper pocket before anybody could walk by and catch me standing there looking guilty.
My heart started racing so bad I could actually feel it in my neck as my entire body got hot.
Maybe that should’ve been enough to tell me to leave the money well enough alone.
It should’ve been the very moment I zipped the hoodie back up, documented everything exactly the way I was supposed to, and kept it moving.
Instead, I stood there staring at the pile of belongings while my mind ran in circles.
The problem was I wasn’t looking at the money the way I normally would’ve. Under normal circumstances, this would’ve been an easy decision. Bag the belongings, document the contents, and move on with my shift… end of story. Unfortunately, my circumstances weren’t normal anymore.
A stretcher rolled past behind me, snapping me out of my thoughts and I immediately started moving again, trying to look busy even although nobody was paying attention to me.
My eyes kept bouncing back toward the hoodie.
Whoever this man was, he clearly wasn’t hurting for money because his ass was carrying more money in one hoodie than most people saw in months.
The thought should’ve made me put the money back and mind my damn business, but nooo Navy always had to be hardheaded.
Instead, the anger I’d spent days trying to keep buried started creeping back up again.
Before I could talk myself out of it, I picked up one of the bundles and slipped it into the pocket of my jacket.
My heart immediately started pounding. The emergency department kept moving exactly the same way it had thirty seconds earlier and then another bundle disappeared into my pocket followed by a third.
I stood there frozen for a few seconds after that, staring at the now empty zipper compartment.
My hands felt shaky as I zipped it closed and shoved the hoodie back into the pile.
Every instinct I had was screaming that I had just crossed a line I couldn’t uncross, and the worst part was that I knew it.
“Navy.” Nurse Valerie called my name. She was older and had more seniority than me and she was always in somebody’s damn business. I jumped so hard I almost knocked the shit off the counter causing her to look at me funny. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” I quickly answered. “Why?”
“You look like you just saw a ghost.”
I forced out a fake laugh and grabbed the property bag before she could study me any harder. “I’m fine, I’m just tired.”
“Aren’t we all,” she nodded and walked away.
When she disappeared around the corner; I deeply exhaled a breathe I didn’t even realize I was holding.
My chest felt tight as hell, but my pockets felt heavier too.
I finished documenting the belongings, sealed the bag, and attached the identification sticker before setting everything aside.
For the rest of my shift, I couldn’t stop thinking about the money but ironically it was because I felt guilty…
shit, what was done was done and I couldn’t take it back now.
Every time I passed a mirror, I was convinced somebody could look at me and immediately know what I’d done causing my stomach to drop.
Every time I heard a phone ring, I wondered if somebody had already discovered the money was missing and was about to investigate my ass, but nobody did, at least not that day and ironically somehow that made me feel even worse.