Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
I spend the night in an exhausted state of sleep and wakefulness.
Part of me expects them to come knocking at my door. To break it down and force me to come back with them.
But they don’t.
It’s cold as hell in my place. I spend the night tossing and turning, but by the end of the night, I have a plan.
I’m going to Alaska. One of my friends from college was from there. I don’t keep in touch with her, but I’m going to try. I’m going to disappear. I’ll find a local job at a library or bookstore, get rid of my phone, and just disappear.
In the morning, I pack some clothes into a bag, as well as some toiletries. I don’t have much, but I fit what little I can into the trunk of my car. I also grab the few books I have, including my favorite from the nightstand.
Then, when I feel armed with my life packed up into the small trunk of my car, I do what I’m absolutely dreading, and I drive on fumes back to Gage’s house.
Marching up to the front door, I try not to think about what I’m doing. I’m getting the money I deserve, and then I’ll disappear. I’ll disappear and never let another human into my life.
The door opens, and suddenly, Buddy is there with wet sniffles and excited whines. Gage is there, too, standing in the doorway with lines around his eyes.
“I came for my money.” I cross my arms against the cold.
Gage just nods once, then steps back.
I frown. I expected more of a fight. Is he just going to… agree?
It’s freezing, but I won’t go inside. Buddy jumps up and down, crushing my toes and licking my hands, which just makes them colder.
Suddenly, Gage is back, and he’s also stepping outside.
“What the–”
“Lead the way.” Gage motions at the house, where I see the garage door opening.
“I came for the money,” I grit. Here’s the catch. Here’s where he doesn’t work with me.
“I know. I have to go to the bank.” Gage grabs Buddy, trying to shove her back inside. She whines and scrambles to get out of his grip, but he closes her inside with a click.
“The car is out of gas.”
Gage just steps off the porch and moves slowly across the grass, disappearing into the garage. He comes back out with a gas tank.
This motherfucker.
I trot up to him. “You said you’d pay me.”
“I don’t know how much cash you carry around in your pockets, princess.” Gage tops off the gas tank, then moves to the passenger side. “But I keep mine in the bank.” He slides inside the car.
I seethe for a second, then tell myself I just need to do this one thing. I’ll get my money, and then I’ll go. I can spare an hour.
I slide into the driver’s side, eyeballing Gage. He just looks straight ahead. He has the boxy glasses on—the old ones.
Fine. The quieter, the better.
Once again, I jerk the car into gear and floor it out of the driveway. Gage grabs for the oh-shit handle but otherwise says nothing.
Once we get to town, Gage directs me to the bank he uses. For a minute, I freak out, wondering where exactly he’s telling me to go. But I see a real bank, and he directs me to stop and goes inside. I’m left sitting in the car, ready to scream. Ready to drive off without him.
But I don’t. I wait for the money, glaring at Gage as he comes back out of the building, holding the door for an older lady going inside. He flashes her a handsome smile, which makes me seethe.
Gage gets back in the car, his weight making it bounce, then shoves an envelope in my hands.
I grasp it, realizing it feels a little thin. Opening it, I thumb through the cash.
“I can only get so much out at a time.”
This isn’t the amount he promised. It’s not anywhere close. I feel the panic starting to rise. “But you said–”
“And then you ran. The new deal is you stay and help me until my glasses come in, and every day, I’ll pay you as much as the bank will let me take out.”
There’s a moment of blankness as I try to process what he just said.
“Sorry, princess. Banks don’t just have that much money on hand.” If I didn’t know better, I’d say Gage’s tone is soft. Kind, even.
No. This isn’t how it was supposed to work. I was supposed to get my cash and go.
“If I tried for more, they’d flag me for fraud, and it would take even longer. This is the best I can do. And you’re going to sign this.” He pulls a folded paper out of his pocket.
“Fuck no.”
“Read it.”
I narrow my eyes, then read what looks like a contract.
It’s short and simple. It’s a non-disclosure agreement that begins from the first day I was hired at Newmans and lasts for a month from now.
It says I won’t talk about my relationship with either brother to anyone for any reason unless a future agreement is made.
The amount of money he promised me is there, standing out in absurd numbers.
I try to find the loophole. He’s a lawyer. There has to be a loophole.
“Not signing this.”
Gage plucks the envelope of cash out of my hand. I growl, trying to snatch it back.
“Then no money.”
“No.” I reach across the seat, but Gage just tucks it under his thigh, and I snatch my hand back to avoid touching him.
I hate him. I hate him so much. My hands are sweating, and I rub them on my skirt. I don’t know what to do. Do I steal the car and leave? That’ll put me in the same spot I was before. I want to be gone. To disappear. To get a private place with my books and shut out the world.
Gage doesn’t say anything else. He just lets me process.
Although, I’m not really processing. I start to feel my brain go fuzzy and just…
check out. Just like I did before. I feel the self-hatred rolling through me, but then it’s drowned out by blissful, amazing numbness.
I try to fight it, but what’s the use? I don’t know how to fix this shit show.
I don’t have the money or the power to fix it. Once again, I’m helpless.
“Can you take me to the grocery store?” Gage asks.
I stare out the front windshield.
“Tomorrow morning, eight AM. You’ll sign the contract, and I’ll bring you more.”
His voice is annoying. It’s breaking through the fog. All I gather from what he’s saying is that I can get more money tomorrow. I just have to make it through today.
For freedom, Raven. You’ll do anything. Play the goddamn game.
So, just for now, I put the car in drive.