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“That means a lot, Dad. Thanks.” All Dad was worried about when I was leaving was work, but I guess delayed support is better than no support at all.
“So, you’re in New York?”
“Yeah.”
“All settled in?”
“No. That’s another story.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Never mind for now. Nothing I can’t handle.” I don’t bother telling him he forgot to tell Alice to hire Jada Miller.
“So, tomorrow then… call me directly after you fire Bassell. Have him escorted out by security. I don’t want him getting any sort of heads up either so be there early and make sure he doesn’t get access to any of his files before he goes. Confiscate his company cell phone immediately so we can check it, too. And call me from his office so we can go through some of his files on the phone.”
My lip curls. Fuck. Priorities, right? Carmichael Consulting comes first.
“Yeah, Dad.”
“I’m here if you need anything.”
“Sure.”
Whatever.
I hang up and stare out the window.
11
Jada
It’s been a few days since my brother got arrested. I’ve had a few days alone in the condo; I haven’t seen Austin. I have had a check-in message once daily in the evenings from Carly the last two days and now she’s video calling me.
She’s a good person, making sure I’m doing okay. I wish we lived in the same city. This friendship won’t go anywhere, sadly, since she and Aiden are based in California.
She looks amazing as she waves at me on video chat. Her curly hair is everywhere, her happiness glowing like the sun.
“Hey,” I greet with a lame little wave.
“How are you?” she asks, taking a sip of a drink with an umbrella in it. She’s outside in an orange swimsuit.
“I’m okay,” I nod and reposition myself on the bed. I’ve officially moved into the spare room and have everything spotless in the Master for whenever Austin comes back, but I have no idea when that’s happening.
“Any news on your brother?” she asks.
“I talked to the public defender today, actually. They had him in under supervised detox. He was doing really badly with the withdrawals. I should be able to see him by Friday or Saturday.” I shrug.
“What’s gonna happen?” she asks, sadness in her eyes.
“He’s being charged for all of it. Stolen credit card, destruction of property, resisting arrest and fighting with the police. Plus the drug stuff. The public defender is going to try to get the judge to agree to let him go into drug rehab or maybe push the angle of his mental health. I’ve told them about his bi-polar disorder and given them a list of medications he was on, so they’re trying to get him in with a specialist.”
“And how are you doing?”
“Um, that’s a good question.” I do my best to hold back emotion. “Thanks again for all you’re doing to help me. I can’t express how much it means. I don’t know where I’d be without you guys.” I do, though. I’d probably be in my cousin’s spare bedroom, or if not for that option, I’d be in a shelter. It’s really sobering to realize you have so few options, such a small support system.
She gives me a kind smile. “I talked to Austin today and he’s being a bit of an alphahole right now, but he’s going through some stuff, too. He’s a really great guy, but…”
I roll my eyes. “Alphahole. That’s a good word for him.”
“Yeah, sorry. He’s not usually like that. But there are some extenuating circumstances.”
“He wants nothing to do with me because of how things looked when he came in. I get it, I don’t come off looking good in this situation but, I’d just come in too and I was wearing this ridiculously slutty outfit because of a temp job that was a nightmare, and… anyway, I’m not surprised he wants nothing to do with having me work for him or live here. Basically that was my job interview, I just didn’t know it. I wish I could have a do-over.”
“Well… I’ve asked him to give things a trial run as a personal favor to me. He told me he’ll let me know. Normally, he’d say yes immediately so I think he just needs to cool down. If he digs his heels in, maybe I can get you a job at CC’s New York office. There might be something in the mail room or in data entry. I know it’s not your thing. Or I’m guessing it isn’t. What is your thing? Maybe we’d have something else for you. Do you want to work in the corporate world?”
I shake my head. “I’ve been doing a few jobs at once for eons and I’ll take just about anything legal to be able to survive. What I really want to do is go back to school and take some more writing courses. Finish getting my English degree. Doing what I did for you guys would be awesome as a stop-gap. It paid well, Aiden paid better than most do, and if I get something like that that’s steady enough and find a place with decent rent I can take some classes and have time to do it.”
