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Unfortunately, I hadn’t had time to charge my phone battery before leaving, which resulted in me having to make a stop at the nearest gas station in the pouring rain, hoping the old and outdated payphone located there still worked.
“Good evening, ma’am,” the store clerk said. I hurried inside, keeping my head low despite knowing how odd I looked wearing sunglasses during a thunderstorm. Even though it made me look suspicious, I was grateful for the fact that I always kept a pair of sunglasses in the glove compartment of my car.
“Is everything all right?” the store clerk asked, although he could clearly see that I was far from it. Glancing briefly up at him, I saw that he was a kind looking older man with white hair and concerned eyes.
I fumbled inside of my pocket and pulled out a wrinkled dollar. “Can I please have four quarters?” I asked, my teeth chattering thanks to the rain clinging to my skin, chilling me to the bone.
“Yes, certainly,” he said, retrieving the change from the cash register.
I could sense that he wanted to say something else to me, but I hurried back out the door, not giving him the opportunity. When I reached the payphone, I dialed the first number that came to mind.
“Hello?” came my brother’s voice. Already I could hear concern in his voice, as if he somehow intuitively knew it was me. My big brother had always been protective of me, and I sometimes suspected he possessed a sixth sense that let him know whenever I was in trouble.
“Tobias,” I choked out.
“Jo? What’s wrong?”
“Zander…”
“What did he do? I’ll kill him.”
I sniffed loudly and took a deep breath. “Don’t be ridiculous. What good will you be to me if you’re in jail? I just want to leave him… I can’t deal with this anymore.”
“Did he hit you?”
The long pause was more than enough confirmation for what had happened. Tobias began to swear and call Zander every offensive name in the book. “How many times has this happened, Joanna? How long have you been dealing with this and not telling anyone?”
“It doesn’t matter,” I said. “I’m dealing with it now by to leave. Look, I know this is asking a lot, but I just need a place to stay until I get back on my feet again.”
“Then come over,” Tobias said. “Pack your bags and get the hell away from him immediately. I’ll lend you however much money you need, you know that.”
Yes, I knew that all too well. Tobias was well-off, too well-off for his own good. He was wealthy, and his solution to all problems was to throw money at them; it was a strategy that had worked well for him for years though, so I couldn’t exactly fault him for it. But, it wasn’t my preferred way of dealing with problems. If being with Zander had taught me one thing, it was that I didn’t want to ever depend on a man for anything, even if it was my adoring older brother. I wanted to have my own money and make my own way.
“I don’t want your money, Tobias,” I said. “I just want you to give me a spot to rest my head until I can find another job and get my own place.”
Tobias sighed. “Joanna, you’re my sister. It’s my job to look out for you.”
“To look out for me—yes. To take care of me—no.”
“Let me just lend you the money and you can pay it back when you can, then.”
“Tobias, please, I don’t want your charity.”
“Why are you always so difficult?” he said, exasperated. “All right. Fine. How about this, work for me.”
I paused. “What?”
“Work for me. You can work for my firm. You’re looking for a new job, right? So I’m offering you one. With your background in financial planning, we really could use someone like you, sis. And I’m not just saying that. We’ve actually been looking to hire someone for a while now.”
I chewed my bottom lip, considering his offer.
“I know you can’t think of a valid reason to turn me down,” Tobias said, “so just say yes. What do you have to lose?”
“Nothing,” I said quietly. “I have nothing to lose.”
“Then welcome to the team. Pack your bags tonight and make your way over here. And if you really want to do me proud, you’ll burn down Zander’s place in the process.”
I chuckled through my tears. “Thank you, Tobias.”
