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“I know what I agreed to,” Jerry said miserably, “and I have done everything you asked.”
“Yes, you have,” Randy agreed. “And I appreciate everything you’ve done for me.”
“Yeah,” Jerry muttered, dropping his gaze. His brows pinched, and Randy could practically see the wheels spinning underneath that glossy, balding head of his. When his eyes lifted again, they were filled with resolve. “I can have the money transferred to the account I set up for you. The usual, three grand?” he asked.
“Better make it double,” Randy grunted, thinking of all the things he had yet to do to make his plans come together.
Jerry’s bushy eyebrows shot up to where his hairline should have been. “That’s a lot of money.”
Randy shrugged, uncaring. “Whether you give it to me today or a week from now, you’d still be out the money, so what difference does it make?”
“It’s just…”
“Just what?” Randy snapped, making the guy twitch.
Swiping a hand down his face, Jerry sighed. “It’s just that I feel we need to be careful here. If my wife ever finds out that I’m pulling money from our retirement before I can put it back, she’ll ask questions.”
“So don’t answer,” Randy said with an unsympathetic shrug of a shoulder.
Jerry eyed him disdainfully. “Maybe you could do that, but my wife and I have a very open and honest relationship.”
“Honest,” Randy scoffed. “So I take it you told her all about the skeletons hiding in your closet. How you stole money from little old ladies’ estates, overcharged clients and recorded only part of the money so you could pocket the rest. Maybe she knows how you hired all those pretty blonde receptionists who were so eager—”
“Alright, stop!” Jerry’s face was flushed, his hands fisted at his sides. “I get it. Don’t worry about the money. I’ll make sure it’s all there.” Randy smiled, pleased. Eager to turn the conversation in a different direction, Jerry said, “How are things going with Terri? Has she come around yet?”
The corners of Randy’s mouth turned up in a bitter grin that could send icy chills up the spine of even the hardest man. “Terri is Terri,” Randy explained. “She was pigheaded when I met her, and nothing has changed.”
Jerry nodded his understanding. “So no luck.”
“I’m working on it.”
Silence settled like a shroud over the room, the light ticking of a clock nearby the only sound. Finally, Jerry broke the silence. “I almost forgot to tell you. I spoke with the judge earlier this week and convinced him to stall the divorce a couple more weeks. He made it very clear he doesn’t like bending the rules, but he agrees that you should be given the opportunity to reconcile, given the circumstances.”
“Aw, no mention of my winning personality,” Randy said contemptuously.
Jerry’s pinched expression spelled his discomfort. “At any rate, we bought a couple more weeks, but I suggest you do whatever you’re doing, fast.”
“Don’t you think I’m trying to do that?” Randy barked, his nostrils flaring. “The woman is skittish and stubborn as a mule. I’ve barely talked to her and already she’s running away!”
“What do you mean by running away?”
“I mean she fucking disappeared!” Randy roared, coming out of his seat so fast Jerry took a couple steps back, putting distance between them. “Her place is empty. I trashed her car, so I know she isn’t driving it to work. I know she’s with that…that fucktard with the expensive car,” he seethed, “but I have no way of finding out who he is or where he lives.” Stabbing his fingers through his hair, Randy fisted the roots and tugged furiously, leaving wild tufts sticking out everywhere when he finally dropped his hands in defeat. “This whole thing is falling apart.” Defeated, Randy slumped back onto the couch again.
Very carefully, as if addressing a rabid animal, Jerry eased himself back down in his seat. “Plans were made to change,” he started. “You just have to change with them. Let me see here…” Reaching into his back pocket, he withdrew his wallet and fingered through it. He came up with a business card. “This is the number of a guy I know who specializes in finding people who don’t want to be found.”
Randy’s face brightened and he sat up straighter, smoothing his clothing. “Is that so?”
“It is,” Jerry said, nodding eagerly. “He can find just about anyone, all he needs is a name and a description.”
“Then give it to him,” Randy demanded almost desperately.
“As soon as you leave, you can count on it,” Jerry promised.
Randy’s lips quirked up on one side, giving him a lopsided smirk. “If I didn’t know any better, I would say you wanted me to go.”
“It’s not that,” Jerry said, eyes widening. “But my wife will be home with the girls soon, and you being here would cause a lot of questions.”
“Well, I could leave,” Randy mused, spreading his arms over the back of the sofa. “But it occurs to me that I’ve never met the missus.”
