AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Determined to keep the conversation off me, I push for information. “Grant hinted the other night while we were out that he’s hurt your family somehow. Is that why you’re helping him take down Garry?”
Jason looks over at me in surprise. Did Grant not tell him all that we talked about? I guess not judging by the confusion that twists Jason’s expression.
“He opened up a lot to you.”
“Not really. He was pretty vague, but I demanded he tell me why he would involve me in your guys’ house hunt, and he let me in on what you three are trying to do.”
Jason shakes his head slowly. “Nottryingto do, what wearedoing. I’m going to get my parents out of there and under a roof thatI’llprovide for them.” He sighs and looks over at me. “If I tell you, you can’t repeat it to anyone. I’m serious about it being dangerous knowing things about Garry.”
“It’s not like I have anyone to tell anyway,” I point out. “But I promise all the same.”
Jason straightens in his seat, clearly bracing himself for the conversation.
“My parents were close with Garry when the three of them were younger. They met on the island and became good friends. When Garry moved back to the mainland, it was with a promise he’d hire them as veterinarians on his ranch and that they’d be set for life once his project got up and running.” Jason pauses, his brows slamming together. “At first, he made good on his word. Garry hit it rich and moved my parents from their home, then brought them on to work at his ranch, paying them well.”
Jason pauses his story as he turns right at a red light.
“When they got here, Garry started making other promises. He said he would set up a 401k for each of them, he’d take over their mortgage on the house back in Kauai so they didn’t have to worry about paying it while they lived here, and there were also the promises of them being silent investors to help boost up their investment portfolio. My parents thought they were set with a friend like Garry, so no contract was drawn up holding him to everything that was promised.”
My gaze skims over his rigid posture. “Let me guess, he didn’t do any of that.”
When Jason laughs, it matches my earlier bitterness.
“Things went to shit a few years after they moved here. Fed up, my parents wanted to go home. They wanted to move their 401ks over, but when they went to Garry, it turned out he lied about setting them up. Not only was there no retirement account of any sort, he also didn’t put their names down on any investments that he made. What’s worse, my parents were getting paid in cash. Apparently, Garry told them he was taking the money from their paychecks and having his accounting team do their taxes for them. Turns out, no taxes were paid.” Jason sighs. “So they owe a ton of money to the IRS. Then my parents found out that Garry tricked them into signing their house over into his name when he offered to take over the payments. Rather than keep it safe for them, Garry had the house demolished and then built a condo in its place. They’ve literally been left withnothing.”
I gape in horror as my mind tries to wrap around the maliciousness. “They really are trapped.”
“They have housing on Garry’s ranch so that’s one less bill they have to foot, but they literally have nothing else. They can’t escape without a whole bunch of repercussions.” Jason’s fist hits the middle of the steering wheel, causing the horn to blare. “Garry Gipson ruined my family’s life. They’re trapped. Prisoners that practically work for pennies now that they tried to butt heads with Garry.”
There’s so much venom in Jason’s voice that I don’t recognize him. His face turns pink under his natural tan as rage boils up. I lick my lips nervously. Jason isn’t the angry one. That’s Trip, maybe even Grant, but not Jason. Leaning back in my seat, I think about the situation the Nani’s are in. To work hard every day of your life and have little to nothing to show for it would be awful. Worse yet, someone who they thought was a friend betrayed them and stole everything.
“I know it doesn’t help, but I’m really sorry they’re going through this.”
Jason makes a face, one I don’t understand. “They won’t be for long.”
The two of us fall silent, both wrapped up in our own thoughts. As promised, Jason stops and grabs the both of us a bagel and cream cheese from his favorite deli.
“Eat, I don’t care if you get crumbs in my car,” he urges when I don’t unwrap the sandwich from its foil packaging.
“You sure?”
Jason rolls his eyes, “I’m not Grant.”
Thank goodness forthat. I don’t think I could handle two of him. I eat quickly, finishing just before Jason pulls into the parking lot.
“Thanks for the ride,” I slip out of the car and move to shut the door when he calls out,
“One of us will be here to pick you up. You’re staying the weekend at our place.”
“Um, no?”
“It wasn’t a question, dollie. See you later.”
I slam the door shut, hoping it’s hard enough to hurt his vehicle. It’s not. As he pulls away, I swear I see his shoulders shaking with laughter.
Twenty-Five
Typically, Fridays tend to be the longest day of the week for me. I think it’s like that for everyone. That anticipation of the weekend to come, the free time, the sleeping in… All that excitement and hope seems to slow down time. So after Jason dropped me off, I thank my lucky stars that it’s Friday. The longer I’m away from those three, the less I can bond with them and the less time I find myself craving them.
