Crazy Thing (The Brighton Family #5)

Chapter 9

9

ZIGGY

“ L ook on the bright side—if the whole legal thing goes south, I know a guy who can make this Edison fella disappear. Poof! Hypothetically speaking, of course." The sleazy lawyer throws his head back, cackling at his own joke.

My eyes dart around the dingy conference room. Aunt Rainbow and a handful of other women from Starlight Falls exchange uncomfortable looks and belt out a chorus of forced chuckles.

The man takes their laughter as encouragement, carrying on like a standup comedian with his own Netflix special.

Me? I’m starting to wonder if this lawyer is actually serious underneath all the cringeworthy jokes. Because throughout this meeting, I’ve been getting major bad vibes from him.

To go along with his massive creep factor, he’s been making all sorts of big promises. He has all but guaranteed that he will ‘absolutely’ block the sale of the waterfall. It almost sounds too good to be true.

He adjusts his tie, smoothing down the fabric and growing somber. “Alright, ladies. Let’s get down to business about this lake—”

“Waterfall,” I correct him.

“Right,” he says dismissively. “Let’s get down to business about this waterfall . I just need a retainer fee of two big ones today, and then I can get right to work.”

Aunt Rainbow blinks. “Two…big ones?”

“That’s right. Just two grand to make your worries go away. Oh, plus a twenty percent fee at the end of the case when we nail that guy. And this is my friends and family discount, because I know you ladies are some fine folks.” The lawyer winks and shoots finger-guns.

The women are all either frowning or blushing. But no one is making a move toward their purse. And they all seem to be trying to avoid eye contact with each other.

Great. No one can afford the lawyer’s upfront fee.

My mind drifts to Darius…and his offer to help…and his big, fat billionaire bank account. Shit. He actually could make all our worries go away. Too bad he’s practically an evil supervillain.

He’s the type of man who would throw his values and morals out the window in a heartbeat if the right opportunity presented itself.

Still…should I consider working with him? I spent half the night staring at his business card and repeating that question over and over in my head.

At least his deal doesn’t cost thousands of dollars. Plus, if I were to work with Darius, I could keep an eye on him. I’d be able to make sure that he doesn’t try to double-cross my friends…Right?

I quickly brush the idea away.

Nah. Nope. Too risky. I can’t trust that man .

When I check back into the conversation taking place here in the lawyer’s conference room, the ladies are swapping their own special waterfall stories.

“It’s where I met my husband,” one of them is saying through her sniffles. “It’s where we spend our anniversary every year. This year is going to be our twenty-fifth, and it just won’t be the same if we can’t spend it by the water.”

“That’s where I do my rituals every full moon,” my aunt shares softly. “It’s the only place in town that has the right energy levels. The only place I can find clarity.”

“It’s where all three of my children were conceived. There’s something very fertile about that big rock on the water’s edge, near the bank,” another woman is saying. And that’s way T-M-I for me.

“Ladies, ladies, ladies,” the lawyer cuts in, shaking his head. It’s obvious that he doesn’t care about our motivation for trying to save the waterfall. He just wants his money. “That’s all real touching. Now I would love to help you with this. But you know the rules. I can’t work for free.”

Now, the women are all digging around in their purses and pocketbooks. All they come up with are crumbs and a few rusty pennies. I groan inwardly.

With a heavy sigh, I reach into the bottom of my purse and pull out the little bit of money I made this week. Now that my rent is all paid off, I’d started setting aside some cash, partially for making some repairs to my bus. Getting the air filter and new tires are a pretty important expense, considering how much time I spend inside the vehicle.

The other half of this, I was scraping together to start repaying Darius for the rent he covered for me. I’m not comfortable being indebted to that man.

Yet still, I throw the wad of cash into the pot. I hear murmurs of gratitude and appreciation. A few hands pat my back and squeeze my shoulder.

Meanwhile, the lawyer grins in a way that has me wondering whether he’s the actual supervillain in this story. I can’t help but feel like I just sold my soul.

As I follow my friends out of the lawyer’s office, my head hangs low.What am I going to do now?That was my whole nest egg. And now it’s gone.

I guess I’ll have to wait until I can save up again, and pray to the gods of the universe that I don’t blow a tire on the highway between Starlight Falls and Honey Hill in the meantime.

I climb into my converted school bus. “Sorry, Lady Tourmaline,” I mumble, patting the door frame gently and hoping she’ll understand.

Heart heavy, I start her up and turn in the direction of the highway out of Starlight Falls. I need to get back home. My shop and my mountain of problems are waiting for me in Honey Hill.

But as I drive, a thousand conflicting thoughts weigh on my mind. And at the very last second, I whip the wheel all the way to the left. I make a mighty U-turn right in the middle of town.

Cars honk. Tires screech. Curses are heard.

I cringe, sending an apologetic wave to the traffic chaos I leave behind. Thankfully, a quick glance in my rearview confirms that no Starlight Falls-ers are injured in the aftermath of my last minute change of plans.

I head directly toward Darius’s office at the address printed on his business card. After pulling my big bus into the parking lot of his building on the quiet side of town, it only takes me a moment to find his suite number on the board in the lobby. In fact, his office seems to be the only business operating in this entire deserted building.

Stepping off the creaky elevator, I march toward his office suite like a mad woman on a mission.What I see when I fling open the glass door has my footsteps slowing to a halt.

I’m not sure what I ever imagined a billionaire’s office to look like on the inside, but this isn’t it.

The whole place is dark and dreary. More like a dungeon than a business mogul’s office.

I stand there in the waiting room, listening to the computer dinging with non-stop notifications, watching the fax machine spitting out papers on the floor, and hearing the phone ringing off the hook. The half-dozen dusty, empty cubicles lined up along the bank of windows gives the place a spooky vibe. It’s a disaster scene. Heck, even the poor plants in the corner are looking wilted and thirsty.

What the hell, Darius?

Through the wall, I can hear the man himself on the phone. Not surprisingly, he’s barking at some poor soul. I shake my head, feeling my lips turn downward into a frown.

Chest aching with compassion for the poor plants, I grab a disposable paper cup. I hold it under the water dispenser in the waiting room and fill it to the brim.

As I’m watering the plants and murmuring words of affirmation to them, encouraging them to come back to life, a young man wearing a delivery vest bursts into the office. I startle, and the man marches right up to me, thrusting his electronic tablet in my face.

“Delivery for Darius Brighton. I’m gonna need you to sign, miss.”

I blink in surprise, opening my mouth to let him know that he has the wrong person. After all, I don’t work here. But then, an idea springs into my mind.

“Yes. Yes, of course. I’ll sign for the delivery.”

I take the stylus and scribble my name, telling myself that this is the perfect solution.

Darius obviously needs help running this office. And I need to pay off my debt to him. I can be his assistant or his secretary or whatever the hell he needs. I can pay him back without the cash I no longer have.

This could be a win-win.

…Or, a massive disaster.