The Windfall (18 page)

With real excitement flowing through my veins, I grabbed my phone and looked up the contact for my dad’s pharmacy, dialing the number with shaky fingers.

“Grayson Pharmacy.”

“Jimmy?” I said excitedly, recognizing the pharmacist’s voice that I normally dealt with. “This is Emma Carlson. I want to go ahead and fill my dad’s prescriptions for the next month.”

“Emma, you know I can’t do that,” Jimmy replied with a heavy sigh. “As much as I would like to help you out, I’m afraid you’re already two months behind. I can’t fill any more prescriptions without payment. I’m sorry. I would help if I could, really.”

“Oh no, Jimmy, I have the money,” I blurted out, cranking the engine and pulling out of the bank parking lot. “Please. I promise I can pay this time.”

“It’s almost closing time,” Jimmy reminded me.

“I know, I will be right there,” I said, pulling out in the direction of the pharmacy. “Please, give me ten minutes, Jimmy.”

“How’s your dad?” he asked, suspicion still in his voice.

“He’s in some pain,” I admitted, thinking of the pill bottle that never strayed far from his reach. Not that it mattered at times. He had to be stingy with the medication. He would be so happy not to need to break the tablets in half anymore. As much as I hated for him to do so, it did make the medications last longer. Now, he would haven’t to worry about it for a long while. “I need all of his medications filled, Jimmy.”

“I’ll give you fifteen minutes, Emma,” Jimmy replied, hanging up. I pressed the gas pedal a little harder, my adrenaline pumping. I made it to the pharmacy in ten minutes, pulling up to the first parking spot and snatching my keys from the ignition before running to the door. Jimmy was standing just inside, his surprised expression telling me he hadn’t expected me to make it on time.

“I’m here,” I said breathlessly, holding up my card.

“So you are,” Jimmy replied as he moved behind the counter, placing two white paper sacks in front of him. “Here are the medications. I do hope that you have the money.”

“I have my card right here,” I said, handing it to him over the counter. “It’s good, I swear.”

“You know I’m only supposed to take cash on back payments,” Jimmy said slowly, eyeing the card with some distrust. “It’s store policy, Emma.”

“Oh please, Jimmy,” I begged, pushing the card toward him. “It’s a debit card. The money is there. If it isn’t, the transaction won’t go through and then you just don’t give me the prescriptions. Just think of how happy the manager will be that you closed out my account balance in one swoop.”

Jimmy eyed the card a little longer and then sighed, picking up the plastic in his hand. “It’s only because it’s you, Emma, that I will do this You know how much of an ass George can be about his damned store policies.”

“Thank you, Jimmy,” I grinned, feeling a lightness in my chest for the first time in a long time. I was actually going to be a leg up for once, and I had my mystery big tipper to thank for it. “I really, really appreciate this.”

Jimmy ran the card as I stood there, gripping the bags in my hand.

After I left there, I planned to go pick up some of Dad’s favorite foods and surprise him with an amazing dinner and a new supply of his medication to go with it. I also knew he would have a lot of questions as to where the money had come from, so I already had a plan in motion for that. I had received a bonus at work and, even though I would be lying to him, it was a good kind of lie. If he knew someone had given me ten thousand dollars, he would force me to turn it in. But we needed the money, he needed his medication, and I was fully prepared to take whatever consequences came out of this mystery tip. At least, it had been legit. A small amount missing wasn’t going to completely break me if the check writer came back looking for her checks. I could cover the costs I had pulled out. And even though the bank manager assured me I had nothing to be cautious about, since I had talked with Cooper, putting the money aside for a couple of days felt like the right thing to do. A few days of waiting until I really started to make use of the money was not going to hurt me.

“Alright, Emma, it went through,” Jimmy said, handing me a slip to sign with a smile. “Your balance is back at zero with us.”

“Yay,” I said with a little laugh, signing my name with a flourish at the end before handing it back to him. It felt good to have this off my chest and out of the way. I would have no problems with the pharmacy from there on out, and I intended on making the newfound money stretch as far as I could until I could start replacing it with some of my own.

The little bell over the door sounded and Jimmy looked up, a friendly smile on his face. “I’m sorry, we’re closed for the night. We reopen at nine in the morning.”

“I’m not here to shop.” The voice caused a shiver to run through me as I turned around to see if my ears were playing tricks on me. They were not. Tim’s handsome face was looking at me intently. “I’m here to talk with the lady.”

“What do you want, Tim?” I asked hesitantly, pressing myself against the counter as he started toward me.

“I want to talk to you about your new boyfriend. I finally think I know why you are with Cooper Randall,” he said as he stopped right before me. “The question I kept asking myself over the past couple of weeks is: what does he really have that I don’t? I mean we are like two peas in a pod.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked slowly, not computing his question.

Tim threw his head back and laughed, the sound filling the quiet store. “Oh, come on, Emma. The man’s a billionaire. No wonder you dumped me for the big money. Hell, I can’t really say that I blame you.”

Chapter Eighteen

Cooper

I ran a hand through my hair as I paced back and forth in the driveway, not wanting Mom or Aunt Sophie to overhear the phone call. I had no idea how Felix had found my number and couldn’t believe after what he had done to me back home that he would even have the nerve to call me up like nothing had happened. He’d had me set up and had I not bailed on the neighborhood when I did, I could have been killed all because he was stupid enough to get tangled up with that gang.

“So, should I call you F-bomb?” I asked casually, allowing the anger in my tone to breathe through the phone. “Because you are far from the Felix I used to know.”

“Hey, Cooper, calm down, man,” Felix replied with a nervous laugh. “I know you’re angry with me.”

“The hell I am, Felix. I’m far from being angry with you,” I said darkly. “I’m pissed at you. You could have told me they were going to try to hit the bar. I thought you were my friend.”

“Dude, I did try to tell you,” he said. “Remember? I told you I wasn’t going to be responsible for what was to come next. If you had just given me the money, everything would have been fine.”

“You and I both know that is a lie,” I responded angrily. “You could have warned me specifically what you meant by that vague threat. That money wasn’t going to just make them up and disappear, never to be seen again, Felix. What the hell have they been doing, brainwashing all of your common sense out? You are in much too deep with this gang and you are way too good for that life, Felix. You need to get out.”

“I don’t want to talk about that right now,” Felix interrupted, exasperation in his voice. “It’s gotten bad. I need help, Coop, money and lots of it. I’m in over my head with this, Coop, and if I don’t get the money, they’re gonna kill me.”

I sighed loudly, hating that I was right. Of course there had to be a no-good reason for him to be calling me. Was that all I was to him now, a money lender and not the friend I used to be? “Felix,” I started.

He cut me off. “No, Coop, you don’t understand. This shit, it’s not like the other stuff. If I don’t get the money, they are going to kill me, you understand? I will be floating in some oversized puddle before night falls.”

The desperation in Felix’s voice sounded legit, and for the first time in our conversation, I was a little concerned. Felix had been like a brother to me once, the one person who understood what I faced every day. Could I just turn my back on him and let his death potentially be on my conscience just because he was stupid enough to get himself into a screwed up mess? No, I couldn’t. Beyond the money, there was a loyalty there and no matter what Felix had turned into, I couldn’t turn my back on him.

If the amount of money he needed happened to be more than I had readily available, then I would have to figure out how much could be wired back home and how quickly that could happen. I wanted this to be over and done with once and for all. I wanted Felix to not ask me for money ever again. After I bailed him out this time, I was through.

“Look,” I finally said. “Give me a few hours to think it over and I’ll call you back. How much are we talking, Felix?”

There was a pause and, for a moment, I thought he had ended the call. Then I heard him talking to someone else. “Yo, he’s asking how much. What should I tell him?”

My anger intensified as I realized that, once again, I was being duped by someone I thought was my friend. This was why I hadn’t wanted to tell Emma! This was why I wanted to just be Cooper Randall, bartender extraordinaire at Keefer’s Bar and Grille near the beach.

“Coop, it’s at least a hundred Gs,” Felix responded, unaware I had just heard his conversation. “Man, if you do this, you will be
numero uno
in my book. I will owe you big time.”

My tone was steel when I replied. “Felix, you back-stabbing bastard. I heard you just now,” I finally said, clenching my teeth to keep from screaming in his ear. “And you’re not getting any money from me. Nor is that idiot gang you hang out with. I hope to never see any of your faces ever again. But if I do, you’ll wish you had never crossed paths with me.”

“No,” another voice took over the line, deeper than Felix’s high-pitched tone. “You will wish you had never tried to deny me and my gang money, Cooper Randall. We are far closer than you realize and there ain’t shit you can do about it.”

I swallowed and switched the phone to the other ear. “Who is this?”

The voice laughed hollowly in my ear, a sensation creeping through my body that had me immediately concerned. “I’m your worst nightmare. I can take that little life of yours that you’ve made for yourself in Cali and turn it upside down. That woman, she will be pleading for her life at my feet if you don’t play nice.”

Anger boiled within me as I thought about all the women in my life, Emma, my mom, and my aunt. I didn’t know which one he was referring to, but it didn’t matter. None of them were going to be hurt by this idiot thug. “You need to be careful who you threaten,” I said in a low tone, tired of being pushed around.

“Be careful, boy, who you talk back to,” the other guy said, anger laced in his tone. “I’m not far away. My boy, Felix, and me are just right around the corner and if you don’t cough up the money, I won’t be responsible for what happens to that woman of yours; you will. I’d sure hate to add some carvings to her face.” He laughed and I could hear the malice in his voice. “Stay by the phone, Cooper boy. We’ll call you back with further instructions on how to get me my money. Oh, and don’t call the cops. That will just cause things to get messy.” The line clicked dead and I pulled the phone away from my ear, fighting the overwhelming urge to throw the damn thing.

“Damn you, Felix,” I said through gritted teeth, forcing myself to put the phone in my pocket before I did any damage to it. What had I done to make him turn on me like this? If only he had been the Felix I had known from back in the day, I would have gladly set him up for life. But this guy, I didn’t know him at all.

Pushing a hand through my hair roughly, I looked up at the beautiful, sun-soaked sky of California, a place that was supposed to be a refuge for me and my mom. Only, as it turned out, it was tainted by this asshole who wanted money from me to ensure the safety of those that I loved. Well, I wasn’t going to stand by and let him hurt anyone in my family or Emma.

Why had this money made my life a miserable mess? It was supposed to eliminate my problems, not create new ones. I had already been forced out of my home because of the threat of others, I moved to Malibu where I thought we would be able to live a quiet life, only to find out that I wasn’t safe anywhere it seemed. How had they found me? The only person who knew was Jane, and I knew she wouldn’t have given up my place willingly. God, I hoped they hadn’t done anything to her because of me. I had told her where I was so she could send me the bills for the bar back home that she couldn’t email. This money had turned my life upside down in more ways than one, and I was starting to detest the day I walked into that corner store.

With a few somewhat calming breaths, I brought my thoughts back to the present. First order of business would be to alert my mom and my aunt and uncle. I didn’t know who Felix’s ‘friend’ was targeting, but I wanted them all to be aware of their surroundings so they could be better equipped to protect themselves until I could get it all figured out. Then there was Emma. How in the hell was I going to explain this to her without having to explain the entire situation?

Turning toward the house, I strode to the front door, my fists balled at my sides and my pulse racing. I would figure this out.

Chapter Nineteen

Emma

I marched out of the store angrily, clutching the medications I had been so excited about earlier to my chest. Tim showing up had ruined every good vibe and every feeling of lightness I’d had only minutes earlier about the money I had just come into. The lies he was feeding me about Cooper were only making me even more upset. Cooper was kind, considerate, and nothing like the man who was following me out the pharmacy door. I couldn’t imagine that he would have left out that kind of information about himself.

“Leave me alone, Tim,” I growled as I stalked to my car, intent on getting as far away from my ex as I could. If he jumped in front of my moving car, I wasn’t so sure I would be able to stop at the moment. I was that mad.

“Emma, wait, you need to know this,” he was saying, moving quickly in between me and my car, holding his hands up. I stopped just because I didn’t want to touch him, crossing my arms over my chest furiously. “Get out of my way, Tim.”