Page 108 of Reclaiming Adelaide

He worked the strap around my ankle. “I learned how to hustle. I was already good at hacking. At that age, I’d hacked the police department to rid the world of Ruby’s existence, so I learned how to make money doing it. Then I started selling fake IDs, and I found out how much I liked the criminal world.”

I shook my head, suppressing a laugh. Jake… a criminal. “I can’t see a straight-laced man such as yourself as a criminal.”

“There’s still so much about me you don’t know, and when the time is right, I’ll share it with you.”

My stomach flipped into a sickness. “Whatexactlydoes that mean?”

A knock sounded at the door, drawing his attention away from my finished second strap. “We’ll discuss it later.”

He stood from his crouched position, then held his hand out for me.

Jake took a shriveled-up mourning girl and turned me into a beauty before I comprehended what had happened.

“Are you ready?”

I hung my head. Couldn’t I just cave in on myself right now and become a figment of everyone’s imagination?

“No.”

He tucked his hand in mine and patted it. “Just hold my hand. I’m here for you.” He squeezed. “Okay, sweets?”

I nodded as he dragged me towards our bedroom door.

Becca stood on the other side in a modest black dress that hung down to mid-calf and sleeves to her wrists. In one hand, she carried a black quilted purse with a silver chain for the handle. Unlike my swooping one, her neckline hugged the base of her throat, where a dainty platinum chain hung, contrasting the blackness of the dress behind it.

How could one look so elegant going to a funeral?

She gave me an empathetic smile.

“The limo’s here.”

32

Therewerecarsasfar as the eye could see crowding the parking lot and side of the street, showing the world just how important the deaths of these two individuals were. But there was one in particular that had me clenching my fist, and there wasn’t anything I could do about it. No sense in drawing attention to them and letting Adelaide know they’d arrived, just as she thought they would.

A woman a few inches shorter than Adelaide rushed towards us. Her black dress, which hung to her knees, and curled red hair wavered as she weaved through the crowd. My body tensed, and I wrapped a protective arm around her waist to pull her into me.

“Adelaide?” She placed her hand on Adelaide’s arm as she studied her. “I thought that was you. I almost didn’t recognize you with that black hair of yours.”

“Hi, Auntie Mable.”

My hold on her waist loosened as Mable pulled her in for a hug.

“Where have you been? I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all week since the police broke the news.” She pulled back and gripped her shoulders. “This is horrible. Just horrible. I’m so sorry, dear.”

“Thanks.”

Adelaide wiped the forming tears from her eyes with the back of her hand as I grabbed the travel pack of tissues from my pocket and handed them to her.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Who’s this gentleman?”

“He’s um…”

I reached forward, extending my hand, and Mable shook it. “Jake.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Although I wish it were under better circumstances.”

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