Page 68 of Cruel Riches

“Yup.”

“There’s a bus stop bench right outside it. How about we meet on that bench at a quarter past seven?”

“Great. See you then.”

I was so excited when I ended the call that I almost forgot about the drugged chocolates and bouquet with the spy camera that had been left at my door like a Trojan horse.

Almost, but not quite.

I looked down at the crushed camera pieces with a frown, trying to figure out what to do about the Nate situation. Nothing came to me. Manic thoughts about the response to my ad were flitting around my mind like swarms of insects, cutting off my ability to think clearly. I’d have to sit on it for a while.

I still had several hours before I had to head up to the city to meet Jon, so I decided to find Laurel and Ruby so I could apologize in person for my awful behavior. As soon as I stood up to grab my coat, however, my head started spinning again, and my vision blurred at the edges.

The damn drugs were still affecting me.

I tried to blink it all away, but my vision wouldn’t return to normal. With a groan, I crawled into bed and wrapped myself in my blankets, intent on sleeping off the effects.

By the time I woke up from my extended nap, my stomach was growling, and the sun was sinking low in the sky. It was almost time to meet Jon Richter.

I freshened up, grabbed my things, and bought a snack from a vending machine near Redstone Hall. Then I got in my car and started heading up the coast toward Avalon City.

Thick white mist was rolling in from the north, and harsh winds whipped through the air, making the trees on the side of the road sway and bend. It was going to be a long, chilly night.

I was too excited to care about the cold, though. I could feel blood rushing into my face and heating my skin every time I thought about what Jon might have to tell me.

The logical side of me knew that it could be totally useless information, but my heart told me to stay optimistic. It could be something important. Why else would he feel the need to contact me?

When I got to the city, I was lucky to find a parking bay right across from City Hall. I was a couple of minutes late.

I hurried across the street toward the empty wooden bench near the bus stop and sat down, heart pounding. Jon was late too. Had he changed his mind? Was this whole thing some sort of prank?

My right foot bounced up and down with anxious energy as I waited. Just as my hope was starting to fade, a man in dark pants and a light brown coat arrived at the bench and sat next to me.

“Alexis?” he asked without looking at me.

“That’s me. Jon?”

“Yes. Sorry I’m late. Got caught up on a call.” He still wasn’t looking at me.

“That’s okay.”

He briefly glanced in my direction. “I was going to suggest we sit here to talk, because there’s usually a lot of people around at this hour, but it’s absolutely freezing,” he said. “There’s a bar just up the street. Nice food. We could go there instead.”

I nodded. “Sure. Food sounds good.”

Jon scratched the back of his neck as he glanced around. He seemed just as nervous as me. “Listen… we probably shouldn’t walk there together. Never know who’s watching. I’ll start heading up there now, and you can follow me. Okay?”

“Okay.”

I waited for a minute as he got up and headed down the street. Then I started following him, remaining several paces behind so it looked like we were strangers who happened to be headed in the same direction.

Jon turned left into a basement bar about three minutes later. It was a cozy little spot, long and narrow and decorated to look like the interior of an old ship.

I ordered some fries and Coke from the bar before joining Jon in a corner booth.

“Sorry about the cloak and dagger act,” he said with a tentative smile, holding out a hand for me to shake as I sat down. “I know it’s been ten years, but I still worry what people will say or do if I bring up my friendship with Peter. Sometimes I think people are even watching me because of it.”

I gave him a tight smile. “I understand.”

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