Page 14 of Midnight Dream

She had a truly quizzical look on her face.

“I assume you came here to sell me your little café?”

“I didn’t come here to sell you that.”

I shook my head. She was a colossal waste of time. Just like her mother.

“Then why are you here, Dream?”

“I need money, and I need you to tell Carl to back off,” she demanded and placed both hands on her hips.

My eyebrow raised.

“You come into my home, all fire and brimstone, tonotsell me your café?”

“No.”

“And you want...money from me?”

“Yes.”

“Ha!” I laughed hard and deep till my insides ached. “Dream, you are a piece of work. Why would I give you anything, let alone some of my hard-earned money?”

“Because you owe it to me.”

The ache from the laughter turned into a raging fire. This little bitch had no idea who she was speaking to.

“Victor Cruz owes nothing to no one. Get the fuck out of my house.”

“No. Not until you pay me what you owe.”

“What the hell do you think I owe you, Dream?”

She reached into her pocket and pulled out some torn shreds of paper.

“What’s this?”

“It’s two hundred dollars,” she said. “Or at least the remains of two hundred dollars. It’s the check you wrote me last time I was here.”

“It looks like it was torn to shreds.”

“It might be.”

“Ha!”

She was truly something.

“Listen, Victor. Just write me another check and I’ll be on my way.”

She was brave, I’ll give her that. I moved to my desk on the side wall and produced my checkbook. I lifted a pen and wrote.

“What else, did you want? Something about Carl?”

Dream stepped closer to me and shortened the distance between us.

“I know what you had Carl do. You leave me and my friends alone.”

I ripped the check off the pad and handed it to her. When she looked at the figure, her eyes gave me the exact reaction I was seeking.

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