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  “To be honest, I don’t know why I didn’t tell you when I found out.” I shook my head. “I really don’t. Maybe I was being selfish. I’m not used to being married.” I stopped talking before I dug myself into an even bigger hole. When I looked over at Sheray, she had her hand by her nose and she was shaking her head as tears trickled down her cheeks.

  “All I have done is try to be the best wife I know how to be, and this is the payback I get? Take me home. I am going to pack a few things and go back to my place until the realtor sells it. You go ahead and stay with your money.” She paused. “I didn’t care whether we had two dollars or two million, I love you. I don’t care about material things. Just thinking about you keeping something like that from me disgusts me and makes me question who you even are.”

  Seeing Sheray hurt didn’t make me feel good, but maybe it was best that she moved out. I felt relieved because she made the suggestion about her leaving, not me. I started the engine and we drove home in silence.

  Chapter 12

  Janine

  As the clock ticked toward ten p.m., I found myself doing something I hadn’t done in six years. I never thought I’d touch another cigarette, let alone find myself puffing on three in a row. When Tony decided to leave me for his lil’ girlfriend, that should have been enough to cancel his chances of receiving any of my lottery winnings. But as it turned out, he was not only entitled to get some of the money, he was eligible to receive half. After finding that out, I figured smoking a pack of cigarettes was better than plotting a murder.

  “Mom, what are you doin’ smoking a cigarette?”

  William knew how I felt about him staying up too late on a school night. I tapped my cigarette twice on the edge of my ashtray and looked at my son. “I have a lot on my mind. And, anyway, I’m grown. I ask the questions here.” I laughed. “Why are you out of bed?”

  William walked over to the kitchen table where I was seated. “I can’t sleep. Why isn’t dad coming back? What did you do to him?”

  Before I could speak I swallowed hard. I wasn’t expecting my ten-year-old son to ask me that type of question. I felt my brows furrow as I stared into my son’s teary eyes. “Honey, what makes you think I did something to your father?”

  “Because he just left and never came back. Dad would never do anything like that.” He put his head down and dried his tears by wiping his face on his shoulder. Tony and I raised William to know that it was okay for a male to cry. Even though he knew I wouldn’t reprimand him for crying, I could tell he was trying his best not to break down.

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought too, but…” At that point, I had to pause in order to gather my thoughts. I had a tendency to say whatever came to mind without any regard to anything or anyone around me. But when it came to William, my instincts were to protect him from anything that could cause him pain. Rather than telling him what a jerk his father was, I opted to take the high road and be mature with my response. “Well, sometimes things happen and we may never learn why. But what I can tell you is that I did not do anything to your father to make him leave.”

  His eyes became brighter with a glimpse of hope. “So, do you think he’s gonna come back?”

  I grabbed William and pulled him close to me. “Of course he will come by to see you and you two will spend lots of time together.” I swallowed hard to get the lump out of my throat. My son was visibly hurt, and there was nothing I could do to ease his pain. Of course, I could’ve told him that we were now rich, but I couldn’t trust a child who loved his no-good daddy with that kind of information.

  “I mean, do you think he is going to come back and live with us?”

  Hell, no was what I wanted to say, but again, I had to play nice for the sake of my son’s feelings. “No, he won’t be coming back to live with us, but just because he won’t live in the same house as you doesn’t mean he loves you any less.”

  For the first time in William’s life, I did question Tony’s love for him. I could not understand how Tony could look at his reflection in the mirror and not see a man who tore his son’s world apart.

  Before Tony announced that he was leaving, our marriage was solid, so I thought. Maybe I was naïve when I believed all the late nights he claimed he was out with the boys.

  “I miss daddy so bad,” William said.

  “I know. It’s just different without him being here. But we still have each other.”

  I could see the hurt on his face as he kissed me on the cheek and said, “Goodnight, Mom.” He’d had enough of our conversation and I understood that I shouldn’t force him to talk.

  “Goodnight, Baby. Anytime, you want to talk I’m here. And don’t forget, you’re going home with Jacob tomorrow. I’ve packed your bag. His mom will make sure you get to school Tuesday and I’ll be back by the time you get home from school.”

  Normally, the idea of spending the night with his best friend, Jacob would send him over the edge with excitement, but my son just nodded as he sulked back to his room.

  I contemplated taking another drag of my cigarette, but I was no longer confident that it would help calm my nerves. I felt a single tear trickle down my cheek. The tear wasn’t because I was sad. I empathized with my son because our family life was stripped from him and there was nothing he could do about it. Tony’s selfishness had caused more heartache than he could have imagined. It was one thing to hurt me, but his absence was tearing my son apart and I wasn’t going to stand for it.

  I picked up my cell phone and dialed Tony’s number.

  “Hello?”

  I started speaking without giving any regard to him possibly being busy. He didn’t care about disrupting my life when he announced that he was leaving me for another woman. “Tony, we need to talk. What you’ve done to our family isn’t cool. Our son needs you, and he thinks that our split is because of something I did. You need to fix it.”

  I crossed my legs and I could feel my face turning red. I had one eyebrow raised. When I realized the scowl I had on my face, I relaxed because it wasn’t like he could see me anyway.

  “Look, Janine. I was sort of in the middle of something. I would be more than happy to talk to you tomorrow.”

  “You’re in the middle of something or in the middle of someone?” I stopped myself before I ended up saying more than I needed to. “You know what? Forget I even called.” I hung up before he got a chance to speak.

  I hit my hand on the kitchen table causing a few of the ashes from the ashtray to fly up and land on the table. “Damn you, Tony,” I muttered. And now, his bad behavior was about to be rewarded with half my money.

  As I sat there, fuming, an idea suddenly popped into my head. I picked up my cell phone and called my cousin, Darnell. He wasn’t the most tactful person in the world, but I knew I could trust him. We grew up together, like brother and sister, since his mother, my Aunt Ora raised me after my parents were killed in a car accident when I was twelve.

  Darnell picked up on the first ring. “Yo, what up, cuz?”

  “Hey, D. Did I catch you at a bad time? I need to talk to you about something important.”

  “Naw, I’m just headed home from work. What’s goin’ on? You need me to slide by?” Darnell was three years younger than me but the way he protected me, no one could ever tell. He worked as a deliveryman for a local furniture store. I knew he was struggling to make ends meet, and I figured our deal would help him tremendously.

  “No, we can talk now,” I said. “Are you alone?”

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m about to roll by LaQuanta’s crib. But, I’m all ears. If this is something about Tony, you know I got your back, cuz. Mama told me he left you for a teenager. Pervert. Just say the word and I’ll handle him. The way he just left you hanging like that really -”

  “No, it’s not about Tony,” I said. I had to cut him off because if I didn’t there was no telling what he would say and I certainly didn’t need any more motivation to be upset with Tony. “Well, it is, but not like you’re thinking. I
need you to do me a favor.”

  “Oh… all right. Whatcha need?”

  “I have some news. But I need to swear you to secrecy.” We were from a pretty big family, but our family was loud, dysfunctional and full of moochers. The last thing I wanted anyone knowing was I’d come into any amount of money.

  “Okay, this sounds serious. What’s up?”

  I inhaled, hoping that I was doing the right thing. “I won some money.”

  “Word? At the Casino?”

  “No. The lottery.” I paused. “I’m part of a pool that is splitting sixty-two million. I mean, we’ll probably only get about half that after Uncle Sam gets his cut, but still.”

  Silence filled the phone. Finally, Darnell said, “Why you on my phone playing games with me, Janine?”

  That made me laugh. Why did everyone think it was a joke when I said we’d won the lottery? “I’m not playing, lil’ cousin. This is real. Very real.”

  I heard the music in the background cut off and it sounded like he had stopped his car.

  “I had to pull over because I know I did not just hear you say you won sixty-two million dollars?”

  “It’s not going to be that much after taxes. And then I’m splitting it four ways. So when all is said and done, I’m only getting a little under eight million.”

  “Eight million dollars!” he screamed.

  “Yes, and that’s where I need you.”

  “You need me to help you spend it,” he said, excitedly.

  I laughed. “Not really. I need you to help me claim it.” I proceeded to explain to him how Tony was entitled to half and it would be a cold day in hell before I let that happen. “We’re claiming it through a trust, but all members of the trust have to be present to claim the winnings. Even though it’s supposed to be private and our names aren’t supposed to be released, it is reported to the IRS, which means that Tony can find out about it.”

  “Shoot, you know I don’t care about Uncle Sam. I’m using a fake social security number anyway.”

  I shook my head at my cousin. Only he would go to work every day under somebody else’s social security number.

  “Well, I’ll give you a cut for helping me out. I figured it would help you out and that way, I can keep Tony from getting any portion of my money.”

  “When you need me to do it?” That’s what I loved about my cousin. He didn’t need any more details.

  “Tomorrow. I know it’s last minute, but I just thought of the idea.”

  “Hey, you know I got your back. I’m off tomorrow anyway. Even if I weren’t, I’d make a way to help you. That dude don’t deserve one penny of your money.”

  “Awesome. I’ll get you a flight out. We’re all going at nine in the morning.”

  “You’re going?”

  “I’m going to Austin, but I’ll have to stay in the hotel room. I can’t chance anyone taking pictures, but I need to be there when y’all come back with the check.”

  “I know that’s right. I know you won with your coworkers, but you can’t trust folks these days.”

  I smiled. Darnell was always looking out for me. “They’re good people. I trust them. But I wanna be there anyway.”

  “Cool.” He actually let out a yell. “Dang. We ‘bout to get paid.”

  “Yes, we are,” I said. I hadn’t decided how much I’d give Darnell, but he was small time. I’d slide him two or three hundred thousand dollars and I’d make his life.

  “I really appreciate you, Darnell. This means so much to me,” I said.

  We said our goodbyes and I picked up my ashtray and walked over and dumped it and the remaining cigarettes into the trash. I wouldn’t need them anymore. I was about to be stress-free.

  Tony didn’t know it yet, but he did me and my bank account a favor by walking out on our marriage.

  Two Months Later…

  Chapter 13

  Raquelle

  “Yes, I’ll hold… again.” I rolled my eyes up as the receptionist at Haskell and Haskell Law Firm placed me on hold for the third time in less than ten minutes.

  My criminal attorney, Robert Haskell was in the process of negotiating a plea deal with Mr. Perry. Two months ago, he’d informed my former boss that I had won the lottery and would be willing to pay back triple the amount I took. We both thought that was more than generous and I had been praying that Mr. Perry would take us up on our offer. And since I hadn’t heard back from Mr. Haskell, I was following up myself.

  “Mrs. Vargas, are you still on the line?”

  “Yes, I’m still here.” I squinted and shook my head. Where else did she think I’d be? “What did he say?”

  “Well, I am not at liberty to discuss the details of your case, but I can put you through to Carla if you’d like,” she said, referring to Mr. Haskell’s legal assistant.

  “Pauline, with all due respect, I have been on this phone with you for the past ten minutes, I’m tired of getting the run around,” I said.

  I couldn’t understand why I’d been put on hold several times for Mr. Haskell if she knew she couldn’t help me. I should have known to ask for Carla, who I dealt with directly on a regular basis anyway. Mr. Haskell only got directly involved when it was time to go to court, which we’d done a month after I was fired, begging for an extension on a hearing so I could deal with my son. Mr. Haskell was the best criminal defense attorney in the Houston area and he’d managed to get everything delayed until after Shaun’s kidney transplant. So it really didn’t matter to me how much he interacted with me. What mattered to me was that he would see to it that I didn’t get put behind bars.

  Shaun’s kidney transplant was scheduled for three weeks from now and now that we had a date set for that, we’d received notice yesterday that Mr. Perry would be pressing the district attorney for a court date.

  I couldn’t go to jail. I needed to be free for my children and if it took me spending every bit of my money to do it, I would.

  Finally, Carla picked up the phone. “Mrs. Vargas. How are you?”

  I could hear apprehension in her voice. “I’m all right, Carla. How about yourself?”

  “Well, I’m doing good. I could be better though.”

  I could tell her news wasn’t going to be good.

  “Unfortunately, Mr. Perry is not willing to accept our offer,” she continued. “He says that no amount of money can make this okay. A court date has been set for five weeks from today. I’m really sorry about all of this.”

  I had to steady myself against the staircase. “Oh-kay. Thank you, Carla. I have to go.” I hung up the phone before I had a bonafide breakdown.

  Though I didn’t want to face it, the harsh reality was that the decisions I made would have several negative repercussions on my children.

  No. This was not the end. It couldn’t be. I would talk to Mr. Perry myself. The last time we talked, he was angry. I’m sure he’d settled down by now. And he knew, despite what I’d done, I’d been a good employee before that. In fact, his old behind used to flirt with me all the time.

  I didn’t care what lengths I had to go to in order to get Mr. Perry to take our offer. I was sure I’d have to give up more than the money, but I was willing to give Mr. Perry anything he wanted… and I do mean anything.

  Chapter 14

  Angelique

  It had been eight weeks since my surgery and I’d already dropped sixty pounds. Even though Marcus was upset that I had my surgery two days after my check cleared the bank, he’d been right by my side and no words could express my gratitude for him. He didn’t know, but I’d paid Dr. Taylor extra just to expedite things. That was my first dose of how money really did change things. I’d had liposuction to get rid of the excess skin one month after the surgery. Dr. Taylor wanted me to wait because he said I’d lose more weight but what good was losing all that weight if I still didn’t look good naked? Of course, once again, money talked and he’d done the lipo and I planned to go back as many times as necessary until my body looked like it was perf
ectly sculpted by Michelangelo himself.

  I’d just left another appointment and Dr. Taylor had cleared me to resume my regular activities. His suggestion was that I not overexert myself and to listen to my body because it would let me know when I’d done too much. When I pulled out of the parking lot, my new body told me to head to the mall. I’d been holding off on shopping because I was determined not to buy any clothes until I could get them in a size ten. And that ten was calling my name! I was floating high and my debit card was ready to hit the Galleria. Of course, I’d been smart and put money away in Mutual Funds. The financial advisor was awesome, but out of all of us, I think I was the only one truly taking his advice. Janine was too concerned with keeping Tony away from her money that she was making stupid decisions and Terrance was on a spending spree that would have him broke in a year. I hoped that they’d come to their senses soon. At least Raquelle wasn’t going crazy. She’d barely spent anything, but I guess that’s because all that mattered to her right now was her son and her case.

  Don’t get me wrong, I’d allotted myself a generous spending budget, and I was ready to put it to use.

  I reflected on the past two months as I drove down 610. None of us were still working at Clearcast. Terrance went back the Tuesday after we got our money, but I think he only did it so he could make some kind of grand exit. He told me he’d told Evelyn that his rich uncle had died and left him some money so he was out. Then, because he was so loud, the security guard had come in and Terrance had cussed him out on his way out the door.

  I lasted one day after that. When Dr. Taylor said he could move my surgery up a week, I turned in my two-hour notice and left.

  Of course, folks started putting two and two together and since they knew that we did the lotto pool, and that gossiping Lorna had told folks about the tickets on my desk, they assumed that we had won. My phone had been blowing up. When Owen called me going off, I changed my number altogether.