Mary Ann glanced up at her, a frown on her face. “I detest accounting. I always find I need far more money to go out than I managed to take in. I’ve stared at this page until I’m cross-eyed and I can’t make the numbers change.”
Destiny studied Mary Ann’s large, chocolate-colored eyes. “You do look a bit cross-eyed. We can’t have that. How much do you need?”
Mary Ann laughed and tossed down her pencil with a little gesture of defeat. “Let’s just say robbing a bank is beginning to look like a way out.”
Destiny leaned onto the desk with both elbows and propped up her chin in her palm. “I could do that for you,” she offered, straight-faced. “It’s rather a specialty of mine. Walk in, sight unseen, collect what I need and get out. No one’s the wiser. And doors don’t stop me; neither can a safe. Where do you think the money I’ve donated came from?” She widened her eyes to look as innocent and sweet as possible.
There was a moment of silence. The smile faded from Mary Ann’s face and she looked horrified. “Destiny, surely you didn’t steal that money? I used money from a bank robbery for my sanctuary?” There was a squeak of alarm in her voice.
Destiny blinked rapidly. Mary Ann wadded up paper lying on the desk and threw it at her. “You’re awful! Why do I think I like you? You almost gave me a heart attack.”
“Shame on you for even thinking such a thing. Although, now that you mention it, the possibilities are endless.”
“Don’t even joke about it. That would really be the end of my sanctuaries. Funding is so darned difficult and with all the government scrutiny I have to make doubly certain every ‘i’ is dotted and every ‘t’ is crossed.”
“Are you really worried about money, Mary Ann?” Destiny asked.
“Well, of course, isn’t everyone? The sanctuaries are expensive to maintain, and I try to do job training and help each family get started. A woman on the run is difficult to hide, especially if children are involved. I have some help, but it isn’t easy to keep the funding going. Grants can only cover so much and we do fund-raisers, but people tend to forget if we don’t keep our cause in the spotlight. When you’re hiding women from violent, determined husbands, the last thing you want is publicity. It’s just complex, that’s all.” Mary Ann sighed softly. “Don’t mind me, Destiny. Thursday’s are my complaining days.”
Destiny grinned at her mischievously. “Actually I knew that. Velda warned me to avoid you at all costs this evening.”
Mary Ann groaned and rested her head on the table. “Don’t tell me the entire world knows I’m a grouch.”
“Only on Thursdays,” Destiny pointed out helpfully. “Come on, don’t be so down. Tell me how much money you need and I’ll get it for you.”
Mary Ann lifted her head to regard Destiny with deep suspicion. “You
cannot
rob a bank. I’ll find a way to pay this month’s bills without that.”
“Actually I was thinking more about robbing the drug dealer a few miles from here. He’s a nasty, slimy little man and has far too much cash for his own good. Just for the fun of it, from time to time I go and destroy all his drugs.”
Mary Ann sat up very straight. “You don’t really do that, do you? Those kinds of people are dangerous.”
Destiny shrugged. “Not to me. They can’t see me. I detest them—little worms destroying lives and thinking they know what power is. Why shouldn’t a sanctuary have the money? It ought to be put to some good use. I just have to be careful to keep from starting a drug war, or allowing anyone else to take the blame.”
Mary Ann stared with shock at Destiny’s decidedly wicked smile. “How do you do it?”
Destiny’s grin widened. “I plant memories in his nasty little mind. Every now and then he has way too much to drink or he suddenly gets an attack of acute remorse. That’s my personal favorite. He thinks he gave the money away but can’t remember to whom, and he thinks he destroyed the drugs.”
“You really do this, don’t you? Does Nicolae know?”
Destiny straightened abruptly. “Did you have to bring him into this? He has nothing to do with it. I sneak into the movie theater, too, and I don’t have his permission for that either.” There was a note of defiance in her voice that made her sound a shade childish. It annoyed her. She didn’t need to answer to Nicolae, and she wasn’t apologizing for her independence. She had no idea why she was feeling guilty.
The warmth flooding her body only increased her irritation. She knew he was secretly amused. Worse, he always managed to elicit a response from her, whether physical or emotional.