Worth the Chance(64)
“Jason Buttles. Supposed to hook up with him. You see him?” Scares me how I can drop back into this life, communicate so easily.
“He’s gone. Left yesterday. Said something about a sister up north he was gonna stay with. Some scary dudes came looking for him this morning too. Guess he got out just in time.”
Fuck. “You know where up north?”
“Didn’t say. But if you see him, tell him he still owes Felicia a pack of smokes.”
Yeah, that’s what I’ll do when I find him…deliver your message.
I rummage through the house anyway looking for Jason, learning early in life to never trust the word of a junkie. Unfortunately a few more losers confirm Felicia’s story. Reaching the last closed door on the second floor, I use the flashlight on my cell phone to guide me through the darkness.
An electronic something illuminating in the corner of the bed takes me by surprise. A boy no older than ten looks up, grabbing a long pipe resting on the bed next to him. Holding up my hands in mock surrender, I quickly scope the room looking for any other signs of danger.
“Your mother live here?” I ask, seeing garbage bags in the corner with clothes spilling out all over the floor. Suitcase of the junkie.
Putting down the game he’s playing, but not the pipe, he keeps his distance, but not his manners. “None of your fucking business,” he scowls, foul language rolling from his tongue like it’s an ordinary occurrence.
“I’m not looking for trouble. Was looking for a friend, but I can see he’s not here.”
“Who’s your friend?”
“Jason.”
“Guys a loser.” The corners of my mouth twitch, he’s a hundred percent right, but the kid’s got balls saying it to me.
“You’re right. He is. You live here?”
“For now.”
“Your mother Felicia?” I hope she is, the other one’s a bigger disaster.
“Nah, that’s my Mom’s friend.”
Damn, poor kid. “You eat?”
He shrugs his shoulders. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
I smile, smart kid. “Good. You shouldn’t. I’m not a bad guy. But you don’t know me.”
“My mom will probably bring me something to eat later.”
Saw her on the couch, not much of a chance of that happening tonight. Probably not tomorrow either, “I’ll get you something. Be back in a few minutes.”
Returning fifteen minutes later, no one has moved from where they lie. Knocking quietly on the door, the kid doesn’t answer, but I open it anyway. I toss the bag to him on the bed, careful not to get to close. I wait as he rummages through the bag, pulling out the sandwich and ripping the paper off in a fury. God knows when the last time he really ate was.
“There’s fruit in there and vitamin water. Eat it, don’t trade it. And a toothbrush and toothpaste. Use it. I put a fifty in the bottom of the bag. Hide it in the clothes you’re wearing. Don’t leave it in your stuff. They’ll smell it and it’ll disappear before you can buy your next meal. Use it for food only.”
I don’t know if he pays any attention to my instructions, but his voice stops me on the way out. “Thank you.”
The entire drive back to the hotel, I think maybe it’s time I say thank you to Nico.
Chapter 41
Liv
Pacing the room for the hundredth time, I hear a key slip into the door and freeze. Quietly, Vinny opens the door. “Hey. You’re awake.”
“Of course, I’m awake. Do you think I could rest waiting for you to come home from somewhere you might get hurt?”
Tossing his keys on the desk near the door, an amused grin on his face, one of his deep creviced dimples threatens to appear, “You do know what I do for a living, right?”
“That’s different.” Shaking my head, refocusing on the subject that brought us across the great state of Illinois, “Did you find him?”
His playful face changes to grim. “No.”
“Was anyone at the address?”
“Yeah, a whole fucking treasure trove of losers, but no Jason. He left yesterday, went up north to a sister’s or something.”
One eyebrow shoots upward, “Treasure trove?”
He saunters over, a cocky smirk on his face. “I had a good English tutor.”
“She must have been a very good teacher.” Grinning, I wrap my arms around his waist.
“I might have had a crush on her. Hot little smart girl. If all my teachers looked like her, I might’ve stayed in school.” Wrapping his hands around the nape of my neck, Vinny leans down and crushes his mouth to mine.
Both breathless, still standing just barely inside the doorway a few minutes later, I ask, “What are we going to do now?”