“I guess you can say that, but we’re not here to talk about me.”
“We can talk about you as well. What happened?”
“I don’t want to get into that.”
Chris held his gaze; one of the few people who could do that for more than a few seconds. “I’m going to dump a lot of heavy stuff on you in a minute. Only fair for it to go both ways.”
Jay ran his fingers over the sweaty beer glass. “I had a surprise visit from someone I haven’t seen since prison. Someone I didn’t want to ever see again.”
Chris shifted in his seat. Prison was not a topic they talked about, even after their truce. “He came to the garage to find you?”
“No. He needed an oil change, and fate decided to kick my ass. Or rather, my balls.”
“You guys had a fight?”
Jay snorted. “Nasty Ben isn’t someone you want tofight with. I mean, youwantto, but it takes a really stupid man to try. He was one of the guys who made my prison time a living hell.”
“Did he try something today?” Chris asked quietly.
“Yes, but it could’ve gone a lot worse.” He needed to remind himself that. “At least he’s leaving the city. I’ll be fine by tomorrow.”
“It’s okay if you won’t.”
“Nah, I can’t let it keep me down. The fucker doesn’t deserve that power.” Jay leaned forward, the cold glass between his palms. “Enough about my shit. What’s up with you? Something to do with Mickey?”
“No, he’s busy with his silly campaign for mayor. I barely see him.” Chris sat a bit straighter, as though he was bracing himself. “After you guys left my house on Saturday, I had a visit from my adoptive brothers.”
“Brothers?”
“Trevor and Andy. Their parents were Robert and Kimberly.”
“The ones who died recently?”
“The ones who died and left me all of their money.”
“The hell? Toyou?”
Chris nodded. “When their lawyer called me, I didn’t bother hearing him out. I just told him that I don’t want anything to do with that family, dead or alive.”
“I’m guessing that Trevor and Andy weren’t so happy about that will. But since you told the lawyer you didn’t want that money, the brothers can take it and piss off.”
Chris sighed, looking even more tired. “That would’ve solved everything, yes. Unfortunately, Robert Mitchell is trying to kill me from the grave.”
Jay leaned forward, the table pressing against his ribs. “Don’t put things like that in your head. Ghosts are just ghosts. Can’t you take the money from the will and pass it over?”
“I’m not allowed access to that money for the next two years. Nobody can touch it until then.”
Jay had little experience with wills and money in general, but he suspected a two-year delay was not common. “I’m guessing Trevor and Andy aren’t interested in waiting patiently.”
“Andy doesn’t care about anything. Trevor is the one calling the shots, and he’s almost a million dollars in debt.”
“A million dollars?!”
Heads turned their way, maybe thinking they had won the lottery.
Chris lowered his voice. “Trevor always looked for easy business opportunities because it was simpler than getting a regular job. I’m guessing he used his parents’ money to make some bad investments and didn’t take care of his debt in time.”
“Okay, so what’s the problem? You can’t make a million dollars appear with a snap of your fingers.”
