Page 39 of Abundance of Obsession

There’s something else important I need to do. I’ve been waiting for this for the last forty-eight hours. It’s been in the back of my mind for most of the evening.

I slip off the dress that didn’t bring me any luck tonight and put on leggings and a T-shirt. The chair creaks as I sit down at the desk. My fingers tap impatiently as I wait for the computer to boot up.

Jeremiah…

He haunts my dreams for a reason. He’s been on my mind a lot more often these past few days. Almost obsessively. But I found the son of a bitch.

It turns out Jeremiah Wilcox ended up in state prison. His new home is San Quentin. Honestly, I don’t even care about his record. It doesn’t matter what he did. He’s where he belongs.

“Don’t touch me,” I hiss through clenched teeth at Jeremiah. The memory surfaces, vivid and immediate.

He narrows his eyes but pulls his hand away from me. Thank God. “You think you’re better than us? Think you’re worth more than us? You’re wrong. You’re no better than trash.” With each passing second, the dangerous spark in his eyes intensifies. “You eat, you sleep, you shit, and you bleed just like us.”

The burning on my cheek is the first thing I notice. Jeremiah’s open-handed slap shouldn’t surprise me, and yet… My head jerks to the side from the force of the blow.

Tears well up, and I find it hard to hold them back. Even though I’m trying! He shouldn’t see them.

The next thing I notice is something warm running over my lips. With the tip of my tongue, I taste it and only then register the metallic taste of blood.

Jeremiah is right. I bleed like everyone else.

I shake my head to push that moment out of my mind.

Two days ago, under the influence of tequila—which I’ll never touch again in my life—I decided to remind my dear Jeremiah of me.

Most places on the dark web are scams, but this place is similar to an onion. Peel away layer after layer to get to the heart of it. Know where to look and how to communicate. No sane person is going to respond to an ad that says, “Hey, I want to beat up a guy.”

To find it, you have to know where and how to look.

Ash used to joke that I’m a computer genius. That’s why the dark web holds no secrets for me. The hours I spend in front of the screen are to me what everyday life is to others. It’s my everything.

I log into the network, put up another layer of defenses, and throw the tracking bots off my trail. When I’m sure I’m completely alone, I enter the room where I met the guy with the nickname Nefix. He’s already here, waiting for me.

I speak first.

Zoe

I’m here

Nefix

I see

Zoe

Did you get in?

Nefix

Never doubt me. Of course, I got in.

Zoe

And?

Nefix

You’ll get a package in a moment. Then you have 15 minutes to fund my account with bitcoins, as we agreed.