Chapter Seven
Ricky
“THE HOLE? IN 30?” I texted to Jon.
“Finish work in ten. See you there,” he texted back.
Of all my friends, I related to Jon the most. Landon, Dean, Jon, and I had been best friends since kindergarten at Zionsville Elementary. Jon was like me. He’d never had a dad in his life. While I had a father, mine was unable to speak, or have any real relationship with us. Jon’s father was an asshole by his own doing, while my dad’s problems came from having a heart of gold. But still. We each missed a father’s presence in our lives.
I jumped on my bike, started it, and then gunned the engine as I left Ed’s and headed to The Hole. My stomach growled, but I only had spare money to pay for a couple of beers. The rest of my paycheck was going straight to Mama.
The heavy door to The Hole swung open and it took my eyes a minute to adjust to the darkness. The cool air smelled of stale beer, but despite that, I hopped on the cracked, vinyl stool and signaled the bartender. “Two beers.”
“Coming up.” The old man placed a wicker basket of popcorn in front of me and I eagerly grabbed a handful. I poured it into my mouth, wiping my greasy hands on a napkin as I chewed the stale, buttery kernels.
Two beers were placed on the counter and I watched as perspiration traveled in long lines down the sides.
“Hey, Dicktator! How’s it hanging?” Jon’s voice boomed across the quiet bar as he approached, smacking my shoulder and taking the stool next to mine.
I passed him one of the cold bottles of beer. “Buster Hymen, hermano. You made it.” Taking a long drink of my beer, I savored the cool, crisp taste. I swallowed, placing the bottle on the table and cupping my hands around it.
Jon slugged back his beer, landing it on the table with a thunk as he gave me the side eye. “You look wired. What’s going on?”
I arched an eyebrow at him. “I found her.”
Jon squinted, studying me. “You found who?” He asked the question, but before I could answer he shook his head. “No, man. No way.”
Looking over my shoulder, I took in his slack-jawed, shocked expression. “I met her.” I nodded at him, allowing him the time for my words to sink in. “She told a story about her near drowning; a stranger dove into shallow waters and was badly hurt.” I drank again, watching Jon’s mouth open and close, but no words formed.
He ran his hand over his close-cropped hair and rubbed his neck. “Please tell me you dropped your stupid ass idea. What happened was an accident.”
My shoulders slumped from the sheer weight of my thoughts. I’d confided in Jon this past summer about my dream of retribution. Finding the girl who Papa saved and making sure she knew what her accident did to him. To my whole family.
“I guess you’re right. A little girl drowning isn’t her fault. But where the fuck were her parents? Why did it have to be my dad? Why did my dad end up so disabled he needs to breathe through a fucking tube, while her neglectful parents walked away healthy? Someone needs to pay. Someone needs to make it right.” Tipping the bottle back to my lips, I drained the rest.
Jon signaled the bartender for another round. He nodded his thanks as two fresh bottles were placed in front of us. “Pay how? You’re wasting your life focusing on revenge against people you don’t even know. This isn’t healthy. Focus on finishing your associate’s degree. Focus on applying to college next year. Anything but this.”
I stared ahead of me, avoiding his gaze.
Jon swiveled on his stool, facing me, his lips set in a deep frown. “Okay, that’s not happening. Go on. Did you talk to her? Tell her your dad is the stranger?”
Pressing my lips together, I shook my head. “Nope.”
Jon’s eyes widened to the point of bulging. “I thought that was the whole point? To confront her. Tell her what happened to your dad. Find out why her parents fucked up.”
I inhaled a huge breath and blew it out slowly. “That was the original plan. But then I took a closer look at her and I sort of followed her to her car.”
Jon hung his head. “This is heading south quickly. And what did you discover?”
I swiveled to face him. “Fancy clothes, lots of expensive jewelry, she drives a freakin’ Tesla.” My hands formed fists on top of my thighs. “She’s rich. Loaded.”
Jon narrowed his eyes. “And?”
“The way I figure it, that means her family has more than enough and we’re barely getting by. It’s time to even up the score.” Lifting my bottle, I took a large gulp.
Jon choked on his sip. “What the fuck? Don’t do it. Your family needs you. Don’t get yourself in trouble.” Jon’s voice was hard, his jaw set. “I’m not in law school yet. I can’t help you if you get thrown in jail.”
I rolled my eyes at the moron sitting next to me. “I’m not stupid. I’m going to get to know her, make her like me, and then figure out the plan from there.”
Jon clapped his hand on my shoulder. “Think of your mother. Madre Ana would never like a plan where anyone got hurt in the end. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
“Me too. But I have a bad feeling about my entire life. How could this possibly be worse? And Mama doesn’t need to know anything about this,” I warned. “I need answers. Hell, I need more than that, but answers are a start at least.”
Lips pursed, Jon gave me a hesitant nod. The topic was dropped for now. I’d spend some time with my boy catching up on his life and shooting the shit, avoiding the thoughts that plagued me.
After that, I had some serious thinking to do.