A Crooked Waitress

Chapter 22

Toby was getting ready to go out.

"Are you going to the pawnshop?" Christina asked.

"I'm going to see Paul, yes. Give me the jewels."

"When do you come back?" She threw him the black sack. When they had returned home, she had found it under her bed but didn't know how it ended up there.

He snatched the little bag in mid-air and looked inside it. His gaze lingered a few seconds on the perfectly cut diamonds. Then he tied up its rope in a knot and put it in his pocket. "I'll be back in a couple of hours. Did you pack the suitcases?"

"Yes."

"Hmmm...Why don't we meet at the train station instead of here? That saves us time."

"Okay. I'll buy the tickets." She said.

"To where?"

"Where do you wanna go?"

"Miami," He said after a short pause.

"Nice choice. At least it's warm!"

"With lots of alligators." He walked out of the house.

"Don't be late, or I'll go without you." She shouted as he closed the door.

The pawnshop wasn't far from their house, and he decided to walk there. The setting sun made long shadows out of buildings and people. The crisp air was full of oxygen, and he sensed the scent of a flower in the breeze.

After a couple of blocks, the park came into view. He stopped. His stash was almost finished, and he needed to buy his fix. If they were going to a different city, it would take him a while to find a new dealer. He had to buy some now and make sure he had enough for a week or two.

What if I make a small detour? It wouldn't take more than half an hour.

His dealer was in the park now. Toby had enough time to buy the drugs, sell the jewels, and be at the station, in two hours.

On his way into the park, he saw a bunch of youth hanging out around a bench, talking, and drinking beer.

He knew a couple of them, and they saw him.

"Hey, Toby. Come over here." Joshua, a lanky guy with a plastic cup in hand, yelled.

"I have to go," Toby shouted.

"Your girlfriend was here."

He walked toward them. "Really?"

"Yep," Joshua said. "Do you want a beer?"

"Yeah, what did she say?"

Joshua tossed him a can. "That you guys broke up. In fact, that you broke up with her over the phone. She was pissed, man. Really pissed!" He bobbed his head to emphasize how upset she was. Then he and his friend Max giggled.

"Well..." Toby opened the can and drank some.

"Why did you do it, man? You can't do better than her. She's hot," Joshua said.

"Very hot." Max agreed.

"Are you stupid?" Joshua asked, and he and Max laughed.

"It happens. I didn't want it that way. I had to do it." Toby shrugged.

The sense of loss he had tried all day to ignore hit him hard. Just a few hours had passed and he already missed her.

He turned and walked away. After a couple of minutes, he saw his dealer sitting on a bench. The man was usually alone. But sometimes he allowed a junkie girl in his vicinity; a commodity that was not in short supply. Tonight a skinny blonde sat beside him.