Page 61 of Diamonds

19

MADDOX

Another long day at the haberdashery.

Don’t get me wrong.I love working here.Have loved working here for nearly two years now.

I rebuffed my family’s legacy and forged my own path.Followed my passion.

But things have been tight.Dad sucks up half of my profits, and almost all the money I make goes right back into the shop.

My regular expenses?Groceries and gas?

That all just goes onto a credit card, and my debt is slowly growing.

I’ve done my best to budget, which was an adjustment after living in the Hathaway mansion for the first eighteen years of my life.But I’ve tightened my belt to minimize my expenses.

Luckily, I’ve met a great woman.Laurie Caulkins.She’s given me a shoulder to lean on through these hard times.I haven’t ever asked her for any money, but I’ve let her cover the bill every so often when we go out for dinner.

Every penny counts right now.

I check my watch.Time to start closing things down for the day.

I’ve had a few customers.One solid sale.Enough to keep the lights on for another day once my old man takes his half.

I’m bringing the blinds down over the front windows when my cell phone starts vibrating.I pull it out of my pocket.

It’s Mom.

I don’t hear much from Mom anymore.Not since the divorce.She checks in occasionally, but lately she’s been drowning her sorrows in booze.I don’t call her much.It just makes me too sad.

I could support her if I’d gone to Yale.But the way things are right now, I can barely support myself.

Dad’s prenup was ironclad.Even thoughhewas the one who initiated the divorce, Mom got next to nothing.Her lawyer managed to get her enough maintenance to cover the rent for a one-bedroom apartment downtown.But it’s not nearly enough for her.

I answer.“Hey, Mom.”

“M-Maddox.”

Something is off about her voice.And not in the normal, drunk-at-ten-in-the-morning way.There’s a listlessness, a resignation to it.

“Mom, is something wrong?”

“I’m afraid I have some…bad news.”

“Oh, God.What is it?”

Fuck.I bet she’s sick.Or injured.And she needs money.Money I don’t have.

“It’s… It’s your father.”

I raise an eyebrow.“What?What about him?”

There’s no wayheneeds money.He blew a lot on legal fees, first when he was defending himself against the myriad women who claimed he sexually harassed them, and then the divorce.But he still has plenty of dough to his name.

“Your father… He’s dead, Maddox.”

What?What?