Page 78 of The Lies We Steal

“Steal his wallet.”

I turn to Alistair, lifting an eyebrow, “I can’t.”

“Okay then, leave. Kiss your future out of the slums goodbye. You’ll be on a plane tomorrow.”

I had to make a choice. I had to make it right now.

Help them, then be done with it. They would leave me alone because they knew I wouldn’t say anything because if I did, they would throw me under the bus with them. This was their way of dirtying my hands right along with theirs.

I would be just as guilty now.

Or I went home. I left this place and all my hopes and dreams go down the drain.

“I can’t steal his wallet right now. That’s not how it works.” I lick my bottom lip, trying to give myself some moisture, I could barely breathe without feeling like cotton balls were stuck in my throat.

“I wouldn’t just go up to a guy and say, hey I’m gonna steal your wallet. I have to catch him off guard.”

“See I told you, she’s a liar.”

Fed up with Thatcher’s mouth, I lunge at him, shoving him hard with two hands. My emotions were so high, the slightest movement would have set me off. My explosion of rage moves his tall body only a little. Pissing me off even more, but I got my message across.

“Will you just do it.” Alistair orders, ignoring my outburst.

Annoyed, tired, and wanting to get this over with. I take a breath, walking closer to him while he watches my every move like a hawk. Yeah, this is definitely the ideal situation to jack someone’s wallet.

“I just walk up to the guy, avoid eye contact, step to the side,” I act out everything I’m explaining, looking at the ground as I step across Thatcher’s body, “Look them in the eye once, then boom I’m gone,”

I stride past him, spinning on my heels to face everyone once again. Holding my hands out as if to Tada at the end of a magic trick. Thatcher reaches into his pants, pulling out his wallet, wiggling it around in the air.

“It’s still there, swine. See I told you, let’s just get rid—”

“Check the inside.” I say with a smug look on my face. I swing my arms behind myself as he does it, opening the billfold only to find it empty. Reaching carefully into my back pocket, I pull out a couple hundred-dollar bills.

“It’s all about the distraction,” I hum as the crisp bills slide along my fingers as I count them out loud.

When I shoved Thatcher I’d easily jacked the wallet. Slipping my hand into his pocket and getting the billfold before he even realized what was happening. To everyone else it just looked like I was fed up with his shit, which I was, but it also gave me a way in.

Then I’d snuck it right back inside where I found out, only empty. The money looking pretty in my hands. I toss the Benjamins into the air towards him, watching them flutter around the space, falling onto the dirty floor.

I didn’t want to do this. This was not something I imagined for myself after leaving Texas. I wanted to leave the stealing behind me and maybe I could after this. When this was all over, I could have the fresh start I needed.

I just had to make a deal with a group of devils first.

“So, what safe am I breaking into?”

Alistair

“Make sure you pack a suit.”

I hear as I shove another t-shirt into the duffle bag, scanning my room for things I might have missed so that I don’t have to come back here for anything else for the next several months.

Snorting, “Yeah, right.”

Collecting a new sketchpad and a set of pens off my desk, tossing them in there as well. Most of my things were already in my dorm, but when the Christmas and Thanksgiving breaks rolled around everyone left the school grounds and I was going to need something to keep me busy while we were visiting Thatcher’s family.

All of his distant relatives on his mother’s side flew in to visit and I normally locked myself in my room by day two of the festivities. Even though it was loud and there were more people than I was comfortable with, I still preferred it over my own home.

While I didn’t celebrate with them, the holidays always felt more authentic at Thatch’s. There was no insanely decorated ballroom or catered meal for a hundred people. It was a normal family dinner, with Christmas trees and jingle bells playing in the background.