#14
First, I’m sliding down my front door in complete exhaustion, and next thing I know, my four legged friend was happily licking me awake.
“Good morning Steve,” I mumbled as I pushed him off of me.
“Do you usually sleep until 10:00?” Beck quipped.
He had planted himself at the counter with a glass of water in one hand, and an old flip phone in the other.
“Actually, yeah,” I answered candidly. “You tend to get used to sleep for breakfast after a while.”
Beck frowned at me then looked pitifully into his glass.
“You…. you weren’t kidding when you said you’re broke. Were you?” He asked.
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Drawing Out The Broken Beck
“Nope,” I answered as I poured myself a glass of water. “If it wasn’t for Orion, we’d be out on the street right now.”
“Huh. He didn’t really strike me as the “helpful” type.”
“I, um, I helped him bring down a corrupt company poisoning people by way of pesticides.”
Beck squinted at me and I awkwardly smiled back as he set the phone down.
“Where’d you get that antique?” I asked, nodding to the phone.
“Well, while you were sleeping I traded my old phone in for this one.”
“Why?” I asked as I sat on the sofa with my glass.
Beck turned slowly as he squinted at me.
“Comet, please tell me you remember the terrifying mercenaries that were chasing you last night.”
“Of course I do, but do you think they’re still here? The last time I faked my death they stuck around for like an hour or two before deserting, and personally, I thought our performance last night was pretty convincing,” I said confidently.
Beck slipped off the stool and argued, “You don’t know these people like I do. Our best option is if we stay hidden and off grid. Where’s your phone?”
As Beck came up to me I jumped off the couch and tried to reason with him.
“Beck you’re paranoid! Why would they care so much about you!?’
“You don’t understand! They’ve broken families and burned homes to the ground! If they think there’s even a possibility of us being alive, they’ll hunt us down!”
I was beginning to think they had broken Beck too.
The Truth Behind The Broken Beck
“Well, I didn’t exactly think they were harmless bunnies,” I retorted. “But we still need to find jobs. We need to get some sort of income so we can, well, stay alive. Either we die because of them or we die because we stayed here hiding.”
Beck twisted around as he face-palmed as hard as his head could handle.
“How did you get mixed up with this gang anyways?” I asked.
Beck looked back at me with eyes full of regret.
“It’s a long story,” he answered quickly.
I stepped towards him and added, “What did they do to you Beck? You used to be the artsy fun person who always got into trouble! I even covered your bail when you were caught spray painting the front of the school! Beck, whatever happened, you’ve gotta tell me. That’s the only way we can help each other. It’s the only way I can help you.”
The broken Beck ran his hands through his short black hair.
“It’s not that simple Comet,” he finally answered.
“Then tell me why,” I demanded.
He sighed, then began, “Why did they tell you I left school?”
“They said something about a family emergency,” I answered.
“Well, they didn’t exactly lie,” he confirmed as he sat back down. “My family was falling apart. My mom had lung cancer, and my little brother was failing school. Dad though, he was the cause of all this.”
Beck squeezed his hands together, then continued, “He made a deal with the Lovetz family. A deal involving $500,000. He said he was going to use the money to help my mom and send my brother to college. Three months later though, he was found dead outside a Vegas casino with nothing more than a bunch of chips in his pockets. It was after that when the Lovetz family found me and told me I had some outstanding debts to pay off.”
He stopped, and took a deep breath.
The Truth Revealed
“They threatened your family. Didn’t they?” I asked.
Beck nodded, then added, “They said they’d take my brother to a work camp, and they’d make sure my mom didn’t make it through the year.”
“Beck- “ I attempted.
“What matters is they’re both safe now. My brother’s in Russia as zoologist studying the bears. And my mom…. Well, she um, I don’t have to worry about them getting to her anymore.”
Once what he said finally sank in, I added, “Beck, I’m so sorry. I-I had no idea. I wish there was something I could’ve done.”
Really, if I could have done anything for him, if I would have even had a hunch something was going on, I would’ve dropped everything to help him. He was like the brother I never had.
With glassy eyes he looked at me and argued, “You had your own things going on, but, even though it took you a few years you’ve still helped me. I mean, I’d still be stuck working for those criminals if it wasn’t for you.”
He sniffled, then continued, “Look, I know you’re right. We need to find work, but we need to be careful about this. We can’t let the Lovetz family find us or else, last night will seem like a fun game of hide and seek.”
Agreeing With The Broken Beck
“Ok,” I finally agreed.
He was right. This situation was a lot different from the time that boat exploded.
He took a sigh of relief after I agreed with him, but I couldn’t help but feel he was still holding something back.
“Beck?” I asked.
“I’m really sorry Comet, I shouldn’t have brought you into this. It was just…. I was thinking about saving myself and I wasn’t even thinking about how this could come back to you.”
“Hey, I invited you here, I wanted to help you get away from them. Beck, no matter what you’ve done, and no matter what happens, you’ll always be my brother from another mother.”
I grabbed his shoulder as he grinned back at me.
“We can get through this. Plus, with you here, maybe you can help me avoid any future near death experiences,” I jeered.
“Good grief Comet what have you been doing lately?” Beck asked.
Before I could answer, Steve started barking at us in a mad panic.
“What’s up Steve?” I asked.
Then he barked again, this time looking frantically into the courtyard.
Beck stepped back into the kitchen in a futile attempt at hiding, as I tried to figure out what Steve was panicking about.
Then, I saw Cassy’s mom Janet, running to my door with a ripped child’s jacket in her hands.
That’s It!
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