Page 131 of Crazy Thing

I wouldn’t have to be such an asshole if Frank really understood the urgency here.

But he doesn’t know what it was like, walking into my bedroom in the dead of night only to realize that Ziggy was gone. Without a trace.

The woman I love left me last night and now I’m desperate to figure out where I went wrong.

It was after three in the morning when I trudged out of my home office, ready to fall into my bed and pull her into my arms. But when I stepped into the bedroom, my disheveled sheets were empty.

At first I was frozen. Confused. Then I rushed over to the balcony overlooking my driveway, only to realize that Ziggy’s bus was gone.

She left.

Without a word. Without a sound.

I called her phone number again and again, each call sent straight to voicemail. Even though there was no trace of her, I jumped into my car, speeding after her ghost down the dark, winding hills.

It was a ridiculously dangerous choice, especially when the rain started coming down. But Ziggy was all I cared about in that moment.

As I drove, I wracked my brain, thinking back over the night. Trying to figure out what could have sent her running. Only one thing came to mind.

That phone call.Fuck.

She overheard the phone call. She misunderstood everything.

And she left.

Shit. I’ve ruined everything with Ziggy. Now I’m just desperate to track her down so I can explain myself.

But I couldn’t find her last night. She didn’t go to her usual spot in the woods of Honey Hill and she didn’t show up at my office this morning. So here I am, rushing toward the only place I’m sure to find her.

I know she’s got to be working at her metaphysical shop in Honey Hill. And if I don’t get there in the next few minutes, she’ll be closed up for the day, and only Godknows where that woman plans to park her bus this evening. If she wants to hide, I’ll never find her.

I can’t wait another day.

I need to talk to her now.

“Darius, I don’t like this,” Frank whines. “You know I’ll do everything in my power to make sure this new transaction you’re proposing goes through as you requested. But what you’re doing is crazy. It’s lunacy. You're going to regret it. I’m certain of that.”

Frank and I have been over this several times already. He about had a heart attack when I first told him of how I plan to win Ziggy back. He prepared all the documentation that I asked him to prepare, but that hasn’t stopped him from trying to talk me out of it this whole time.

The man is only trying to be helpful. He’s got good intentions. He’s always made it a point to look out for my best interests. But at this point, his constant yapping is just slowing me down.

“I don’t care that it’s crazy,” I snap back. “I need to win her back, and this is the only way to do it. I have to get her to trust me. Fully. This is theonlyway.”

“Darius, please. There are better ways to handle this. I have to advise against this. You can’t just sign over every single dollar you own to Ms. Beaumont and hope for the best. When you come to your senses, you’re going to be beside yourself. This isn’t something we can just ‘undo’.”

“Dammit, Frank. This woman is the love of my life. I loved her before I had a dollar to my name. I loved her before I even knew what the word meant. And I will do anything to win her back. I know you mean well, but right now, I don’t care what you or anyone has to say. I’m doing this.”

I’m willing to risk it all for Ziggy. Point blank period.

I hang up on my lawyer. Honestly, I’m doing him a favor. He’s just wasting his breath trying to talk me out of this.

I need to prove my loyalty to Ziggy. I would never, ever betray her and the rest of the town in this waterfall deal.

But Ziggy doesn’t know that.

And now she’s somewhere out there, thinking that I’m just like Edison. Thinking that I only bought the land to sell it off to the highest bidder in the future. I can’t let her go on believing that. I have to make sure she knows the truth.

I arrive at Divine Treasures just as Ziggy is saying goodbye to her last customer of the day. She’s standing there at the door, getting ready to lock it. I let the customer walk by, and then I slip through before Ziggy has the chance to slam it in my face.

---