Page 19 of Collin: Episodes 10-12
Ash glanced around and nodded. “Then why did you become a lawyer?”
“Someone told me if I liked arguing so much I should get paid for it.”
Collin almost choked on his tandoori chicken. “Who said that?”
Damian shook his head. “Again, a story for another time. Anyway, someone else said I’d never amount to anything, least of all a lawyer. So, I became a lawyer, made a lot of money, and I bought their house, their business, and their church.”
“You bought a church?” Ash’s face crumpled up in disbelief. “Is that even possible?”
“It’s real estate. I didn’t buy the organization. But I bought the building and everything inside.”
Collin frowned. “What did you want with a church?”
Damian grimaced, chagrinned. “It was childish. I didn’t want it, actually. And I paid taxes on the place for a year before I figured out what to do with it. Right now, I’m renting it out, just to cover costs and upkeep.”
“Who wanted to rent it?”
“A soup kitchen. And in the winter, the city pays me to keep it heated as a warming center.”
“That doesn’t sound like it would cover taxes.”
“Not really, but I get tax breaks on it because I’m willing for it to be used for non-profit utilization. Took a while to figure out the designations and all that, but at least I break even. If the area develops, then it will be worth something. At least I’m not losing money, and I’m helping out.”
Ash’s one visible eye looked beyond puzzled. “But you live with Mr. Reevesworth while you own all that stuff.”
Damian shrugged. “Sure, I own property. Not a lot, but some, but it’s not where I want to live, and it’s not like I need my own place.”
“See!” Ash pointed at Damian and turned to Collin. “He doesn’t need his own place either! If he doesn’t need an apartment, why do I?”
A laugh burst out of Damian despite his apparent best intentions. He pressed his fist against his mouth and held up his other hand. “Ash, I have a bedroom. And I use the apartment like I would my own place. We have a kitchen and a living room. There’s a gym downstairs.”
Ash shook his head. “I have the break room kitchen too. And I run up and down the stairwell every day, and there’s a shower and a washing machine and dryer in the basement. It’s the same thing.”
“You’re living at the office.” Damian shot Collin a look.
Collin nodded, making a serious face.
Damian shook his head and put his face in his hand. “Ash, dude. I’m pretty sure there are laws against that. You could get Mr. Reevesworth in trouble.”
Ash blinked. “For real?”
“I’m not completely sure, but it’s possible.”
Ash pulled his shoulders in and hunched down. “But why? I’m not hurting anyone.”
“Someone could argue that he’s forcing extraordinary labor out of you.”
“I work when I want.”
Damian raised an eyebrow. “So was that work you were doing while we were waiting for food or was that fun?”
Ash glared. “What if it’s both?”
Collin put up his hand. “I don’t think Mr. Reevesworth is going to get into trouble, at least not tonight. Ash, I’m glad you’re safe. But we should probably at least find you someplace you can pretend to live before, say, your birthday. When’s that?”
Ash sniffed, poking at his curry with a piece of naan. “In three months.”
“Okay. Damian will tell us if anything starts to go wrong or if he finds out there’s a big legal problem, and you think about how you want to live, okay? Three months is a good amount of time.”
