Page 44 of Abra's Acquisition
“None of your business! You and your club have caused me enough problems. Just stay away from me,” Erickson snarls.
“Please, Mr. Erickson…” Ryan starts, but Erickson ignores him as he turns on Abra.
“This is all your fault! You stole the Harlequin figurine from me, and now you’re stealing my employee!”
I glance over Erickson’s shoulder to see Miguel Costa slow down to watch the show.
“What figurine?” Miguel asks.
Erickson freezes before glancing over his shoulder. He must see the same thing we all see: a furious Cartel leader.
“Nothing,” Erickson says. “It was just a misunderstanding,” Erickson says before snapping his mouth closed and pushing his way through the wall of denim and leather to escape out the door. Miguel turns to the two men behind him and nods toward the door where Erickson disappeared. He follows behind them after giving Abra a piercing look.
“Wait, what figurine?” Ryan asks Abra, grabbing my attention. “It isn’t a Harlequin figurine, is it?” When Abra nods, Ryan continues. “He’s standing like this? As if holding out a scroll?” Ryan asks, bending at the waist and doing a decent imitation of the figurine Abra stole from Erickson.
“Yes, exactly like that, why? Do you know it?” Abra asks.
Ryan nods slowly as he stares at the door through which Erickson fled.
“Okay, we’re all set,” Cleo says, joining us after completing her business with Camille.
“Hold on, I want to hear what Ryan has to say,” Abra says.
“Why don’t we discuss it over lunch?” Hex suggests as he glances around the emptying room. “Looks like they want us out of here.”
“I should probably get back to work,” Ryan says with another look at the door Erickson used. “Although I don’t know if I have a job any longer.”
“Don’t worry about him,” Abra says. “If you want your job back with that bastard, we’ll get it for you.”
“What do you do for him?” Cleo asks as we leave the courthouse.
“What? Oh, I was his project manager. Erickson is a busy man and couldn’t oversee every project he started. That’s where I came in. I’d keep track of the projects and keep him updated. He isn’t the easiest man to work for, but he pays well.”
“Like Abra said, don’t worry about Erickson. We can get Erickson to change his mind. But you might be better off finding something else. We can help you get a different job,” Hex assures him. “Now, where should we eat?”
“Francoise’s is close,” Cleo suggests. “I’ll call him and make sure we get the table in the grotto. That way we can talk freely.”
“Good idea,” Hex says as Cleo pulls out her phone.
“Do you think your wife would like to join us?” I ask Ryan.
His eyes widen in surprise. “How did you know I was married?”
“Oh, well,” I scramble to come up with a reason other than the truth. I glance at Abra for help.
“I think you’ll find we know more about you than you know about us,” Abra says, obviously not having an issue with thetruth. “We can explain at the restaurant. Would you like to invite your wife to join us? We’ll be heading over to your new house after lunch. Won’t she want to join us?”
“She would,” Ryan agrees. “I’ll swing by and pick her up before we meet you at the restaurant.”
“Sounds good,” Abra says, clapping him on the shoulder.
Once Ryan leaves us, I turn to Abra. “Are you planning on telling him everything?” I ask.
Abra offers me his hand before moving toward his bike. He passes me my helmet before answering. “I don’t know yet. I might. First, I want to hear his story.”
“Aren’t you worried about the fact that he worked for Erickson?” I ask.
Abra smirks at me. “You mean like you did?”
