Sydney padded into her modern kitchen in her bare feet heading directly for the cupboard filled with her glasses.
"Are we drinking water or wine?" she called out.
"Syd, it's three o'clock in the afternoon!" Lucy yelled back.
"Water or wine?"
Silence filled the space and without turning around, she could imagine Lucy's face looking puzzled as she over analyzed another decision like she always did. Then she heard Lucy audibly sigh.
"Wine."
Sydney pulled out two green wine glasses, the fancy ones she bought from a little shop last summer when the two of them spent a week up north at the cottage owned by Lucy's parents. With the glasses in one hand, Sydney opened the fridge with her other and grabbed a chilled bottle of white wine. She was always prepared with at least one bottle in there at all times. Sydney held out her hand with the glasses for Lucy to grab and set them on the coffee table next to the still unopened box.
"Explain to me again why we're drinking cold wine when it's 20 degrees outside."
"Because I don't like drinking things at room temperature." Sydney gave each glass a heavy pour and put the bottle down on the table. She raised her wine in the air towards her friend. "To crushing my spirit some more!"
The two of them drank in silence before Lucy put her glass down on the table again and looked over at her friend.
"Speaking of crushing spirits, how did the call with your parents go today?"
Sydney sighed and twisted the stem of her wine glass in her hand. "It was just as expected," she explained. "My mom kept telling me that this is what I get for leaving town and thinking I could do better than them."
Lucy rolled her eyes. "And how long did it take them to tell you to move back home?"
"Longer than I expected," she said. "I had to listen to 10 minutes of my mother berating me before I heard my dad yelling in the background, 'Tell her she can move back in with us now, but we're not driving down to get her!'"
"How kind of them," Lucy said sarcastically. "So when are you moving back?"
"I'm not," she replied. "My mom's response was, 'She moved south of the Mackinac Bridge. If she comes back, she has to get her own place!'"
Lucy looked stunned. "Wow," she said. "I've never met anyone who is that against their kids being successful."
"Didn't you hear my parents, Lucy? I moved south of the Mackinac Bridge. I was never going to be a success." Sydney grabbed her glass and took another drink. "Besides, you're never going to meet anyone like my parents anyway because they won't travel any farther south than Lansing."
"We have to cling to whatever little things we can to get us through," she said. "Now, if it's any consolation, I don't think this box is going to be as bad as your parents."
"That's not saying much," Sydney muttered.
Lucy drank another sip of her wine before setting it on the table. Then she pulled her keys out of her purse and held them up, hovering over the tape on the box.
"Are you ready for this?"
"Sure," Sydney replied glumly. "What's in the box?"
Lucy just stared ahead, keys still in hand. "I don't know," she said quietly. "But I guess we're about to find out."
The key slipped easily through the bright yellow tape that encased the box along with an evidence label from the S.E.C. Lucy took another drink of wine and slowly pulled the top off, taking a quick assessment of the content inside.
"Well, that's not so bad."
"What is it?"
She watched as Lucy pulled out a heavy textbook. "Looks like your college library." She held on to the covers of the book and shook it, watching the pages flutter around. "The good news is they didn't stuff any random papers in it after they flipped through everything."
Sydney's brow furrowed and she stood up to get a better view of the contents inside.
"It's just full of books?" she stammered. "I poured wine and freaked out for some books?"
"Maybe," Lucy replied apprehensively. "Does it look like any are missing? Or did they mark any up?"
Sydney started to rummage in the box, pulling out book after book. She remembered her stock market book and her personal finance book and her business dictionary. For some reason, that had another label on it, sealing it shut. Lucy quietly grabbed it out of her hand and slipped her keys in to break the seal. Then she shook it like she had the previous book. Nothing.
In fact, other than the books, there was nothing in there. Nothing. No files, no paperwork, no proof of what her boss had allegedly done, no explanation about why he did it, and no apology from the S.E.C. for going through her personal stuff.
Nothing.
Sydney dropped back onto her sofa like a lifeless rag doll, hunched over in the corner of it staring at this stupid box in front of her.
"Is this normal?"
"A box with innocent books?" Lucy asked. "Yeah. It'll take some time for them to go through everything since they're trying to build a case against John."
Sydney sighed. "But I mean, this feeling."
"What feeling?"
"I feel so…" She took a deep breath, trying to come up with one word to describe herself. "Lifeless? Lost? What's a word for someone who is completely drained of any emotion to even have an emotion anymore?"
Lucy gave her a concerned look. "Are you OK?"
For the second time today, someone had asked her that question. And for the second time, she couldn't really come up with an articulate answer.
"I just feel numb."
Lucy put her arm around Sydney's shoulder and pulled her close.
"You feel the same way anyone feels after they've been betrayed by someone they trusted. I mean, don't take offense, but you have the same look on your face as the women who come into our office to file for divorce after their husbands cheat on them."
"Is it weird that I actually feel that way?" she said. "I mean, I just didn't have any warning with this."
"Before you say anything else," Lucy said, her voice becoming more serious. "As your lawyer I have to ask you if there is anything you can think of that made you believe something was going on?"
Sydney took a deep breath. "I can't sleep," she admitted. "It takes me hours to fall asleep because I keep thinking about little things that were going on that made no sense then but do now."
"Would you be up for coming down to the office this week and getting them on record?"
She could only nod in approval, too afraid of the words that would come out of her mouth. She had never felt uneasy at work, never felt like her boss wasn't trustworthy. But now that all of this had happened, there were these blurry moments that she had thought nothing of at the time that had begun to come into focus. But when they came into focus, there was only one explanation: Her boss was a crook.
Blinking back tears, Sydney quickly rubbed her cheeks with her hands and inhaled sharply to try and clear her vision. She let out a quiet laugh, hoping it would break the sadness that she had pulled further into her apartment.
"Sorry, just got a little something in my eyes," she said flippantly.
"I know," Lucy grabbed her hand and squeezed it, reminding Sydney that she was always there for support. Then she gave Sydney a bright smile, trying to quickly change the subject. "So what's your plan for dinner tonight?"
"I want to go see Ryan first, make sure he's doing better."
"Then I'm coming back and we're ordering Greek food that's bad for us. Gyros, fried cheese, that hummus with the extra garlic."
Sydney shook her head. "No fried cheese."
"Why not?" Lucy pouted.
"It's only fun when you're at the restaurant and they light it on fire at your table."
"Are you sure we can't light it on fire here? We've never tried that before."
Sydney just gave her a skeptical look. "Did you not see my box full of books sitting on the coffee table? That thing will go up in flames if we try to set cheese on fire here."
"You make a reasonable argument, counsel."
&
nbsp; "Let's go," Sydney said, standing to grab her keys from the kitchen counter. "You have to get to work and I have to go say 'hi' to the man-child next door."
Sydney looked down at what she was wearing and shrugged. She was sure she looked like a mess, but she really didn't care. Plus, this was Ryan she was visiting. It wasn't like she was trying to impress anyone, especially not him. She knocked and could hear Amelia's voice on the other side.
"You're being a big baby. Stop whining!"
She couldn't help but smile as Ryan's mom opened the door. "Oh, Sydney! It's so good to see you." Amelia threw her arms around Sydney and pulled her closer. "I heard you've had a bad week."
"I had a bad week too, Mom!" Ryan yelled from his spot on the sofa.
Sydney walked in to find the rookie giving his mother a mocking scowl before gingerly readjusting the pillow he was leaning against. He grimaced, the same way he did when Sydney was here a few days earlier with his bagel, and then seemed to find comfort again among his pile of cushions. She gently sat down next to him, trying not to move him too much.
"Hi," she said quietly.
He gave her a small smile. "Hi."
"Sorry about your whole appendix thing," she said.
"Sorry about your whole job thing."
"Sorry about Gretzky."
That finally made him laugh. "Andy said you started crying when he told you Gretzky was dead."
"It had been a long day," she explained.
Ryan gave her a teasing smile. "Sure."
"It was! I lost my job and my friend was in the hospital and things were bad."
"So you were worried about me then?"
He leaned in a little closer and gave her a flirtatious wink that probably made women's panties melt. But it just made her eyes roll.
"Gross, McCloud," she replied. "But it's good to see you haven't changed."
He just pushed away and flopped back against the sofa, trying to hide another scowl from the pain. "They took out my appendix, not my brain," he grumbled.
"Well, that's good since there isn't much there to begin with."
"Oh, that was a joke, wasn't it?" he said sarcastically.
Amelia walked over with some water and oatmeal cookies. "Stop teasing her, Ryan. She's had a rough time lately."
Ryan's face went slack with shock. "I lost my appendix!"
"You didn't lose it. It's just at the hospital." Ryan just glared at his mother. "Sydney, you look tired. Eat a cookie."
"Thanks," she said with a weak smile.
"Any requests from the kitchen?" The pair on the sofa simply shook their heads. "OK. I'll be in there if you need anything."
Sydney noticed Ryan watching her intently as she walked away. She could tell that even with the jokes and his mother getting the best of him, he was still grateful she was there. And no, she would never tell Amelia that Ryan once drunkenly confessed that he found his mother's teasing endearing, which is why he always gave her softball lines. She also wouldn't tell Ryan that his mother once told her that she knew exactly what he was doing but liked going along with it anyway. They had a relationship that Sydney wished she could have with her mom, but that was never going to happen. Not when Nancy was so very much the opposite of Mrs. McCloud in so many ways when it came to her child.
"Can you grab me a cookie?" Ryan said quietly from his spot on the sofa.
She took a few off the plate and handed one to him. They were still warm and the first bite made her close her eyes, allowing her just a moment of bliss.
"I know, right?" Ryan said.
She turned and smiled. "I needed that."
His hand dropped to his lap and he stared at his cookie without saying anything. When things weren't right with Ryan, he would get this intent look in his eye as he stared off at something. Sometimes it was a hockey glove or a video game cartridge or a random vase in her apartment. Today, it was a cookie.
"I can tell that something is bugging you," Sydney said.
"Someone from the S.E.E. called me this morning before I was discharged from the hospital."
"S.E.C."
"What?" he asked, looking up at her.
"S.E.C., not the S.E.E. It's the Securities and Exchange Commission," she explained. "At least I'm assuming it was the S.E.C. calling you about your investments."
"Yeah," he said somberly. "I just… I don't know how to ask this, Sydney, because you and I are friends."
"You can ask."
His eyes locked right on her. "Is the money I gave you OK?"
Sydney put her hand over his. "Your money is fine," she said reassuringly. "I didn't do anything illegal. I wasn't doing what John was doing with his clients. Our clients were separate so you have nothing to worry about."
"I mean, I know I hadn't given you that much money, and I really do trust you, but I was just —"
"It's fine, Ryan." She squeezed his hand. "It's fine. Did the S.E.C. tell you they were going to freeze your assets?"
He nodded. "They said a week."
She gave him a reassuring smile. "A week isn't bad. A week is actually really good in these cases. So don't worry, OK?"
"These cases?" he said surprisingly. "How often do these cases happen?"
"Not that often, and not with any of my clients, I promise."
Sydney let go of his hand, reaching forward to grab another cookie, hoping he wouldn't ask any questions about what was going on, at least not any questions that didn't pertain to his portfolio.
"So how are you doing?"
Sydney closed her eyes and sighed. How was she supposed to tell a guy who just lost his appendix that she was doing pretty bad? She couldn't sleep, she spent the past 36 hours in the same clothes, and she wasn't sure if she could ever trust someone again. Hell, she was staring at the oatmeal cookie in her hand wondering if Ryan's mom was worried Sydney had taken his money, which is why she poisoned the cookies.
Sydney looked over at Ryan and the cookie in his hand, realizing she was being irrational. Of course Amelia didn't poison the cookies since Ryan had eaten one already. Because that's the logical way to react when you think everyone is out to get you now.
"You're not doing good, are you?" Ryan asked.
"No." She took a deep breath. "But neither are you."
"I only lost my appendix."
Sydney gave him a forced smile. "Your mom said it's at the hospital."
"I see what you're doing," he replied, squinting his eyes. "Change the subject all you want. Just let me know if you want to talk about it."
"I don't. At least not right now."
He took a bite of a cookie and smiled. "Fine," he said, oatmeal coming out of his mouth. He leaned closer as if he was about to share a secret with Sydney. "Then I don't want to talk about the women I can't see for the next two weeks. Just so you know."
"I think you'll be OK."
"Normally, yes," he said, quiet enough so Amelia couldn't hear him in the kitchen. "I can go two weeks without a girl, no problem. But that's during the season when I'm playing and my mom's not here."
She shook her head. "You are quite the guy, McCloud."
"I'm adorable." He stuffed the rest of his cookie in his face and then gave her a cheesy grin.
"Who's adorable?" his mom asked.
"What?" Sydney said.
Amelia came back into the room carrying some napkins and handed Sydney a glass of milk she hadn't asked for but was thankful to have.
"I asked who was adorable," Amelia said. "Are you guys talking about Andy?"
"Oh, for the love!" Ryan exclaimed.
Sydney turned and gave him a surprised look. "Is there something going on?"
Ryan covered his ears with his hands as if he was trying to forget something he heard. Then he turned to stare at Sydney with one of the most disgusted looks she had ever seen on his face.
"My mom thinks Andy is hot."
Amelia just rolled her eyes at her overly dramatic son. "All I said is that he was cute. He would be good for you."
Sydney could feel herself suddenly go cold. Andy was attractive, there was no doubt about that, but Andy was not for her. No one was for her right now. She didn't have a job, her passion for work was gone, and there was no way she could consider opening herself up to something or someone, professionally or personally.
"It's nice of you to think of me," Sydney told Amelia diplomatically. "I'm just not into guys right now."
Ryan's face lit up with anticipation, like he was about to start ripping into a pile of presents on Christmas morning.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" she asked.
"Are you into girls now?"
"What?"
"You said you aren't into guys right now."
Sydney just rolled her eyes at his comment while his mother loudly whispered, "I'm sorry about my son," from her spot across the room.
"I'm not into anyone right now. I have other things to worry about."
"Andy could get your mind off of the things you're worrying about," Amelia said encouragingly.
Crap. Sydney knew the woman was well intentioned. At least she was encouraging her to get a boyfriend. Sydney's own mom was encouraging her to move home because Sydney had been a failure. But instead of dumping all those emotions right there on Ryan's dark hardwood floors, she plastered on a sweet smile.
"I don't think there are enough men in Detroit who could take my mind off of all my worry," Sydney said gently. "But thanks for thinking of me."
"You're going to get out of this funk sometime, dear. And when you do, you better hope that trainer is still available." Amelia got up and gave Sydney a friendly wink. "You two want anything else from the kitchen?"
"Painkillers," Ryan requested.
"Oh, right. Andy said you need to have another one soon. Let me get you some water so you can take it and go to sleep."
Ryan nodded and waited for his mom to get far enough away before leaning over to Sydney.
"If you don't get out of here in the next five minutes, she's going to start picking out china patterns for you and Andy."
Buried Treasure (The Detroit Pirates Book 2) Page 4