Chapter 61: Reach Out
“You want us to steal 1 million dollars?” I asked.
“It’s the only solution that makes sense, doesn’t it? We assault the humans, rob them, but keep them alive, and we use the money to pay for the houses,” said Jeremy.
My mind circled laps on how best to explain the situation to someone who hasn’t been in contact with most of the banking system in Canada. “Jeremiah, you realize this isn’t the 1600s, yes? You want us to enter a bank with ski masks, and stuff the bills into a white sack with a green dollar sign?” I asked seriously.
He cocked his head. Apparently, he didn’t see anything wrong with it. “Maybe not like that, but that’s the general gist. Yes.” He replied. I sighed.
“What is it?” he asked.
“I don’t exactly know how to tell you, but stealing a million dollars is harder than you might think.”
“Maybe, for the humans. But I don’t see why we can’t manage this. In fact, I have heard of some low-life packs that make their living that way. They wait in the dark to rob humans in Toronto, and Quebec. Apparently, it’s quite lucrative.” He said, amusing himself. I held up one palm. “
I didn’t finish. It’s fucking hard to steal a million dollars. But it’s going to be next to impossible to actually use that money to buy anything.” I lectured. He seemed lost so I continued.
“There are these people called the FBI, and the CRA. Basically, they track and hunt down criminals for the same thing you’re about to do. It’s easy to trace stolen funds. And once they find out where those funds went, or what it bought, it’s going to be even easier to seize the property. Which means that one day, we might still have the police coming down here. And we’d be back to square one.”
Jeremiah frowned as he pocketed both hands in his jeans, and leaned on the wall to think.
“But what about the other packs that do it?” he asked me finally.
“They probably have some good money laundering system in place or deep connections with the local committee or some other position.”
“Or maybe, they just don’t give a fuck, and they kill anyone that comes across them?”
I shook my head. “Trust me, a lot more people are afraid of the enforcers of the accords than you might think. Also, if the FBI catches up to them, it’d be a nationwide manhunt. What use is enjoying the money or killing humans repeatedly if your faces are plastered nationwide?”
He raised his hands in frustration. “Then what the hell are we supposed to then?”
I, too, stopped to think. I was poorer than a door mouse when it came to the subject of donating over a million dollars, but was I truly helpless? Perhaps there was some loophole to help us? Tax Breaks? Was there a way to shoot up my credit score, naturally? Maybe spreading the payments, but I couldn’t produce anything viable.
To summon 1 million dollars overnight and out of mid-air, we would need the services of a legendary magician, and even then some. Catherina soon joined us.
“What’s going on?” she asked. We narrated Alpha Harris’s words to her... She actually laughed.
“What’s so funny?” asked Jeremiah dryly.
“It’s simple, isn’t it?” she asked.
“What?”
“Looks like you two need to get a job.” She laughed some more. I rolled my eyes, but Jeremiah immediately turned his head to me, serious.
“Will that work?” he asked me.
“Of course not! If they were jobs to turn you into a millionaire in three days, do you think I’d be working at a University?”
And that was when it hit me. I was having a conversation with Jennifer and Charlotte about what we’d be doing when we left our jobs at the University and got married to rich men. Jennifer suggested that my route was realistically the best among them since I had Vincent. Vincent.
A small thought was brewing in my mind, one that the pack, and especially the Montgomery brothers plus Catherina, were sure to hate.
“Hold the phone” I started.
“Hmm?”
“There might be something like that in the works” I replied.
“I don’t understand” replied Jeremiah.
“Can you guys excuse me?” I said, heading down the stairs.
They protested, but soon I was outside the house, pacing up and down about the front lawn. This was a bad idea, this was a bad idea, this was a bad idea... But pacing only seemed to heighten the anxiety to even worse levels. On the 14th turnaround, I bit my lips, pulled my phone out of the bag, and scrolled down to contact named Vincent Moonlight.
I dialled the number, and it rang 13 times, before disconnecting. My heart sank. He had decided to cut me out of his life so quickly. Everything he said about us was probably bull shit from the start as well. He just wanted to use me - The phone rang, and it was him calling.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Where are you?! What’s wrong?”
“Uhmm, nothing’s wrong. Well, something is wrong-“
“Don’t tell me. It happened again?!” he asked. I was getting nervous for him. His voice didn’t sound relaxed, more cracky than the smooth buttery tone I was used to. And he used a very brief, formal manner of speaking to me.
“I’m fine, Vincent. I am, truly.” I heard him sigh over the phone.
“Alright. Sorry, I’ve been a bit-“ he trailed off.
“You don’t have to explain anything to me,” I said.
“I should, and would, but not right now.” He paused. “But something tells me this isn’t a casual call. What’s up?”
Ugh. Was I being that obvious?
“Yes, you see-“ I don’t remember ever asking someone for money as much in my youth. Somehow, I always managed to make it for myself. And found those who did so easily generally not accountable people. But now, I was about to ask my longtime crush for close to a million dollars in cash.