Desperate Lies (Lies 2)

Maxwell stops in his tracks. “Do Mr. Brown and Nolan know about your plans? I don’t think you keeping your own name will help the campaign.”

“Don’t worry about the campaign, Maxwell. Just worry about keeping me safe. As long as you do that, Waylon and Nolan won’t have anything to complain about.”

I jog across the street rather than wait at the crosswalk, forcing Maxwell to choose between almost getting hit by traffic or waiting on the sidewalk. It’s a test.

He passes.

He puts his hand on the hood of a car slamming on its breaks to avoid hitting us.

I open the door to the coffee shop, and Maxwell grabs it to hold it open for me.

“No more running into danger. If I’m going to protect you, I need you to tell me your plans. I don’t need you to make my job any harder than it already is.”

I smirk. “That was a test. I don’t usually run into danger.”

His shoulders relax.

“But danger does usually find me.”

And then I walk to the counter.

“Can I get a large coffee, black?”

The woman smiles at me. “That will be $3.”

I hand her my credit card from my sleek white purse that pops against my navy pencil skirt and jacket.

She swipes the card a few times. “I’m sorry, but your card keeps getting declined. Do you have another one?”

I frown as I pull out another card and hand it to her. I have a sinking feeling in my stomach.

“I’m sorry, this one isn’t working either.”

I take the card back. I have two more cards we could try, but I suspect the same thing will happen. A line has formed behind us, and I don’t have any cash.

I look to Maxwell behind me, who pulls out a ten-dollar bill and hands it to the barista.

“Keep the change,” he tells her.

I walk to the other counter to wait for my drink.

“Something wrong with your card? I can tell Nolan to have the credit card company to send you a new one.”

“No, that’s okay. I can call myself.”

Maxwell nods.

“Mind taking me to the bank?” I ask, suspecting this might be more than just a credit card issue.

“Of course.”

$0.00

That’s what my bank account reads.

Zero.

I haven’t had an empty bank account since high school. My credit cards all have a $0 credit limit too.