Between his checking and savings, there was a solid eighty-grand at my disposal.
With shaking fingers, I went through the process of changing the password and requesting a new card, claiming the old one was lost. Which wasn’t a complete lie; I had no idea where his card was.
If nothing else, that eighty grand was protected from Berat. He couldn’t access it with Eren’s password. He couldn’t use the old card if he had access to one.
I didn’t care about the rest of the money.
Eighty thousand was more than enough to help me get back on my feet. Maybe take my mom and sister and get the hell away from the Polat influence if things took a turn for the worse.
Finances somewhat secured, I checked my texts to see a text from Brio.
Definitely possible. Try to act natural. I can sweep the place later tonight if things are clear.
A part of me hoped he would say that Judy was being paranoid. But since none of us really knew what Berat might have up his sleeve, I guess it made sense to err on the side of caution.
Thank you.
With that, I made my way back out to the main area of the house and grabbed the notepad I used to use for much more normal things, and jotted down a list of things that I needed to do.
Like call the police station to ask about the progress of the case, to inquire about the release of Eren’s body.
Then I needed to call the funeral home that was attached to the cemetery where Eren had a plot reserved.
I had to plan the funeral.
I needed to call the restaurant managers.
I would have to contact Eren’s attorney to see what all the legalities were now that he was gone.
The list went on and on from there.
Cancel his cell phone. Contact the owner of the apartment building to ask about our rent being up-to-date. Cancel his health insurance. Find any memberships and cancel those.
By the time I was done, I had an entire front page of the college-ruled paper filled in with things I needed to do.
Oddly, that gave me some peace.
It gave me direction and focus.
It gave my mind something to do other than freak out about Berat and my uncertain future.
I had just finished a call to detective Newsom on Eren’s case, letting me check off the first thing on my list, when there was a knock at the door.
Judy would have announced herself.
Brio wouldn’t show up yet.
Which really just left Berat.
Stomach clenching so hard that I actually folded forward for a second, I tried to take a few deep breaths before making my way across the apartment to the door.
One look in the peephole confirmed my fears.
There was a bit of a family resemblance there, but as a whole, if you saw the Polat brothers on the street somewhere, you probably wouldn’t have assumed they were brothers.
Where Eren was significantly older and stockily built, Berat was in his mid-thirties with a trim body and a very neat appearance. I wasn’t sure I had ever seen him in anything other than slacks and a dress shirt before.
And as much as I disliked him, I had to admit that Berat got more of the attractiveness genes than his big brother.
Deniz, the youngest, got the lion’s share of the good looks, though. And, what’s more, he knew it.
I tried to shake some of the tension out of my shoulders as I moved away from the peephole.
At least Berat had come alone.
And, I reminded myself, Judy was within screaming distance.
It was okay.
It would be fine.
My hands were still shaky, though, as I slid the locks and pulled open the door.
“Ezmeray,” Berat said, head nodding in a sympathetic way.
“Berat,” I said, letting the corners of one side of my mouth to tease up. Not a smile. Because that would have been appropriate. But something in the same family as that. “How are you?” I asked, moving aside to allow him to move in.
“Can’t fucking believe this,” he said, but there was a false note in his voice. “He’s gone,” he added, head shaking. Then his gaze slid to the counter. “And you had to find…”
“Please,” I implored, and the pleading was genuine. “I can’t…” I added, shaking my head as he turned back.
“Of course. Of course,” he agreed. “Have you heard anything?” he asked.
“I actually just got off the phone with the detective on the case,” I told him. “They said they were following leads, but I get the feeling that he was just saying that,” I told him. “But they are releasing Eren’s… body to us tomorrow, so we can finish his plans. He already has a plot beside your parents,” I said.
“Yeah,” Berat said, his keen eyes seeming to go sharper, like it surprised or bothered him that I knew that much.