The Love Of Money - S01 E201

Story 2 months ago

The Love Of Money - S01 E201

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 201

"Oh, hey, man," I said.

"That looked a little heated," he replied.

I shook my head, looking back in the direction Helen had disappeared. "It's nothing serious. I just don't think Roger and I get along really well."

"Probably has to do with you sleeping with his wife," he said, and I snapped my attention back to him. Vikram had been frank with me before, but this felt almost inappropriate.

Apparently, I wasn't doing a good job keeping my face from telegraphing every thought I had because Vikram was quick to say, "Don't worry. I'm not here to judge. I can't really blame you. She's an incredible woman."

"Who knows?"

"Karl and William, for sure," Vikram said. "Probably, most of the stakeholders on your account, except the paralegals and newer hires. It's not the first time Roger's leveraged Helen like this. It's the first time he's let it go on so long, though."

I looked back at the dancing crowd and asked him, "Should I stop?"

"Yes," Vikram sald matter-of-factly.

We stood in silence for a good two minutes, drinking in silence while watching the people dancing to the beat of the DJ's music. I could literally feel the base thrum through my body as I considered Vikram's words.

Finally, I asked him, "How familiar are you with my grandfather's estate?"

"I was on the team that itemized and categorized everything, as well as checking it all for legal compliance."

I looked at him. "Legal compliance?"

"Yeah. We had to ensure you weren't inheriting blood diamonds or a cache of plutonium," he said.

"I didn't inherit any plutonium?"

"Nothing's in the official books," he said "Nothing's in the official books," he said

"What about the unofficial ones?"

He took a drink and then looked at me. "I haven't seen those."

"What about flash drives?"

"Flash drives?" he asked.

"Yeah," I said. When I was being held, a woman asked me if you guys had given me a flash drive."

Vikram thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't remember seeing a flash drive listed among the inventory. Have you checked your grandfather's office at VistaVision?"

"Erin's going there tomorrow to take a look. What about the keys to his house? I haven't even set foot in that place yet."

"Which one?"

"He has more than one?"

Vikram snorted. "Try eleven."

"Eleven houses?"

He nodded. "Maybe more. didn't mernorize the whole list. He has a brownstone here in New York. There are apartments in London, Paris, Zagreb, and Tokyo. There's a second home in the Hudson Valley, too. All that's yours now."

"Fuck. He had all those homes?"

"Correction," Vikram said, "you have all those homes."

I had been so busy over the last two or three weeks that I hadn't even stopped to consider that I already had houses before I bought this apartment. I started to feel a bit foolish, spending money on a new place when i already owned a brownstone in the city, but then I remembered Erin telling me that most of the money I'd spent had already been recovered. I probably had enough money to buy a small country. The funds used to buy this expensive apartment were grains of sand on the vast beach of my wealth.

"There are some bank lock boxes listed among the Inventory that we can check if you'd like, Vikram went on, but I don't think there was a singular flash drive listed.

"Yeah," I said, distracted by Natalie heading in my direction. "I'd appreciate any help you can give me."

"HI," Natalie said when she got in earshot. Her eyes were dark pools of concern as they took in the injuries to my face, but she offered me that same warm, wide smile accompanied by dimples in her cheeks that I'd come to adore. Once again, seeing her physically in front of me made me feel all sorts of things I thought I'd put aside.

She was resplendent in a red champagne skirt and matching jacket with a cream blouse underneath that plunged just enough to show a tasteful amount of her formidable cleavage. Her black heels gave her an additional three Inches of height and showcased her smooth, caramel legs.

I suddenly felt my stomach lurch, and I felt the old, familiar desire to kiss her once again. Except, unlike the other countless times over the better part of a year, now I knew what kissing her was like -better than any fantasy. God, she was good at it.

"Hey," I said.

Vikram looked back and forth between the two of us and said, "Well, I'm getting low, so I'm gonna get a refill. Marcus, I'll let you know what I find out."

"Thanks," I said absentmindedly as i stared at Natalie.

"I didn't think you'd come," I said.

"Why not?"

I shrugged. "Just with everything... you know..."

"We're still friends, right?"

"Of course!" I looked around and asked, "Is he here with you?"

"No," Natalie said. "He said he needed to work over the weekend. He's taking me to his home in the Catskills this week. Just an overnight trip."

I didn't want to hear any more than that. "Sure. Take whatever time you need."