Annie's Rainbow - Fern Michaels [9]
“No. Take as long as you need.”
Annie bolted for her room. On her hands and knees, she dragged the money bag out to the middle of the floor. Her hands trembling, she undid the metal clasp and dumped the contents on the floor. Loose bills of every denomination, slender packets of bills, and the crinkly bearer bonds littered the floor. She scooped it all into a pillowcase and stuffed it back into the laundry bag. At some point she was going to have to burn the bag and toss the clasp into the ocean just on the off chance that the clasps on the money bags were identical to the bank’s logo or crest. At the last second, she pulled out two hundred dollars in twenty-dollar bills. She would need deposit monies at some point. Better not to keep going into the bag.
Anna Daisy Clark, you are now a bona fide criminal. A thief of the first order. If you get caught, you will go to jail. I’m not going to get caught. This is for now. I’m going to pay it back as soon as possible. I’m not just saying that. I will pay it back. I promise.
That’s what every thief in the world says when they find themselves behind bars, her conscience needled.
Annie ignored the voice inside her head as she stepped into the shower. Glorious, hot, steaming water pelted her naked body. She washed her hair twice and lathered her body three times before she was ready to leave the little cubicle.
She towel-dried her hair, having no idea where her blow-dryer was. She thanked God again as she always did for her wash-and-wear hair. Dressed in wrinkled chinos, worn sandals, and a tank top, she stood back to survey herself in the blurry mirror. For today it would do.
The diary was in her hands almost before she knew it. She wrote quickly, wanting her small confession condensed in as few words as possible. We arrived in Charleston yesterday and slept for thirteen hours. All is secure.
Annie closed the diary with a loud snap. The two hundred dollars went into the pocket of her chinos.
“Where to?” Jane asked.
Annie rummaged in her purse for the small notebook she was never without. “I thought we would apply for jobs at Hyman’s first. Then we can check out this list of available storefronts the Chamber of Commerce sent me. I don’t have a clear memory of the places on the list. We stopped coming here when I was around fourteen or so, and I’m sure things have changed. There’s a map, though, so we’ll be able to get around easily.”
At three-thirty, both women had the promise of temporary part-time waitressing jobs. “Eight hours a week if the tips are good is okay,” Annie assured Jane. “It will get us over the hurdle if we can’t find a location to open a business. This one on George Street looks pretty good. It’s smack-dab in the middle of the Charleston campus and will draw students. Bishop England High School is close, so that’s a plus. Let’s go there first and see what we can work up if anything. According to this map the building is between King and Phillips. Do you think we should call the broker first?”
Jane snorted. “Do you know who the broker is?”
“No. Okay, let’s go. It can’t be far. If it looks promising, we can call the broker from a phone booth.”
It was almost five-thirty when Annie pressed her nose up against the grimy storefront window. “It’s a dump, that’s for sure. Do you think it’s doable, Jane?”
“Doable as in Annie and Jane doing all the work. I don’t know, Annie. I need to see the inside. It’s big. For some reason I thought it would be, you know, little, kind of like a big walk-in closet. I saw a phone booth down the street. I’ll call. In the meantime, go into that store next to it and ask some questions. It looks like it’s been empty for a long time.”
Annie’s brain whirled as she moved along the wide front windows to rub at the grime. All things considered, it would be perfect for what she and Jane had in mind. There was even a counter.
“He’s coming right over,” Jane said. “What did you find out?”
“Nothing. The man was locking up. I didn’t want to bother him. If the rent is right, this might work, Jane. Look, there’s a counter. My end would