Diamond (Rare Gems #2)(24)
Ward had heard from his friend Morton eight days ago. He’d told him to come to Texas and see what his brother was up to. Ward hadn’t heard from Thad in almost ten years, so really hadn’t cared all that much about him or what he was up to, much less enough to travel all the way across the United States to check it out. But Morton had insisted that Thad had had a change of heart and thought it would be great if he came out and surprised him.
Fat chance of that happening. But the ticket had shown up the next afternoon and a quick call to Morton had confirmed that Thad had not only sent it but had insisted that he come for a long visit. He had his suspicions but didn’t say them to Morton. Thad and he had never gotten along. But Ward had hopped on the plane the next morning and now here he was flying across the States to see his long-lost brother. But now he couldn’t get in touch with Morton.
Calling his office had given him no information, and when he’d called his house, there was someone there who started asking questions almost as soon as he answered. The man had wanted his name and address and why he was calling, but Ward had hung up. Something about his tone made him think that something had happened to Morton, and it wasn’t good.
Thad had made him leave his house all those years ago because he’d caught him doing something that had offended him. Ward didn’t understand then and certainly didn’t understand any better now why Thad had such a problem with what he’d been doing. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have all kinds of money.
“You’ll not get another dime from me. Not now and not ever. I’m finished with you.” Thad had had him cuffed to the chair in the big conference room in the Galloway building like he was nothing to him. “And as for all the money you took, you’ll pay it back or I’ll press charges.”
“Are you f*cking kidding me? Where the hell would I get that kind of money? And if you think I’m selling my stuff, you’re nutty as a fruit fly.” Ward had jerked on the cuffs around his wrists. “Get these things off me. You can’t treat me this way. I’m a Galloway.”
No one had moved to release him and he jerked on them again. Thad asked the others to step out; three men that had guns at their waist as well as dark glasses that hid whatever they were thinking about what was going on.
“As of this morning, everything in your apartment has been removed. That includes the clothing you had there and all the jewelry you purchased with my money.” Ward tried to lunge at his brother but only managed to hurt himself and have Thad laugh at him. “You were caught, why don’t you admit it?”
“Caught at what? Taking a little off the top?” Ward hadn’t waited for his brother to answer because he really didn’t care what he’d had to say. “You make more money in one week than most people make in a lifetime. What the hell do you care if I take a few extra bucks? You’re supposed to care for me. I’m your little brother. Doesn’t the Galloway name mean shit to you?”
“It was nearly five million dollars over an eight month period, and you’re lucky that I don’t have you up on charges.” Thad had stood and towered over him as he looked down at him in more ways than one. “You’ll be escorted out of this building and put onto the streets. The money you have in your pockets is all you’ll ever see from me again. The credit cards are now closed, as are the bank accounts and all other privileges that you seemed to think were your own personal playground.”
Ward hadn’t been tossed out of the building, but it had been close. When he’d asked about his car, the security guard had flipped him a quarter and told him to call a cab. He’d walked back to his apartment to find that not only had they taken all his nice things, but his underwear as well. What the hell had his brother done with his underwear? It had taken him calling in a great many favors, as well as getting into the stash he’d had hidden in another place, to get back to where he thought he should have been, but it had never been the way things were. And now he was flying back to see him.
Ward was going to play nice. For a time, anyway, then he was going to stick it to his brother good. No one f*cked with Ward Galloway and got away with it. Especially when it came to his lifestyle and his image. Image was everything.
The plane landed an hour later.
Ward had been staying with a friend of a friend when he’d gotten the call from Morton. It couldn’t have come at a better time, either, because he was pretty sure he’d worn out his welcome. His so-called friends were telling him to get a job and to start helping out with bills and such. Not to mention it would be nice if he paid back what he had borrowed from them. This was going to be his ninth move in the past year, and it seemed to him that his pickings were getting slimmer and slimmer each time. But he had his list, and it wasn’t to pay any of them back. It was to tell them what he’d taken from them without their knowledge.
Pulling it out now, he looked it over. It was a list of what he felt were crimes against him. He’d started out with a list of people he was going to pay back for all the help they’d given him, but it wasn’t long when even those people had ended up on his other list. The list that kept running totals of women who wouldn’t let him f*ck them. Also, he had a list of men who had snubbed him at parties he’d crashed, as well as when he’d ask to borrow money. When one of them had asked him when he was going to pay them back, he’d only stared at the man. Did they really expect Ward Galloway to pay people back? This was just not done.