Brian and A.J. dropped to their knees scrambling to pick up the tiny gems that rolled this way and that, the dog pouncing on them like they were Scooby snacks.
“Nick get the dog out of here.” A.J. yelled pushing the puppy away from a particularly beautiful red ruby that he was rolling around between his teeth. Dropping to my knees beside them I pried open the dogs mouth plucking out the dark red wonder which I then held up to the light.
“Where did you get this?” I whispered amazed at the way the light reflected off of the cuts and grooves.
“Never mind where we got it.” Brian slapped my hand knocking the ruby into his open palm. Turning around I watched them scoop up green ones, blue ones and some clear ones that definitely looked liked diamonds.
“Are they real?” I whispered.
“Of course they’re real you idiot.” A.J. snapped crawling over to look under the couch.
“Would we be crawling around on our freaking hands and knees like this looking for them if they weren’t real.”
“If we lost any we’re dead meat.” The second comment he directed to Brian both of them suddenly acting as if I weren’t even in the room.
The two of them crawled around the perimeter or the room working their way back towards the center scooping up anything that even vaguely resembled something bright and shiny and tucking it back inside of the backpack.
While they were busy doing that I walked over to the second backpack on the coffee table. Kneeling down I pulled open the flap and stuck my hand inside coming up with two white silky pouches. Glancing once over my shoulder I tugged on the gold cord around the first bag and poured the contents into my hand.
Swallowing hard I swirled my hand around, the colors blending into one incredible gleaming pile that I could almost feel burning a hole in the palm of my hand they were so hot and beautiful, more beautiful then the ones that had scattered on the floor only moments before.
Sensing Brian coming up behind me I clutched my hand into a fist and spun around.
“Jesus Nick don’t drop those too.” He said with wide eyes, A.J. coming up beside him the other backpack in his hands.
“Did you guys buy these?” I couldn’t imagine that they could have bought them, we were bringing in some money with touring but not that much money.
“No Kid, we didn’t buy them.” A.J. slung the backpack onto the coffeetable.
“Did somebody give them to you?” I imagined some guy running past them on the street, maybe he had been stabbed or shot or something after robbing a jewelry store and he needed to stash the loot somewhere where the guys following him couldn’t find it. There were Brian and A.J. innocent bystanders just taking a late night stroll in an unfamiliar city….the perfect crime.
“No Nick nobody gave them to us.” Brian opened his hand waiting for me to place the jewels along with the second sack of jewels into his palm.
Hesitantly I gave them back the jewels falling slowly into his hand from my sweat-covered palm.
“Well if you didn’t buy them and somebody didn’t give them to you then what did you do…..steal them?”
I laughed.
They didn’t.
The three of us stood staring at one another for what seemed like an eternity until I finally blurted out,
“I’m telling.” And made a break for the door.
“Nick.” Brian called out chasing after me.
“Just wait, I’m telling Kevin and you two are going to be in so much trouble.” I shouted over my shoulder the puppy beating me down the front hall. Brian tackled me from behind and the two of us went down face first onto the black and white tiled entryway of the hotel room.
“Get off of me crazy.” I struggled beneath him reaching out to the dog like he could help me or something.
“Nick stop it.” Brian held tight his body pressing me to the floor. Damn he had always been deceptively strong for such a little guy.
“You’re a thief, a freaking thief.” I flailed around shooting my right elbow into his chest.
“Shut up Nick.” He moaned through clenched teeth as my elbow connected with him again in the ribs.
“We’re finally are going to get everything we wanted with this singing stuff and you guys are going to go and mess it up for a couple of handfuls of some lousy jewels.” Wrapping his arms around me Brian hugged me so tight I could feel the circulation cutting off in my arms.
The puppy walked up to me licking me across the face before sticking his tongue in my ear.
“Nick just calm down, we’re not going to screw everything up I swear. You have to trust me.”
“I’m scared.” I said looking down at the maroon and blue swirling carpet. “I just wanna go back to my room.” Finally Brian slowly released his grip on me as I rolled out from beneath him standing up and making my way to the door.
“Just let him go.” I could hear Brian telling A.J. As I grabbed the dog and walked into the foyer and out the door shutting it behind me.
* * *
Making my way back down the hall towards my room I moved quickly stealing glances over my shoulder, positive that A.J. would win the battle of good vs. evil over Brian and the two of them would come chasing after me in an attempt to shut me up for good.
Once to the door I fumbled around for my keycard in my back pocket.
“Nicky?” At the sound of my name I jumped, turning slowly the look of fear on my face slowly melting away when I realized it was Kevin calling out my name.
“Nicky what in the hell are you doing up so late wandering around the halls?”
“Kevin.” I tried to interrupt the lecture my eyes darting over his shoulder to A.J. and Brian’s door to their room.
“I mean Jesus Kid it’s not like we’re at home in Florida all safe and cozy. We are in a foreign country and…..”
“Kevin.”
“….C’ mon you don’t know what kinds of things could happen to a little kid wandering the streets. You know they sell kids like you for money on the streets here….”
Did this guy every stop I wondered? Almost forgetting what I had to tell him in the first place until the door to A.J.’s and Brian’s room opened slowly and A.J. popped his head out of the door, a tired look on his face that I knew was totally a lie as he faked a big yawn.
“Hey guys, what’s going on?” A.J. asked.
“Do you guys know what time it is?” Brian asked walking out the door into the hall wearing gray sweatpants and white tank top, forcing a big yawn as he dragged a hand through his hair. “Is everything okay?” he cocked his head sweetly to he side as Kevin turned to look at them.
“What’s the matter Nick are you locked out of your room or something?” A.J. asked me innocently as I narrowed my eyes at them over Kevin’s shoulder. When Kevin turned back to look at me A.J. made a menacing fist at me pushing it into his open palm like it was supposed to be my face or something. Brian slugged him hard in the arm.
“Look, this is ridiculous you should all be in bed.” Kevin moaned like he was forty years old.
“Hey Kev don’t look at us we were in bed.” A.J. grabbed Brian by the shirt and tugged him back towards the door.
“Wait what the hell is going on here?” Kevin turned back around to A.J. and Brian pointing his finger at them as I backed towards my door the puppy still held tightly in my grip.
“Nothing Kevin.” Brian batted his eyes at Kevin.
“Kevin?” Everybody jumped at the sound of a girl’s voice filling the hallway, a tall girl with big blonde hair and even bigger red lips. “I waited as long as I could,” She had a thick German accent that made the puppy squiggle in my arms. “But I got lonely for you.”
Brian and A.J. started laughing as Kevin’s face went three shades of red.
“Shut up you two.” He barked at them “And get back in your room. I don’t want to see you two for the rest of the night.”
“And you.” He turned on me but he didn’t need to say a word I already had the door to my room open and was inside slamming it behind me before he could he could tell me where to go and how fast to get there.
* * *
Great, Kevin had hooked up with some bimbo for the night which meant he would give a crap less about what I had seen in Brian and A.J.’s room, and those two knew it.
I could hear the girl giggling in the hallway as Kevin tried to reel her in with his cool low talking voice that made me want to puke. I was hoping they would stay in the hall a little while longer but my hopes were dashed on the rocks when I heard Kevin opening the door to his room and then I heard the door shut and the deadbolt click locked.
Setting the puppy down I scrambled for anything I could find to bar the door, the first thing being a heavily carved chair in the foyer that I dragged noisily across the tile and propped under the deadbolt. Followed by a marble-topped table that I picked up and balanced carefully on the chair.
The puppy barked at the game watching as I went back and forth dragging everything I could carry to the pile until it looked pretty secure. Then backing away from the door to survey my work I wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed on my forehead and turned walking down the hall towards the master suite that I was sharing with Howie.