Chapter Text
Everything was muffled, a ringing in her ears as she stared at the cash on the table. Slowly, the voices of her sisters and their closest friend Ruby began to fade back in. “ How much more? ” Beth asks, all three of them watching as Annie emptied multiple bags of cash onto the table.
Jade's mouth fell slack, slowly rising from her spot next to Beth. “ I thought you said it would be thirty. ” She whispers, looking over the mountain of cash. “ Give or take, I guess it was give. ” Annie says, shrugging it off like it was nothing. She once again zoned out the three woman, running her hands through her hair and letting out a breath. “ We didn't win it! ” Ruby snaps, forcing Jade to focus back on what was happening; making her way towards the woman and crossing her arms. “ What are we going to do? ” She asks, looking nervously at her older sisters.
“ Nothing. We divide it up and we sit on it! Until we can get rid of quietly without looking like...” Ruby pauses, not wanting to say the word. Beth finishes for her, saying the word “ Criminal ” before moving in closer.
Jade took her cut up to the room Beth had deemed hers after a bad split with her now ex boyfriend. She opened up the drawer on her bedside table, pulling away the false bottom before slipping all of the cash inside and then moving everything back into place. “ I'm going shopping! You coming with? ” Beth calls, making the youngest girl's head snap up before she slips from her room and heads downstairs.
Jade was the youngest sibling, Annie was three years older than her and Jade had a different father but all three of them had always gotten on. Jade looked more like a mix of both sisters, at least that's what people said. She had Annie's height, both of them being on the short side. Her hair was a soft strawberry blonde that fell down to the middle of her back, framing her heart shaped face. Her eyes were rather doe like, big and green which screamed innocence. Paired with a button nose and pink lips that had a natural pout to them...she looked a lot more innocent and young than she actually was. People tended to underestimate her because of that but she liked that, she liked surprising people.
The redhead let out a small laugh at something her sister had said as they made it back to her house, carrying the bags of groceries. However, something seemed off. The golden retriever was whining, nudging Beth repeatedly. “ What's the matter boy? You need me to let you out? ” Beth asks quietly, following her younger sister towards the kitchen when another, unknown voice filled the air.
“ Nah, he's good. We already took him out. ” The man said, a squeal leaving Beth's lips as she dropped what was in her hands. Jade froze in her spot, immediately looking to the gun before holding the bags of food even closer to her chest. “ What do you want? ” Beth asks, taking a protective step closer to her sister. “ Oh, relax sweetheart. ” He says, hopping off the counter and heading towards them. “ I just need you to call your lady friends down here so we can have a...little talk. ” He says, looking off to the side before moving his gaze back onto them.
“ About what? ” The words left Jade's lips before she could stop them, drawing his unwanted attention in her direction. “ Oh about the money you stole from us. ” He says, raising a brow at the girls. Jade picked up the groceries as Beth called Ruby and Annie. Her hands shaking slightly as she moved to place them on the counter.
Quickly enough, Annie and Ruby were in the house with them. The ringing in her ears was back as the man asked about Beth's kitchen and then outright laughed at Ruby's suggestion that he owned the grocery store. “ We can get your money back. ” Jade says, lifting her head to look up at him. “ That'd be great. ” He says, once again looking in her direction. “ Most of it ” Annie adds, making everyone look in her direction.
“ Some of it for sure. ” She says quietly, shrinking back slightly as the man chuckles. “ What? Like you guys didn't spend a dime. ” She whispers, looking between them as Jade shakes her head; although the other two woman couldn't say anything. “ We said we were going to sit on it! I didn't spend anything. ” She says, frowning at them before looking away and covering her face to help ignore the hushed whispers between the woman. Yet his voice cut through the air like glass, making her lift her head. “ Nah, you're just gonna pay me back is all. ” He says, looking over the four of them. “ And right quick too, with interest. ” He adds, all three men moving towards them which made Jade's hand jump to grab Annie's shoulder from where she stood. “ So...see you real soon, yeah? ” He says, motioning to them with his gun.
Suddenly, he was getting closer, still pointing at them with his gun which only made the found woman tense and hold back the noises threatening to slip out. “ You know...you really got to be careful, ladies. ” He says, standing so close that Jade could smell his cologne. “ I mean, with citrus on marble. Like lemon and what not. That stuff will erode like crazy. ”
And just like that he was gone, leaving the four woman in tears. “ What are we going to do? ” Jade asks, sucking in a shaking breath.
Everything else felt like a blur but eventually, Jade found herself in Annie's apartment, counting the money. “ Where are we at? ” Beth asks, her younger sister speaking quietly in reply. “ Over 60 grand short. ” She says, all three woman sighing. Soon enough, that led to arguing which had Jade gripping her hair in frustration. “ Enough! We got ourselves into this and we'll get out. ” Jade says, standing up and grabbing her jacket. “ I'm going, I'm tired and stressed and I have to work a shift tomorrow. ” She says, pulling on her jacket.
“ I'll see you at the diner, Ruby. ” Jade mumbles, slipping from the apartment and making her way back to Beth's house.
Sleep overtook her rather easily, considering. However her dreams were plagued by the strange, scary man with the neck tattoo. What the hell had she gotten herself into?