Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 81488 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81488 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
She paused, tears welling in her eyes.
Thank you for making her laugh and offering her your wisdom. I’ve known of Genesis for many years, but I’ve only gotten to truly know her this year, and to know her is to be blessed. Now, onto other business, and the reason for this letter. Genesis explained to me that she has told you that she accepted my hand in marriage. She will be moving from her apartment soon, and she and I will be purchasing a house together to start our new future together. I don’t know who your new neighbor will be, but I hope that they are as wonderful as Genesis, though I know that those are big shoes to fill. Due to all that you’ve done, as a token of my appreciation, I have tried multiple avenues to figure out how to give you a present, a gift of my gratitude for you being a bright light in her life.
I checked to see if you had a CashApp, PayPal, or Venmo, but had no such luck. Then I realized that like my mother, you’re old school. A check would have to do, if that was the route I wished to go. But then I thought I should get more creative than that. Think outside the box.
So, I bought the entire apartment building that you’re living in. I will be transferring it in your name next month. You will own it, lock, stock and barrel. Proof of purchase is enclosed.
A receipt fluttered from the envelope as she opened it with one hand. It landed on the floor. Many zeros… many, many zeroes…
“OH, JESUS!”
She almost dropped the letter, her hands shaking so much and her heart pounding. Her eyes strained as she struggled to read the rest of the note.
You won’t have to worry about landlords, repair requests, tenant complaints, property taxes, evictions, maintenance, late rent citations, pest service, lawn care and upkeep, and the like. I’ve hired a company to take care of all that for you. All you have to do is own it, attend an annual meeting, and collect the money. I also have a tax preparer for you who will assist you each year, and also file your personal taxes on your behalf, if you wish, free of charge. With the rent money you receive, which will come as a monthly disbursement in your name after all other property related salaries and invoices are cleared, you can move out and get you a private home or stay there.
The choice is completely yours. I would advise however that you have a manager live on the premises in case of emergencies. Genesis has told me repeatedly that not only are you a great person and neighbor, generous to a fault, but you are always at the apartment tenant and board meetings trying to find ways to improve things and make this world a better place. She said you’d be a great administrator, too. I wanted to take it one step further. Generosity is the opposite of greed. You, Ms. Charlie, are big-hearted and kind to a fault. It’s time that you were shown the same in return.
Sincerely,
Roman Wilde
P.S. I do expect a plate of that good food that you cook for Genesis, as compensation. She shows me pictures to try and rub it in my face. I want that plate of food in thirty days or less. With your famous cornbread. I’m not kidding.
She burst out laughing, and then burst into more tears, too…
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Little Boy with a Gun
When I was a little boy, my daddy found me outside in the dark of night, holding a gun. His gun. I had it pointed at nothing but a canopy of trees and brush in the middle of the country. I receded into the darkness, but my need to purge my pain was bright and blinking. A neon sign hanging off the edge of my heart. Deep inside, I wanted to shoot something. Make something move. Jump. Cry. Hurt. Make some shit bleed.
I think when Daddy came out that front door and found me, he could see that in my eyes, even in his drunken and high state. I could smell the booze on him, seeping out of his pores, and see the derangement in his eyes. Pupils dilated to the max. Fidgety movements. I was used to it. I was just a little boy, didn’t know much about the world, but I knew a lot about what drugs could do to a man. I knew that he and Mama were salt and pepper shakers. Cracked and broken to bits. Dumping their pain all over one another until the recipe of matrimony tasted like shit. A marriage flavored with trauma. I knew I couldn’t save my older or younger brother from some invisible monster called fear, and I understood that I was too small to make much of a difference in this world. Or at least, that is what it seemed.