Chapter 6 They Are Thieves

• “Top floor of the Argos Tower? Oh my God. That's the most prestigious venue for hosting events in all of Jadeborough!” cried one of the relatives.
• Winnie's face was also awash with glee, and her flawless visage evoked a giddy blush of exhilaration.
• Within Jadeborough, it was every girl's dream to be able to hold their own weddings at the Argos Tower.
• Though unable to attain that honor with Winston before, she was now able to make her wish a reality through Hugh. I guess I've made the right choice after all!
• “If memory serves, the day after should be the birthday of Winston's sister! Why don't we fix it up two days from now? Dealing him a double whammy like this would surely come to him as an even bigger blow!”
• The mention of the date caused her eyes to light up suddenly and seemed to have brought something else to her mind.
• “Is that so? If that's the case, that would be absolutely smashing!”
• Delighted, the corner of Hugh's lips curled up into a vicious grin.
• “I'm going to see to it that there'll be no place left for you in all of Jadeborough, Winston!”
• Meanwhile, Winston and Jennifer had embarked on a casual stroll around the mall and had already their hands full by the time they arrived at the checkout counter. The items they intended to purchase, both large and small, had piled up sufficiently to form a mini mound by themselves.
• “How is it that you still have so much money, Winston? It looks like I'd really have to get on your good side from now on!”
• While they were in the queue, Jennifer could not help but feel a pang of envy when she recalled what had transpired prior.
• Initially, she was under the impression that Winston ought to be penniless after returning from his stint in prison and that she should be prepared to bankroll her own purchases this time round.
• That was when Winston surprised her by casually fishing out a card while they were making a withdrawal at the teller machine. The sheer number of zeroes within that string of figures that were attached to his account almost left her bedazzled.
• It could be said that consolidating everything she and her family had to their name together would not even bring her anywhere close to that, including the value of the economy car she had been using to ferry herself for the past two years.
• That reminded her of that card that was presented to Colton back at the rehabilitation center.
• I had no idea how much money was inside of that card!
• “Sure. I could always use an arm candy or two, so consider yourself hired!”
• Merchandise of all sorts dangled off Winston like he was a Christmas tree, leaving only his noggin exposed. His steely visage was adorned with a subdued smile.
• Four years of life behind bars and three on suicide missions had already cultivated a rather unexcitable personality in him.
• Coupled with the turbulence experienced by his sister and family, it only compounded his own cheerlessness.
• The time he had spent shopping with Jennifer, however, helped introduce an unexpected aspect of calmness to his psyche. While in her company, he felt a degree of tranquility that was quite unprecedented.
• To him, it was a tremendous feeling and extremely indulgent in its own way.
• “Sheesh. It's going to take more than just money for me to agree to become your ornament, you know!” replied a pouting Jennifer, shriveling her nose.
• Someone who's cute appears exceptionally adorable, even with a crinkled nose!
• “Come on, come on. Make way...”
• Just then, a young woman came up from behind, yelling as she was squeezing her way toward the front.
• Already struggling to cope with carrying as many things as she did, being nudged like that immediately sent Jennifer stumbling forward.
• It was only Winston's keen eyes and swiftly outstretched leg that prevented her from tumbling over.
• “Hey, what's your problem?” Jennifer reacted in fury after she recovered.
• Caught off guard, that woman also nearly fell over herself.
• Hearing Jennifer's chastisement, the woman turned around and hollered back at her in defiance, “Are you blind? Couldn't you have gotten out of the way, seeing that I was coming through?”
• The manner of her counterpart's tone got Jennifer even more heated. She was ready to escalate the conflict, but when she had a good look at the former's face, she choked back the words she had in her mouth.
• “Oh, Mrs. Zilch. It's you!”
• “Jennifer Larkin?”
• One glance at Jennifer sent the woman's brows creasing up in a furrow. She seemed to have wanted to say something to her but appeared astonished when she saw Winston beside the latter.
• After recomposing herself, a frivolous smirk then manifested upon her face.
• “Well, well. Who do we have here? It's the illustrious scion, Winston Coldrell, fresh out of prison! So tell me, how are you feeling right now after seeing everything that has happened back home?”
• Winston evoked a slight frown at the sight of that woman; his fine mood battered to shambles.
• That person was Monica Zayas, cousin of Winnie Lohan. Owing to her dismissal from the company years back for certain transgressions, she had some real choice words reserved for him since.
• Having no interest in dealing with the likes of her, he simply took one glance at her before rescinding his gaze.
• “Really? Are you still going to act all high and mighty at this point? What have you still got to be smug about after being taken for a ride and seeing your wife run off with your own best friend? I wouldn't have dared to show my face anywhere again if I were you!”
• Monica elevated her inflection while she gloated. Seeing how packed the place was during the peak season for retail therapy, her musings drew the attention of curious onlookers who came flocking in from all over.
• “Away with you, foul woman!”
• In spite of his lack of desire to engage, it did not mean that Winston was tolerant of the gnat that was bugging him.
• “Hehe, losing your cool, I see? Hit the nail on the head, didn't I?” Undeterred, Monica continued to tattle on aloud, “Gee. How are you able to buy so many things without a penny to your name? I have to say. You're doing a damn fine job living off a woman! A word of advice for you too, Jennifer. Better be more discerning about the sort of company you keep!”
• “Mrs. Zilch, you...” There was a slight tightness between Jennifer's brows as her eyes evoked a smidgen of outrage.
• “Enough of this! Hurry up and buzz off if you're done talking! There's still a whole bunch of us waiting to make our purchases!” Winston said blandly.
• “Don't you f*cking talk to me like that, Winston. Telling me to buzz off? Aren't you aware that Irvine is the manager here? I think it is you who ought to get the hell out of here!” Monica raged.
• “Your family owns this mall? Is that your excuse for cutting in the queue?” said Winston in a staid retort.
• “Yeah, everyone else is getting in line, so what makes you an exception to the rule?”
• That got the rest of the people in the vicinity echoing that sentiment in concert after recalling her behavior from earlier.
• “Surely, you can't be allowed to cut in just because you know someone working here?”
• “Get yourself to the back of the line, or we're going to lodge a complaint!”
• Monica was dumbstruck.
• Initially meaning to have the crowd riled up to ridicule Winston roundly, they had unexpectedly decided to turn on her instead.
• “All right, all right! Just you wait, Winston Coldrell!”
• Gnashing her teeth while she eyed the irate expressions from the other customers around her, she shot a glare at Winston before dropping around to make an unceremonious exit.
• As far as Winston was concerned, that minor incident was nothing more than an afterthought. He had not, however, anticipated being stopped by two members of the security when he was about to step out through the sliding doors.
• “Hold up. We had received a tip informing us that the two of you might have some unpaid goods in your possession, so we must ask that you follow us to the security room!”
• “Unpaid goods? Us?”
• Winston reflexively frowned, and Jennifer also found it to be quite absurd.
• “On what basis are you accusing us of stealing?”
• “On the basis that a witness reported seeing you do it!”
• Then, a voice suddenly rang out from the side.
• Turning in its direction, they saw a young man approach with the previously gone Monica in tow.
• “Irvine Zilch?”
• Winston and that youth were likewise acquainted, for the latter was Monica's husband and Winnie's cousin-in-law.
• The character of that chap was on par with Monica's in the measure of their arrogance, and both of them got canned simultaneously back in the day.
• “It's been four long years, hasn't it, Winston? I wasn't quite expecting to run into you again, and to think it'll be because of me catching you shoplifting? How embarrassing!”
• Irvine had his chin pimped up tauntingly at Winston when he neared.
• “Whatever do you mean by shoplifting? Don't you slander us!” Jennifer was incensed.
• “Wouldn't a quick body search ascertain whether or not there's any truth to it? If you don't want to go over to the security room, we can simply conduct it right here, right now,” replied Irvine insouciantly.
• “That's right. A body search! Anyway, I had seen them hiding some things away on themselves with my own eyes!” Monica cheered on at the side.
• Given the circumstances, even a fool could tell that their counterparts were out to humiliate them.
• Narrowing his eyes and regarding them in scrutiny, Winston shook his head. “I'm not getting into this with you, Irvine, because that's just some arbitrary excuse that you all concocted. Now get out of my face, or prepare to face the consequences.”