Jake woke up slowly, squinting his eyes as he stared at the unfamiliar ceiling. It took a moment before his memory rushed back. The motel room last night. Leaving the Carlson house.
He sat up and reached for the bottle of water on the table, drinking deeply.
"The clock is ticking," he muttered. "Three months will disappear before I know it."
Jake stood and turned toward the table where the plans he made the night before were spread out, papers slightly crumpled.
"First, I need a lawyer to annul the adoption with the Carlsons."
He picked up a pen and added to the list, the sound of it scratching against paper steadying his breathing.
"If I remember correctly, the apocalypse starts on July fourth."
He sat down and opened his banking app.
$5,759.
Jake exhaled sharply, running a hand through his long hair.
"What the hell am I supposed to do with this?"
He leaned back for a moment, then shook his head and stood.
"Calm down, Jake. Freaking out won't solve anything."
After a quick shower, he dried himself and put on a white T-shirt, denim jeans, and a jacket. He grabbed his phone and headed downstairs.
At the front desk, Tracy was still there, a novel open in front of her and a cup of coffee beside it.
"Good morning, Tracy," Jake said with a small smile.
"Morning, Jake. Hope you had a nice night," she replied, then hesitated. "I wanted to tell you that the water heater broke last night. I knocked, but you didn't answer."
She poured a cup of coffee and slid it toward him. "As an apology."
Jake took it and sipped.
"No problem. I was probably too exhausted to notice the water was cold anyway."
He sat nearby, nodding toward her book. "You really love reading."
She tucked her hair behind her ear. "It's the only thing that keeps me sane here."
"What about you?" she asked. "What brings you to Palm's city?"
"Just putting some things in place," Jake replied, his tone polite but distant.
Tracy nodded, a little deflated.
Jake stood up as he checked his watch. 9:30.
"Thanks for the coffee but I've got to go."
"Okay. See you later," she said softly.
Outside, Jake walked slowly, taking a glance back at Tracy.
"Sorry Tracy," he muttered under his breath. "No time for attachments."
He waved down a cab.
"Sunshine Café," he said as he got in.
The driver nodded and pulled away, humming loudly to a hip hop song. Jake stared out the window instead, watching people go about their lives.
"All of this will be gone in three months."
His fingers curled slightly against the seat, tightening until the leather creaked faintly beneath his grip.
"But this time I will be ready." Jake frowned, loosening his hand.
At the café, he ordered a latte and cheesecake and sat by the window. The television overhead played the news.
"…rising food prices… economic uncertainty…"
Then another headline flashed. Cronetech stocks continued an unprecedented surge.
Jake froze.
His coffee slipped from his fingers, splashing onto the table.
"That's it."
Cronetech. The company Markus had poured money into only for him to lose it all. The stock rose nine hundred percent in three weeks before collapsing completely.
"How did I forget something this important?"
Jake's hand tightened around the cup again, this time cracking the rim slightly.
"This time, I won't miss it."
"Hey. Jake." A voice sounded, cutting him off from his thoughts.
He looked up to see Jules waving her hand in his face as she slid into the seat across from him, shrugging off her coat.
"So what's got you thinking so early in the morning?" she asked. "You didn't even notice me entering the cafe." She grabbed his coffee and took a sip.
"Sorry Jules," Jake said. "I just got a lot on my mind lately."
She smirked. "Oh let me guess, Hailey?"
Folding her arms, she faced him. "If you are here to mope about that girl, I'm leaving you alone."
Jake waved it off. "No. But I guess you heard about what happened."
"In my opinion, it was good riddance," Jules said bluntly. "Left to me, you should've left them years ago."
She reached for the cheesecake, taking a piece.
"Hey, get your own," Jake said quickly, grabbing the last piece and stuffing it into his mouth.
"Don't be stingy," she scoffed as she ate the cake.
"So where are you staying now?" she asked.
"I'm staying in a motel nearby."
Jules frowned. "C'mon Jake, you could have just called me and I would have given you one of the keys to my apartment."
"Sorry, Jules. It all kinda just happened so fast," Jake replied as he sighed. "And I didn't want to drag you into it."
She sighed. "Here you go trying to do things alone again. I'm letting you off today, but next time this kind of thing happens, promise you will call me."
Jake nodded. "I will."
Leaning back, Jules stared at him. "So what are you going to do next?"
After a pause to think, Jake leaned forward.
"Can you connect me to a lawyer? I need to nullify the adoption."
Jules studied him for a moment, then nodded, taking her phone as she scrolled through her contact.
"I'll send you Richard's number. He is a good lawyer and should get it done fast."
"Thanks Jules."
Waving it off, Jules said, "Since when did you start thanking me?"
Her phone buzzed as she answered the call, her expression shifting as she listened. When she hung up, she stood up, taking her coat.
"So sorry Jake, something came up at work. I've got to go, but I will make it up to you later."
She waved as she walked out. Jake waved her goodbye as he watched a black car pull up and a suited man open the door for her.
"Since when does Jules ride like that?" he wondered.
Standing to leave, something on the floor caught his eye. Looking down, he picked it up. A white card.
"I think this fell from Jules' pocket."
Jake stared at the name on the card.
Nexus Corp.
Jake's eyes widened.
"Wasn't this the company that exploded some weeks before the apocalypse?"
The company was located where the first Rift that caused the apocalypse appeared.
Jake stared at the card, his pulse quickening as a faint chill spread through his chest, unnoticed.
Jake's mind suddenly thought of Jules' death in the past.
Something wasn't right at all.