Someone Bad and Something Blue Read online

  “Good news for them.” I smiled.

  He stopped smiling. “He’s being called to Afghanistan.”

  “Wow.”

  “Wow indeed.” He nodded. “I’m here because I came to invite the dads to the North Georgia Bike and Car show.”

  “Bike and Car show?” I stepped back in surprise. “You bike?”

  “Among other things. Since you keep giving me rain checks on our date, you miss out on these cool things about me.”

  Our date? I folded my arms over my chest. Are we still on that subject?

  The last time Justus and I were together was at my brother-in-law Devon’s homegoing celebration. I had admitted that I had considered a relationship with him, but the reality of our situations didn’t seem like they would ever mesh. He’s a minister and I’m . . . well, I need a lot of prayer. He had brushed off my excuse as if I’d never said it, while I’d dodged him every chance I’d gotten since then.

  Today, after what he’d done for me, I owed him at least a straight answer.

  “Justus—”

  “Wait before you come up with another weak excuse why you can’t date me. Let me stop you by telling you that I’m letting you off the hook. You don’t owe me anything,” he said.

  “Good, because I don’t want to date you. . . .”

  The fire in his cheeks had gone out. “I understand.”

  I walked closer toward him and stood short of his boots. “I want to know if we could have a future together.”

  His eyes blazed. His smile outdid Bella’s. “What if I already know the answer is yes?”

  “Then I’m giving you the chance to prove it.”

  “No time like the present,” he said. “Tonight we begin.”

  “You make that sound really, really, really hot, but I don’t have a babysitter for tonight. It’s Bella’s birthday. Besides, Whitney has plans. Her bestie is getting married and the bridal team is getting together to powwow about the wedding plans. Ava is taking the kids to spend time with Devon’s family, and Momma . . . hopefully she’s on her honeymoon with my quiet-is-as-kept, new stepdaddy.”

  “You want to know if I can fit into your world. That world includes Bella and her perfect birthday. Let’s do her up big. Let’s take her to the circus. They’re in town.”

  “Last-minute tickets for something like that is killer,” I said while those five hundred dollars burned holes in my pocket.

  “My treat,” he said.

  “That’s sweet, but a night at the circus with a kindergartner doesn’t sound like hot date material.”

  “Who says I want a hot date?” He touched my hand. “I want you. That’s all. Any time with you is blue hot in my book.”

  There was something about his hand squeeze, the sincere look in his eyes, and his way with words that made me wish very hard that was true.

  “Okay, then. Tonight we begin,” I said, but it didn’t sound as cute as when Justus had said it.

  2

  Friday, 11 :30 AM

  Gwinnett County Detention Center (GCDC),

  Lawrenceville, Georgia

  My flexible work schedule was the main reason I became a bail recovery agent. My former job at the Atlanta Sentinel had so much structure, so many rules, and that feeling of an invisible thumb on your back that it was driving me batty. But now I set my own hours. Now I was the boss. I slept in and hit the clubs at night. I could bop into Bella’s school for Doughnuts for Dads, hop over to Big Tiger’s to skim through his current jackets, and then take a quick run to the Decatur Hotel, the nickname for the Dekalb County jail.

  Today, because it was my designated day to run Bella’s car pool, I was on my way to GCDC. That jail was twenty minutes from Sugar Hill Elementary. So I had a solid ninety minutes to get in, get what I needed, and get out of there with time to spare.

  I needed to check through the inmate list to see if one of my skips was already inside. Although both the national warrant and the prison system intranet service did decent jobs connecting charges, sometimes they missed a few. Especially if the prison was a private institution or the inmate had a common name like Miguel Lopez, Kim Li, Mike Jones, or my current skip’s name, Cesar Cruz.

  Cesar had an FTA jacket that was ten skips deep. At the bottom of the habitual bail-jumper’s barrel was Big Tiger’s $25,000 Fulton County, newly forfeited bail bond. If I found Mr. Cruz in less than 150 days, then I would take home five thousand dollars. That was my mortgage for almost six months.

  Since Gwinnett County had a large immigrant population, this was the best place to start. I also had a snitch on the inside, Rosary DiChristina. Her ex-husband was related to Cesar. She needed a few dollars on her commissary. If she gave me a good lead, I would take care of her toiletries for a few months.

  After I checked in as an inmate visitor, I took a seat in the lobby, waited for my last name to be called, and scanned the place for the familiars and the newbies. I could spot a newbie within seconds of them entering the jail: the dropped jaw, the turned-up nostrils from the part urine/part bleach/part stank stench, and the realization in their eyes that this nightmare actually existed. For the rest of us, the ones who’ve grown accustomed to the fluorescent lighting, beige cement walls, exposed pipe ceiling, and air so cold and stale your nose and fingers numb on impact, we know to wear our worst jeans and a bomber jacket.

  I had spotted at least four newbies when my name was called.

  “Hey, Angel.” One of the women correctional officers on call today waved at me. She had a tiny crush on Tiger.

  “Hey, girl. You got time after I come down? I need to check on some folk.”

  “It depends. I’m off the clock in forty.”

  I nodded as I passed by. “I’ll see you before then.”

  “Who you come to see?” She reached for the sign-in clipboard. “Aw, lawd, not her.”

  I stopped short of the elevators leading to Rosary’s living pod, but didn’t turn around. “What’s wrong with Rosary?”

  “Your girl has gotten into some more trouble. I can get her out of it, but she’s not cooperating. Maybe you can talk some sense into her before it’s too late.”

  I pursed my lips. I was confused. Rosary didn’t seem like the bad-girl type. There must be more to this than she was telling me.

  I pushed the elevator button. “She’s a good girl. Don’t worry. She’ll listen to me.”

  “She better or she’s going to catch a new case.” The officer scoffed.

  “A new case?!” I spun around and sighed. “What do you want me to do exactly?”

  If you’ve been in one county jail’s inmates’ quarters, you’ve been to them all. They were quartered off in polygons with the officers’ station planted smack-dab in the middle. This way, they could keep their eyes on the prisoners¸ whose rooms resembled glassed-off pet rat cages. My best definition for county jail at GCDC was a cross between a science lab and a day care, except the baby rats wore blue jumpers.

  Rosary entered the visitation chamber about two minutes after I arrived. We were separated by a scratched glass partition. Both our cubes had a phone nailed to the wall, a steel table attached to the glass, and a beige piper stack chair. The I-don’t-know-what-it-is-but-it-burns-my-nose smell was the only odor in the room.

  She sat down. Before she lifted her phone to her head, I knew what the officer meant. Rosary appeared groggy and listless. I crossed my arms over my chest and didn’t pick up the phone receiver. What was the point, since my informant was drunk off buck?

  Buck is the term for moonshine made from fermented fruit. Most prison inmates used bread, orange peels, and orange slices to concoct their brew. They would put that nasty mess in a plastic bag and let it sit for days until the bag popped. The pop indicated the alcohol was ready.

  Therefore, fruit peels were forbidden inside, so Rosary was in trouble. If I didn’t get her straight and find out who brought her the orange peels, she would have another charge tacked onto her current DWI charge.

  I huffed
. I didn’t come here for this.

  She tapped the window to get me to pick up my receiver so we could talk.

  I snatched the phone off the wall and didn’t put the receiver on my ear. You would be surprised what some of these visitors do to that thing.

  I spoke into the receiver. “Looks like you began the party without me.”

  “No, just sleepy.” Rosary lisped. Her tongue was heavy from drinking hooch. “They keep it so cold in here.”

  “Rosie, don’t play. You’re drunk and you just wasted my time today.”

  “It’s cold in here. I need something to keep me warm.”

  “I would have put enough money on your account for you to buy some long johns, but now . . .” I shook my head. “I’m not wasting my money.”

  She sat up straighter. “¿Qué estás diciendo? You’re not putting any money on my commissary?”

  “Why should I? And your Spanish is getting rusty.”

  “Not fair, and my Spanish is just fine.” She pouted.

  “Not fair? Let me tell you what’s not fair. I came straight from my daughter’s school to see you and you’re drunk. You knew I was coming, yet you insult me.”

  She giggled. “This stuff doesn’t get you drunk. I’m just a little buzzed.”

  “Honey, even through these thick walls I can smell orange hooch on you. Let me tell you something. . . the staff is on to you, too. If you don’t tell me who brought you the orange rinds, then they’re going to stack another case on. More than likely you won’t get out of here until after Christmas, if they do. That’s not going to look good to your boss, who’s been nice enough to hold your job for you. Plus . . . how do you think little Lucia is going to feel about having an alchi for a mom?”

  “I don’t want that. I promised her she wouldn’t go through what I went through.” She began to tear up. “Help me, Angel. I’ll tell you who’s supplying us. It’s Day Day, one of the servers in the cafeteria. He gave it to me in exchange for cases of Pop’s cigarettes.”

  I gasped. “Pop’s cigarettes?!”

  Rosary’s dad, Pop Calhoun, made a name for himself with the alphabet agencies (ATF, IRS, and GBI) and the prison world because of his creation, sale, and distribution of both illegal cigarettes and apple pie flavored moonshine.

  “When you called me and told me you were in here, and that you didn’t want to be bailed out so you can get cleaned up, I thought you had learned your lesson about your father. I thought you finally got it in your head that he doesn’t care about you.”

  “Well, he sent Day Day the cigarettes, so he must care a little.” Her eyes were so dilated I shook my head in disgust and disappointment. “Don’t look at me like that.”

  I sat back and placed the phone on the steel table. This conversation had gotten darker by the minute. I checked my watch. I needed to line up for Bella’s car pool within the hour. I picked the phone back up.

  “I’m sorry, Angel. I won’t do it again,” she whispered. “What else do you need from me to get my commissary back?”

  “Nothing. Right now, I can’t trust anything that comes out your mouth.”

  “Come on, Angel. It’s hard in here. You know how it is. . . .”

  “No, I don’t know how it is. I’m on the other side of the law, the right side.”

  “Okay. I’m about to be on the good side soon.”

  “You could’ve fooled me,” I said.

  “For real. I’ll prove it. Who are you searching for right now? Who do you need me to help you find? I got connections.”

  “Your cousin Cesar Cruz.” I pulled out a picture of him from my back pocket. “He’s changed his hair, but that’s still him.”

  She observed the picture and nodded. “I saw him at Big Tiger’s a while back.”

  “Yeah, you did. Is that all you got?”

  “Cesar’s new girlfriend is Tara Tina Ramirez. They live in Doraville, off Peachtree Industrial. She works as a hostess at Grits Draft House in Johns Creek. Want the number?”

  “No, and I don’t need anyone tipping her off either.”

  She threw her hands up. “I won’t tell.”

  “All right, I’ll check this out.”

  “You gon’ hook me up now, manita?”

  “If you agree to more rehab, then yeah. I got you.”

  “I don’t need to do more rehab.”

  “Then you can kiss your job goodbye, because they’ll take your bartending license for good if you don’t go, and you definitely won’t get my money. Matter fact, maybe you shouldn’t be working in a bar. Have you ever thought of that?”

  “I have. I got a plan for something better,” she said.

  “Good.” I stood up and got out of there before the stench made me pass out.

  3

  Friday, 6: 00 PM

  Home, Sugar Hill, Georgia

  Justus arrived at my home at six sharp for our blue-hot date. He held a single white rose in one hand; I noticed a bouquet of red ones behind his back. I blushed in excitement.

  He smiled as he stepped inside my foyer. “Where’s the birthday girl?”

  I stepped aside. “Primping in the restroom.”

  “Of course she is.” He chuckled.

  “When I told her you were taking her birthday up a notch, she became ecstatic.” I folded my arms over my chest and gave him my flirty side glance.

  He touched my arm. “Please tell me that I didn’t ruin any plans you had for her.”

  “No . . .” I shook my head. “Last year, when she was in kindergarten, we decided that when her birthday fell on a school night we would do something simple like dinner and a Disney movie, then have a party on the weekend with her friends.”

  “It’s Friday.” He looked up then his brows furrowed. “So do I need more tickets to accommodate her friends?”

  “No, she’s having a slumber party tomorrow night at Ava’s. Taylor wants to attend this year and Bella wants her friends to experience the McMansion.”

  “The McMansion” was my nickname for my sister Ava’s million-dollar starter mansion in Atlanta. Taylor was Ava’s eight-year-old daughter and my very prim and proper niece.

  “This is her first time sharing her birthday with her cousins isn’t it?” He smiled.

  “Yep, but I don’t know . . . Bella’s been spending a lot of time over there, since Ava and I are now on good terms. But Ava’s lifestyle is more extravagant than mine. I’m already competing with Bella’s classmates. I refuse to compete with Ava. Shoot. I can’t.”

  “Why do you see it as a competition?” he asked.

  “Because it’s always been a competition between us.”

  “So is this why you agreed to our date? To one-up Ava?”

  “As many times as I’ve tried to lie to you, I can’t do it.” I paused. “I didn’t agree to this date because I wanted to use you. I wanted to spend time with you. However, your plans for tonight put me in a great spot. It’s shameful, but I must admit that.”

  “Glad you shared that with me. I know that was hard for you.” He grinned.

  “It is. I love Bella. I don’t want anything or anyone to harm her, including myself.”

  “You won’t, Angel. The ladies at church can’t stop singing your praises. Remember, I was with you when you stuck your neck out to save Ava. You’re a great woman, a great sister, a great mom.”

  “You didn’t say great girlfriend.” More of my side glance.

  “Woman, don’t play with me. We were in the middle of having a serious moment together and then you threw a joke in there.”

  “I wasn’t trying to joke. That was my bad attempt at flirting with someone I actually wasn’t paid to pretend to like.”

  “I see.” He pulled me closer to him and then . . . “Would you mind if I kissed you now?”

  “I don’t mind.” I nodded, while my knees became jelly as he leaned toward my lips.

  “Are those roses for me?” Bella asked and scared the Goodness Gracious out of me.

  The back of m
y head hit the wall. “Ouch.”

  “Are you all right?” Justus grabbed me up.

  Bella grabbed my knees. “Sorry, Mommy.”

  “It’s all good, everyone. I just lost my head for a minute.” I blushed, after glancing at Justus. “So are you finally ready, birthday girl?”

  “I am, but I have to ask Mr. Morgan a question in private.” Bella wrinkled her nose. “Is that okay, Mommy?”

  I smiled at her, trying to hide my curiosity. “It’s your day. Whatever you want, but don’t take too long. You still have to honor your bedtime schedule.”

  She rolled her eyes, then smiled. My little sister, Whitney, who also lives with us, does the same thing. When Whitney does it, she pisses me off, but when Bella does the same thing, it tickles me. The Mom Double Standard was my term for my hypocrisy.

  I left the foyer for the living room so that Bella and Justus could talk. While I waited, my smart phone buzzed. I checked the caller ID. It was Big Tiger, my favorite contractor, honorary big brother, and the best bail bondsman on my planet.

  “Hi, Tiger. I don’t have much time. We’re about to take Bella out for her birthday.”

  “Cool. Tell Little Princess happy birthday and I have a gift for her at Mama’s. . . .”

  Mama’s referred to BT Trusted Bail Bonds main office in Decatur, which also doubled as Mama D’s Soul Kitchen Restaurant in the back. His mom, Mama D, was also co-owner of the bail bondsman office.

  “Why don’t you, Whitney, and Bella stop through? You know it’s Fish Fry Friday. Mama serves Bella’s favorite peach cobbler. I’ll make sure that Mama holds a pan for the baby.”

  “That’s sweet, but actually Whitney isn’t coming with us. Justus is.”

  Silence.

  More silence.

  Last summer when I was investigating my brother-in-law Devon’s murder, Big Tiger and I were almost killed. Tiger blamed Justus for the near-death experience. For a short while I did, too, but that was my ego talking. Needless to say, Tiger hadn’t liked Justus since then.