Seventy-Three
Calvin is sitting on the sofa closest to the boarded-up window. I’m at the other end, beside the armchair Al is sitting in. We’re drinking the good shit. Calvin has his glass filled with ice.
“You’re ruining that good scotch with all that ice,” Al tells him.
“He’ll come around eventually,” I say.
“Naw. It’s better like this.”
I pull out the BOLO of Rule and hand it over to Al. “You know this guy?”
“No.”
“He goes back to Cordell Holm. You sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. Never seen him before. And I don’t know how he would know anything about me and my CI. It doesn’t make sense.”
“Tamie D your CI?” Calvin asks, surprised.
“How the fuck he come up with that?” Al says to me.
“Because I was coming up to Rule when he said it,” Calvin begins. “Your name, too. Called you the ’migo detective. Your CI’s burned, man. So are you.”
Al is visibly angry.
Calvin’s stepping up. Al looks at him hard, turns to me, and raises his hand, like, Who the fuck this kid think he is?
“If he didn’t say it, I would have,” I say, defending Calvin. “These mopes aren’t fucking around, Al. This goes back. Has something to do with Cordell, with you, and maybe me. Or maybe because I’m just helping you. I don’t know anything at this point. Might only have to do with the shooting you got into. He was one of their boys.”
“Shit, I don’t know. But I never used her to work Cordell. That I do know,” Al says.
This is where I’ve got to be careful, because I did use her, and Tamie played the both of us to get to Cordell. I can’t let him know that. I don’t know what he might do, and he’s got to get through this shooting investigation, not get himself jammed up with her again.
I need to call her.
“Gotta hit the head,” I say.
“You know where it is.”
“Take it easy on my rookie there. Okay, Al?”
“As long as he doesn’t keep killing my fine scotch with all that ice.”
I hear Calvin spit out a huff.
I turn the fart fan on when I get in the bathroom. It’s older so it makes some noise. I use my burner phone to call Tamie. It rings several times and goes to an automated voice recording. I don’t leave a message. I call again. No answer.
I fucking told her to pick up when I call.
Damn, though, I hope she’s okay.
I flush the toilet and return to the living room.
I sit on the sofa.
“So, your associate here was just telling me how you two met.”
What the…?
Calvin must see the concerned look I have.
“Yeah, turkey on wheat,” Calvin says.
“That’s right. Kid makes a killer sandwich. Listen, we’re going to have to roll,” I say suddenly. “You need to sit tight, keep that .38 of yours close.”
“Don’t worry about me, my friend. I been through the shit before.”
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow,” I say, and then stand. I finish the scotch left in my glass. I notice Calvin doing the same, but with some trouble. He does, though, walks over to Al with the glass.
“You want me to go rinse this in your sink?”
“No, but thanks for asking. Just set it on the coffee table. I’ll take care of it.”
He does.
“And thanks for saving my boy’s life. I owe you one.”
“A’right.”
“Walk us to the door so you can lock it up,” I say.
“Yeah, yeah.”
We get in the car, and after I start it up, Calvin turns to me.
“That cop friend of yours ain’t so bad.”
“He’s good people.”
“Don’t know how you all can stand the scotch. Smells like it been mixed with ash from an old fireplace. Tastes like it, too.”
“Hey, you have a good palate.”
“Huh?”
I drive around the block to check for any suspicious cars.
“Why you drive around the block?”
“Being safe is all. You ready for the long haul, or you want me to take you home?”
“I’m ready for whatever it takes.”
“You should call your uncle, then, let him know you’re safe.”
“You keep forgetting I’m an adult here. You keep treatin’ me like a fucking kid.”
“Just do it.”
Seventy-Four
Things change when you save someone’s life. It doesn’t matter if you’re a thug, civilian, military, or a cop. It’s like an accelerated bond between the two. Nothing you go on about, like civilians might do, getting all mushy and shit. It’s just there. Different. A new level of trust. In my case, a trust that was never there until now.
Evening is settling in. It’ll be dark soon, harder to find someone. I drive north on 14th toward Fairmont. I try calling Tamie again, but with negative results.
“That Tamie D you tryin’ to call?”
“Yeah.”
“She the crack whore from the photo you showed me?”
“Yes, but that was an old photo. She looks nothing like that anymore. In fact, I gotta be honest with you. It looks like she worked her way into Cordell’s crew somehow, or some faction of Cordell’s crew.”
“You mean like some of Cordell’s boys broke off to go on their own?”
“Yeah, but I don’t know for sure.”
“Why you didn’t tell me this before?”
“I wasn’t ready to tell you before.”
“What you mean to say is you didn’t trust me.”
“Yeah, that too.”
“And she the one that called me on the burner?”
“Yes.”
I don’t tell him how Tamie learned of Cordell because I’m sure it was through me, when I had Tamie set up Calvin for a meet. That’s how I originally found Calvin, but he was only known as Playboy back then. He’s got my trust now, but certain things I have to keep from him or that will all be taken away.
“So how you think she did all that?”
“Get with Cordell’s boys?”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t have a clue,” I say. “Possibly back when she was using crack.”
“I don’t remember her, though.”
“Were you out slinging crack on the corner back then?”
“Naw. I had other business to run.”
“Okay, then.”
Other business that almost made me kill him, but I won’t bring that up again. Ancient history.
I’m certain Queen Street is still locked down. Detectives probably in the house by now with a search warrant. That might be why Tamie hasn’t returned my call, because she was in there and is being detained. The only one I know for sure wasn’t in there is Ty.
“You gonna have a problem hitting these spots with me?” I say.
“At this point it don’t matter, does it?”
“No, it doesn’t. Does Ty or any of those boys on Fairmont or Euclid know where your uncle lives?”
“Naw. That I know for sure.”
“That’s good. It appears they fucking know where I live, though, and Al.”
“So you asking to stay at my uncle’s?”
“No. I’ve been through this before. No worries.”
“By the way, what happened to the other gun?”
“I’m not going to keep repeating myself here. I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”
“Just one thing, and that’s the end of it, ’cause it just came to me.”
“All right.”
“The gun that the police got was the gun I got out of the pack, right?”
“Yeah.”
“But what about the gun Rule had?”
“Got rid of it. Listen, I know what you’re thinking. You know about ballistics?”
“Yeah, bullets.”
“Little more than that. The
bullet that took off Rule’s toes has to match the bore of the weapon, the inside of the barrel. The bore is like a fingerprint. That is, unless the bullet mushroomed out, hitting the pavement. Even then there’s ways. So that gun had to go with Rule.”
“And the other gun?”
“There is no other gun. End of story.”
I make the left on Euclid and a right on University Place to Fairmont. We stop at the corner. Calvin uses the binos. I can tell from here that it doesn’t look like any real players are out. Makes me wonder if that has anything to do with what happened on Queen Street.
“Anywhere else you can think of that Ty—Little T—might be hanging?”
“Probably nowhere on the outside after what happened.”
“Assuming he’s a part of whoever Tamie is with, and a possible connection to Cordell’s boys, you know of any other safe houses?”
“If they be with Cordell, then he’s still in control, working it from the inside, and he has himself a couple places. But if they be working on their own, broke off from him, then I don’t fucking know.”
“Here’s another lesson. It’s called ruling things out. So let’s check those other safe houses out, assuming they still might be with him.”
“A’right. Head to Seventeenth and Euclid, but keep on Seventeenth toward Kalorama.”
I roll west on Euclid from Sixteenth. Calvin’s in the back seat now. When we get to Euclid, we see that it’s also clear. Word travels, unless it’s too cold for them, which is something I doubt.
“You forget this is one-way south of Euclid?” I say.
“Man, I don’t pay attention to that shit.”
I go to Ontario and make the left to go around the block.
We hit 17th, and Calvin says, “Keep up past the cut and slow down.”
Calvin is leaning his head between the two front seats and then points over the front passenger seat so I can see. It’s a row house on the left.
“That one there. It be a cousin or some shit, but I don’t know for sure. But it’s a clean house. Never been hit.”
I keep driving, make my way around the block again, come back up 17th and park at the corner.
“Remember, this car be burned.”
“I know, but it’s getting dark.”
“How you thinkin’ of playin’ this shit?”
“I don’t have a clue. Lights are on in the house, though.”
Calvin looks with the binos. “Can’t see shit from here.”
I roll down my window a couple inches and turn the car off.
I pick up the cell to call Tamie again.
“What the fuck you do?” she answers, having recognized my number.
Seventy-Five
After I tell her she’s burned and in danger, she says, “I already know that,” and agrees to meet, but only if she brings the big man with her.
“As long as he doesn’t hold a grudge,” I say.
“And you bring his gun with you.”
“Damn, Tamie, you’ve really changed. I remember when you used to call me hon and I called you sweetie.”
“You don’t know the half of it. But you can still call me sweetie, hon.”
She picks the spot. Coincidentally, the same location where those two knuckleheads tried to rob me.
“Why don’t we compromise and say the west side at the corner of Sixteenth,” I say. “More traffic, less that can happen.”
“Ain’t nothin’ gonna happen, Frankie, unless it’s you that make it happen, but all right. Give me an hour.”
“See you there, Darling.”
I disconnect.
“So?” Calvin says.
“An hour, but we’re going to find a spot to set up now.”
It’s only a couple of blocks from here, which makes me wonder if we should stay where we are, that she might come out of that house. I decide to roll.
I park on W Street, with the rear of the car at 16th and the corner we’re meeting at across the street from us. Like the side I was robbed at, there’s a small courtyard off the sidewalk with steps that lead into the park. Darling knows my car, so if her man is smart, they’ll drive the block and I’ll get made. I’m not worried about that.
Calvin is still in the rear of the car.
“This is where you have to watch my back again. It’s not gonna be like before, ’cause you were right there.”
I point to the courtyard area.
“See right there, just below the steps? I’ll be sure to be near the brownstone wall so you can see me. Have my number at the ready so you can text if you see something suspicious. If something breaks, call nine one one. The Third District is right down the street. You good with that?”
“Yeah, but why can’t I go with you?”
“Darling knows I work alone. She sees you there, she might decide to roll out.”
“Your call, man,” he says, like he doesn’t believe me.
“I’m not bullshitting you. That’s the only reason I don’t want you there.”
“I believe ya.”
“We’re early, but keep your eyes peeled. This ain’t the girl I used to know.”
“Yeah, that’s ’cause she got the taste of money and the power that come with it.”
That’s one wise boy there.
I grab the bottle of Jameson out of my pack, take a healthy swig. Hate being a bad influence, but I hand it over to Calvin.
“Naw thanks. Rather have a couple hits of a blunt.”
I reach into my pack again, find my sandwich baggie with a couple of joints in it. I pull one out and give it to him.
“Not the size of one of your blunts, but it’s good shit.”
“You kiddin’ me?” he says. “You used to be a cop.”
“Helps me relax. So go on, we’re forty-five minutes early. Crack the window and smoke it up, but keep your eyes on.”
“Don’t have to worry ’bout that. This shit wakes me up.”
He takes a disposable lighter out of his jacket pocket and lights it up. I watch him through the rearview mirror. His eyes widen after he holds it for a while, then exhales.
“This some good shit here.”
An hour passes, along with most of my bottle and the joint Calvin smoked up. She’s late.
“She gonna show?”
“I don’t know anymore. These things always go like this when it comes to drug shit, but never has with her. Let’s give it some more time.”
A few minutes later Calvin says, “That her?”
I turn around. She’s walking south on the east side of 16th, same side we’re going to meet. With the big man again.
“Yeah, that’s her.”
“That dude’s big, man.”
“Bad knees, though,” I say, and open the door. “Keep your eyes peeled all directions, all right? Stay low.”
“I got it.”
I step out, feel for the grip of my gun out of habit, and then the stun gun secured to my belt on the other side.
I walk across the street, hit the corner almost the same time as they do. They stop when they see me. Big man looks ready to take my head off.
There’s steady traffic in both directions on 16th. That’s a good thing.
I notice a young couple walking our way on W, but on the other side. They stop at the corner like they want to cross but decide not to. They turn and walk south on 16th.
I walk up to the small courtyard area, my back facing W and, I hope, Calvin. They follow, stop a couple of feet from me.
“You had me worried when you wouldn’t answer your cell,” I say.
“My gun. Give it up,” big man says.
“Oh yeah, things have changed. Nothing about this gauze around my head, huh?”
“I figure you’re walkin’ so you’re okay. And I already heard about everything that happened on Queen Street,” Tamie says.
“So what about my gun?” he asks again.
“Unfortunately, no.”
He looks at Tamie, obviously flustered.
“Police took it from me after that scuffle with Rule.”
“Scuffle?” he blurts, like that’s an understatement.
“Was it registered to you?”
“Of course it wasn’t,” Tamie says.
“Then your man here’ll be all right. I cleaned it up after I got it in my car. No prints.”
“Fuck you,” he says.
“Thought we weren’t going to go there, Tamie?”
“We ain’t.”
“You got a name I can call you?” I say to the big man.
“You can call me sir.”
“You can call him Eman,” Tamie says.
He doesn’t react. Guess he’s holding a grudge.
“Can you trust what I have to talk about in front of Eman?”
“Yes. Everything.”
“Everything?”
“He knows I was playing both sides, but for our advantage.”
Shit, she is good. Maybe the best I ever met.
“All right, then. But first, tell me who Jonas Rule is to you.”
“So he’s still alive?” she says.
“Last I heard.”
“He a little big man trying to work his way up the wrong way,” Eman says.
“Like I told you before, Tamie, I don’t give a rat’s ass what you’re working now and how you got there. I’m actually happy you’re doing well.”
“Fuck you, Frankie.”
Getting a lot of that from women.
“It’s the truth. I’m not going to tell Al what I know or the cops. You leave Al alone, stay away from me, too, and I won’t have to take your little kingdom down.”
Eman laughs. It’s a funny sort of laugh. Almost makes me laugh. Sort of childlike.
“I take it you don’t know much about me, Eman?”
“I know enough.”
“I don’t know if you do, but all the same, I’m going to stop all this alpha shit. You already know you’re burned, Tamie, and you said you can trust Eman here, because you’ll need his protection. What about the other boys? Specifically, Marlon. Little T.”
“I know they run or ran with Rule and know what he was up to. They don’t know I know. Ty knows about me now, because of what you said happened at Queen Street, and I’m assuming he heard it.”
“You can still get to him, then? Ty, I mean.”
“Of course I can.” She smiles. “Oh, you mean for you?”
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