by Carl Weber
“So why don’t you grab a beer and help me convince our brother that it’s the right thing to do?” Larry said.
I sucked my teeth loud to get Larry’s attention. When he was looking at me, I said, “Humph. Lou ain’t the only one who’s gonna need some convincing.”
“I know that’s right,” Shirley chimed in from behind me.
Donna
17
“I had a nice time tonight. Thank you.”
“I always have a great time with you, Donna,” Eddie said, giving me that grin he seemed to always have around me.
“I feel the same way,” I said politely, digging in my purse for my keys.
Eddie got out of his Continental and walked around to open my door. It had only been ten days, but I’d already trained him well. He had taken me all the way to the Landing in Jacksonville for dinner. It was a nice area near the beach, full of nice restaurants and shops. My warning to Eddie that he was going to have to impress me if he planned on dating me had been heeded, and he had been attempting to do just that.
After helping me out of the car, he opened the trunk and took out the large shopping bags, which held the cashmere sweater and silk scarf that I’d admired in one of the shop windows and he had gladly purchased.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” he asked when we arrived in front of my apartment door.
I shook my head. “You already know that I’m not, Eddie.”
“Damn, Donna, come on. I’ve been wining and dining you for two weeks. You giving me the run-around?”
His attitude was just the reaction I was expecting.
“So, you think because you take me out for a couple of meals and buy me a few things that I’m supposed to just let you have your way with me? That’s all I’m worth?” I snapped.
“That’s not what I’m saying. It’s just—”
I sighed loudly to shut him up. “I swear, every time I allow myself to start getting close to a man, this is how they act.
Whatever happened to chivalry and romance? I thought you were different from all those others. I see I was wrong.” I forced tears to form in my eyes and allowed my bottom lip to quiver for added effect.
“I am, Donna. You know how I feel about you. This ain’t a game for me.” Eddie put his arm around my shoulder. “And you’re worth way more than anything in my life right now. That’s why I try and show you that by taking you to nice places and buying you nice things.”
“So, you are trying to buy me.” I pulled away.
“No! I’m—Come on, Donna. I like you a lot. I more than like you. I just wanted to come inside and enjoy your company a little while longer, that’s all. Maybe sit on the sofa and hold you close to me. I bought you that Commodores album you wanted because I thought we would listen together. Can’t we at least do that?” Eddie pleaded.
I felt kind of bad because he was right. For the past two weeks, he had been spoiling me and treating me in ways that I hadn’t enjoyed since my father left. We ate at fine restaurants, he took me shopping in Savannah and Jacksonville, and he even talked about taking me on a vacation. Although my mission was simply to get information for Lou, I was glad that it did come with some fringe benefits. I knew I had Eddie wrapped around my finger, but as much as I liked being treated like the queen I was, I was just not attracted to him, at all. Sooner or later my hard-to-get routine would get old, and he would figure out that he couldn’t buy me. This was not a moment I was looking forward to, because Eddie was not the type to take no for an answer.
I eased my arm around his neck, closed my eyes, and held my breath as I gave him a kiss with as much passion as I could muster, which wasn’t much. Luckily, it was enough to satisfy him. When I pulled away, he looked like he was in a trance.
“Eddie, baby, just give me a little more time to get to know you. Like you told me when you first asked me out: you know all about me and all the things I’ve been through over the past couple of years. Getting close to someone isn’t something I do easily, especially after what happened with LC.” I batted my lashes and caressed his chest with my fingertip.
“Fuck LC. I ain’t him. Hell, fuck all them Duncan bastards.”
“Look, it’s late, and I have to be at work early in the morning. A lady’s got to get her beauty rest. Thank you for a wonderful evening. Give me a call tomorrow, okay?”
“Donna, you’re already the most beautiful woman in the world to me. Shit, you can quit that job and never go back there. I make money to take care of you. To be honest, I can take better care of you than that Duncan motherfucker ever could.” Eddie reached in his pocket and then flashed his fat wad of cash that I had become accustomed to seeing.
“Will you put that damn money away? You ain’t gonna be satisfied until someone robs you. Now, good night.” I took my bag from him, turned, and put my key in to unlock the door.
“Donna, wait.” He called my name just as I turned the knob to go inside.
“What is it?”
“Can I get another kiss, please?”
I fulfilled his request, kissing him lightly on the lips. I felt his hands move from my waist to my ass, and I allowed him to enjoy the moment for a few seconds before I quickly took a step back into my doorway and waved to him as I closed the door. Once inside, I put the chain lock on the door then tossed the bag on my sofa, where several other bags of gifts from earlier shopping sprees still sat. The pile was growing so big there was barely space to sit on the couch anymore.
I went to the kitchen and poured myself a drink, then came back into the living room to relax for a few minutes before I started putting away some of the gifts. I had just taken off my heels and was about to turn on the eight track player when I heard knocking at the door.
“Didn’t I tell you we’d talk tomorrow?” I shouted.
He just started knocking harder and louder. I rushed over to the door to stop this fool before he woke my neighbors.
“Eddie, what the hell is wrong with you?” I snapped as I undid the chain and snatched the door open.
“Do I look like Eddie?” It was Lou. I quickly pulled him inside.
“What are you doing here?” I stuck my head out the door to make sure Eddie was gone.
“Man, I thought that motherfucker would never leave. What the hell were y’all talking about?” Lou asked as he went and sat on my couch.
“Are you crazy? What are you doing here?” I repeated.
“I came to get some kind of fucking update. I haven’t heard from you in a few days.”
“I told you I would call you when I had some solid information. I’m still working on it. I’m holding up my end of the deal. What about you? Did you set up the fucking meeting?” I stared at Lou with my arms crossed and waited for his answer.
“As a matter of fact, I got something I’m working on this weekend, but you gotta come with me to Atlanta.” I noticed him taking in my body with his eyes, but I ignored his seductive glance. I was more interested in the details of what he had set up.
“Atlanta?” I asked.
“Yeah, Atlanta,” he said, making it clear he wasn’t giving up any more information. “And why is it taking so long for you to get info from this dude? Looking at all these shopping bags, I figured you would’ve been fucked him and got the scoop by now.”
I wrinkled up my nose in distaste. Just the thought of sex with Eddie was disgusting. “I haven’t fucked him. And I’m not going to fuck him.”
“So, that’s what the holdup is. Dammit, Donna, you do whatever you gotta do to get me what I need, or I ain’t setting up shit for you.”
I felt myself panicking, because I did not want him backing out now. “Look, I know what I’m doing. Trust me. I may not have all the info, but based on what I know so far, you’ve been more right than wrong.”
“What does that mean?” Lou stared at me intently.
I inhaled deeply and told him, “I believe your mother is still alive.”
“Eddie told you that?” Lou looked a little st
unned.
“No, but he made it pretty damn clear that the arm they found in the swamp doesn’t belong to your mother.” Lou looked flabbergasted, and I felt sorry for him. “Someone is paying him a lot of money lately, and right now, he’s more afraid of them than he is of you.”
“Well, we’ll see about that.” Lou headed for the door, but I slid in front of it, stopping him.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“To find that son of bitch!” He tried to push me out of his way, but I stood my ground.
“And do what?” I asked. “Beat the hell outta him? What good is that going to do? You already told me that he’s so fucked up after being in the Army that torture doesn’t affect him.” I didn’t need him killing Eddie, because then I would be of no more use to Lou—and I wouldn’t get what I wanted out of the deal.
“Yeah, but I gotta do something.”
“You have. You partnered with me. And if I can find this out, I can find out everything you need.”
Bettie
18
“Get up, bitch!”
I flinched at the voice waking me. I was curled up naked in the corner of the room, my head on a flimsy sheet that I had balled into a makeshift pillow. I didn’t have a blanket, but the thin piece of material wouldn’t serve as any kind of warmth anyway, so I figured it could as least serves as a barrier between my head and the cold, nasty floor I was sleeping on.
“Did you hear what I said? Get your ass up!” the man growled again. This time his demand was followed by a kick in my back.
I grimaced in pain but didn’t utter a sound. I wasn’t as young as I used to be, but this wasn’t the first time I’d been kicked. Slowly, I sat up and stared at him. This tall, ape-looking motherfucker got a thrill out of abusing me. He was a sadistic bastard, unlike the two men who had taken me from the house a few days ago. Or had it been a few weeks? The days and nights had begun to run together, especially since I had been moved around so much. There were times that I had been locked in rooms with no windows to even see daylight, and needless to say, I didn’t have a watch. The ape pulled me up and placed me in a chair, covering my head with a cloth pillowcase or sheet.
“Don’t you fucking move,” he ordered. I could hear a gun being chambered.
Now, I was truly afraid. There was no doubt in my mind that the end was near. I had been left down here to die. I sat for what seemed like an hour until I heard the door open again and footsteps approaching.
“Bettie Duncan.”
My heart began pounding as I realized who the voice belonged to. It had been decades, but there was no mistaking it. I could feel someone coming closer to me, and then, the covering was removed from my eyes, confirming what I already knew. I didn’t say a word.
“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it, Bettie?” The voice was like gravel. It had always been distinctive, yet it now had a hoarseness to it. Time had changed jet-black hair to white, and although the hazel eyes were just as piercing, the skin around them was wrinkled with age.
“What the fuck do you want?” I asked quickly.
“Come now, Bettie. Is that a way to greet an old friend?”
“We’re not friends,” I spat, hatred boiling within me.
“We were friends at one time.”
“That was before—”
“Before you and your husband messed it up.”
“We just did what we thought was right. It was your—”
Slap!
My face stung from the palm of a heavy hand. I reached up to rub it.
“Don’t you even go there. Don’t you dare blame your mistakes on him!”
I was breathing so hard that I could see my chest rising with each breath. The will to fight was there, but the man guarding the door looked way too strong, and he was carrying a gun.
“What is this all about?” I asked.
“Don’t act stupid, Bettie. You’ve always been a smart woman. There’s only one reason I’d be standing in front of you after all these years in this godforsaken place.”
Everything clicked in that moment and I understood why I had been taken and by whom. It all made sense. As terrible as this all was, at least now I understood why I was taken from my family. It had been so long I’d almost forgotten. I had been holding this secret for over two decades, and for two decades, it appears my captor had wanted the secret I held.
“Jesus Christ, is that what this is all about? Why not let sleeping dogs lie?”
“Did you think that just because you went to jail it would be forgotten?”
“I never really gave it much thought,” I replied. “Prison was hard enough without worrying about y’all. To be honest, now that I think about it, I’m surprised you let me get out of prison.”
“You slipped through the cracks, but it’s better this way. Now we can put this shit to bed forever.” There was so much hate in that voice. “Now, start talking. There’s a lot of shit I need to know.”
I shook my head, refusing to speak.
Bam!
This time, it was a fist from the ape that struck my jaw. I covered my face to block the blows as I tried to scurry away from the repeated kicks to my legs and torso.
“Tell me what I want to know, Bettie, or we’re going to hurt you much worse than this.”
“No!” I shouted repeatedly, and with that, the kicks continued. “Go ahead and kill me now, because I will never tell you.”
The sound of my sudden laughter must have been a complete surprise, because the assault stopped. I turned to stare into the eyes of the monster in front of me and smiled.
“You can’t kill me, can you? You’re not just after the secret, you’re after the—” I was given one more kick to stop my sarcastic rambling.
“This is not over.” They left, slamming the door behind them.
There was a series of clicking sounds, and I knew that the door was locked. Just as I stood up and began looking around, everything went dark. The lights had been turned off. I leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. I now knew what they wanted, and they would hold me there until I told them. But there was no way I could tell them. It was the only thing keeping me and my boys alive.
Tears that I had been holding onto for days, weeks, months, years came flowing from my eyes. I felt helpless.
“Hello?” I heard a small voice cry out to me. “Are you okay over there?”
At first I thought I must have fallen asleep and was dreaming. I sat up and listened closer.
“Hello, can you hear me over there?” someone called out again. I wasn’t dreaming. The voice was coming from the other side of the wall I was leaning on.
“Yes, I’m here,” I answered.
“Okay. I’m just making sure you’re okay. I’m Lisa.”
“I’m Bettie.” I put my ear against the wall so I could hear better.
“Hey, Bettie.”
“Hey, so how long have you been down here?” I asked.
“I stopped counting the days after about six months,” she replied, and although she did sound sincere, my first thought was that this was a trick. Now that I knew who I was dealing with, I couldn’t put anything past them. They were ruthless if they were anything. But I’d go along with it for now. Trick or not, I’d learned from prison that comradery made the time go by faster.
Lou
19
I pulled open the glass doors with the words Duncan Motors painted on them and walked inside, looking around to take it all in. To say I was impressed would be an understatement. From the fleet of cars for sale in the front lot to the carpeted, air-conditioned office space complete with a water cooler and a reception area, this place was more than I could have ever expected. To top it off, my younger brother was the owner. I knew that LC had a plan when he moved to Atlanta, but I never expected this.
“Can I help you?”
I smiled at the young woman behind the desk, and my eyes traveled down farther. Her breasts were a bit smaller than I would have liked, but her
pretty face more than made up for it.
“Hey there, beautiful. I’m Lou Duncan. I’m here to see my brother, LC,” I replied.
“Of course. I’ll see if he’s available.” She reached for the phone, but I stopped her.
“He’s always available for me. No need for all the formalities. Just point me in the direction that he’s at and I’ll find him myself.” I walked past her desk toward a long hallway, “Is his office this way?”
She quickly jumped up behind me. “Sir, wait one second.”
I kept walking. There was an open office door with LC’s name on it. I peeked inside, expecting to find him, but it was empty. I continued down the hallway.
“Lou!” LC called my name, and I turned around to see him coming from the opposite direction. “Hey, man!”
“What’s up, LC?” I said when we met in the middle of the hallway and embraced.
He was dressed in a suit and tie, carrying a clipboard, which he handed to the receptionist. She was looking at me like I’d stolen her first born.
“Vivian, make sure you make duplicate copies before you file these, please,” LC said to her.
“Right away, Mr. Duncan. You need anything else?”
“No, that’s all,” LC told her.
I checked out her ass as she walked away. She may have been lacking up top, but she had enough in the back to keep me interested. I was going to have to stop by the dealership more often.
“I like her. She got spunk!” I laughed. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing much. Just handling some paperwork for some vehicles that just came in.”
“This is some place you got here,” I said.
“Thanks. It’s coming along nicely. Taking care of some final details. Let me give you the grand tour.”
LC showed me around the dealership. The place had everything: a garage, a space for auto detailing, office space. My brother was definitely doing well for himself.
“So, what are you doing here?” he asked when we headed back into his office and took a seat.