by Loy Holder
Shocked, Liz watched him in get in his car and drive away. Oh God. Was I out of line? He took a punch for me. Another tear ran down her cheek as she walked to her car.
She wiped more tears from her cheek and turned the key in the ignition. The engine sounded rough, and then it died. Damn it, now what? She tried several times, but the engine wouldn’t run. Her tears began to fall in earnest—tears of self-pity, tears of pain—and her whole body shook. It was the perfect end to one hell of a night. Finally, aching, exhausted, and eyes swollen and dry, she considered her options. I can walk home or call a cab. I sure as hell don’t know how to fix this car. She went back into the Jet and called a cab. She’d deal with her car and everything else tomorrow. When she arrived home, she skipped the shower and fell into bed, stench and sticky skin be damned.
Ron was still reeling from the effects of the alcohol, and his gut was on fire. After a bumpy right turn off the gravel onto Folsom Boulevard, he vomited all over himself and the back seat of the squad car. Deputy Ross turned to bark at him through the cage from the passenger seat. “Damn, Harmon, not the seat. Aim for the floor next time.”
Ron moaned, leaned back, and closed his eyes. Christ, why does something so good going down have to taste so nasty coming up? It came again and this time, he aimed for the floor. Deputy Ross turned and chuckled. “Nice work, Harmon. Now sit back and enjoy the ride.”
The deputy’s voice was wasted on Ron. All he heard was the echo of Liz’s soft, sexy laughter on that stage as she’d focused on arousing a stranger. He hated her now as much as he’d once loved her. Then things went black, and he passed out with his head wedged between the back of the seat and the window.
Later in his cell, he was still shaky. He’d tolerated the processing routine without throwing up again and welcomed the shower and clean jail attire, an orange jumpsuit and shoes. He’d just gotten comfortable on his narrow bed when a guard spoke to him through the bars. “Hey, Harmon. You got one phone call. Wanna do it now? Phone’s free.”
Ron sat up too quickly, and the blood left his head for a second. He rubbed his forehead. “Yeah. I’m coming.” He hoped his legs would hold him as he walked toward the open cell door.
He dialed Joe’s number and waited. Finally, Joe mumbled a grumpy “Hello.”
“Hey, Joe. Sorry to bother you this late, man. I’m in jail—”
Joe sounded angry. “Yeah, it is late, Ron. It’s almost midnight. What’d you do this time?”
“Geez, man. You don’t sound happy to hear from me. It’s complicated. I’ll fill you in later. I’m hoping they’re gonna let me bail, but I don’t have any money. I gotta get outta here.”
“Look, Ron, I wouldn’t be happy to hear from Elvis right now. Did you forget my hours got cut? I don’t have the money to post your bail.” He paused and murmured, “Sorry, Ron. I gotta leave for work in five hours. I’m gonna hang up.” Joe was gone. Ron just stood there staring at the phone.
The guard came to him and gripped his arm. “OK, Harmon. That’s it.”
Ron jerked out of the guard’s grasp and held up his index finger. “Just one more.” He thought maybe his sister, Charlie, might have some spare cash. In one swift motion, the guard twisted both of Ron’s arms behind his back and roughly escorted him to his cell.
He lay on his bed, and stared through the bars at the dimly lit wall across from his cell. The air was warm and stagnant. His head pounded, and his belly churned. The smell of solid waste in an unflushed toilet drifted in from the next cell, and he wanted to morph into the ant crawling up his arm and disappear into a crack in the wall. The sounds of other men echoed around him; they were cursing and jeering and some son of a bitch was trying to sing “Ain’t It Funny How Time Slips Away” like Willie Nelson.
He rolled over on his side, pulled his blanket over his head to stifle the light, the smell, and the sounds, and fell into a series of violent dreams about Liz screaming in pain as he punished her for tormenting him and ruining his life.
* * *
Chapter nineteen
The world came crashing in on Liz the next morning as she opened her eyes and remembered. She needed to move, Ron was back in her life, the Jet was trashed, her car wouldn’t start, and worst of all, she might never see Bill again. She just wanted to go back to sleep, but when she rolled over on her side, the smell of beer filled her nostrils, and her head started to itch. When she scratched her scalp, her hair felt stiff. OK, Liz, stop feeling sorry for yourself. First things first…a shower.
She joined Nate and Lucille in the kitchen. They were drinking their coffee and talking. Their empty plates were still on the table. When she walked in, Lucille looked up. “Good morning. Sounded like you didn’t have much fun last night.”
“You’re absolutely right, plus my car wouldn’t start, and I had to take a cab home.” Liz frowned as she walked to the cupboard for a plate, filled it with the remaining scrambled eggs and bacon, poured herself some coffee, and sat at the table. She gave Lucille a half-smile. “Thanks for not getting excited about last night. We only took in about three hundred dollars.”
Lucille shrugged. “No point in getting excited. I expected a dip in the profits. Besides, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to deal with the aftermath of a fight at the club. I’m just glad Ron’s locked up.” Lucille frowned and took another sip of coffee. “I wonder what’s wrong with your car.”
Liz shook her head and took a bite of egg. “All I know is it wouldn’t run, and I was just too tired to mess with it. I’ll have to get a mechanic to look at it today.”
“I know a good one. Look in the Rolodex file on my desk under ‘Auto.’ His name is Bob Simms.”
Liz nodded. “OK, thanks. Now what about the Jet?”
“Well, I’ve already called the insurance adjuster. Then I called Gail so she’d know what was going on. She’ll open at noon as usual. I also called Jack. He said if I bought him a steak dinner, he’d clean up the mess this morning and set up the tables and chairs I have stored in the garage. I just need to let the guys in and go shopping for some glassware.”
Lucille gave Nate an enticing look. “So do you want to come with me? Maybe drop the new glassware off and then go for a bite of lunch along the river?”
“Yeah, that sounds good, babe. But I need to shave.” Nate rose from the table, rubbing his stubble as he headed for the bedroom. “It’ll only take a second.”
When Nate was out of earshot, Liz said, “You look like you’re already dressed. You got a second or two? I wanted to talk to you about something else.”
Lucille frowned. “Well, no, I’m not ready to go, but what is it?”
“I’m thinking of moving out.” She gave Lucille a serious look.
“Oh?” Lucille said, raising her eyebrows. Her frown changed into a wide grin.
“Well, I’m hoping for low rent, close to what I pay here. I used up my savings to pay my bills. Things are different for you now. Since Nate’s been here, I’ve been feeling like the kids and I are in the way and maybe it would be nice having my own place. Will you be home by two o’clock?”
“Yeah. I’ll make it a point to be home by then. Sorry we’ve made you feel bad, but you’re right. Nate and I do want our privacy.”
Lucille glanced at the clock on the kitchen wall. “Yikes, let’s finish this discussion when I get back. I need to change clothes.” Lucille stood and gave Liz a benevolent smile. “Don’t worry. Call my friend about your car, and I’ll help you figure this move thing out.”
The first thing Liz did was call Bob Simms about her car. She told him what happened, and he said he would come get her so he could take a look at it. By the time he arrived, she’d fed the kids some cereal and got them dressed. They all piled into Bob’s truck, and she gave him directions to the Jet.
When they pulled into the Jet parking lot next to her car, she gave Bob the key and watched as he tried to start it several times. She walked over to her car window and said, “So what do you think is wrong?�
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He chuckled. “Well, missy, let’s have a look.” He lifted the hood and said, “OK, get in and try to start it.” He looked and listened for a minute and then hollered, “OK, shut it off. I think you need a new set of spark plugs.”
Dumbstruck, Liz stared at him. “What does that mean, and how much is it going to cost?”
He laughed. “It means your spark plugs don’t fire anymore and you need another set. I have a set at home that’ll probably work. I don’t live far. Can you wait here? I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Sure, I’ll wait.” Liz frowned. “But how much will I owe you?”
“Ah, since you’re a friend of Lucille’s, not much. But don’t get your hopes up until we see if they work.”
Liz smiled. “Thank you. We’ll wait inside until you get back.” After Bob took off in his truck, she took the children into the Jet. “See. This is where Mom works.”
Ronnie looked all around and then asked, “What do you do here, Mom?”
Liz ruffled his hair. “I cook pizzas and dance on that stage over there.” She pointed.
Regina looked up at Liz. “I can dance, Mommy. Watch.” Regina started moving her little hips and doing turns. “See?”
Liz laughed and clapped her hands. “That’s good, sweetie.”
From directly behind her, she heard a deep familiar voice say, “Ah, like mother, like daughter.”
She quickly turned and couldn’t help but smile. “Oh!” Her laugh was full of mischief. “I thought you were mad at me.”
“No.” His smile was both exciting and soothing. “Not mad, just hurt, but it was worth the pain. I’m ready for round two. You want to introduce me to these two young people?”
Liz smiled. “Sure.” She pulled the children closer. “Ronnie and Regina, this is Bill Williams, a friend of mine.”
Regina had an attack of bashfulness, and hid behind her mother. Bill smiled down at Ronnie and ruffled his hair. “I’m pleased to meet you, Ronnie.”
Ronnie looked up at Bill. “Wow, you’re as tall as my dad, and how come your face looks all puffy?”
Liz flushed with embarrassment. “Ronnie, it’s not nice to—”
Bill interrupted her with a laugh, “No, that’s OK, Ronnie.” Bill paused a second like he was thinking up a good answer, and Ronnie’s attention shifted.
“Mom, I heard Aunt Lucille. Can we go say hi to her?”
Relieved that Bill was off the hook, Liz laughed. “Sure, but don’t be a pest.”
The children ran toward the Jet kitchen, and Liz giggled. “What were you gonna tell him? His dad hit you, too?”
“No, but it would have been the truth. So what brings you in here, today? You don’t work on Saturdays.”
Liz clouded up. “I could ask you the same thing. I’m here because my car wouldn’t start, and I had to take a cab home. I got a guy looking at it. He went for some parts, and he’ll be back soon.”
“I’m sorry.” He frowned and rubbed his forehead. “Just so you know, I felt bad for not hanging around until you safely got out of here last night, and I came back today to see if I could find my wallet. I figured there would be people here cleaning up and I could look around.”
Her face softened. He really did look sorry. “Did you find it?”
“Yes, it was on the floor near the bar.” He took a deep breath, his soulful eyes held hers, and a trace of his devilish smile kept her attention as he continued, “Look, can we start over? I can’t stay away from here. I have to see you, but you could give me your phone number, and we could do our talking on the phone. No touching that way.”
She laughed softly. “Good idea. Hold on a minute.” She wrote her number down on a piece of paper and handed it to him. “Here. I like your suggestion.”
“This will work for now.” He tucked the number in his pants pocket and smiled. “I’m glad we set things straight. I was stewing about it. So, pretty lady, we’re good, right?”
Liz nodded. “Yep. We’re good.”
“OK, I have to get going. I gotta take my son to his soccer game.”
She heard Lucille and her children talking in the kitchen but lingered a minute by the stage to savor Bill’s sensual gait as he walked out the door. When she went into the kitchen, Lucille smiled. “Hey, Liz. Who were you talking to?”
Liz gave Lucille a coy smile. “He’s a friend of mine.”
“Huh. Is he the one that got knocked out? He’s hot, even with a swollen face.” Lucille laughed. “From the way he looks at you, I can tell he’d like to be more than a friend.”
“Well,” Liz said with a shrug, “Right now, I’m not up for more than friendship.”
That seemed to satisfy Lucille’s curiosity and she changed the subject. “So, how’d you get here?”
I called your friend, Bob and he brought me here so he could look at my car. It seems I need new spark plugs. He went to get me some. He said they wouldn’t cost much. I hope they work.”
Lucille grinned. “Well, Robert’s a good man. He’ll get your car going.”
“I hope so.”
“Look, I just restocked all the glassware.” Lucille pointed to the shelves filled with gleaming new pitchers and mugs. “And Jack will be here any minute to clean up. Aren’t you glad it’s Saturday, and you don’t have to work? You still look exhausted.”
Liz frowned. “So what about Gail and Sam? Sounds like you’re gonna open today.”
“Yep. The place should be good as new by six this evening. I’ve already called Gail, and she’s gonna come in and help Jack. Saturdays are slow, so it should be fine. You can call Sam when you get home and tell her to come in at six. You still want to have that talk when I get home?
“Yeah, if the new parts work. If not, I’ll call you. I have to get this car working.”
Right after Lucille and Nate went to lunch, Bob pulled in beside Liz’s car. She and the children ran out to him. His gray eyes crinkled in a big smile. “I got the plugs. Let’s see if they’ll do the trick.”
Even though he was short and bald, Liz saw him as Superman. She held her breath and followed him around to her car. He opened the hood, took the spark plugs out of the sack, and worked under the hood for a few minutes. Then he turned to Liz. “All right. Go start it and see what happens.”
She got into the car and turned the key in the ignition. The engine purred. She shrieked, “Yahoo!” with her thumb in the air and shouted out the window, “Good job! How much do I owe you?”
He scratched his long beard and smiled. “That happy face of yours is payment enough. Take care, young lady. If you have any more car trouble, just give me a call.”
“Thank you. I sure will.” After Bob left, Liz settled the kids in the back seat and drove home. She fixed an early lunch for Ronnie and Regina. Afterward, the children went outside to build a sand fort, and she sat at the kitchen table to look through the newspaper and review her finances.
A little after two, Lucille and Nate came in the door. Liz was outside on the patio, sitting in the warmth of the afternoon sun reading a magazine. She looked up when she heard the screen slide open. “I’m ready for you. Want to hear?”
“Yeah, and I brought you a soda,” Lucille said, and she smiled as she set the two Cokes down on the table and sat across from Liz. “What have you got?”
“Thanks,” Liz said as she held up the frosty bottle and took a sip. “OK. I saw a place in the paper. It’s a three-bedroom, one-bath house with a large kitchen, living room, and back porch.” She was excited as she looked at Lucille. “Guess what?”
“I give. What?” Lucille chuckled.
“The rent is only seventy-five dollars a month. That’s less than I’m paying you. I couldn’t believe it. And I won’t need to pay first and last month’s rent. A lady, uh, her name is Alice Thompson, owns it and lives just down the hill from it. She warned me that it’s is an old house, not fancy, and it needs cleaning, but it’s way off the street, and there’s lots of grass and fields for the children to play.
She said I could see it today. You want to go with me to look at it?”
“Now? Lucille said, looking surprised. “You got the seventy-five bucks?”
“Yes. That’s why I’m so excited. I’m afraid if I don’t jump on it, someone else will get it.”
“OK, but slow down for a minute. What about furniture? And did you call Sam to come into work tonight?”
“Oh, we can talk about furniture after I see the place, and thanks for reminding me. I’ll call Sam right now.” Liz stood, her blond curls bouncing with energy, as she laughed at Lucille’s quizzical face and yelled at the kids, “Ronnie, Regina, we’re going for a ride. Come on!”
Lucille jumped up. “OK, you go corral the kids and call Sam, and I’ll let Nate know we’re going. I’ll meet you out front.”
Liz called Sam and then coaxed the kids out of the sandbox. She was brushing the sand from their bottoms when Ronnie asked, “Why do we have to go, Mommy? We’re not done with our sand fort yet.”
Regina started to howl. “I don’t wanna go. Why can’t we stay here?”
“We’re going to look at a new place for us to live. You both need to see it.”
“Does it have a pool and a sandbox?” Ronnie asked.
“No, but it would be our very own house,” Liz said in that firm voice the children had learned was final, “so I want you to see it. We won’t be gone long. Then you can come back and finish your fort.”
“OK, but we’re not gonna like it,” Ronnie said, looking up at his mother with his bottom lip protruding. Regina shook her head and imitated her brother, “No, we’re not gonna like it.”
Liz had no trouble following Alice’s directions. She took Folsom Boulevard, passing the Jet on the way. When they got to Folsom, she turned onto a long gravel road off Sibley Street. On the right side of the gravel road was Alice’s house. She pulled in and parked in the driveway. On the left, facing the gravel road, was a row of small, one-story cottage apartments. The gravel road went up a slight hill, and at the top was an old, white clapboard house. There were no fences—nothing but an expanse of lush green grass and two tall oak trees shading the house. Farther to the right was a wide open field. Liz thought it would be perfect for growing a garden as she sat in the car taking it all in.