by B. M. Hardin
Why was I taking the time to lie to him?
I wasn’t quite sure but I just wanted to be done with the situation and conversation. The dick was good and I would take it as long as he gave it to me. But we couldn’t be anything more.
Devon was quiet. After awhile he mumbled a few things to himself and proceeded to pour each of us a glass of wine.
“Yea, no strings attached.” He said.
~~~
After our little date, as the days went by, Devon and I seemed to spend a little more time together. But I continued to make it crystal clear that we weren’t dating. Here lately, Devon, he had been staying over at the mansion with me. His contract had officially expired a week or two ago and to be honest, my other clients were starting to miss me, but I guess in a way I was enjoying his company. Zoe, my other married man, had been calling me non-stop. He barely got it from his wife so he was probably horny. As expected, Latrell hadn’t called since he had gotten my check, nor had I called him.
So, it had been just me and Devon.
Okay, so I did enjoy his company, but that’s just it. He was company. He couldn’t stay.
“Hey you, where have you been?” my sister Shanay asked me. With so much going on lately and since my on bail bonding business had gone into full swing, I hadn’t had much time to spend with either of my sisters. I was always spending time with someone else’s dick…which would you choose?
I did feel somewhat guilty of all the fuss I made with my sister Reese about her affair with the judge all of those years. I mean, now I knew what she meant when she said she would rather get what she wanted and needed out of the deal and then send his ass back home to his wife. Now it all made sense.
“I’m good. How have you been? And have you talked to Reese?”
“I’m doing okay, the shop keeps me so busy and no I haven’t talked to her in a few days. I planned on calling her after I called you. We should do lunch, my treat,” Shanay said.
I repeated her suggestion loudly so that Devon could hear me. I was going to use her to get out and about…without him in my back pocket.
“Well okay, I’m on my way,” I said.
“Huh?” Shanay questioned a dozen times and I continued to talk over her. Eventually she got the hint and sat quietly on the other end until I hung up.
“I’ll be back later,” I said to Devon. I was hoping that he would decide to be gone by the time I returned.
I got dressed and once I was in the car, I called Shanay back to inform her and thank her for being my unexpected getaway plan. I told her that we could do lunch later on in the week. I also called Reese, but when she didn’t answer I decided that I would spend the day with myself. I engorged in a little retail therapy as well as some personal maintenance.
After a manicure and pedicure, I decided that I would hit the highway and head to the country to have lunch at one of my favorite diners. I hadn’t been there in a while and it was about forty-five minutes away, but I had plenty of time to spare.
Though it was noon, the highway and country roads were deserted. There wasn’t a single car or person in sight. I turned my radio up and allowed the soft sounds of the one and only Luther Vandross, to drown out any worry or concerns that I had. But it didn’t last long. Out of nowhere a white car slammed right into the back of my baby…my BMW.
Fear and panic raced through my body like a swarm of bubble bees headed to a comb of honey. I pressed down on brakes but just as I did, the car hit me again. I was starting to think that this was no accident. Looking through my rearview mirror, I tried to see the driver but every time I even almost got a glimpse, they ran into the back of me again. Not knowing what to do, I figured to keep driving was my best option. I swerved all over the road, hoping to avoid the constant blows that the car behind me continued to deliver. A few other cars were now on the street and some had even stopped to watch the chase.
Distant sirens began to sound and in an instant the white car immediately took the next exit.
I slammed on brakes.
What the hell had just happened? Was somebody trying to kill me? Oh hell…who had I pissed off?
Chapter Five
Approximately two weeks after the accident they found my attacker. She stated that she thought I was someone else…her husband. She didn’t know me; nor did I know her. Though I was highly upset with the $5,000 worth of damage she had caused to my car, and the fact that she could have killed me, as a sort of redemption plea for my own sins, I didn’t press any charges. I even told them that I would take care of the damages myself. She only had to deal with whatever it was that the state was going to press on her… if any.
They said that hell knows no fury like a woman scorned…I guessed they weren’t lying.
But the incident did give me a wake-up call and confirmation to what I was already feeling; I wouldn’t dare put another married man under a dirty bond contract. I also decided to release the married man Zoe from under contract. I told him to take his wife somewhere nice and just consider what I had done for him a favor. Devon was already from under contract and legally separated, so for now he was still on the team; but I suddenly had one open position that I was dying to fill. I still had Devon, and since he had gone home, I had dabbled with Latrell a time or two, but I wanted something new…different. I had done a number of bonds lately, but none of the men were what I was looking for. None of them were just right. In a way, I was somewhat falling out of the whole phase but it felt good to finally be accomplishing something on my own.
At the rate I was going, I was going to be Georgia’s top go to person, woman, for bail bonds and I definitely liked the sound of that. I felt more independent than ever. I had never been so proud of myself. This was my first so called job, ever, and I was already sweeping the competition under the rug. I would love to throw it all in my ex-husbands face. It would have been nice to show him that I didn’t need him or his money, though he wasn’t getting a dime of it back.
With Christmas being near, I was feeling lonelier than ever. I mean, I had my sisters and I had my them, but I just didn’t have a family to share the holidays with.
A year ago I would have never imagined my life would be like this. Right before Carter decided to suddenly divorce me, we had just begun to talk about starting a family. He had always wanted to wait until things slowed down for him so that he, well we, could spend more time at home. Off the record, after twenty years in the game, I thought that he was about ready to say goodbye to the producing business but I guess it was what it was no less.
Being completely done with my personal pity party, I decided that I wanted to do something different for the holidays this year.
“Hey Reese, where have you been” I called my sister to share my idea.
“I’ve been busy, what’s up?”
“Hold on, let’s call Shanay,” I told her and clicked over to call our baby sister.
“Shanay? Reese?” after they both chimed yes, I continued.
“So, how about we take a trip somewhere warm for Christmas? Everything’s on me,” I asked them hoping they would say yes.
“I’m in, my boo is going out of town with his family this year anyway,” Shanay immediately responded. Reese remained quiet.
“Reese?” Shanay asked.
“Um, I think that will be okay,” Reese said.
“What do you have other plans?” I asked.
“No, well, not exactly. Anyway…when do we leave?”
The day before Christmas, Shanay and I stood waiting for Reese. If she was any later, she was going to cause us to miss our flight. Just as the announcer made the last boarding call, we spotted Reese, hurriedly walking with her bags. She was all bundled up in a big coat and scarf as if we were in Philadelphia or somewhere up north. She greeted us briskly and we boarded the plan.
Cancun, Mexico here we come!
Once we were inside the hotel suite, we dropped our luggage at the door and headed to straight to the couches.
We ins
tantly began to chatter like three high school girls, but abruptly the chatter came to an end and the whole room grew silent.
Shanay and I stared at Reese…and her belly.
She was pregnant.
“You’re pregnant?” Shanay beamed.
“Yes, five months and counting. I just found out almost two months ago, when I woke up and noticed that I had a belly. I had been so consumed at the office that I hadn’t even noticed that I had missed my period. But it’s a baby boy,” she said, relieved to have shared it with us.
I didn’t know why she had waited so long to share the big news. But then again, I had been so consumed and caught up with my own mess that I probably wouldn’t have had the time to listen.
“What is Fitch saying?” I asked her, assuming that her judge husband-boyfriend was the father.
“He is ecstatic. We both agreed that after all of these years of fooling around that it was time to make us official. His wife should be dead soon so,” Reese said nonchalantly.
What? Did she just say what I think she just said?
Shanay and I looked at her confused.
“Oh, sorry, he hired someone to kill her,” she said.
Huh? What the hell was she talking about?
“Reese, what? How can you sit here and tell us something like that?” I questioned her in a frenzy.
“What? Well it’s the truth,” she said as if she could have cared less.
I couldn’t believe my ears. And I damn sure didn’t want to be an accessory to murder. But from the look on her face, I could tell that she was dead serious and it frightened me more than anything had ever done before.
Desperate times do cause for desperate measures… but damn!
I mean, yes, if the news of his affair and child got out in public, he would be ruined as a judge. Not to mention that his wife would take him for everything that he had. But killing her was going too far. She had done nothing wrong.
I shook my head. Here I was trying to have a conscious when I was all for myself these days.
“Lighten up, I’m just kidding,” Reese recanted her statement from the look of worry on our faces, but I knew deep in my heart that she had meant every word that she had said.
Chapter Six
“Happy New Year,” I heard Latrell say from behind me. It was around ten o’clock the next morning. I had missed the midnight watch due to being exhausted from the extra work I had to put in to get me a simple, decent orgasm. Again, he was the younger one, who had the penis the size of an anaconda, yet he worked it as if it was the size of an inch worm.
Thankfully, his time with me was up.
For some strange reason I had decided to send him off in style with one last scoop of my ice cream. He wouldn’t be missed to say the least.
My phone began to ring and I assumed that it was my sisters wishing me a Happy New Year but it wasn’t…it was Judge Fitch.
“Turn on the news,” he said.
The headline said; Woman found raped and choked to death inside of home after what appears to be a robbery.
Right away, I assumed it was my sister and I began to bawl but when I saw the house my heart dropped.
“Be available, just in case,” he said and hung up.
My sister was telling the truth. He had killed his wife. The news story went on to say thousands of dollars in merchandise was stolen from the home. They found a bat so it appeared as if the wife had chased the sound of the broken window. The reporters said her body showed evidence of a struggle but of course she had lost the war. The last child that they had still at home was unharmed; the judge was accounted for in the court house and currently not a suspect. There were no leads as of yet, but it did appear to be a random burglary gone wrong.
I sat in awe, shock, bewilderment; just to name a few.
I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know whether to be scared for my sister…or hell even for myself. I was sure that the Judge and Reese had every tiny detail worked out to the max, but the thought that the both of them were capable of such a thing was too much for me to handle.
After Latrell was gone and after ignoring the hundredth call from Devon, I decided to get dressed and head to Shanay’s house.
“Hey, I saw it,” she said opening the door before I even had a chance to knock. I could tell that she was just as nervous and in shock as I was. She explained that she was unsure whether to call Reese or not just as I was but soon we learned we didn’t have to.
In walked Reese and her belly.
“Hey guys,” she said sitting on the couch beside me. Shanay and I both simply stared at her.
“What?” she questioned out of aggravation.
“You know what,” I said suddenly full of fury. The whole thing was crazy.
“What is your problem, Trina?” Reese yelled, causing Shanay to jump slightly.
“You and him…he really had her killed! Why not just divorce?”
“What, what are you talking about? Shanay what is your sister talking about?” Reese asked.
“As if you don’t already know,” I replied, rolling my eyes.
“Judge Fitch wife was found murdered this morning. They said it looks like a burglary, but of course---“
“I can’t believe he actually did it,” Reese sat looking either in disbelief or amazement. It was hard to tell.
“What do you mean you can’t believe it?” Shanay quizzed her.
“I mean he had joked about it and when I mentioned it to you guys in all honesty I didn’t really think he was capable of doing something like that, but he really did it,” she said.
This was crazy! She knew damn well he was going to do it…why wouldn’t he? He had been madly in love with her for years. He was just tolerating his wife and maintaining the perfect image but all along of course he was waiting for the day that he and Reese could be together. And from the looks of it, he was going to get away with it. And if for some reason suspicions did arise, I’m sure somebody could be paid to keep quiet, if they hadn’t been already.
Reese caught us both off guard when she started to cry. Her whimpering made me uneasy. She just wasn’t the crying type, never had been. She was the tough ass, slick talking, could talk you out of you panties, type of bitch that just didn’t seem to show much sympathy for anything or anyone. I’d always known that she was going to be one hell of a lawyer and indeed she was.
Shanay rushed to her aid and attempted to calm her down. I sat still and didn’t budge.
I just looked at her; somewhat in disgust.
Her and the Judge had gone too far; too damn far.
“Why are you sitting over there looking at me like that? I’m not the one who killed her,” Reese sobbed.
“You’re just as guilty as he is Reese. She didn’t deserve to die. She had done nothing wrong,” I protested.
Why was I defending a dead woman?
Apparently, Reese was thinking the same thing.
“You have some nerve,” Reese said in a cold voice.
I looked at her as if I didn’t have the slightest clue as to what she was referring to…which I didn’t…but I’m sure I could guess.
“Don’t think I don’t know what you doing with those thugs that you are getting out of jail. The word in the streets is that you’re fucking one of them,” she stated matter-of-factly.
“Yea, right, I don’t know where you got your little information from but your source is wrong,” I replied assured. They were wrong. I wasn’t just fucking one of them. Hell, technically I had had sex with three.
“Bullshit, one of your little “clients” must have ran his mouth,” she said sarcastically.
“Reese, don’t try to turn this around on me. This is about you and your killer-married-boyfriend-lover-baby’s daddy,” I said with an attitude.
“Guys, calm down. And Reese, she’s right, we are talking about you. Don’t you think that getting her killed crossed the line, just a little bit?”Shanay chimed in.
The look that Reese gave her
could have killed her in two point three seconds. She moved from her touch and stared at her with a wicked sort of smile on her face.
“Shanay, shut up. It may have crossed the line, but he did it…not me. I didn’t tell him to. I didn’t force him to. Everybody does crazy shit at times. Including you,” she stated and almost dared her to retaliate. When she didn’t, Reese continued.
“You’ve always been her favorite but would you still be if she knew that you fucked her husband? Excuse me, her ex husband?” Reese asked her and then looked straight ahead at me.
What...
~~~
Well, Judge Fitch, was still not a suspect in the murder of his wife, they had actually arrested the person that they thought did it. Reese and Fitch were counting the days until the birth of their son and eagerly awaiting the day that they could officially appear as a couple. I expected the transition to be rather smooth, especially since she and he had been known to work closely on a few cases and portrayed to be very good friends. Shanay…well what can I say? She was ashamed of what I had found out and probably even more ashamed that I had whooped her ass that day. I still didn’t know all of the details but apparently it only happened once, when she was only eighteen years old. She had stayed with Carter and I for a little while a few months after Mama died and one night it just happened, she desperately tried to explain. She said it happened so fast and neither one of the wanted to hurt me. She said it was one night that he had come home early from traveling. One of the only times I hadn’t traveled with him because I was too busy making sure she was okay. She said I had gone on a late night run for ice cream and cookies I had just missed his arrival. Shanay said in just a matter of minutes and one sudden brush up against each other…it just happened. She said they both vowed to never mention it or let it happen again. She said Reese only found out because she had been the one to pay for her abortion.