Justice Black: The Game Never Ends

by Gartia Bansah

  “I’m fine, Alice. Thank you for asking.”

  Once outside Kaitlyn breathed deeply. The fresh air was a soothing balm for her stomach. “I’m fine except my world is crashing.”

  chapter

  TWENTY-NINE

  Wil didn’t like what she’d heard. Kaitlyn had overcome so much in her life. She deserved much better than Gwen’s jealous wrath.

  “Listen, Gianna, don’t worry. We will work everything out. Trust me, honey. Gwen is the last of my worries.”

  Kaitlyn hadn’t planned on telling Wil about Gwen’s request to do an interview until Alice let Wil know how upset she became after the telephone call.

  “I don’t want to harm the business, Wil. You know that. I can’t let Gwen do this to you. I can handle this by myself.”

  “Nonsense. When are you going to stop choosing to be alone, especially with this? You need to talk to Justice.”

  Kaitlyn panicked. She was not ready to let him in her life like that. No way.

  “That is out of the question, Wil. Don’t even think about that. No.”

  She was ashamed even telling Wil about the occasional antagonistic situations with Justice. This case was too important for her to let emotions play a role in their work. Most of all she didn’t want Justice to think—she couldn’t say what she didn’t want Justice to think or why it even mattered to her what he thought.

  “You may have to. But if you think you can’t work with Dr. Black, let me know. I’ll leave that up to you.”

  “You know I’ll do that.”

  “Great. Now to something more pleasant. How is Jakeith working out?”

  This was more pleasant. “He’s doing better. He tried one of his teen come-on lines, and we dealt with that. I’m scheduled to see him again on Thursday. He’s dealing with his father’s refusal to buy him a car. According to his father, walking builds character.”

  Wil laughed. “I can hear his father saying that too.”

  “Jakeith finally admitted he was afraid of letting his team and his father down for the championship. I attended one of his shows. He’s amazing.”

  That telephone call was not good news. Justice believed Kaitlyn hadn’t much of a personal life other than visits with Barrett and Aurora, but it didn’t mean she didn’t have someone in her life. He had to admit seeing Dan pick up her up with her instruments and fishing rods some weekends surprised him, and he wondered what was between the two. Dan was a good man and probably a good catch for some other woman.

  Justice never mixed business with pleasure. It was never good. Dr. Joseph was different; there was something about her that pulled him to her. That bothered him. He believed everything happened for a reason not yet known that oftentimes was revealed later.

  Felix, one of Kaitlyn’s new hires, fidgeted in the doorway, waiting for Justice to acknowledge him. Justice ignored him. If the man didn’t have enough sense to say anything, Justice was willing to let Felix stand there mumbling to himself. He didn’t understand why Kaitlyn had hired Felix. The man was too skittish. But since this wasn’t his permanent office, he let it go. Finally, after a couple of minutes, he tired of Felix lurking.

  “What is it, Felix?”

  Felix jumped. He believed Dr. Black hated him, and he’d mentioned that to Dr. Joseph.

  Felix’s voice cracked, but he managed to say, “Sir, you have a call on line two.”

  “You couldn’t have transferred the call?”

  “Sir, I’m learning the phone system. I didn’t want to take any chances of disconnecting the person. It’s someone named Victoria.”

  “God Almighty. Put her through, or do I have to come do that myself?”

  “No, sir.” Felix rushed out in a panic. He hoped Alice would show him one more time how to transfer a call. He needed this job.

  “What the hell is taking Felix so long to transfer the call?” Victoria never called him here. Justice was about to confront Felix until he saw Alice quickly leave Felix’s desk.

  “God Almighty,” Justice said.

  “Hi, boss. I thought I’d have to get on a plane and fly to you.”

  “New office clerk. What’s on your mind, Victoria?”

  “I have fresh information. How do you want it relayed to you?”

  Justice looked at the clock. Caldwell should be arriving in a few minutes. He had time.

  “Give it to me now.”

  “Our friend thought of a few more details. Primrose and Tansy and a fast-food eatery named Flats in Edom County. There are interesting things on that menu, possibly connected to the fire and billboards. There are code words in the daily specials. I’ll fax them to you.”

  “Great job, I can get Caldwell on it. Everything’s done?”

  “Yes, boss. It was a clean flush.”

  Mavis sat across the table from her charity vice president and friend, Eunice Russell, and was happy.

  “How did things go with Mr. Cooper?” Mavis sipped at her lemon water and watched Eunice over the rim of her glass. It was one of the rare times the two had a chance to get together.

  “Everything went fine. He regrets not having a chance to personally meet you.”

  “What did you think about him?”

  Eunice pondered the question for a moment. “I rather liked him myself, Mavis. He said the land purchase was what he needed, and his bank will contact me soon.”

  “Good.” Mavis trusted Eunice. She had good business judgment but not when it came to her heart. After her divorce Eunice had one violent affair that Mavis eventually convinced her to get out of for her daughter’s sake. Eunice then isolated herself and often worked extra hours. Mavis wished Eunice would one day find someone who would bring a little happiness into her life.

  chapter

  THIRTY

  The conservative station practically had Justice packed and ran out of town. There was a bombing attempt a few days ago near a mall in Kentucky. Of course Justice’s name was mentioned several times. There was no big hoopla about the burned female found in one of the houses; the coroner listed her as a Jane Doe with a history of prostitution and drug use. Another vacant house was burned in the middle of the night. Some of the comments about Justice were too demeaning to repeat. Kaitlyn wondered what his mood would be tonight.

  This date thing was not her. This was her first real date in years, and she wasn’t sure she’d get through it. For personal reasons, she used her work as a catharsis. It worked, and now she was completely unprepared for someone like Justice.

  Justice had flown out of town again two days ago for the hearing and to meet with his arson expert but called and assured her he would meet her at Ricky’s tonight. That meant she had five hours to get ready. She was stupidly nervous as she rushed home with her newly purchased dress. She also had bought a new pair of shoes, a pair of heels. The dress was a nicely fitted simple one that came off the shoulders, and a little above her knees. She pulled her hair into a French twist, but this time she wore bangs, and simple diamond drop earrings. One last look in the mirror satisfied her.

  Kaitlyn winked at her mirrored self. Wil had encouraged her to get out of her comfort zone. She really hoped the new dress wasn’t too much. Tonight would be an evening she’d definitely not forget.

  Before she unlocked her car, out of habit, Kaitlyn glanced over her shoulders and scanned the parking lot. The landscaping was beautiful with plenty of ground lights. The two large cherub fountains that were cleverly placed offered more light along the circular pathway. She hurriedly got in the car and locked the doors.

  After one last look in the rearview mirror to assure her that it was only nerves that made her jumpy, she then pulled off. This date thing with Justice Black was throwing her life out of balance.

  Justice was there waiting outside at the entrance, handsomely dressed in a white shirt that highlighted the richness of his skin. There was
something attractive to her about men wearing white shirts.

  “God, you really shouldn’t give men dimples,” Kaitlyn whispered. As usual, his hands were in his pockets. If the hearing had affected him in any way, she couldn’t tell. Confidence and authority dominated him. She smiled at his nodded approval when she stepped out of the car and the valet took her key. She didn’t miss the women waving at Justice as they passed by.

  Justice held his hand out to her, and she believed he relaxed when she took it.

  “Dr. Joseph, what a beautiful red dress. You look absolutely gorgeous. Stunning.”

  “Thank you, Dr. Black. You look beauti—nice,” she stammered.

  Justice gave her an encouraging smile. “Remember, this is to be a relaxing evening, and we have a truce. You can call me Justice or Tobiah. It’s my middle name,” he added. “My family and a few people call me JT.”

  Kaitlyn studied her shoes and thought for a moment. She soon rationalized this was not all pleasure and wasn’t crossing her boundary.

  “All right,” she agreed.

  He smiled. “Good.”

  Justice tucked her arm inside his and led her inside. Then someone called his name.

  “Chief, what are you doing here?” Rayford was surprised to see Justice with a date. For as long as he’d known Justice, he was very careful with whom he was seen with in public.

  “Excuse me. Dr. Joseph, this is Dr. Rayford Rule. Rayford, this is Dr. Adeena Joseph.”

  “I’m pleased to meet you, Dr. Joseph. What a beautiful red dress.” Rayford took a second look at Kaitlyn. “You look familiar. Have we met before?”

  “I don’t think so.” Kaitlyn noticed the uncanny handsome resemblance of the two. “It is my pleasure to meet you, Dr. Rule.”

  “Call me Rayford.” Rayford smiled. He remembered her. Dr. Joseph was Wil’s tipsy friend who, on that hellish night three years ago, over the phone, told Justice he was an ass for making Sarah cry. Justice never met Dr. Joseph. This should be good. Justice obviously does not know what he has stepped into yet.

  “What are you doing here anyway, Rayford? Shouldn’t you be home?” Justice leaned closer and whispered, “Why are you smiling like that?”

  “A date? You must really like her,” Rayford whispered back. Then he said to Kaitlyn and Justice, “Well, it wasn’t my choice. Sarah sweet-talked and dragged me here for a birthday surprise.”

  “Are you kidding? Gracie doesn’t sweet-talk you into anything unless you let her think so,” Justice clarified.

  Kaitlyn smiled at their obvious friendship.

  “What can I say? We’re one now.”

  “Rayford and his wife, Sarah Gracie,” Justice explained, “already have twin boys and are expecting twins again. I don’t know what they’re thinking.”

  Rayford grinned. “It’s all about genetics. Anyway, I’m working on a girl or two.”

  “The guy is a twin,” Justice added. “Does Gracie know about the girl or two?”

  “I’ll tell her later.”

  Kaitlyn nearly gasped. She should tell Justice she knew Gracie, but she’d never met her husband. Besides, Gracie always called her husband “Ezra” or “that husband of mine.” Then she suddenly remembered his face. Three years ago, under not-so-pleasant circumstances, she’d briefly met Rayford, who at that time was Gracie’s reluctant protector.

  Before she could comment, Wil walked up.

  “Ah, my favorite people all in one spot. Wow, Gianna,” Wil added, “I like that dress.” She then looked at Rayford. “Where’s Gracie?”

  “She’s in the ladies’ room.”

  “I need to see her,” Wil said. “I’ll see everyone later.”

  Several people came by to shake Justice’s hand. One thing was for sure: most people respected him.

  The waiter led them near the stage to their reserved front table complete with candles. The restaurant’s dark lights, in spite of the growing crowd, provided a comforting atmosphere. This was the busiest night as waiters hustled between tables.

  Their conversation centered on the fire and the city being on high alert. Every restaurant owner in town had taken extra safety steps and, at Dan’s order, upgraded their sprinkler systems. Dan issued fines to those that were not up to codes, and a few were closed. Some of the city council members still stung from that, shouting loss of revenue.

  By the time their water arrived, the restaurant was packed. Justice didn’t comment how Kaitlyn guardedly watched the crowd as if she expected someone.

  “So your name Adeena means ‘noble, gentle, and delicate,’ and Gianna means ‘God is gracious.’”

  “Yes, so you know languages?”

  “I travel some.”

  That explains the odd hours. Still, he could be a little quieter, she thought. “I see,” she said.

  Kaitlyn stole glances at him out of the corners of her eyes, admiring his strong face. Most days Justice was so hard that his eyes were dark and unreadable. He’d trimmed his moustache which made his face even more stronger looking.

  Rayford noticed the charged atmosphere between the two and excused himself to check on his wife. Neither noticed he’d left.

  “Music lover, I see.” Justice nodded to Kaitlyn lightly tapping on the table to the beat of the music. “They say it soothes the savage beast. I should try that with the parrots.”

  Kaitlyn blinked very fast before she grabbed her glass of water. Taken by surprise, she wondered, had Barrett told him everything?

  Seeing her slight embarrassment when she quickly took a sip of water, Justice simply said, “I see.”

  Kaitlyn soon discovered how easy and comfortable it was to talk to Justice. He was well versed on any subject and spoke the six languages she spoke. He was different than what she’d witnessed in the office.

  “My father and mother were both university professors and very practical,” he explained. “As a punishment for an irresponsible behavior in high school, my dad said I had too much time on my hands and every summer enrolled me in foreign language classes. I spoke five different languages by the time I graduated.”

  She laughed. “Your parents would love my grandmother Laila. She is a linguist and taught me. My mother’s name was Sancia, and my father was Lucca Emmanuel.” Kaitlyn was surprised she’d blurted out personal information. After all, she hardly knew Justice. But she did know why: Justice felt safe.

  His deep laugh relaxed her. This was the second time she had laughed tonight, all due to Justice.

  Kaitlyn discovered he’d traveled to places she’d only read and dreamed about, such as Greece, her favorite. She’d like to go there, sample the food, and enjoy the sight and people. The view of the world was through her subscription to National Geographic.

  Kaitlyn was unabashed with smugness when the waiter took her order for the lobster special. Justice ordered the steak. He gave her one of his famous scolding looks that made her laugh. The poor waiter glanced between the couple, completely confused. He’d never seen anything funny about lobster.

  “For that one, Duchess, you owe me. You ordered shrimp at Leo’s. Don’t think I didn’t catch that.”

  “Did I? I don’t remember. You never said a word.”

  “Didn’t see a reason to. I wanted to see how far you’d run with it.”

  It wasn’t long before Justice had scooted his chair closer in her direction—or she had. Neither one was sure.

  “You’re allergic to seafood but yet you fish?” he asked.

  She laughed. “When I can. I love it. I take books to read in case the fish aren’t biting.”

  “This is why it is called fishing, not catching.” He grinned. “So you bait your own hook?”

  “Sure. After all, if one can’t bait her hook and take the fish off, then one can’t legitimately say she fishes.”

  “So you use night crawlers too?”


  “Those aren’t meant for fishing.”

  “Sure they are. The fish love them. Don’t tell me you’re afraid of them.”

  “No, they’re not. Did the fish say they liked them? And no, I’m not afraid,” she lied. She didn’t like them and hoped he never invited her fishing; something told her he’d definitely have night crawlers.

  The waiter brought their meals with a bottle of champagne along with a bouquet of forget-me-nots and placed both in front of Kaitlyn. She was completely surprised. She read the card. The flowers were from Justice.

  “I don’t know what to say.”

  “Say, ‘Thank you, Justice’ or ‘Tobiah.’”

  Her eyes misted. “Thank you, Tobiah. They’re beautiful.” No one except her mom and grandmom ever gave her flowers.

  Justice hung his long arm loosely over the back of her chair, observing her reactions to the night and how hard she tried not to let her guard down.

  “That’s the third time tonight you were embarrassed.”

  “You’re keeping count?”

  Her curtness didn’t bother him. To show her, he moved his chair closer and said, “I don’t mind if I do.”

  “You’re something else. Did your parents ever tell you that?”

  “Yes, a few times.” He took in another view of her before he continued. “You really do look good in that red dress. I nearly stopped breathing for a moment when you stepped out of the car.”

  She laughed. “I’m glad you didn’t. My CPR is rusty.”

  “I wasn’t kidding about dancing. I have five younger sisters I taught how to dance. One even dances on Broadway. There was always music and dancing in our house. So I can teach you.”

  She laughed again; it was useless to say anything else. “I’ll let you know when I plan to dance on Broadway. Perhaps I’ll teach you something.”

  After seeing the two engaged in deep conversation, Rayford waited a few minutes before he returned to the table. Justice hadn’t been this relaxed in a long time. Pretty soon Justice’d be leaving on another lead; maybe this would be the break Justice needed on the fire. Rayford knew about the town hall meeting and the hearing. A third billboard today said, “Evil times are near.” Rayford was glad Justice, with the pressure he was under, could enjoy this moment, however brief it was.