“Hmm, I haven’t heard from her, either. For a long time, I thought she would have sent me an email or a letter. I don’t know…something just to let me know that she’s okay.”
“Yeah, same here. But it’s okay because I’m going to find her. I just need to choose the right path.”
“How are you going to do that? There are a million and one places she could have gone.”
“I’m going to talk to Craig. He has to know something.”
She gasps, “Craig? What does he have to do with this?”
“Melanie, I know he’s hiding something. Don’t you ever wonder where he went all those times he was away on business?”
“No, he was away on business. I don’t know what you’re getting at.”
“Melanie, think. What was his job?”
She thinks about my question and pauses, “I never thought to ask.”
“Exactly! And Raya said that he knew people who could get him out if he needed them to.”
“But, Duke, isn’t he locked up? If he wanted out, he would be out, don’t you think?”
I shake my head, “I don’t think it’s that simple, Melanie. Something’s going on and I’m going to find out what it is. That’s why I’m talking to Craig.”
“Okay, I’m going with you.”
I shake my head, “No, no way. I’m not involving you in this.”
“Raya was my best friend, too, and I want to help you find her.”
Seeing her determination, I give in, “Fine, you can come along. He’s locked up at Auburn. I’m going next Thursday.”
“Okay, that works for me. If I get the job, I’ll start after we get back. I don’t want you going there alone, so you better come get me.”
“I will, I will. Do you still have the same number?”
She takes her phone out of her purse, “No, I changed it. What’s your number?”
We exchange phone numbers and discuss the plans for our visit to Craig. A few minutes later, we exit the coffee shop and I drop her off at her parents’ home. I head back to the house to gather any last ideas and questions I have for Craig. My mind races as each minute brings me closer and closer to being able to find her.
Don’t worry, Raya. I’m coming to save you.
Duke
I drive up to Melanie’s apartment, park the car, and ring her buzzer.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, open up.”
She buzzes the door as I pull it open and head inside her building. I walk up the three flights of stairs to her apartment and knock on her door. A few seconds later, she opens the door and invites me inside. I glance around her new apartment and nod at the coordinated décor. It’s a decent size apartment with a sizable living room, open kitchen, and two bedrooms.
She tells me to take a seat on the sofa and offers me a bottle of water. I suck down the water in an instant and holler at her to hurry up and finish getting ready. She yells from her room that she’s almost done. A few minutes later, she arrives in the living room all buttoned up and ready for the long drive.
I stand up and ask her, “Are you ready for this?”
She nods her head, “As ready as I’ll ever be. Let me just grab my Kindle.”
She stalks off into her bedroom one last time and returns with her Kindle in hand.
“Okay, now I’m ready.”
We head downstairs and climb inside the Mustang as I crank the key in the ignition. I plug the address of the correctional facility into my iPhone’s GPS and Siri buzzes the directions.
Melanie asks, “Do you know where we’re going? Or are we heading into the unknown?”
I huff, “I Googled the place before so I have a pretty good idea on what I’m looking for.”
She scoffs, “Oh, that makes me feel so much better.”
“Hush, woman.”
She laughs at my instruction, “Did you eat yet? We should stop for something on the way.”
“Yeah, I just want to get out of the city first and then we’ll grab some drive-thru or something.”
“Sounds good to me.”
I pull away the curb and head toward the interstate as I glance over at Melanie who’s reading on her Kindle.
“You don’t want to sleep? It’s three in the morning.”
“Duke, I won’t be able to sleep, so this will keep my nerves in check.”
“What are you reading?”
“Tempting Rowan by Micalea Smeltzer. It’s a romance and I just love this book! I swear these brothers are to die for. Trent and Trace melt my heart. I’m crazy jealous of the girls in these books!”
“Yeah, you have fun with them.”
She giggles and continues to read as I drive out of the city. I hit the dashboard display to open the Pandora App, select the “Bruno Mars Radio” and his hit song It Will Rain starts to play. Melanie reaches up to raise the volume and bobs her head to the music.
I hum along to the chorus and Bruno sings his heart out about keeping his love by his side, no matter what the costs. My mind immediately goes to Raya and I realize that without her, my life has been a dark and cloudy haze. I’m completely broken because I lost her. Every day I wake up with an emptiness in my chest because she’s not around to make me smile.
I know she’s out there, somewhere far away, and I want her back. I’m aware that everyone thinks I’m crazy, but she’s all I have and I won’t give up on her.
Four hours later, we arrive at Auburn, just in time for visiting hours. I pull into the parking lot, find an empty space, and pull in. Shutting the car off, I stretch out my arms and roll my neck. My back is stiff and a sharp pain scales along the ridges of my spine. I glance over at Melanie who’s staring out the window. I place my hand on her arm and give it a squeeze. She turns around to face me and smiles timidly.
Concern immediately hits me, “Hey, are you okay? You don’t have to go in if you don’t want to.”
She takes a deep breath, “No, I’m fine. Nervous and scared shitless, but I’ll be fine.”
I laugh at her honesty and exit the car, walking around to her side and opening the door to assist her out of the car. She stretches her arms and legs and yawns wide.
“Tired, huh?”
She nods her head, “Just a tad.”
She reaches into the passenger seat, grabs her wallet, and takes out her driver’s license. After adjusting her loose strands of her blonde hair, she smoothes out her jeans. I watch her tidy herself up and just smile; that’s all I can do at this moment.
“Okay, I’m ready now.”
I grab hold of her hand and lead her to the large, steel gray doors. The metal chain fence spans all around the complex and barbed wire winds along the top of the fences. I see a few officers patrol the grounds with rifles locked and loaded.
We walk up to the entrance and a security officer greets us at the door.
“Are you here for visitation?”
I keep Melanie close, “Yes, sir. We are.”
The guard opens the doors and leads us inside the prison where we are immediately frisked and taken through a metal detector. I glance around to see about ten security officers on patrol inside the halls and about four guards are outside on the grounds. It looks like the inmates are locked inside at this time, but perhaps they are about to get some yard time a little later.
After we are frisked and searched for any weapons, the guards lead us down another corridor and into a large holding room. The guard guides us to the visitor check-in station and instructs us to wait in line. Melanie stays close behind me as we await our turn.
The room is filled with about twenty visitors and I’m hoping that the wait goes by pretty quickly. I don’t want to spend too much time here, especially since we have a four hour trip back home. Melanie starts to tremble against my body. I pull her in closer and rub her back.
I whisper in her ear, “Relax. I’m with you.”
She nods her head and breathes a dee
p breath in and out. A few minutes later, we approach the check-in clerk and she hands us several papers to fill out, sign, and date. Both Melanie and I complete the forms in a matter of minutes and hand them to the clerk for a stamp of approval. I tell the clerk who we are here to see and she looks at her sign-in sheets.
“It looks like inmate #4457 is currently with another visitor at the moment. You’ll have to wait until their hour is up.”
I look at Melanie and she shrugs her shoulders. I ask the clerk, “Who is the visitor?”
“I’m sorry, but we can’t release that information. Only the authorities and attorneys are privileged to the visitor log. Please sit and wait your turn. I will call you once it’s time to start the visit.”
My aggravation grows deep as I lead Melanie to a couple of empty chairs and slump into them. She sits next to me and rests her hand on my shoulder.
“Who do you think is visiting Craig right now?”
I’m clueless as ever, “Honestly, Melanie, I have no idea.”
“Duke, do you think he’s up to something?”
“For his sake, he better not be.”
Melanie stands up and heads into the ladies’ restroom to wash up. I glance at my watch and calculate we’ve been here about thirty minutes. My legs shake in anticipation and my palms begin to sweat. I look at the clerk as she’s organizing some papers and the sign-in list and I walk over and knock on her window.
The clerk slides the window open, “Yes?”
“I’m sorry, but do you know how much longer the wait will be?”
She glances down at the forms and returns my gaze, “Your visit should begin within the next ten minutes. Please be patient and go sit down.”
She immediately shuts the window and I stagger away from the desk. As I turn around to walk back to my seat, a man walking out of the visitation hall crashes into me.
He stumbles and apologizes, “Sorry, man. Didn’t see you.”
I shake it off, “No worries. No harm, no foul, right?”
He nods his head and leaves the waiting room, heading toward the exit. I glance back to our seats and notice Melanie has returned from the bathroom.
I walk over to her, “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Are we up soon?”
“Yeah, the clerk said another few minutes.”
“Duke, I’m scared. I can’t stop shaking.”
I squeeze her hand, “Don’t be. I’m right here.”
And just as I comfort her, a guard steps into the room and instructs us to follow him into the visitation hall. As we stand, I give Melanie a reassuring smile and lead her into the hall. She follows close behind and I can practically feel her breath on the back of my neck. The guard leads us to a steel table with three empty chairs—two on one side and one on the other. The guard instructs us to sit quietly until Craig arrives.
We wait approximately two minutes before a guard enters the hall and drags Craig behind him. My breath immediately catches as I get a good glimpse of him. He’s lost weight and has grown a beard but it’s definitely him. He’s wearing the usual orange jumpsuit and is bound with chains on his feet and wrists. The guard guides him to our table and sits him down.
The guard instructs, “No touching and you have one hour.”
I look at the guard and nod my head in acknowledgment. I glance at Melanie who’s completely frozen and staring at Craig. Looking at him, I catch him staring at me with a puzzled look on his face.
He points his finger at me, “You’re the kid from the prom.”
I clear my throat, “Yes, that’s me.”
Craig immediately laughs out loud, “I never thought I’d see the day that you’d be the one to visit me. So, what is it, kid? What do you want?”
Instead of treading the waters, I decide to dive right in, “I want to know where Raya is.”
Craig’s baffled smirk plants across his face, “Listen, kid, don’t know if you realize this, but I’ve been here this whole time. I have no idea where she is.”
His voice changes to a deeper, menacing tone, “What…she left you all alone and now you can’t find her?”
I clinch my fist tight as the anger begins to boil underneath my skin.
“I know you’re up to something, Craig. I’ll figure it out, no matter what I have to do. I’ll find her.”
“Why? What’s so special about her?”
I refrain from responding to his question and his malicious chuckle bellows from deep within him.
“What, you didn’t get a chance to pound her and now you want your turn? ‘Cuz let me tell you, that girl is a knock-out. I should have hurried up with her when I had the chance instead of taking my time. Perhaps I would’ve been done by the time you arrived.”
I quickly reach up, and as I throw my fist at his face, Melanie grabs my hand, “Duke, don’t. He wants to get you all riled up. It’s how he gets off.”
Craig looks at her, “Oh, where did you get this one from? I like her.”
He leans in closer to her, “I wonder if you’re a screamer, or maybe a tease?”
Melanie gasps fearfully and I wrap my arms around her, “Stay the fuck away from her.”
Craig’s villainous eyes bore into mine, “You’ve lost, kid. It’s been three years. You’ll never find her because she doesn’t want to be found. You’re in over your head. You might as well give up.”
“I will never stop trying.”
His wicked voice cracks, “Have you thought that maybe she’s dead? Perhaps she’s in a cold ditch somewhere and nobody notices that she’s missing. Or perhaps she’s on a bathroom floor completely fucked up and drugged out. Or maybe…she’s fucking someone right now.”
I suck in a breath as he says those words and he notices my unease and turmoil.
“Yeah, that’s right. She’s probably fucking some guy’s brains out and screaming his name as he pounds inside of her, thrust after thrust. Do you think she’s completely soaked for him? Perhaps she’s sucking him off instead? Do you think she begs for more? More lust, more craving, as she yearns for his dick to dive inside of her.”
My body begins to rage into a heated anger and my legs shake profusely. Melanie reaches over to stroke my arm to calm me down, but it’s no use. I feel sweat beads drip down my face as Craig continues to describe Raya being intimate with someone else. That’s it, I’ve had enough of this shit!
I jump out of my seat, grab hold of Craig’s jumpsuit, and hold my fist in the ready position. The guard jumps in and yanks Craig out of my grasp. Another guard grabs me and holds my arms behind my back, prepared to cuff them.
Craig’s loathsome laughs echo throughout the hall as the guards take him back to the holding cell.
“You will never find her!”
The guard pulls me out of the visitation hall and toward the exit. I glance back at Melanie who’s following close behind us. We arrive at the exit and the guard lets go of my arms.
“Next time, you’ll be detained. I would recommend that you do not return.”
I walk back to the Mustang and unlock the doors, helping Melanie into her seat before I walk around to the driver side and climb in. We sit in silence for a few seconds until I can no longer control my anger. I begin to punch the steering wheel and yell out in anger and disgust. The hatred I have for that man has completely doubled and all I see is Raya sleeping with another man.
I continue to punch the wheel, “Fuck…fuck..fuck! I hate that fucking asshole!”
Melanie reaches over to steady my arms and hushes me to relax.
“Duke, calm down. All you’re doing is letting him win. Can’t you see that?”
I stop punching the steering wheel and close my eyes, allowing myself to slowly concentrate on calming down. Melanie wraps her arm around my head and pulls it to rest on her shoulder.
She slowly soothes away my pain and anger as I breathe in and out. I don’t know what to do now. Perhaps visiting Craig was the wrong idea. W
hat if he’s right? What if she moved on and met someone else? What if she completely forgot about me?
As I think about Raya forgetting about me, a stream of tears spills down my face and onto Melanie’s shoulder. I begin to sob quietly as my mixed and buried emotions crash to the surface. As I cry, she rubs the top of my head and consoles me with a nurturing tenderness.
We sit in the car for about ten minutes as I let everything out. Melanie doesn’t complain and takes it all in. She continues to nurse my inner wounds as my tears spill out until I have no more to shed. I lift my head off her shoulder which is now soaked with my tears.
She cups my cheek, “Are you okay?”
I let out a deep breath, “No, I won’t be okay until I find her.”
Raya
His soft brown eyes bore into my soul and warm my cold heart. His affectionate and tender touch makes my skin tingle, blazing it to life. His hands roam all over my body, causing my legs to seize with pleasure. My breath catches as his lips kiss mine, making the hairs on my arms stand up. His warm breath caresses my body as he lays a trail of kisses along my neck.
I close my eyes as he continues to adore my body and bring it back to life with each and every touch.
He whispers softly, “You’re so beautiful.”
I run my hands up and down his strong and bare chest as he tangles his legs with mine. His hands rub my lower stomach as his trail of kisses moves further south. I pant louder as I try to catch a breath. My senses are on overload as everything I feel is completely heightened when he is with me.
I move my hands into his hair and pull slightly as he gasps in ecstasy.
His soothing voice hums, “I want you. I need you.”
I nod my head in approval as he smiles with excitement and anticipation. He kisses me deeply, causing sensations of passion to soar from my lips to my toes. God, I love this man.
His body leaves mine and he walks over to grab something off the dresser. In an instant, a splash of freezing cold water covers my entire body.
My eyes shoot open as I awaken to Derrick staring down at me with fire in his eyes.
Little Things Page 17