Rock Chick 04 Renegade (24 page)

The place was decorated richly, cowboy chic, gleaming wood, leather couches and a bronze bucking bronco on a column in the corner. Behind the huge reception desk sat a blonde woman who was so gorgeous, she looked cut out of the pages of a fashion magazine. The woman looked up, her brows drew together and she stared at us with undisguised dislike as we approached the desk.

Yikes.

“Hi Dawn,” Indy said, smiling sweetly but supremely fake.

I was impressed.

“Hi Indy,” Dawn returned the favor and her gaze moved to me. “Who’s this? Is it
The Law?
” she asked sarcastical y.

Oh my God.

What a bitch!

“My name is Juliet Lawler,” I told her, my voice cold.

“Yeah, I know,” she said back, her voice arctic.

Wow. She
was
a bitch.

I wondered if it was just us or if this woman was mean to everyone who walked through the doors. If so, Lee needed a new receptionist.

Indy leaned into her and said with false concern for Dawn’s welfare, “You
do
know there are cameras and bugs in here?”

Dawn didn’t bother to respond, got up and walked around the desk.

“I’l tel Lee you’re here,” she said.

“I’m sure he already knows,” Indy replied.

Dawn disappeared behind a door.

“What a bitch,” I said my thoughts aloud to Indy.

“She had a thing for Lee,” Indy informed me.

I made a face. “You’re kidding? Did he know?” She nodded her head. “Yeah, he didn’t care, not interested. Then she had a thing for Vance.” This information coupled with the knowledge that everyone (as in
everyone
) kept tel ing me Vance was a player made my stomach clench in a very unhappy way.

I couldn’t help myself, I blurted out in a whisper, “Oh my God. Did he do her?”

This time she shook her head. “No way.”

“Thank God,” I breathed. If Vance touched Dawn, wel …

one word:
ick
.

“Then she had a thing for Luke. No go. Then Mace, then Hank. They al think she’s a bitch.”

“Why does Lee keep her?”

“Says she’s efficient and…” she hesitated, “
cordial
.” After she said this, in unison we both widened our eyes at each other and then burst out laughing. In fact, at the idea of Dawn being cordial, we laughed so hard, we bent double with it.

“Having fun?” Lee asked, moving toward Indy, having entered from the doorway.

Vance was coming at me and Dawn was walking behind the desk. I straightened, wiped a tear of laughter from my eye and watched Lee approach Indy, which gave me the opportunity to ignore Vance.

Lee put his hands to either side of Indy’s neck and kissed her right on the lips. After he was done, Indy smiled up at him, his eyes crinkled and watching them my heart spasmed.

What in
the hell
was that al about?

A heart spasm at the sight of true love?

What kind of head-crackin’ mamma jamma was I?

“Law,” Vance said beside me.

I turned to him. “Crowe,” I returned the greeting.

I held my body stiff, my emotional Rottweiler had woken I held my body stiff, my emotional Rottweiler had woken up and was on guard. Vance watched me closely and I got the impression he saw my Rottweiler and decided he was a cuddly puppy. I got this impression because his sexual tractor beam switched on, his eyes got soft and his arm curled around my waist, pul ing me around and into his body.

“Crowe,” I said low and quiet, a warning in my voice.

He ignored my warning and his face dipped close to mine. “Shut up,” he said but he said it through one of his grins.

“Don’t tel me to shut up,” I flashed.

He just kept grinning.

Whatever.

“Are we going to do this or what?” I asked.

Instantly, his eyes went serious but he didn’t let me go.

“We get there, you let Darius talk first. You let him have his say and you listen. Then you let Lee guide the conversation and you take cues from Lee. Yeah?”

“I’m not stupid,” I told him.

“I know you aren’t,” he surprised me by saying.

I blinked at him. “Real y?” I blurted, then I wished I hadn’t because his eyes got soft again and I was having trouble channeling my head-crackin’ mamma jamma with his soft eyes on me.

“Real y,” he said quietly.

“I thought you thought I was a little crazy.”

“Crazy. Yeah. Stupid. No.”

Hmm.

That was
mostly
good.

What was I thinking? I didn’t care if Vance thought I was crazy
or
stupid.

Before I could purposeful y kil the mood, Luke did it for me.

“Fuck. You guys havin’ a sit down with Darius or an orgy in reception?”

I went up on my toes and looked over Vance’s shoulder.

Luke was standing in the doorway, arms crossed on his chest. He looked like he didn’t know whether to grin or vomit. A glance at Dawn showed she definitely wished she could vomit and her eyes were on Vance and me.

I smiled brightly at her just because. I felt Vance’s body move with laughter even though he didn’t make a sound.

I turned my head and frowned at him. “What?” I snapped.

His mouth came to ear. “Wouldn’t know, don’t want to know, but I bet she doesn’t taste like cherries.”
That
got a bel y flutter.

I sicced the Rottweiler on my bel y flutter and glared at Vance when his head came away from my neck. “Stop talking to me. I’m trying to channel my head-crackin’

mamma jamma.”

At my words, a hint of surprise passed his face then he got that “you’re adorable” look again and even though I knew he heard me, he asked, “Your what?”

Time to stop speaking.

He watched me a beat and then looked at Lee. “We movin’?” he asked Lee.

“Yeah,” Lee said to Vance and his eyes cut to Dawn.

“Yeah,” Lee said to Vance and his eyes cut to Dawn.

“Dawn, thanks for stayin’ late. We’re done for the day.” Then he looked down at Indy and I watched as
his
face went soft. “Luke’s takin’ you home.”

“Lee, if you want, I can take Indy home,” Dawn said sweetly, the queen of kindness.

Blech.

It was my turn to consider vomiting.

“I got her,” Luke walked forward without sparing Dawn a glance.

Vance let me go and I turned to Indy just as she arrived at me and gave me a big, surprise, hug. I stood in her arms, uncertain what to do for a second then I hugged her back.

“Good luck,” she said when she let me go and then she got close and whispered, “remember, deep down, he’s a great guy.”

I took a breath and nodded.

Before Indy and Luke left, Luke stopped at the door and sliced his eyes to me. “Tomorrow, five thirty, here, you and me. Don’t be late.”

Then he was gone.

I stared at the door. “What did that mean?” I asked Vance.

“You’re training with Luke tomorrow,” Vance told me.

I total y lost any hold on my head-crackin’ mamma jamma and my mouth dropped open. “No I’m not.”

“I were you,” Lee said, coming up to us, “I wouldn’t be late.”

I stared at the both of them.

Fuck
.

* * * * *

We got drinks, Vance a soda, me a diet soda (even though I wanted tequila, I was stil going for a clear head) and Lee a beer.

We stood at the bar, me and the badasses, surveying the room and not speaking.

Vance didn’t get touchy and sexy. This was a different Vance. This was badass Vance. He was relaxed but alert and very serious. We weren’t lovers here, we were partners. How he communicated this, I could not tel you, but he did. I knew it, felt it. Anyone in that bar fucked with me, they fucked with Vance.

And it was pretty clear no one wanted to fuck with Vance.

Or Lee.

Me, now that was probably another story.

Stil , we were given a wide berth.

After about ten minutes, Lee murmured, “Let’s go.” I had no idea why he said this, if he got some sign but they moved and I fol owed. We walked to the back of the bar, down a hal and into a room.

In the room were three people. Darius sitting at a round table, a supplier I’d heard of and seen once or twice but didn’t know his name on Darius’s left and on his right a pretty, middle-aged black woman with tawny brown eyes and a huge Afro.

“Lee Boy! Lookin’ good,” the woman shouted when we walked in, sounding happy and welcoming, like we’d come to her dinner party.

“Shirleen,” Lee said, walking into the room. I fol owed.

Vance fol owed me.

Lee put his beer bottle down and sat. I put my glass down and sat next to him thinking this was the right thing to do. I rethought it when Vance positioned himself standing behind me and to my right. Instead of looking indecisive and getting up to stand with Vance, I kept my seat.

The supplier’s eyes went to Vance and they got hard and scary and I held my breath.

Vance hadn’t al owed me to bring my gun (even though I was pretty certain he and Lee were carrying, though Vance didn’t share). He said it would send the wrong message for me to walk in armed and since I’d never had a sit down with a drug dealer, and expected he knew what he was talking about, I gave in.

At that moment though, I wished I had it just in case.

Lee felt me tense, his eyes cut to me and, quickly, to my shock,
I kid you not
, he winked at me.

Lee “Badass Mother” Nightingale winked… at… me.

I guessed this meant everything was al right. I let out my breath and tried to relax.

The seating scenario had us facing off against Darius, Shirleen and the other guy.

“So you’re The Law,” Shirleen said, looking at me.

“You’re a tiny little thing. How you flip Jermaine on his back?” she asked.

“Um…” I started, thinking I wasn’t exactly tiny but then again she
really
wasn’t tiny so it was al relative.

“Not that I think that’s bad, mind,” she went on as if I hadn’t uttered a sound. “Jermaine is one evil brother. I do not like him
at all
. Got my friend’s daughter, Shaneequa, pregnant then left her high and dry. No child support, nothin’. We was
thrilled
when we heard you kicked him in the bal s. He deserved it.”

“Shirleen,” Darius said quietly.

“Wel , he did,” Shirleen said. “Got his ass kicked by a white girl. I
tiny
white girl. I cannot wait to tel Shaneequa,” Shirleen said to me. “Hey, no!” she exclaimed. “Why don’t you come with me to see Shaneequa? She’d love to meet you. She’l give you a big, fat kiss.”

“Shirleen,” Darius said again, sounding more impatient now.

I stared.

I couldn’t help it; this was definitely not how I expected this sit down to be.

Shirleen ignored Darius’s impatience. “I hear you work with them kids at that Shelter. Wel , I got me another friend, last year, her boy, he went to the street. So young, that boy.

Do
not
know why, but he did. His parents are good people, no reason why he’d take to the street. One of you social workers found him and talked to him, got him to the Shelter then got him back home. Lord knows what was goin’ on in that boy’s head. Stil , they was glad to have him home, I can tel you that,” Shirleen went on.

Darius was now sitting back, his eyes were on Lee. He was looking harassed.

“What was the boy’s name?” I asked Shirleen.

“His name was Tye. Who names their child Tye, with an

“e”? What is
up
with that?” Shirleen answered but I leaned forward.

“Tye?” I asked. “I know Tye.”

And I did. He
was
young, eleven and luckily I got to him early before he’d been chewed up and spit out. He’d only been on the streets a few weeks when I talked him into the Shelter. By that time, he’d been scared out of his mind. The reunion had been quick, maybe only a few weeks more.

“You do?” Shirleen was leaning forward too.

“Yeah. I got him off the street. He wasn’t one of my cases but we used to talk al the time in the rec room. How is he?

Is he doing okay?” I went on.

“Got on the A and B Honor Rol last year,” Shirleen bragged, as if he was her own son.

“Oh, that’s great. Tel him I said hi.”

“Wil do, girl,” Shirleen said to me. “Maybe I’l get him to come over when we visit Shaneequa.”

“I’d like that,” I replied, smiling at her.

Then al of a sudden Shirleen’s eyes changed, they didn’t go scary, like the supplier’s had, they went kind. The change was so swift, it took me off guard and I had no chance to respond to it.

“Your time’s better spent in that Shelter than on the street,” she said.

My smile faded and I felt my head crackin’ mamma jamma coming over me. Luckily, before it got a ful hold and I fucked everything up, Shirleen continued.

“Darius and me been talkin’. We’re passin’ the business on slow like. Too much headache, now with dealers gettin’

smoke bombed and plastic wrapped. They’re unhappy, want us to whack a social worker. I draw the line at whackin’ social workers, un-unh. Not me. So, we’re makin’

deals.” She indicated the supplier with a nod of her head.

“Boys wanna move up, we’l let ‘em. We’l start with passin’

off the dealers who deal to the kids. No more. We move on from there. The games are goin’ good. We’l stick with that.” I felt my heart racing. I could not believe she was tel ing me this. I could not believe they were getting out of the drug business.