have to.”
*****
It was after two and Crystal reluctantly agreed to stay at my place overnight. As she so graciously put it she couldn’t go back to her squat, and all the good outdoor crash spots were taken so she might as well hang out with me. She fell asleep immediately, curled up in a fetal position on the couch with Adrian sacked out beside her. She didn’t seem to be concerned about the whereabouts of her gun. I think she was just as happy to be rid of the damn thing.
After Crystal had gone to bed I went around and checked doors and windows. A couple of months ago I’d had an alarm system installed, but for some reason it kept going off every time Mrs. Gentile used her microwave. I never got around to getting it fixed, but I turned it on now and prayed she didn’t get an urge for popcorn at three in the morning.
I’d talked a good game about finding Cyrstal a safe place to stay, but I had no idea where to start. If retribution on the streets was as harsh as she’d described, I couldn’t put my friends in jeopardy by having her stay with them. Besides, Crystal wasn’t exactly what you’d call easy to be around. Bunny knew where I lived, so that ruled out my place … which left me with one choice, and I’d already imposed on him enough… so, what’s one more favor, right? I’d make the call in the morning.
As it turned out it wasn’t necessary. Nick called at 7:00a.m.
“Did I wake you?”
Well, speak of the devil. I was just lying here making passionate love with you in my head.
“No, you didn’t wake me. What’s up?”
“I got a call from Raoul’s brother, Octavio. He has a friend who recognized Star from her photo, and she agreed to talk to you for a little monetary compensation.”
“How does she know Star?”
“Seems they shared the same employer.”
“She works for Little Red?”
“Unfortunately. The guy’s a real sweetheart. A couple of months ago he thought she was holding back some of her night’s profits so he threw acid on her leg. Told her next time it would be her face. Scarred her up pretty good. And scared her enough to want to get out of town. She’ll talk to you for the price of a ticket back to Georgia.”
The mental image that accompanied Nick’s words seared my insides.
Crystal
had said Little Red was mad that Star had disappeared on him. Could that have been just an act to cover up the fact that he’d done something to her?
“This young woman mentioned seeing Star get into a silver van a while back,” Nick continued, “and she hasn’t seen her since.”
“When was this?”
“It could’ve been last week, it could’ve been last month. Street time is hard to pin down.”
“So did Octavio say how I can get in touch with his friend?”
“You got a pen?”
I grabbed a pen and a pad of paper off the nightstand.
“Her name is Harmony Valentine.”
“For real?”
Like I have room to talk with a name like Brandy Alexander.
“As real as it gets on the streets, darlin’.”
I thought for a minute. “When Harmony saw Star climb into the van, was she close enough to I.D. the driver?”
Nick laughed. “In a manner of speaking. She said, and I quote, ‘All those white assholes look alike.’”
“Then I guess it’s too much to hope for a license plate, huh?”
“Normally, yes. But this was a vanity plate so it stuck in her head. SLIMEY 1.”
Wow. How appropo was
that
?
He recited Harmony’s phone number for me along with the obligatory reminder to be careful.
“Um, Nick, there’s just one more thing. There was something on the news last night about Bunny.”
“I’ve already heard, Angel. Looks like Crystal’s going to need a safe house for a while. I’ll put in a call to Sal. I’m sure he’d be willing to take her.”
Sal, AKA Father Salvador Domingo is Nick’s childhood friend, the yin to his yang and the head honcho at a parish in the badlands.
“I really owe you, Nick.”
“You don’t owe me a thing, darlin’.
*****
It was after two and Crystal reluctantly agreed to stay at my place overnight. As she so graciously put it she couldn’t go back to her squat, and all the good outdoor crash spots were taken so she might as well hang out with me. She fell asleep immediately, curled up in a fetal position on the couch with Adrian sacked out beside her. She didn’t seem to be concerned about the whereabouts of her gun. I think she was just as happy to be rid of the damn thing.
After Crystal had gone to bed I went around and checked doors and windows. A couple of months ago I’d had an alarm system installed, but for some reason it kept going off every time Mrs. Gentile used her microwave. I never got around to getting it fixed, but I turned it on now and prayed she didn’t get an urge for popcorn at three in the morning.
I’d talked a good game about finding Cyrstal a safe place to stay, but I had no idea where to start. If retribution on the streets was as harsh as she’d described, I couldn’t put my friends in jeopardy by having her stay with them. Besides, Crystal wasn’t exactly what you’d call easy to be around. Bunny knew where I lived, so that ruled out my place … which left me with one choice, and I’d already imposed on him enough… so, what’s one more favor, right? I’d make the call in the morning.
As it turned out it wasn’t necessary. Nick called at 7:00a.m.
“Did I wake you?”
Well, speak of the devil. I was just lying here making passionate love with you in my head.
“No, you didn’t wake me. What’s up?”
“I got a call from Raoul’s brother, Octavio. He has a friend who recognized Star from her photo, and she agreed to talk to you for a little monetary compensation.”
“How does she know Star?”
“Seems they shared the same employer.”
“She works for Little Red?”
“Unfortunately. The guy’s a real sweetheart. A couple of months ago he thought she was holding back some of her night’s profits so he threw acid on her leg. Told her next time it would be her face. Scarred her up pretty good. And scared her enough to want to get out of town. She’ll talk to you for the price of a ticket back to Georgia.”
The mental image that accompanied Nick’s words seared my insides.
Crystal
had said Little Red was mad that Star had disappeared on him. Could that have been just an act to cover up the fact that he’d done something to her?
“This young woman mentioned seeing Star get into a silver van a while back,” Nick continued, “and she hasn’t seen her since.”
“When was this?”
“It could’ve been last week, it could’ve been last month. Street time is hard to pin down.”
“So did Octavio say how I can get in touch with his friend?”
“You got a pen?”
I grabbed a pen and a pad of paper off the nightstand.
“Her name is Harmony Valentine.”
“For real?”
Like I have room to talk with a name like Brandy Alexander.
“As real as it gets on the streets, darlin’.”
I thought for a minute. “When Harmony saw Star climb into the van, was she close enough to I.D. the driver?”
Nick laughed. “In a manner of speaking. She said, and I quote, ‘All those white assholes look alike.’”
“Then I guess it’s too much to hope for a license plate, huh?”
“Normally, yes. But this was a vanity plate so it stuck in her head. SLIMEY 1.”
Wow. How appropo was
that
?
He recited Harmony’s phone number for me along with the obligatory reminder to be careful.
“Um, Nick, there’s just one more thing. There was something on the news last night about Bunny.”
“I’ve already heard, Angel. Looks like Crystal’s going to need a safe house for a while. I’ll put in a call to Sal. I’m sure he’d be willing to take her.”
Sal, AKA Father Salvador Domingo is Nick’s childhood friend, the yin to his yang and the head honcho at a parish in the badlands.
“I really owe you, Nick.”
“You don’t owe me a thing, darlin’.
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