Chapter 14 #2
I cut my eyes in her direction, noting the smirk on her face. My grip on her thigh tightened because I wanted nothing more than to throw this car in park and pull her into my lap, but I couldn’t. We were at a busy intersection. It was cool though because I’d get her when we got home. “Bet.”
This morning I dropped off lunch to Aja at school because now her lil uppity ass didn’t want school lunch.
I blamed Harlem for that shit, and of course I made it worse with playing into it when I could.
She was my baby, of course she could get what she wanted.
Then I went about my next order of business, getting Jade a phone on my line.
She fought me on that shit tooth and nail but eventually agreed to keep the other number as her business number, that way she could cut the phone off at night.
Motherfuckers woke up this morning to her phone ringing back-to-back while she was out with the dog.
It was a private number, which reminded me that I was going to see ol’ boy this weekend.
While Jade and Aja were at the nail salon, I’d be making sure this stalking shit was one and done.
My only irritation was the fact that he moved like a fucking ghost or like somebody who knew how to hide.
Reminisce said two of the addresses he was listed under were busts.
I was willing to bet the one for some computer business he had wasn’t.
I just had to catch him on the shift though.
It had strange hours and he had employees working for him rather than working just for himself. Lois had been able to get me that much.
After getting Jade’s phone and things together, I dropped her off at the store and made my way to the restaurant.
When I arrived, I sat in the parking lot for a minute as I always did.
This time was different though. Rather than thinking about the darkness always threatening to swallow me whole, I instead found gratitude in my soul.
For once I was grateful for the space I was in and the moments I was experiencing.
I was moving on with my life, not existing in a past that could destroy me.
When I finally got out of the car, I grabbed my bag and things from the back seat, heading in.
Upon entry, I greeted the staff and made my way to my office.
I wasn’t in there for five seconds before Lois was busting through the door holding out a magazine for me to look at.
Lo had always been high strung and energetic without caffeine. It was in her.
“Do you see this cover?” She pointed with her long, white nail.
I looked down at the magazine that now sat across my desk, taking in the title, Chicago’s Weekly Grub , and the structure and woman on the front.
She was wearing a chef’s uniform like mine except she was in orange.
Nice color, but I would’ve had that shit filthy.
Her arms were crossed and she smiled in the direction of the camera, standing in front of a table full of food.
“Yeah, I see it, what’s up?” My eyes found a grinning Lois.
She was too fucking happy for me right now.
“They just reached out to me. They want you featured and on the cover for October.”
“Okay.” I was confused as to what she was so excited about. We had been featured before, shit we being me. All of which had to be sold to me by Lois. Otherwise I would have said no. This was no big deal to me.
“This is a big deal. This magazine is all over the country. This is the type of exposure that brings tourists and more money. This is a big opportunity, Oden.”
“You selling it and I haven’t said no.”
“Yes, I know which is shocking. Are you just going to say yes with no pushback?” She looked so excited and happy at the thought of me not giving any pushback, so I didn’t. I just agreed.
“Yeah.”
Her hands clasped together immediately. “Thank you, God! You must have gotten cracked last night because you already walked in here with some pep in your step too. Now you’re agreeing to letting a few cameras in your face.”
“Cracked?” I was confused as to what she even fucking meant.
“Means you got some, nigga. That’s what the kids are saying these days.”
I shook my head. “I hope the kids aren’t saying that shit.”
“You didn’t deny it either. Tell sis to keep doing what she’s doing. We have to do dinner one of these days. Finally help my wife get over her newfound girl crush.”
I laughed and continued to get dressed for the evening. “Probably fuck around and make it wo—” A knock at the door interrupted my statement. We both looked toward the door that opened seconds later with Kie stepping through.
“Good afternoon two of my favorite people. Oden, there is a detective here to speak with you, and my love, you need to call in a new bartender because the two you have up here are not gonna make it through a shift.”
Lo sighed. “Fuck. Your no fraternizing policy isn’t tight enough, and what the hell is a detective doing here?” I felt her eyes while I took my watch off.
“Shit if I know. Send them back here and I’ll find out.”
Kie looked between me and Lo before nodding and leaving the room.
“If you want me to, I’ll stay?” Lois’s voice filled the room again.
“No, I’m fine. Have them meet me in the kitchen and go handle your friendly ass staff.” I put my things away and moved out of the second door in my office. It was connected straight to the kitchen.
She laughed. “Got you.”
I entered the kitchen and immediately went to clean my hands.
When I was done, I began removing the knives and different utensils I’d be using to cook today.
Dinner specials tonight were simple. Steak and a twice-baked, shellfish-stuffed potato and asparagus for the simple meal.
The other would be a seafood medley pasta with white wine sauce, no cream, and a lobster claw.
Yes, I had enough claws for every plate to have one.
A knock at the doorway made me look up from my choice of knife. I was mentally noting that Lois had switched out my old knives for the newer ones to finally try out for my line. I didn’t do it the last time I cooked, so she called herself doing it for me.
“Good afternoon, Mr. West. My name is Jordan Oaks. I’m the new detective assigned to your wife’s case.”
That got my attention, causing me to immediately look at the petite, fair-skinned woman. She was about five foot four, wearing a blazer and jeans. “Assigned to my wife’s case? I wasn’t aware there was one in the first place.” I returned my attention to the knives I was laying out.
“Well, Mr. West, when someone goes missing the way your wife did, those things don’t just disappear.”
I laughed. “Well, she did. Never mind the fact that she left our child and made sure to take what she needed, right?” I was grateful Kinga had someone not only clean up the place but truly make it seem like Ashley had abandoned our child and run off.
I had a letter and proof of money transfers to prove it.
The letter was also used for me to divorce her legally.
I, of course, had to hire a personal investigator and show the courts that I made diligent efforts to locate my wife, but she didn’t want to be found.
“I saw that. But since the case is teetering into cold case territory, I thought I’d try my hand at finding Ashley West.” She moved further into the kitchen.
“And that made you show up here? To talk to me.”
“Yes, seeing as how people don’t just disappear and fall off the face of the earth, Mr. West.”
I laughed. “Well do me a favor, find her, get my fucking money, and tell her that her daughter is doing fine without her if at any point she decided to give a fuck,” I responded, looking up at the detective, delivering a heated stare.
She nodded. “I’m just wonder?—”
Another knock at the door had me looking away from her toward the doorway. The last person I expected to see, Wiley Ortega, stood there, looking between me and the detective.
“Was I interrupting something?” he asked in a heavily accented tone.
“Nah, the good detective was just leaving,” I responded cooly, letting it be known to her that I was done talking. When I looked at her, I could see the glimmer of familiarity in her eyes when she laid eyes on him.
She took the hint. “I’ll be in touch, Mr. West.” Seconds later, she walked through the doorway that he had just entered.
When it was just him and me, he laughed. “I know you’re probably busy, but I feel like I must say my piece. Because as old as I am, I never know how much longer I have down here in hell.”
I looked him over before nodding for him to continue. Even up close this motherfucker looked so much like Sora.
“I cared very deeply for your mother, but we were young and both so torn. She was torn between a family that wouldn’t accept where I reveled.
And I was torn between the streets and her.
When you were born, she had already chosen Memphis and told me he was your father, the same with Kinga, even though we were still intimate.
I wasn’t aware of Sora until I saw you. I have done business with Kinga for years, and maybe I should have known, but the coward in me chose to ignore the features of mine he shares.
But deep down I knew, I just couldn’t believe it.
Then, when I saw you here and we locked eyes, all the convincing I had done, telling myself that it couldn’t be, came crashing down.
The three of you are my sons. I don’t know where to start with that, but I must start somewhere. ”
I paused, eyes searching his. They were clouded with emotion and sincerity.
“I must atone for my absence in your lives, as I should have been there.” That thick ass accent was throwing me, but I understood enough of what he said.
His words were heavy, but I heard them. I stopped what I was doing and moved toward the cabinet to grab two glasses, then moved to the bottom cabinet for the bottle of scotch I kept there.
“You don’t have to atone for shit. I believe you when you say you didn’t know.
How could you? Unlike my brothers, I remember how my mother was when she put her mind to something.
” I poured the liquor into one glass before reaching for the other.
I set the bottle down and used my glass to push one in his direction.
He grabbed the glass from the metal counter then put it to his lips. From there, we talked. As much as I wanted to ask him why now, I already knew the answer. He couldn’t make up for his absence, but we had now. Shit, Kinga was right. I did have some of that soft hearted shit going on.
When I left the restaurant for the evening, I found myself at Kinga’s house.
I needed to talk to him. Even though I knew he had everything handled with the utmost that day, I still felt the need to tell him that a detective dropped in on me at the restaurant.
Her random ass popup bothered me more than Wiley’s impromptu visit.
I wasn’t shocked when I pulled up and heard Jeezy bumping through the closed garage. Specks of light escaped through the bottom of the door. Leave it to him to be out here while his whole house was probably asleep.
Instead of possibly getting my ass shot, I dialed his number as I exited the car. The music paused inside and his voice came spilling through the speaker of my phone.
“Yo, don’t your old ass supposed to be sleep?”
“Hell yeah, but instead I’m here to talk to you. Open the fucking door.”
He sucked his teeth. “Nigga, don’t you have a key?”
“Yeah, but you had your music blasting. I wasn’t trying to catch a bullet walking in the door.”
His laughter spilled through the phone. “Yeah, you right, you damn sure would have.” He then lifted the garage door and met me right in the driveway. We hung up.
He exited the garage, wiping his hands on the rag he was holding, eyes trained on me. “You just left the restaurant and didn’t bring anything to eat, but your mind is heavy as hell.”
I tilted my head to the side. “How you know my mind is heavy?”
“It’s in your eyes, now what’s up, nigga? I got about an hour before Harlem comes out here bossing up.”
My eyes went from him to the house. Though all the lights were out, I knew he was right.
A quick chortle later, I was spilling my guts.
I gave him the whole rundown of the detective dropping by the restaurant and he didn’t flinch.
If anything, by the time I was done, he was looking at me as if to ask if that was all.
“Just like I told you that day, yeen got shit to worry about. It was handled. There was nothing you had to be worried about then and nothing to be worried about now. Them fucking pigs are always looking for something to do when the mud is dried up.”