Chapter 32 Lee #2
“The church published a list, right before the convention with approved and ‘inappropriate’ stores for people to shop at. You see those papers they’re carrying around?
” I'd noticed the gray pieces of paper but hadn’t thought much of it.
Lots of stores handed out fliers at these events.
She pulled a crumpled one out of her pocket.
“Look,” she said, showing it to me.
The paper started out okay, stating in large words, “Dear Business Owner: We want to spend our money with you!” but then it continued, “unfortunately, due to the disgusting, sick, and un-Godly acts performed by some of your sponsors, we are choosing not to do so. When you have decided to eject these retailers from your event, we will reconsider spending our money here.” At the bottom there were a list of stores that were a part of the event.
“Fuck,” I whispered.
“I know, right? Hit everyone right where it hurts most, the pocketbook,” she said wryly. “I’ve got a stack of these over here. I’ve been picking them up and throwing them away whenever I can, but there are just too many. The twins don’t need to know about this.”
“So, this is just against LGBTQ owners?” I asked. She shook her head.
“Nope. Some of the stores they’ve listed are owned by single parents, divorcees and even most of the minority business owners,” she said. “You know, anyone who is not a WASP that believes in the version of god they do.”
“That makes it a hate crime,” I said.
She sighed and took a sip of her drink, then said “No real crime. Just ‘choosing where to put their dollars.’ Don’t let it get to you, Lee. This kind of shit happens a lot.”
“I know,” I said, shaking my head. “But not here. Not in Akron-fucking-Ohio.”
She sighed, and shrugged. “Well, it does now.”
A customer called her over and she went to answer their question. My thoughts continued to whirl. For the hundredth time I was grateful I'd turned down the twins offer to be a partner in the business, but the protective crazy alpha male in me wanted to react to any threat to those I loved.
Just when I thought I was going to die if I didn’t get a minute of peace and quiet, the emcee for the event announced over the PA system that they would be starting the cosplay contest judging in Hall B. Fans turned and started to exit the hall en masse. Finally, a break!
I glanced at my watch and realized it was almost 1:30 p.m. The main event was supposed to start at 3 p.m., and still no Mason in sight.
Surely, he wouldn’t bail on the event because of me…
I caught Bill’s eye and tapped my watch.
He shrugged and grinned, turning back and laughing with his buddies as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Something was up. There’s no way he would be this calm about a no-show headliner. “You got things here for a minute, Jeri?” I asked, making my way around the tables and boxes. Jeri just nodded and waved, deep in conversation with some kids that looked about her age.
I made my way through the hall to where Bill stood.
“Bill!” I said, trying to control the annoyance in my voice, as he continued talking to his buddies. “Bill!” He stopped and turned to me, a greasy smile spreading across his lips.
“Lee! How’s it going? Great turnout, huh?”
“Yeah, tons of traffic. Where’s Cameron?”
“Whaddya mean?” he asked, his face taking on a fake look of confusion. Oh shit, I knew that look.
“You know what I mean! Where’s Mason?”
“Aw, Lee!” he said, his face showing obviously-faked surprised. “I emailed your brothers a couple of days ago that he canceled.”
“What?” I exclaimed. “Why is this the first we’ve heard of it?” I knew Mason was upset about something, but to cancel on the event? He wouldn’t have done that.
Bill’s sleazy smile widened as he spoke, all fake solicitude. “Well, if your brothers kept up on their email, they’d know more about what was happening, wouldn’t they?”
“You fucker,” I growled. “You know the twins are in the hospital and wouldn’t be checking their email.”
“Now, now… no need to get all nasty. This is a family-oriented event!” he oozed.
“As luck would have it, I have a great replacement for him on his way. His name is John Dowling, and he just so happens to be a police officer and a pastor,” he said smugly as he checked his watch, then continued, “He should be here right before the main event. I think everyone would agree, he’s a much more wholesome choice to speak at the event. ”
“Dowling?” I said, his name finally clicking.
“You mean the right-wing asshole that tried to get LGBTQ comics banned from libraries in Cleveland? The one whose church has been publishing this shit?” I demanded, shaking the “Do Not Buy” flier in my hand at the asshole.
No, not asshole. Assholes at least served several useful purposes.
“The filth you sell has no place in our libraries, schools, or stores, for that matter!” the man declared, raising his voice so the people around us could hear him, his southern accent coming on strong. “We need to protect our children at any cost from you and your degenerate lifestyles!”
“The only thing we need protection from are bigoted homophobes, like you,” I heard Jeri yell from her spot at the booth. Someone in the back cheered, but the crowd quieted around us as people stopped to listen in on the argument.
I began to see red and stepped toward him menacingly. “You planned all of this, didn’t you? You knew the twins were finally turning the convention around, making it profitable again, and you just couldn’t let them win,” I said angrily.
“Now, now, Lee. When you’re an experienced businessman, you always have a backup plan,” he smiled at me, “So sorry your brothers didn’t know enough to plan ahead.”
“You son of a…” I pulled my arm back, ready to land a punch right in his oily nose, when a gangly arm wrapped around my fist and pulled.
“Lee!” I heard someone yell.
I turned around, ready to tear into whoever had my arm, only to glare at my only sister, Weaver, pulling desperately on my arm.
“Weaver! What the hell are you doing here?” I said, the shock and delight of seeing her warring with my desire to punch Conyers.
I relaxed my fist and pulled her into a hug.
Weaver was on active duty with the Air Force, and last I’d heard she was still at Wright-Paterson trying to get an extended leave.
Apparently she had come straight from the base, because she was still wearing her fatigues. Her hat was tucked under her arm and she smiled up at me.
“Ripleeeeeey!” she squealed, before wrapping her arms around me like a giant sloth.
“I got the leave approved so I could come check on the boys,” she grinned at me, her green eyes sparkling with mirth.
“When I got to the hospital, Mom said Sonny was going nuts over some email they had gotten, and I figured you’d need to know. ”
My sister was 5’5”, and though she was the shortest of all of us, she was a spitfire. She looked over my shoulder at Bill and his buddies.
“Hey, Weaver,” Bill oozed, his eyes all but undressing her where she stood. “Looking good, chica.” I was going to kill this fucker.
“Hey, Bill,” Weaver purred, releasing her hold on me and sidling up to him. I froze in shock…What the hell? Weaver never “purred.” And she sure as shit didn’t sidle. Something was up and I was kinda wishing I had some popcorn to watch it go down.
“You finally taking me up on the offer to show you what a real man feels like?” he grinned, one arm going around her waist, the other sliding down to cup her ass.
She smiled flirtatiously up at him, then things happened in a blur. I saw her hand slash down across his wrist as she whirled around, her other arm coming up, her palm slamming into the bridge of his nose.
Bill dropped in a spray of cursing and blood, his hands flying to his face and a cheer went up from the crowd around us.
Weaver paused for a moment, her chin resting on her finger as she screwed up her nose in concentration.
“Nope,” she laughed, shaking her hand, “Still no idea what a ‘real’ man feels like.”
“You bitch!” Conyers yelled, “I’ll have you arrested! You fucking bitch!”
“Now, now, Billy boy,” Weaver laughed, “Language! This is a ‘family’ event after all…” she said, throwing his words back at him. She must have heard more of the conversation than I’d realized.
She grinned at me and leaned down to where Bill sat on the floor, trying to stem the flow of blood from his nose.
“And besides… no cop is going to arrest an itty bitty little girl for putting a perv who grabbed her ass in his place,” she laughed. She stood and linked her arms with mine, pulling me back to the booth.
“Woot! And I got it all on video!” Jeri yelled from the booth.
“Thanks, Weave,” I said, running my hands through my hair. “I don’t think I could have done that without ending up in jail tonight, but I really wanted to…” I sighed.
“I figured as much, especially after I saw the email he sent the boys,” she said, her eyes narrowing. “Think I could get away with it a second time?” she raised an eyebrow at me and made as if to turn back to Bill and his buddies.
“Nuh uh, hotshot,” I said, pulling her back. “Can’t have you in jail for your whole leave. How’d you manage it, anyway?”
“I have a friend in the Captain’s office who owed me a favor,” she said. Her face sobered, some of the mischief leaving her face, replaced by little worry lines between her eyebrows.
“They’ll be okay, sis. It will just take a little time,” I reassured her.
“Time. Shit!” she yelled, looking at her watch. “You need to go!” she said, thrusting a bunch of papers at me from one of the millions of pockets in her uniform.
“What do you mean?” I asked, confused as hell as I looked down at the papers.
“Whatsisname… Cameron? He’s at the airport waiting for us to pick him up. He texted Sonny asking if someone was coming, or if he should just request an Uber.”
“What? Bill said he canceled?” I asked.