36. Real
"Look, I'ma have to stay longer than expected. She got Prime and his team covering for her, and we still can't find much about the real her. He ain't just created this level of background for her because she wanted to move around," I explained to Cairo as I stood on the porch of the Stone House, away from the craziness inside.
The line was quiet for a minute. I glanced over to where Juvie and Markel lounged in the yard while I waited for my brother to speak.
"So... you taking time off in case yo' little country mistress is an opp? Like fools from way out here recruiting in Emancipation, Louisiana, population 7733 or some shit?"
The doubt in my brother's voice was clear. He didn't have to make the shit sound ridiculous, though. I decided to ignore his tone.
"I know you and Ghazi will be okay with our joint projects and I'll work from here with Melissa about my holdings."
"And Targen going along with this bullsh— I mean, this situation?"
I sighed, rubbing a hand over my waves. "I ain't talked to him, but I get the feeling he okay."
Cairo chuckled. "Yeah. Let me know when you run this by him. You a grown-ass man on top of yo' shit and Ghazi and I are cool looking after the joint holdings. If you want time to get yo’ girl, Real, just admit that."
"When you gon' admit it, bruh?" I shot back.
I wasn't even surprised when the call disconnected. Cairo thought he could have Keelah chained to his bed but challenge me about Love? That was a lie. I sat down on one of the porch swings and started to rock, deep in thought.
"Ev sat us down last night to give us gifts."
I almost jumped out of my skin, my hand immediately going to my back as I heard the melodic voice. My head swiveled to see the little mystical one they called "Pip" behind me. I hadn't even heard shorty come out of the house where they all were helping Love and Theory settle in.
"Girl, you can't walk up on a cat like me like that," I chided her ass, relaxing as she came to sit beside me.
Restarting the swing, she shrugged. "Well, I did. Looks like I'm gon' live to tell about it, too."
"Country ass shit got my reflexes off."
She laughed softly. "You better make sure they stay right around here."
I didn't pay that too much attention. What did little Emancipation have going on?
"What was you saying, though?"
Her pretty face twisted up in a frown for a minute, like she had to think. Bad ass memory.
"Oh! Ev gave us gifts last night," she began again.
I didn't know why she felt the need to tell me that, but I'd play along. I sank into the back cushion, already warm from the southern sun.
"For what?"
"Just because. Little things she's been collecting because she heard us mention them or she thought we'd like them. Our summer gifts, she said. No reason. No expectations. She's like that. Sweet. Giving."
I sat back, focusing on her. This woman she described was one I wanted to know more about. Pip looked up at me. I had stared some ruthless men down in my lifetime. Not one of them had eyes that made me feel like hers did. Lil Mama was scary.
"If you don't see that, she's still protecting at least part of her heart from you. Ev told us why you said you came here. I think you might even believe it. I don't. Whatever you're trying to accomplish, you better get her to share the summer gift-giving Ev with you, or you might as well go back to Texas," she said.
While I sat there trying to take in what her little mysterious ass was telling me, the front door opened just as a silvery Infiniti QX80 pulled up. A man hopped out of the truck as Emory stood in the doorway hollering.
"Bring y'all asses on! Danny is out here." Her eyes shot to me, and she rolled them. Yeah, she was going to be no help to my efforts to figure out Love. She made her way to the porch steps, and Danny extended a hand to help her.
"How you doin', Em?" he asked in a deep, country-ass voice.
Emory smiled up at him, and I decided I didn't like his ass right then. I didn’t need Emory’s approval, but it just might help.
"I'm fine. It's good to see you back. Have you seen Ev yet?"
His smile widened as he pushed his stupid cowboy hat back. I leaned forward to make sure I could hear whatever his corny ass was going to say, but Pip touched my arm and shook her head once. Before I could ask her what was up, the door opened again and most of the rest of the Miller women appeared, loud and beautiful as fuck. My eyes were glued to Love.
She was back into her cool and composed mode: face made up perfectly, spiral curls hidden beneath the wavy hair of her wig, sporting what was probably a custom-made sundress, designer shoes, and bag. She didn't even look my way as she made her way toward the steps. Seeing Danny, she squealed, then launched herself into his arms. Laughing, he caught her and let her pepper his face with kisses.
Fuck no! I extended my foot, stopping the swing and standing.
"We can kill him tonight. Put him in the hog pen and be done with the shit," Targen said.
I didn't even realize he'd appeared, but I liked the way he was thinking.
"Hey! Negroes! I'm right here. I can hear y'all," Pip grumbled. "No murders."
"Big ol' working farm, pickups and Suburbans everywhere, so when I got asked to pull out the Infiniti, I knew who was here," Danny chuckled, setting her down.
"I been here a few weeks! You the one who's been MIA! I missed you!" she gushed, still smiling up at him.
"Missed you, too, my baby love. How you been?"
His “ baby love ?” Fuck, no. He wasn’t about to be calling her that.
"I've... been. I have so much—" she began
"Everly Love!" Emory yelled.
Love sighed. She patted Danny's arm apologetically. "Can we catch up later? Pregnancy got her in bitch mode."
Emory gasped. "I heard that!"
"Was gon' say it louder if you didn't. We waiting on Theory, anyway. Danny, you want a ride back to the big barn?"
"Nah, sweetheart. Bruce isn't far behind me to take me back."
They hugged again. I opened my mouth and then let out a grunt as Pip elbowed me. I thought about reaching for my gun again.
"Just chill," she murmured. "Wait a few minutes and follow us into town."
Into town? I swung my gaze to Targen to see if he heard this Wild West shit, but his focus was on the screen door as it pushed open, and Theory appeared. Nigga stared so hard that she blushed as she walked across the porch.
"Ready?" Pip asked her.
She nodded and the sisters made their way down the stairs.
"Bye, Theory," Targen's goof ass finally managed.
Looking over her shoulder, she gave him a small smile.
"It's 'see you later,' Targen. We don't say 'bye'—too permanent," she said softly.
"Bye, Real!" Everly and Emory called simultaneously from the front seat.
"Y'all ain't cute," I mumbled.
Danny chuckled. My head snapped in his direction as the women pulled off.
"Something funny, cowboy ?"
I had to give it to his country ass—he looked me right in the eye, a smirk still on his face.
"Always amusing when one of the Miller girls and a city boy got something going on, but it's not my business to share," he said as an older model F-250 pulled up.
I guessed that was whoever the hell Bruce was. Danny didn't take off right then, though. Instead, he looked at Targen and me like he was trying to figure out what to think. He readjusted that damn cowboy hat before he spoke.
"Saw Pip over here talking with y'all. She got a feel for people so y'all must be decent. When you get into town, cuz I know you're going, start at Wilcox Automotive. The Infiniti hadn't been moved in a little while, so they'll get Rally and the crew to give it a quick check-up while they walk around Main Street. Somebody will tell you where they headed."
Too stubborn to thank him, I just nodded.
"Now, I need some information in return. How long you think y'all will be here? They gon' be betting on that down on the farm and y'all could help a brother win."
I glanced over at Targen. I still hadn't run my new timetable by him, and I thought about how Cairo was so sure he was going to shoot me down. As usual, my nigga came through, though.
"A week or two, probably," he answered. "Long enough."
I nodded once. Definitely long enough.
But long enough for what?
* * *
The heart of Main Street, Emancipation, Louisiana, looked like something out of an old movie. Right off the little highway that had brought us into town, it stretched for about a mile of red brick buildings with sparkling picture windows, clean sidewalks, and hanging plants. Storefronts and restaurants stood side by side, inviting visitors in. There was even a barber shop with one of those old-fashioned poles in front and an urgent care with a medical cross sticking out.
"What the hell?" Juvie mumbled.
He was only nineteen, a street-smart kid who could already drive his ass off when Targen met him five years ago. We still didn't know the full story behind that one.
"Real done brought our asses to the Twilight Zone," responded Markel.
"Shut the fuck up."
I shot them a nasty look over my shoulder before pulling open the door of Wilcox Automotive, a combination repair shop, gas station, and tiny dealership from what I could see, set off a little bit from the south end of Main Street. It was more modern than I would've expected, with a spotless waiting area surrounded by a couple of lunch counters and shelves that seemed to have everything from motor oil to olive oil. Juvie let out a low whistle of appreciation at how put together it was. Aside from music and electricity, the whistle was about the only sound in the store as the customers gawked at us.
"Y'all ain't gotta make it look like we ain't used to nothing," a cute little cashier snapped. "How can we help you, gentlemen?"
"Don't wor', Treecie! I got 'em!" a big, goofy-looking dude in coveralls and a skull cap yelled at her.
For some reason, he wore a pair of glasses pushed up on his head and another pair the regular way. Nigga started marching our way with a silly ass grin on his face. He made it a few steps before he tripped over nothing at all, catching himself just in time on a drink cooler.
"Scoop! Watch where you goin'! You gon' kill yo'self," Treecie fussed.
Scoop brushed her off, his stupid grin still in place. "I'm good!" he announced loud enough to be heard back in Texas.
He stopped a foot away from us and waved. Nigga actually waved .
Markel started humming one of those crazy ass horror movie songs.
"I'd ask what you here for, but I think we all already know," Scoop said.
I raised an eyebrow. "Y'all do?"
He nodded hard as hell. "Expensive rentals, fancy clothes, high-end jewelry? Gotta be here for the class reunions, and since you didn't go to school here, you gotta be dating somebody who did. Only ladies I know who entertaining a group of men wearing a Patek, a Rolex, an Audemars Piguet and I do believe, a Vacheron Constantin are the Miller cousins."
No way in hell could my crew and I hide our shock as Scoop rattled off that list. His smile grew even wider.
"Wondering how ol' Scoop knows these things? Two reasons. One, my PawPaw was an old-school horologist. The best to ever do it and he taught me to dabble. Two, most of the Miller ladies are thick, and as any self-respecting country man can tell you, thick women got the best unda-yonda of them all."
"Yep," a man sitting close by and flipping through a magazine agreed.
"Sho' you right!" another one called out and a bunch of them started laughing hard as hell.
"Man, what the hell is unda-yonda?" Juvie asked, frowning.
"I'on even think I wanna know," I mumbled.
"Oh, my God, y'all! Come up here," Treecie said, looking like she felt sorry for us.
Apparently, unda-yonda translated into "under-yonder" and once Treecie also explained what "yonder" meant, I not only understood—I agreed with that shit completely. What Love had nestled under her soft stomach was fucking Heaven.
I agreed with a lot of stuff Scoop said once he volunteered to be our "tour-o" (that's just how he said it) guide through Main Street Emancipation, including leading us to the pharmacy that Love had mentioned. Scoop talked a lot, but he was a smart ol' cat with a good sense of humor and a lot of pride in his hometown and his people.
"Welcome to Ambrose's Amazing Apothecary and Accessories. That's Ambrose Drake."
Scoop pointed at the old ass man who suddenly announced loud as hell, "You gotta make sure these young men respect you, girly. He ain't ready for no glove, he ain't ready for no love!"
"And that, I believe," Scoop added, pointing at the shocked woman standing in front of Ambrose Drake, "is one of y’all’s young lady."