Chapter 28
The text rattles us both even though Amaya tries to brush it off.
Adding insult to injury, no cabs are willing to pick us up in the Bronx and drive us back into Manhattan.
We could take the train from the Bronx back downtown, but according to Amaya’s phone, that will take approximately ninety minutes…
I think about whom I could call to come pick me up. An acquaintance with a car in the city is pretty rare. Plenty of people I know don’t even have driver’s licenses. Only one person comes to mind. Alex.
“He’s coming to pick us up,” I tell Amaya once Alex confirms. He doesn’t hesitate to drop everything, and I’m more convinced than ever I need to work on being a better friend.
I turn my attention back to the text message Amaya received. “It has to be someone from Green World, right?” It’s not a coincidence that we go to see Charlie and we suddenly get a message telling us to stay away.
“I think that’s what makes most logical sense.”
“Unless, of course, I’m being followed,” I say with a touch of humor in my voice.
I don’t want to sound paranoid. Truthfully, I feel like I always hear the soft pad of footsteps behind me, but when I turn to look, no one is there.
With no proof beyond a hunch, I don’t bring it up as an actuality.
“Should we file a police report for the threats?” I have no confidence in their ability to help us, but I worry that Amaya is in danger.
“Eh, I don’t think filing a police report is going to do anything.
Not sure they’ll be super helpful to someone charged with murder and her attorney.
Besides, we need something more than threats to help your case.
The DNA, the evidence against you, still isn’t great.
” Amaya pauses and looks at me. “We’ll test the carton, and we should have definitive proof. ”
I try not to be too hopeful over the tests, considering the many dead ends we’ve already pursued.
“I wonder how long Alex will take?” Amaya says, a little impatiently.
I hope he comes soon. One time Alex was supposed to pick me up but arrived forty-five minutes late. I only forgave him because the delay was to pick up really good pizza for the both of us. As the minutes fly by, I’m thinking about what may happen if we don’t solve this case.
Amaya must pick up on my worry because she says, “We have a real lead, Siriwathi. And I believe you can do anything you want to after this.”
“Why are you letting me come on these investigations?” I ask her, quickly switching subjects. “You said it is highly unusual.”
She pauses for a second, as if caught eating a dirty-water hot dog at 3 a.m. after a night of drinking.
“Well, your instinct is good. Your investigative skills are on point. And I trust your thoughts on the case. If you weren’t my client, I’d hire you as an investigator and we could solve crimes and eat all over the city like Thelma and Louise minus us murdering people…
well, once we clear your name—you know what I mean. ”
I’m pretty sure Amaya has described my dream scenario.
Two kick-ass women taking to the streets (and the food on those streets).
I find myself connecting with Amaya in ways that I never did with Alex.
Maybe it’s because Amaya is also a Sri Lankan woman and understands my unique struggles. I examine her closely.
“How did you get the scar?” I ask, gesturing toward her mouth. It’s a more personal question than I should be asking my lawyer, but now that Amaya maybe considers us friends or at least potential colleagues, I hope I’m not overstepping.
“I got into a fight once. Someone said something derogatory to me and my friends outside a bar. I yelled, and the other dude, a big hulking white football-player-type guy, just swung at me. My lip got busted. The police came, and instead of arresting the guy who hit me, I got arrested. I spent the night in jail.”
“Oh my god, that’s horrible, you didn’t even hit him.”
“I mean, the case was dropped. A camera had captured the whole incident, but without the footage, no one would believe me over the other guy. Sure, I was the smaller of us two, but it wouldn’t be the first time I’m blamed for something I didn’t do because of the color of my skin and who I am.
That night in jail was terrifying, and they wouldn’t take me to the hospital, so it healed pretty badly.
I’d never had any contact with the criminal legal system before that.
It certainly played a part in me wanting to become a public defender.
Of course, what I went through doesn’t compare to the shit my clients deal with in and out of court. ”
I notice she doesn’t call it the criminal justice system. There is no justice to be found in her case or mine or the many others she deals with daily.
“I’m so sorry.” It’s all I can think of to say. In some small way, she knows what I’m going through, something I never thought she could comprehend.
“It’s okay. Usually when people ask about the scar, I just brush it away, and tell them they should see the other guy,” Amaya says with a quiet laugh as Alex finally pulls up.