Chapter 33 LEWIS WINSTON
LEWIS WINSTON
I walked out of another afternoon meeting feeling like I could flip this entire precinct upside down. Working hard to bring down the culprit of a robbery homicide wasn’t an easy feat. To have it all go up in flames because of a crooked state attorney blew me.
I wasn’t na?ve to corruption in local office.
Honestly, I once benefited from the corruption.
Many years ago, I was raised by Navé Winston, one half of the duo that ran Atlanta’s streets for nearly a decade After my father, Javaris passed, his wife Navé assumed the role as head of the crew they built.
From moving drug shipments overseas to owning enough land to build their own city, the Winstons were a force to be reckoned with.
That was years ago, though. Navé hung up her hat and threw her hat into the entertainment world. My mother was still beautiful, still thriving, and still a boss.
Coming from that background, many wondered how I ended up wearing a badge.
The story wasn’t so complicated as it was a calling.
I was doing the work my father wanted me to do.
He believed in two things: loyalty and honor.
His life was cut short by a nigga who held neither of those values.
It was niggas like his killer who caused me to wear the weight of this badge.
Morally gray suspects didn’t bother me. It was the niggas who killed without reason or moral code.
Which was why I had a level of respect for a serial killer who always seemed ten steps ahead of me.
He was cunning, clean, efficient, and nearly perfect in his kills.
Every crime scene was the same. There was nearly no evidence, and the investigation always ended up the same—cold.
His last kill seemed like a farewell. Breez’s body was found as if he was lying in a coffin, with his hands crossed over his chest. A part of me thought he was truly done. That was until this latest kill. The fact that he followed Von to Pensacola spoke in volumes. Maybe he wanted us to catch him.
Entering my office, I rounded my desk and sat down to gather my thoughts.
I was back at square one with Philly Mallory, the suspect in the robbery homicide I was working.
That nigga was a snake and deserved to be skinned alive for the shit he did.
He was the type of suspect I went after.
Not a vigilante doing the dirty work that many could never do.
Glancing at my phone, I hoped to see a good morning message from my baby. Her first class started in thirty minutes, and normally, she would’ve responded to my good morning text by now. So, I shot her another text.
ME: Wyd, baby?
MRS. WIN: Nothing…
Face screwed up, I dialed Shyah’s number.
Shyah’s giggle preceded her. “Hi, Lewis.”
“Uh, uh… Don’t hi, Lewis me. I can’t get a good morning back?”
She cackled cutely on the other end.
“And that dry ass nothing is about to get you hemmed up.”
Her laughter was all I needed to calm my mind from the wild-ass morning I was having.
I was doing my best to give her space while she studied, but I wanted to spend every damn minute on the phone with her.
If we lived in the same city, I would have been attached to her ass like fine hair.
I wanted to know her every thought and bombard her dreams just to see if I was in there, loving her the way I aimed to in real life.
“I’m sorry, baby.” She pushed out a deep breath that gave me pause.
“I’ve studied this material front to back more than I care to admit, and for some reason, I’m still nervous about this presentation I’m having in a few days.
I can’t even focus on one class from being stressed about another.
As crazy as it is, I could walk into Bell Oil Enterprises and have a position without the headache.
However, I want to prove to myself that I can win this internship. ”
I leaned back in my chair and glanced at the picture of us that we took at her birthday party. Lowkey, Shyah and I were going to make some beautiful-ass, smart-ass kids. Standing, I swiped my keys up and headed back out of my office.
“You’re as intelligent as anyone I’ve ever met, Shy. I’m confident that you will ace ya presentation without any problems.”
She grumbled, and I could tell she was truly struggling to have faith in herself.
“We shall see. I’m about to head into class. I’ll call you back when it’s over.”
“Bet.”
By the time I hung up with Shyah, I was already inside my truck and heading home.
It took barely any finessing to get Shyah’s address out of Von.
She lived on a farm her brother owned not too far from Niceville Shores.
I had to cackle. Antonias wasn’t going to be happy to see me, but he had no choice. I wasn’t coming off his sister.
After a brief phone call with my sergeant, I pulled inside my driveway and cut the engine. As I entered my house, I called my mother.
“I know you see that time,” Navé fussed. “What happened to my good morning call? You and Shyah must be heading down the aisle.”
Chuckling, I disabled the security alarm and strolled through my house until I made it to the bedroom that I converted into a closet space.
I grabbed a duffle bag and started packing.
As I placed a couple of shirts inside the duffle, a cellphone rested at the bottom of the bag.
It was the cellphone from Jemell’s crime scene.
I’d left it in my bag to listen to. That night with Shyah had me so caught up, I forgot about it.
I made a mental note to listen to it tonight and continued packing.
“I’m headed to see Shyah right now,” I answered my mama. For one, I couldn’t have Shyah sounding so defeated. Secondly, I wanted to see her and used any excuse I could to get there.
“Aw, how sweet. You have to bring her to meet me.”
“You know I will. What do you have planned for the day?”
Mama sighed. “Not sure. There is a bed of roses I need to tidy up. Then, there’s the patio furniture that’s due for a change.”
I laughed. “Sounds fun, Mama. You and Jenny not goin’ out today?” Jenny was my mother’s only female sibling, and the two were thick as thieves.
She giggled. “Are you trying to be messy, Son? You know the last time we went somewhere together, Marvin had to come drag his wife out of that place by her edges.”
Laughing louder, I added, “And I had to come drag you out by ya edges.”
She giggled some more. “Well, that’s what happens when we get a lil’ tipsy.”
“Mm, hm. At least wait until I make it back home before you decide to go get some drinks. I’ll be back tomorrow afternoon, aight?”
“Sure, baby. Be careful and give Shyah a kiss from her mother-in-law.”
“Duly noted. I love you.”
“Love you, too, baby. Bye.”
“Later, Ma.”
All packed, I showered, moisturized, and changed into something more comfortable. Before hitting the interstate, I made a quick trip to the mall and a floral shop. Within the hour, I was on my way to my lady.
***
The sun was still high in the sky when I made it to S.S. Estates.
“Damn,” I mumbled. This place was exquisite and rivaled that of the land I grew up on.
I followed the GPS to the road leading to Shyah’s house.
Off in the distance, several horses grazed, and the land seemed to stretch farther than the eye could see.
There were dozens of houses separated by tall iron gates, boasting stunning driveways.
As I approached Shyah’s house, Antonias was in the driveway with a shotgun at his side.
Shyah’s last class ended thirty minutes ago, so I was glad I beat her there.
She had no idea that I was there, and I wanted to make sure that this surprise was something that would lift her spirits.
Her brother and I needed to talk anyway. It was high time.
“The fuck you doin’ here?” Antonias demanded to know.
Stepping out of my truck, I chuckled at his crazy, wolf-looking ass. “Came to see my lady.”
As he approached me, the mug on his face deepened. I had it in mind to fuck with him, but I couldn’t have my future wife’s brother as an enemy. We wanted the same thing.
“Listen, bruh. Man to man, I appreciate you for taking care of and protecting Shyah all these years.” As far as Shyah revealed, she was raised by Antonias.
“I fuck wit’ you for that. It’s because of you that I have a beautiful-ass woman that I’m so far gone over that there’s nothing you can say or do to me that’s gon’ make me get back in that truck and leave.
As a big brother, you’ve done ya job. Now, it’s time for me to do mine. ”
Hearing a car approaching, I broke eye contact with Antonias to catch Shyah’s luxury sedan pulling up. As she parked, I was already making my way to her door to open it for her. It popped open, nearly hitting me in my dick.
“Shit!” I exclaimed, barely catching the door.
“Oops! I’m sorry,” she apologized.
In the next minute, she was out of her car and in my arms. Her legs were around my waist as I held her and kissed her all over her face. The smile on her face was magical. Until I heard his tires kicking up dirt, I wasn’t even aware that her brother had left.
“I can’t believe you’re here!”
“I wanted to surprise you.”
“I’m thoroughly surprised.” She grinned brightly as I kissed her lips for the fifty-eleventh time.
“Consider me ya audience. I wanna hear this presentation, and I promise to give my honest feedback.”
Her eyes shone with tears. “Really?”
“Really, baby. I gotta see you win by any means necessary.”
Shyah blinked back tears as she rested her head on my shoulder.
Showing up for her was the least I could do.
So, for the next hour, I let her sit in my lap while I intently listened to her speech on the effects of fuel stations in the urban community.
She touched on air quality and water contamination.
She also highlighted the increase of toxins due to poor ethical practices and the quality of fuel patrons receive versus in other more affluent areas.
Afterwards, I applauded her and offered minor critiques that would push her presentation over the top.
“You have it in the bag, baby.”
“Aw, thank you! I’m so nervous, but I’m more confident now that someone has listened to what’s been rattling around in my head.”
“It’s my pleasure. Now, I’m going to fix you a nice hot bubble bath, and I want you to relax while I make you dinner. Yeah?”
She nodded, vehemently. “I can do that.” With a quick kiss to my lips, she hopped out of my lap.
I chuckled and followed her to her bedroom where she pointed to the ensuite.
I made quick work of starting the water inside the luxurious claw tub resting at the back of the large bathroom.
It only took a minute to locate her bath smell goods and add them to the water.
Next, I lit a candle and waited for the water to finish. Once it was done, we traded places.
“Thank you,” she stated. Her cheeks were dark from a blush that I chased with my fingers.
“I’ll be in the kitchen, aight?”
“Okay.”
I left her room and made a quick trip to my truck to grab my duffle bag, then went back inside Shyah’s house.
Her kitchen was spotless but lived in. She said she loved to cook, and I could tell.
Mounted above the in-wall double stove was a television tuned to an R&B station.
I found the remote and cut the volume up while I prepped dinner.
Thirty minutes later, chicken breasts were in the oven along with a pan of chopped squash, zucchini, bell peppers, and potatoes.
Lastly, I rinsed and started some white rice.
Once I was done, I cleaned up and set the table.
Shyah hadn’t appeared yet, so I went to my duffle bag to retrieve the cellphone. It was dead, so I plugged it in and waited for it to power on. My mind travelled back to the night at Jemell’s crime scene.
As I stooped next to Jemell’s body, something inside his pocket flashed.
Curious, I retrieved the cellphone to find it on and recording, and the battery was dangerously low.
I stopped the recording, then blacked out the screen only to disengage the screen once more to see if it required a code.
When it didn’t, something inside me urged me to take it.
“So, what you think?” Von questioned. I stood and discreetly slipped the phone into my back pocket.
Once the phone ran through its restarting phase, I went to the gallery to view the recording. Seconds later, my ears must’ve deceived me. I replayed the beginning twice before I realized it wasn’t deception at all.
“A woman?” I mumbled to myself. Nah, it can’t be. It’s impossible. But it was.
“Everything okay?”
Removing the furrow from my brow, I plastered a welcoming smile on my face, cut the phone off, and ushered Shyah to me.
She’d changed into a lavender lounge dress that had thin spaghetti straps, and the hem touched her pretty, bare feet.
She was braless, and her skin held a shiny dew that melted me like butter.
I kissed her lips and said, “I’m perfect, baby.”
I was better than perfect.