Chapter 174

April 2, 2018 (Monday)

Dear Ms. Diary,

Jess returned to our lunch tables after not visiting for quite a while and upon questioning, responded, “I was dating a guy for a while and ate lunch with him. It didn’t work out. He was just too grabby and ... always whingeing about ... the lack of sex,” the last said quietly.

Liya was on her right and gave her a one-armed hug.

“Where’s Brit?”

Straight-faced, Liya responded, “She’s been having to deal with some family stuff. We’ve hardly seen her since last Sunday.”

We walked from home to the practice pitch and were quite surprised by the presence of a black-haired white guy lying face down and spread-eagled in the area we generally used for stretching.

Meka and Rhee stepped out in front of the rest of us, then Meka called to the guy, “Do you need help?”

“I do, but I don’t need anything like an ambulance or the cops. You don’t owe me anything, but I hope you’ll help me turn myself in without getting shot.”

“Why should we help you, Tweedle Dumb?”

“The cops killed my brother ... and I don’t wanna die before I see if I can work out a deal.”

Heather was already videoing, so I quickly texted Civia, telling her to stay away from the pitch until I texted back. I also texted that I’d explain once the pitch was safe. I called Coach and had a quiet, but very insistent, talk asking her to keep the rest of the team away, and explaining what was going on. I missed some of the back-and-forth between Meka and TD, but I include that here from what she told me.

I debated whether to text ADA Raleigh immediately, but TD had obviously put himself in the situation he was in to keep us from calling the cops immediately, but I had 911 ready to go.

“I know I said some stuff to her that was ... disgusting, but I ... came to ... like her and have done what I could to keep her ... well, not safe, but to give her time to do something that could make her safe. My car is parked across the street and is unlocked. I have evidence against ... my dad and their ... organization. I’ve not been a good guy, but I don’t want to die for no good reason.”

“Why would we help you? If what you said is the truth, then we could just call the cops and tell them you’re here. Why should we risk getting hurt for you?”

“Because what I have could put him away for the rest of his life, and it’s the only chance I see for me to have any sort of ... real life.”

“Again, why us?”

“Because I’m sure you’ve got Brittany stashed somewhere. She couldn’t have disappeared by herself. I don’t need to know where that is. Really, I was happy you hid her. She ... didn’t deserve what she probably would have gotten had you not hidden her.”

“What do you think we can do?”

“I don’t know. I was hoping that some of you had been questioned by the police or something and would have a contact that was higher in the police than some scared patroller, someone that could make it more likely that I’d survive being arrested. Do you know someone like that? If you do, I’ll lie here like this until that person ... or people come. Please. You don’t owe me, but please.”

Meka quietly said while still facing TD, “Rhee, keep your eye on him. If he so much as moves, yell and then run like hell, all of you, but scatter. Some of you, head toward Olde Towne. Heather, you’re the fastest. You go to Civia’s and get Maren and her out the back door and lose yourselves. The rest should head toward the compound and put it on high alert. Beth, hit the call button for 911. Oh, shit. Liya, go tell Padme and her sister to get the hell out of here.”

Liya sprinted over to them just getting out of a car.

Meka called to TD, saying, “We’re calling someone. Don’t fuckin’ move.”

Keeping her eyes on him, she texted ADA Raleigh asking her to call immediately. Two minutes later, she did, and Meka apprised her of the situation and asked her to send someone of sufficient position that could oversee the arresting officers. Something worked, as three cruisers came in at speed with lightbars rolling, but without sirens. Despite the drawn weapons, the arrest went down with no trouble. Once they had cuffed his arms behind his back and zip-tied his ankles together still lying on his front, two officers, one a woman, came over to us.

She asked Meka, “You’re Shameka Johnson?”

“Yes, Officer Martinez.”

“ADA Raleigh will be here soon to talk to you. You know her?”

“Yes. She’s questioned some of us about this matter. We reported Nick Abernathy’s presence here this afternoon to her and, I assume, she got things rolling. On a different matter, may Beth, here, Beth Williams, call our Coach? We’re here for soccer practice and I assume that the police will be here for some time, so we need her to cancel practice.”

When she agreed, I called Coach and she said she would contact everyone and cancel practice. ADA Raleigh arrived when I was on the phone. She talked to the two male officers watching over TD for a while, after which, the officers pulled TD onto his feet, helped him to a squad car, slid him into the back, then that car’s driver rolled away. The other officer walked with ADA Raleigh as she approached us.

“Thanks for the call, Shameka. I’m surprised we got him into custody without a lot more effort, with some of that being potentially dangerous effort.” She glanced around at us, then said, “I doubt I need all of you, but I’m afraid yours and Ms. Williams’ afternoons are going to be much less enjoyable than soccer practice. You two need to come in. If you’ll promise to be at the central station by... 5:30, you can grab dinner and drive yourselves rather than come with one of these officers. Of course, please have Ms. Khatri join you there. And, Beth, you should have at least one of your parents there. Finally, please don’t tell anyone that wasn’t here and that are not your parents what’s taken place here today.”

She looked around at us, then at the officers, “Please treat these young women with the utmost respect. They may well have kept you or others from having to go through that potentially dangerous effort.”

They nodded.

The evening was long and boring for the most part. Despite getting there shortly before 5:30, they didn’t begin Meka’s questioning until nearly 6:00. Garamai was with her, then stayed in the interview room when I replaced her shortly before 7:00 with Dad there, too, for the half-hour of questioning. Fortunately, we had brought some of our homework/studying with us to fill in the dead time. When the officer finished with me, ADA Raleigh and Meka entered the room.

After the officer departed, Raleigh stated, “Thanks for your cooperation. I listened to all of both interviews, but I want to ask if you’re sure that Nick Abernathy did not even hint at where he had whatever evidence he has.” When we both responded in the negative, she shrugged and said, “I really hate the idea of giving him any kind of break. We’ll see.”

She looked long at each of us, then said, “Please keep Brit away at least through tonight and have her not go to school tomorrow. While Nick said he was fairly sure that anyone still in the wind would not know of Brittany, there’s no sense in throwing caution to the wind. I’d say you could bring her home tomorrow. We are going to keep her mother under wraps for a while longer, but I doubt she’ll be in any shape to be a mother for quite some time to come. If you haven’t already, you should have Brit start thinking about what she’ll want to do about her living situation for both the short and long terms.”

“We’ve got a plan in place, ADA Raleigh.”

“Please, both of you. If we’re private, feel free to use my name, Jaylah. Your ... group is impressive, but you two are doubly so, and I’d like to think we could be friends. We run in very different circles and are very different ages, but sometimes age doesn’t mean what it usually does. Garamai is also impressed with you.” She shook her head rapidly a couple of times, then said, “I doubt that Brit will have any more trouble with this, but please be prepared to hide her again, either if I contact you or something comes up. If it does, please call me immediately, no matter when. Oh, as soon as I can grab the time, I’ll be visiting your principal in order to get her absences excused.”

I responded, “She’s got only one class that has none of us in it, so she’s been keeping up with schoolwork. Thanks for thinking of this, although we had planned to ask you if the DA’s office could do something in that vein. We also have two other hidey-hole plans for Brit if we should need such, but neither seems as ... safe as the one we used.”

Dad, Meka, and I returned to the W a bit before 8:00 to a lot of hugs, both from parents and the girls. After nearly 20 minutes of explaining our evening, I sent a text. Ten seconds later, I was answering Brit’s call.

“Hey, Girl.”

“What do you know?”

“Do you think you could be ready to come home for dinner tomorrow?”

I had to move the phone rapidly away from my ear to avoid the loud, high-pitched squeal that emanated from the speaker. I cautiously put the phone on speaker when the squeal ended, although she was repeating, “Thank goddess,” over and over.

“We’ll tell you the story about today once you’re back here. Inez will come to get you around 5:30. Will that work?”

“Yes. Thanks, Beth. Thanks, Dad and Moms. Thanks, Girls. I’m so ready to be home.”

April 3, 2018 (Tuesday)

On the ride to school, Gracey asked Liya, “Are you ready for Nira-Mom to be home?”

Liya opened her mouth to answer, closed it, thought for a few seconds, then answered, “Yes and no. I’m certainly ready to quit missing her, but I just wonder how she’ll deal with all the changes. The changes in us, the changes in how we interact with the parents, Wednesday nights.”

“Do you really think she’ll ... balk at Wednesday nights? My mom hasn’t, and your mom seemed ... more into the sex than mine.”

“Not per se, but I’m a little concerned about how she’ll react to the addition of Jim. We’ve all avoided telling her stuff about ... sex, so she’ll be hit with all the changes we’ve made since Christmas, and you know they’re many and extensive.”

“True that. Just that we have all the girls here is big enough and something we did not anticipate when she was last here.” Gracey shrugged, then finished, “There’s nothing we can do until she gets here. It’s just good she’s arriving on Thursday rather than Wednesday. That could have been a bit awkward.”

“True that. I don’t envy Mom’s day tomorrow. She’ll be traveling for most of the day, and that gets her only to Atlanta. She’ll probably be whipped when she gets here Thursday morning.”

At lunch, Rachel pulled up a chair next to me and whispered, “I know you’ll tell me to ask Brett, but I wanted to let you know that I’d ... like to get that kiss from him on Saturday.”

I was about to tell her to tell Brett, but then the day she mentioned struck me, so quietly asked, “Do you have a free weekend?”

“Yes. Seamus is going with his parents to visit his grandfather, his mom’s father, who’s in the hospital in El Paso.”

“You weren’t interested in earning brownie points with his parents?”

Her face went a bit red as she responded, “His dad’s ... not pissed, but not far from it, about Seamus not wanting to go to UTEP. When he told me he was going to El Paso, I was going to ask not to go, but before I could he suggested I not go. It seems that his dad thinks it’s my fault Seamus doesn’t want to go there, despite that I had nothing to do with that decision.”

I thought frantically for a few seconds then asked, “Do you want to come over for most or all of the weekend?”

Rachel leaned back and looked at me for a few seconds as a smile slowly spread onto her face.

“I’d like that. They’re not leaving until Saturday morning, so I could come over around lunchtime. Would that be okay?”

“I think so. I’ll have to check with everyone, but I can’t think of anything that would conflict.”

When she nodded in acceptance, I canted my head in Brett’s direction, at which she grinned, then stepped over to Brett. She asked Lana if she could have her seat briefly, and Lana stood, offered her chair, then came to sit by me.

“Has she finally decided to get her kiss from Brett?”

“Yes. I guess I should have asked the girls, but I couldn’t think of any conflict, so invited her to spend some of the weekend with us.”

“That’s fine, but I’m going to demand that the kiss happens in front of all of us.” I raised my eyebrows at her, to which she responded, “And he should be wearing one of his trunks ... and nothing else.”

“Do you want to seduce her to the dark side?”

“Not ... necessarily. She wants something from our guy, so she must give him ... and us something in return. Thus, she kisses him while he’s wearing only a trunk ... and sporting a bulge in that trunk. Unlike most of us, I haven’t seen her naked in the showers. She’s cute and, like all you soccer players seem to have, she’s got a great bod. So, sue me for wanting to imagine her naked by having our guy nearly naked when they kiss. When he told her that she’d have to tell him how serious of a kiss she wanted, she hesitated, then just smiled at him while nodding. My brain suggests that she wants something more than just a two-second, closed-mouth kiss.”