“More wrong than being pregnant out of wedlock?” Mrs. Loretta asked.
Candace rolled her eyes. “I believe Mary was pregnant before Joseph married her, so what? See. This is why we’re losing members. We’re too judgmental.”
“Beware of the judgment is all I will say to that.” Mrs. Loretta shook her head and sipped some iced tea from her glass.
“Candace, if you’re such an advocate for unwed mothers, I’m surprised that Rachel didn’t come to you.”
“So am I.” Candace looked at everyone in the room except me. “She knew that she was welcome in my house, but she chose to walk away from us all. I don’t understand that. Do you?”
“No, I don’t.”
Justus cleared his throat. I looked up. He nodded at me to follow him outside the room. I excused myself from the ladies and followed him.
He turned around. “I know what you’re thinking.”
I pulled the envelope from my back pocket and handed it to him. “No, you don’t.”
He held the envelope in his hand and looked at me. “What’s this?”
“Before Elvis left, he gave me this envelope. He told me that the Board of Trustees and Greater Atlanta want to hire me to find Rachel.”
“You’re joking.”
“Take a look inside the envelope. There’s a check for 50 G’s in there. Does that look like a joke to you?”
“This doesn’t make sense.” He peered inside and wrinkled his nose. “Why didn’t they take their reservations to Detective Salvador instead of you? Why didn’t they ask Terry to find her instead of you?”
“I don’t know. But the question you should be asking yourself is . . .”
He frowned. “What? What’s the question?”
I looked away.
Over the years, I had received anonymous story germs—little notes, tips, snippets, and rumor bites that could, under the right conditions, turn into a full story. Most of these germs came from “my shadow people.” Many of them were disgruntled throwaways who didn’t want any attention, but wanted to settle scores with the people who had hurt them by disclosing their secret sins. Their stories would range from sexual indiscretion, domestic violence, money laundering to things I shuddered to mention and definitely cringed to write about. I was many things, but I didn’t have the stomach to tear someone down for the sake of vendetta journalism, so I rarely used them. But I never forgot them either. As I stood in front of Justus thinking about the possibility that Rachel was removed from the church because of her unplanned pregnancy, I thought of what Justus would think of me if I contacted any of them, to know what they knew.
I liked Justus. I respected him, but if I told him my thoughts, he wouldn’t like me anymore. He wouldn’t respect me. I didn’t want to lose that. I missed what it felt like to have a good man respect me. To me, it was far more important than spilling the contents of my warped brain to him.
I forced a grin. “Why is finding Rachel worth fifty thousand dollars to Greater Atlanta?”
“That’s a good question.” Justus rubbed his head. “I think we need to take this info to Salvador. It would help Ava’s case.”
“Or it could hurt.”
“Why would it hurt her?” Justus asked.
“If Rachel was a part of some torrid love triangle between Devon and my sister . . .” I thought out my next words before I said them. “That kind of news would not be good for Ava.”
Justus put his arms around me. “I don’t believe that at all. Not the bishop.”
I looked up at him. “Fifty thousand dollars, Justus. It makes sense to me.”
He pulled back and frowned. “What if she’s in trouble? What if she’s a witness?”
“A witness? To what?” I scoffed. “I wish.”
“That’s a possibility.”
“No, it isn’t. Think about it, Justus.” I came closer to him. “Ava won’t talk. She demanded I not snoop around. And out of thin air, this Rachel person’s name pops up a day before the church asks me to find her.”
“You’re losing me.” He rubbed his head. “Slow down and clarify.”
I pulled out my notebook and ran my fingers down my throat. “I don’t know myself. I’m just talking this out to process it all. Tossing some brainstorms out to see what sticks.”
He nodded. “Okay, so what’s sticking? What looks like it makes sense?”
“The only thing that makes sense to me is . . .” I gulped. I didn’t want to tell him, but I couldn’t. I felt like I would be lying to God if I didn’t. Yet, I didn’t want to hear what was about to come out of my mouth. It was a stupid, stupid thought, I chided myself, but it was the only thing that made sense at this point. “I think that my sister might be the killer, after all, and Greater Atlanta wants to clean up the mess before Devon’s indiscretion with Rachel becomes public record.”
“You can’t believe that.”
“I don’t want to believe it, but if Ava weren’t my sister—objectively speaking . . .” I shook my head. “It’s just like Salvador said. The more I snoop, the more I’m going to hurt Ava. He meant I would uncover more evidence to bury her with.”
“I think you’re tired.”
“No, just listen. Let’s take tonight’s meeting with the armor bearers, for example. All we did was uncover more dirt. Rachel’s resignation from the armor bearer’s group was suspect. It’s hard for me to believe that those nosy women in there didn’t know who Rachel was seeing. They had hoped they’d removed Rachel before Ava found out, but they were too late. They’re covering up for my sister.”
“We don’t know that.”
“We don’t know that they’re not.” I threw up my hands. “Don’t you see that?”
“I don’t. In fact, if—and I mean a very little if—this mystery baby is Devon’s, wouldn’t Rachel become a suspect?”
I shook my head. “She has no motive.”
“She’s in love with Devon.”
“No proof. Unmarried women have children all the time and don’t love the baby’s father.”
He frowned. “Perhaps Rachel assumed that since she was carrying his child, she assumed he would leave Ava for her, but he didn’t, despite his moral responsibility.”
“You’re thinking like a man, Justus. I’m thinking like my sister. She loved Devon. She would have lost her mind if that man betrayed her. My sister is crazy when you betray her. I know that firsthand.”
“That doesn’t sound like she would kill Rachel.”
“No, she wouldn’t come after her at all, but Devon. . . . It makes perfect sense now.”
Justus harrumphed and slumped against the wall. “You’ve tired me out, so just tell me what you’re thinking.”
“I’m thinking the person the dagger was meant for wasn’t Devon. It was Rachel. What if—” I grabbed Justus’s hand. “What if her life’s in danger now and this money in your hand is her death sentence?”
“You can’t think Greater Atlanta is behind this? That’s crazy talk?”
“No, I don’t think they’re behind it. They want to stop it.” I moved around and paced the floor. “I think there’s a hit out on her.”
Justus rubbed his head. “Please stop. Don’t say another word.”
“You don’t know what depths a mother will take to protect her family.”
“That’s not God, and you know it.”
“I never said it was, but was it Ava? That’s what we have to find out.”
“I’m not going to preach to you or give you some sermon. You’ve made it clear on more than one occasion that a sermon would automatically make you see how wrong you are about making such prejudiced generalizations against your sister. I’m not going to do that.”
His jaw was clinched. He stared at me with seriousness and concern and with his free hand, he took my hand. “But I’ll ask you to believe me. Do you trust me?”
“I do, but—”
“No buts. If you trust me, then call Salvador and give him this money.”
&
nbsp; “Oh-noooo.” I shook my head. “I’m keeping this money.”
“Why?”
“Because I need it and I’m out of time.”
“You don’t need it, Angel.”
“Yes, I do.” I squeezed his hand. “If Big Faith is looking for Rachel, then she knows they’re looking for her. Believe me. If she’s pregnant and has any common sense, she is long gone by now. The only way I can find her at this point is to hire someone. Meanwhile, I have to take care of the house, the kids, funeral arrangements, and picking up Ava from jail, hopefully tomorrow. This money could help me do that. I have no more time. What choice do I have?”
“Forget choice; choose faith.” He raised his other hand, which contained the money Elvis had given me. “Not this. Give me until tomorrow morning to come up with a better plan for you, for Ava, and for us.”
“For us?”
He took my hand in his. “Yes, the sooner Devon’s murder is solved and Ava’s charges are dropped, the sooner you and I can move forward together under normal circumstances.”
“Normal?” I chuckled. “What about Trish and the kids? What about the church? You’re just as overextended as I am.”
“Stop searching for excuses not to surrender to the way you feel about me, woman.”
“I don’t know if I even know what that means.”
“Give me a chance, Angel,” he pleaded. “You’re not supposed to carry these burdens. That’s why you can’t think straight right now. Don’t give up.”
He gave me that look that I loved and hated.
I lowered my head on his chest. “You’re right. I’ll return the money.”
He wrapped his arms around me. “Why don’t I return it for you, so you can concentrate on preparing for Ava’s homecoming? She might need your help with Devon’s funeral arrangements. She’s going to be a bag of nerves with a trial looming over her head as well.”
“That sounds great, but I’m sure her armor bearers would take care of that, and besides, Tiger will be escorting Ava from the jail for me.”
“Tiger.” He lowered his arms. “Your boss who put you in danger last week? That guy?”
“Yes, that guy. He’s good people most of the time.” I stepped back. “You know what. It’s probably best that I take Elvis his money back, since I have to go to Tiger’s to retrieve Ava anyway. I’ll do it before I pick her up. That way she will be none the wiser.”
His brilliant smile lit the room around us again. “Now, that’s good news. Tomorrow will be a better day, I promise. Get rest. I will drive your mom back to your home for you.”
He hugged me again. I held him tight but felt myself falling away from him. I wasn’t returning that money, not until I got more answers, and definitely not until I got to the bottom of Miss Rachel. I held him longer, because I knew after tonight, he wouldn’t want to touch me again.
28
Saturday, 10:00 PM
Big Tiger’s Trusted Bail Bonds, Decatur, GA
A late-night fog fluffed over Decatur and my windshield. The only thing I saw was Big Tiger’s Trusted Bail Bonds’ chalk-white office gleaming through the muck. I wished I could turn around and have Justus ride along, but not tonight, not anymore. I sighed. This was not the time to fall in love with a good man.
“It’s about time you came to your senses and called me, girl,” Big Tiger said when he opened the door to greet me. “What took you so long?”
I walked inside and threw my purse on his desk. “I didn’t think I would have to resort to this to help Ava.”
I plopped down on the sofa. No one was here but us. I glanced around the office.
“Resort to what? Finding a killer?” he asked. “Girl, have the suburbs made you soft? Killers don’t knock on your door and invite themselves over for lemonade and chocolate-chip cookies. You have to hunt them down.”
“I know, but my pastor—my friend—he thinks that God doesn’t need me to lower myself to solve Devon’s murder.”
Big Tiger sat down beside me and placed his arm over my shoulder. His cologne smelled okay, but not as yummy and calming as Justus’s. “He’s right.”
I turned to him. “Justus is right?”
“For sure.” He nodded. “You don’t have to be here, Angel.”
“But just a minute ago, you said that I had come to my senses by coming here.”
“True.” He nodded faster.
“I’m confused.”
“There’s no need. It’s real simple, baby girl.” He removed his arm from around me and turned his body toward me. “Your man is right. Eventually, the truth about what happened to Devon will come out. It could be next week. It could be thirty years. God does what He do.” He rubbed his hands together. “But you don’t care about that. That’s not what you want tonight. You want to find this girl Rachel. You need to know Ava is innocent, and you don’t know how long God will take to answer. So it’s your choice. Plain and simple.”
I scoffed. “You make it sound like I don’t believe in God.”
“I didn’t say that, Angel. You know I know you. We both come up in the church together. We both know God is real. But that don’t stop us from being spoiled rotten. Some fool killed your brother-in-law and is trying to frame our girl for his murder. Whoever it is has done a good job, because they’ve got you spooked. God ain’t got nothin’ to do with that, so you gotta choose. What’s best for you right now, baby girl?”
I listened to Big Tiger like he was a ghetto Billy Graham, drinking in his words like red Kool-Aid on a steamy August dog day.
“Big Tiger, get my stuff out of my car.”
Big Tiger hoisted my case files out my car trunk, brought them into his office, then slammed them on this desk.
“Angel Soft, what do you think you’ll find in there?”
“Salvador wanted to see my old case files, remember? So I’m thinking about Gabe’s intent. There may be some clue in there about what went down.”
“But that won’t help us find Rachel.”
“She was Ava’s armor bearer at the time of that investigation. Gabe may have had some information on her that we can use to locate her.” I paused. I hadn’t said Bella’s father’s name so much in a long while.
“You never found out who killed him either. Did you?”
“Nope.” I shook my head. “I’m not ready to open that case.”
“For you and your man’s sake, you can’t keep it cold forever.”
“I think we’re too late for that.”
“What? You broke up already?”
“We’re not together. He just doesn’t know that I’m here, and I want to keep it that way.”
I pulled out my manila notebook that housed all the leads I had so far, my calendar notebook, and the envelope with the check Elvis gave me.
I handed Big Tiger my notebook. “I need a Dumpster diver like now.”
A Dumpster diver was someone who sifted through other people’s trash to find things of value: bank receipts, credit card bills, hotel keys, shredded papers, pregnancy tests, and anything that could buttress a case. Not only did the press Dumpster dive, but corporate spies and lobbyists did as well. If it weren’t for Dumpster diving, the BALCO steroid scandal might not have seen the light of day. When I worked at the Sentinel, I ordered garbage pulls all the time. It didn’t require a warrant and it never failed.
“We need to pull Ava’s trash, and the trash of all the armor bearers and Elvis Bloom.”
Big Tiger combed through my notebook and jotted down some notes. “Got anyone in mind?”
I nodded and checked my wallet for Paige’s number. I pulled the card out and handed it to Big Tiger. “I think we have one, and she’s old family.”
Big Tiger grinned. “Good, then she won’t need to be schooled.”
I found Big Tiger’s speaker phone and dialed Paige’s number.
She picked up. “Hi, Angel. What do you need?”
I sighed with relief. It was refreshing to deal with people who didn’t waste tim
e and knew how to get things done without all the condemnation.
“Paige, I need you to do a garbage pull. Get letters, prescriptions, bills, receipts—snot rags, anything out of a few trash cans ASAP.”
“Do you need me to locate their trash removal services, too?”
I blinked. “Why?”
“Maybe they haven’t burned it, composted it, or shipped it off to the landfills yet. And you know at a landfill, things can sit for years in the same shape they were buried.”
“Honey, I can’t pay you enough to have a landfill excavated. Just check the trash and the recycle bins and bring them to Big Tiger’s.”
“Ok, give me the addresses and depending upon how far I need to travel, a few hours for each pull,” Paige said.
“Cool, Big Tiger and I should be back by then, so call me on the cell when you’re done and we’ll meet you here.”
“Where will you be? Maybe I can meet you there?”
I cradled the phone and turned to Big Tiger. He shook his head. “No.”
“No, meet us here.” I gave her the pulls and Big Tiger’s address and ended the conversation.
Tiger chuckled. “Angel Soft, do you think you have the heart for what we’re about to do?”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, I’m ready. Why?”
“It’s been a long time. You’re not the same girl you used to be.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because you wouldn’t have needed me.”
“I’m not soft.” I looked at him. “You think I’ve become soft?”
“It’s okay if you are. You’re a mother now, you know?”
“I don’t need to be soft tonight. I need to get this thing done.”
My cell phone rang. I looked at it. “It’s Paige. Something must be wrong.”
I answered. “What’s up, girl?”
“I know we just got off the phone, but when you gave me the names of the people you want me to trash check, one of those names was familiar.”
“Which name?”
“Rachel Newton. I’ve heard her name before and you wouldn’t believe from whom.”
A Good Excuse To Be Bad Page 23
