The Dirty Red Series

by Vickie M. Stringer

  Who is it?” Terry shouted, as she walked to the front door.

  “Special Agent Rhonda Davenport.”

  “Who?” Terry asked. She opened the front door to find a strange woman and two police officers standing before her.

  “Rhonda Davenport, Special Enforcement Agent, Child Protective Services,” Rhonda said, holding up her badge and ID. “Are you Terry Washington?”

  Terry nodded. “I am.”

  “Is Mr. Mekel Chambers home also?”

  “He is, you want to speak to him?”

  “Is the child, Mekel Chambers Jr., also on the premises?”

  “What’s this about?” Terry asked, growing suspicious.

  Agent Davenport handed Terry some folded papers. “This is a court order, awarding custody of the child known as Mekel Chambers Jr. to the state. I have been ordered to enter the premises and take guardianship of the child, who hereafter shall be a ward of the State of Michigan.”

  “What? What are you saying?”

  “Where is the child, ma’am?”

  “Mekel!” Terry screamed.

  Agent Davenport and the two officers tried to push past Terry and walk into the house. Terry held the door and blocked their entrance.

  “Mekel!”

  Mekel raced down the stairs. “What the fuck is going on?”

  “Ma’am, you have to step aside!” one of the officers commanded.

  “What? You can’t just come in my house!” Mekel shouted.

  “They have a warrant!” Terry shouted hysterically. “They are trying to take MJ.”

  “What? Are you crazy? You can’t take my son!”

  “Sir, we have a court order!” Davenport told him.

  “I don’t give a fuck what you have!” Mekel shouted. “You ain’t taking my son!”

  “Sir, step aside, or you will be arrested for civil disobedience and unlawful conduct, as well as interfering with an officer discharging a lawful order of the state.”

  “You are not taking my son!” Mekel repeated.

  “Noooooo!” Terry screamed. The other children heard the commotion and gathered in the kitchen, cold with fear.

  Davenport stepped to the side, and one of the officers grabbed Terry. Mekel tried to pull him off of her, but was grabbed by the other officer. He broke away, and shoved the officer down.

  “Sir, you will be charged with assault on a police officer!” Davenport shouted. “You’re just making things worse for yourself.”

  The second officer pulled out his nightstick. Mekel ran toward him and tackled him. The first officer got up and raced to help his fellow cop. Davenport went for the door, but Terry barreled toward her.

  “Bitch, you not taking my son!” Terry shouted.

  The first officer pulled out a small can of mace and sprayed Mekel in his eyes. Mekel began swinging wildly; then the second officer struck him in his stomach with his nightstick, sending him sprawling to the ground.

  The first officer pulled Terry off of Agent Davenport and slammed her against the wall. Davenport helped restrain Terry while the officer cuffed her. At the same time the second officer hooked up Mekel.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Mekel shouted, eyes streaming from the pepper spray.

  “Sir, we have a court order to take custody of Mekel Chambers Jr.,” Davenport explained.

  “Why?” Terry demanded. “What did we do?”

  “I really can’t discuss the case . . .”

  “You’re the caseworker, ain’t you?” Terry asked.

  “Well . . . yes.”

  “Then tell us what the fuck is going on!”

  “We’ve had some very serious allegations made against you.”

  “What kind of allegations?” Mekel asked.

  “Allegations of child abuse of a physical and sexual nature,” Davenport explained.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” Mekel shouted. “That’s my son!”

  “And you’ve shown a lot of restraint here today,” the first officer said sarcastically. “You got a temper, buddy.”

  “I would never do anything to hurt my son!” Mekel said.

  “This is just the beginning of the investigation,” Davenport explained. “Granted, this definitely doesn’t look good on your part. You’ve shown a propensity for violence and a lack of rationality in all of your actions today.”

  “What kind of investigation?” Terry wanted to know.

  “Look, we’re going to take custody of all of your children until the investigation is complete,” Davenport explained. “Child Protective Services will investigate the allegations, and report back to the court. If the court decides that the allegations are without merit, custody of the children will be returned to you.”

  “Where are they going?” Terry cried.

  “That’s for the courts to decide,” Davenport told them.

  “Allegations?” Mekel shouted. “What fucking allegations? From who? We don’t go anywhere, and we don’t fuck with anybody!”

  “Who could have done this?” Terry cried out. “Who lied on us?”

  “I can’t give you any names,” Davenport told them.

  “We don’t fuck with nobody!” Mekel repeated. “My son don’t have a bruise on him!”

  “We’re going to investigate the claims,” Davenport told him. “We have to. For the safety of the child.”

  “Put yourself in my shoes,” Terry cried. “Think about what you’re saying. Think about what you’re doing! If these were your children, and someone showed up one day out of the blue and said that they were taking them, how would you react?”

  “Ma’am, we have reports that you abused the baby previously,” Davenport told her. “You tried to kidnap the said victim and dropped him, resulting in damage.”

  Terry shook her head and burst into tears. “No! That was an accident! Mekel, tell her that was a mistake!”

  “Who did this, lady?” Mekel shouted. “We have a right to know! If it were your child, you would want to know who lied on you!”

  “We have a confidentiality clause that prevents me from revealing the person who reported the abuse,” Davenport told him.

  “You would want to know if it was you!” Terry shouted.

  “I can’t give you her name,” Agent Davenport told them.

  “Her?” Terry looked over at Mekel.

  “It better not be!” Mekel said, knowing what Terry was thinking.

  The two officers walked into the residence to retrieve Mekel Jr. and the other children.

  “Was she a tall, slender, red-skinned bitch with long red hair?” Terry asked.

  Agent Davenport looked startled.

  “I’ma kill that bitch!” Mekel shouted.

  “Young man, you are not making this any better,” Davenport said sternly. “You don’t want to be heard by the officers making a terroristic threat.”

  “I don’t give a fuck! I’m going to kill that bitch!” Mekel cried out.

  Terry’s cries grew louder and the tears flowed faster. All of the work she had done with her psychiatrist over the last nine months was quickly coming undone. She was unraveling mentally. She could see herself stabbing Red with a pair of scissors. “I’m going to kill you, Red.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  Are you Internal Affairs?” Red asked.

  “I am,” Detective Marquez Nuñez told her. “And who are you?”

  “A friend.”

  “I don’t know,” Nuñez said, eyeballing her figure. “I would definitely remember a friend like you.”

  Red smiled. Marquez Nuñez was cute. He was well manicured, well groomed and well dressed. He cut a fine figure in the Brioni suit that he was wearing.

  “And if I would have known there were detectives like you walking around, I would have committed a crime a long time ago,” Red teased back.

  “That’s okay, we’re here now.” Nuñez smiled. “Can I pat search you?”

  Red laughed. “I’m sure you would love to do that.”

&nb
sp; “So, what can I help you with, Miss . . .”

  “Friend,” Red told him. “For now, just call me a friend.”

  “What can I do for you, friend?”

  “I need for you to make me a promise.”

  “I don’t do promises,” Nuñez told her. “Sorry.”

  “Oh, well, then can you get me an Internal Affairs detective who does?”

  “Why do you need an IA detective?” Nuñez asked, lifting an eyebrow.

  “I’ll discuss that with someone who is willing to make me a promise and keep his word.”

  Detective Nuñez held up his hands. “Okay, you got me. Let’s hear it.”

  “You don’t make promises, remember?”

  “Okay, I’m willing to bend my policy.”

  “Promise me that if I give you something, you won’t open it until tomorrow?”

  Nuñez smiled. “Why would I promise that? You could be giving me a bomb, or a suicide note, or a letter telling me that you’re going to kill someone. If I had evidence like that in my possession and didn’t act on it . . .”

  “I’m not giving you a bomb,” Red promised.

  “You won’t even tell me your name.”

  “You’ll have it in due time.”

  “What do you want to give me?” Nuñez asked.

  “A package. It has a video, a statement, some DNA evidence, stuff like that.”

  “Does it involve a murder?”

  Red shook her head. “No.”

  “You’re giving it to an IA detective, so obviously it involves a police officer,” Nuñez surmised. “Is anyone in immediate danger?”

  “No.”

  “Why don’t you want me to open it until tomorrow?”

  “Do you agree to my terms?”

  “What if I promise you, and then open it today anyway?”

  “Then you lose my cooperation.”

  Marquez Nuñez extended his hand. “Give me your package.”

  “Tomorrow,” Red told him.

  “Tomorrow,” Nuñez promised. “And if I do as you ask, I want your full cooperation in the matter. You come clean on everything, is that clear?”

  Red nodded. “You got it.”

  Nuñez took the package from Red’s hand and disappeared down the corridor.

  Red turned and headed for the third floor of the police department.

  Getting off the elevator, she ran into Detective Thomas.

  “What are you doing here, Raven?”

  “I need you,” Red told him. “You said that if I needed you, you would be there for me.”

  “I am here for you.”

  “I have something that I want to give you.”

  “What is it?”

  Red pulled a disc from her bag and handed it to Thomas.

  “What is this, Raven?”

  “It’s evidence.”

  “Evidence?” Thomas lifted an eyebrow. “Evidence of what?”

  “Of a serious crime that was committed.”

  “By who? By you?”

  Red shook her head. “By a drug dealer named Catfish. He killed a friend of mine, and threatened to kill me. I have it all recorded. This is a copy of that recording.”

  “What are you into?” Thomas asked angrily. “Where did you get this?”

  “I recorded it. I knew that he did it, and I wanted to get evidence of it, so I recorded him.”

  “And where is this gentleman right now?”

  “He’s locked up on other charges. He’s a very powerful man. He arranged it all from prison.”

  “And how do you know this person?”

  “My best friend used to date him. She would testify against him as well, but he had her killed.”

  Thomas shook his head. “Raven, you’re into too much shit.”

  “I’m coming clean and turning over a new leaf. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

  “Yeah, but damn!”

  “Well, don’t ask me to come clean if you can’t deal with it.”

  “I can deal with it,” Thomas told her. “What else is there? What else are you hiding?”

  “Nothing!”

  “Ezekiel, Raven. Tell me about Ezekiel!”

  “I don’t know about Ezekiel! Q killed him!”

  “Why do you say that? What do you know?”

  “I know that Q admitted to killing him.”

  “That’s two murders, Raven. Two that you are intimately involved in. I can’t protect you if you’re not honest with me!”

  “I am being honest. That’s all I know. I’ve given you what I know. This man Catfish killed my friend and Q killed his friend. Now I’m stuck picking up the pieces of my life.”

  “So what am I supposed to do with this?”

  “You’re a homicide detective! Listen to it, and investigate. She didn’t deserve to die like that.”

  “Okay, I’ll look into it.”

  “He needs to pay for what he did to her.”

  “You say that he’s threatened to kill you?”

  Red nodded.

  Detective Thomas sighed. “Come and stay with me, where you’ll be safe.”

  “I’m safe now.”

  “He’s already killed one person from prison; doing you is nothing but a thing.”

  “Listen to the recording. He won’t kill me. At least not yet. Not until he realizes that I recorded him and gave the tape to you.”

  “I’ll safeguard this. He won’t know we’re on to him until after the grand jury has indicted his ass.”

  “Good.” Red turned to leave.

  “Where are you going?”

  “I have to go see a friend.”

  “Be careful, Raven.”

  “Always.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  Catfish spied Red as soon as he walked into the visitation room. Her red hair, expensive clothing and sophisticated looks set her apart from the other visitors. She looked more like an attorney than a visitor. He would have loved the opportunity to pull Red into one of the restrooms and fuck the shit out of her, he thought.

  Catfish approached the table and Red stood.

  “Have a seat,” she told him.

  “I thought it was the man who stood up when the woman approached the table?” Catfish said jokingly.

  “I guess whichever person is the bitch at the moment.”

  “What?”

  “Sit down,” Red demanded.

  “This meeting is already getting off to a foul start.” Catfish frowned. “Besides, didn’t I tell your ho ass to let me know the next time you decide to pay me a visit?”

  “This is strictly business.”

  “I sent you the manuscript,” Catfish told her.

  Red nodded. “I checked my PO box before I came.”

  Catfish smiled. “That shit is the bomb.”

  “I hope it is.”

  “Why don’t you sit down?” Catfish asked.

  “Why don’t you?”

  “Look, them guards is going to come over here and fuck with us if we just standing here.”

  Red seated herself. Catfish did the same.

  “I wasn’t planning on staying long.” Red exhaled.

  “Why’d you come in the first place?”

  “I just wanted to make sure that the book was legit, and to update you on everything.”

  Catfish nodded. “Bitch, the book is legit. My nigga knocked that muthafucka out with lightning speed, and I read each chapter as he finished it. You think that first joint was the shit? This book is going to blow that one out of the water.”

  “And that’s the whole book that you sent?” Red asked.

  “Yeah? Damn, did you eat a bowl of retarded cereal this morning? How many times I gotta repeat myself?”

  Red nodded and smiled. “I ate a plate of catfish.”

  “Did you eat the catfish’s dick, too?”

  “I ate the whole thing.” Red smiled. “I fucked over that catfish real good.”

  Catfish leaned back in his chair and narrowed his eyes at her. “Y
ou better be careful when you try to fuck over a catfish. You know catfish sting.”

  “Not if you catch that muthafucka just right.” Red smiled. “You see, the thing about a scavenger like that is that it’s greedy. It’ll eat anything you throw at it and that’s what makes it so easy to catch.”

  “I see a bitch need her neck snapped this morning.”

  “I don’t think so. Turn around.”

  Catfish turned and eyeballed the guard’s station. Four guards were standing there watching him. “What the fuck is that?”

  “I told the guard that I was going to give you some fucked-up news, and that they might need some extra security. So if you so much as blink wrong, they’re going to have your ass on the floor, stomping you down like a cockroach.”

  “I can reach out and touch you, Red,” Catfish said angrily. “Have you forgotten that? Ask your girl Sasha. Oh, that’s right, you can’t. She’s dead.”

  Red smiled and shrugged. “You run your mouth too much. You talk like a bitch. No wonder you was the star in Bitch Nigga, Snitch Nigga.”

  “I’ll slap the shit out of you and don’t give a fuck about what them guards do.”

  “Do it!” Red challenged him. “You bad. Make your move.”

  “What are you here for today?”

  “To let you know how you fucked yourself.”

  “I ain’t worried about that little fifty thousand dollars, Red. You know what, you can keep that. I’ma put a fifty-thousand-dollar hit out on your head. So, that’s a hundred grand that I’m out of. Deal with that, bitch.”

  Red laughed. “You’re out of more than a hundred grand. You’re out of time, you son of a bitch.”

  “How do you figure that?” Catfish waved his arms around the room. “All I got is time.”

  “Homicide is coming for your ass.”

  “Homicide already got me.”

  Red shook her head. “They are going to execute your ass for killing Sasha, and since you had it done from behind bars, the feds want to see you for running a continuing criminal enterprise from in prison. Since prison ain’t stopping you from hurting society, they’re going to want to transfer you to a maximum security federal prison out in Colorado. That way, you’ll only get out of your cell an hour a day for recreation, and you’ll have no contact with anybody in the outside world.”

  Catfish smiled. “Sounds like you got it all worked out.”

  “Yup, I have friends in high places,” Red told him.