Never Trust a Stranger

by Mary Monroe

  After I completed my delivery, I drove as far as Fresno before I decided to take a break around ten p.m. I pulled into a truck stop and checked into one of the three seedy motels facing the gas pumps. I was pleased to see that there were several fast-food joints in the vicinity and a lot of “lot lizards” milling about. These hookers were very popular with truckers. They were usually so busy they never spent more than a few minutes with each trick. I had to wait an hour before one was available to give me a ten-minute, twenty-dollar blow job. After she left to go take care of the dude in the room next to mine, I went to bed and slept like a baby.

  Right after I got up at eight a.m., I dialed Sylvia’s home telephone number. I knew she’d be getting ready for work so she wouldn’t have time to talk long.

  “When did you get back to California, Calvin?” Her voice was low and distant.

  “Um . . . last week.”

  “Last week?! And you’re just now calling me when you knew how anxious I was to see you?” In all the years that we’d been together, Sylvia had never shown any hostility toward me until now. “I was worried sick!” she screeched.

  I made her suffer enough, so I overlooked her hostility this time. I decided to play the “woe is me” card. First I snorted real loud and blew my nose into a napkin, and then I began to speak in a low, weak tone of voice. “Sylvia, I just laid my uncle to rest. That was traumatic enough.” I blew into the same napkin again, this time throwing in a sob. “Excuse me . . . I’m sorry, baby. Anyway, then I had to spend hours at a time with Uncle Ed’s lawyer going over all kinds of estate paperwork—sign this, notarize that, and on and on. All that shit is still stressing me out. After all that, my flight back to California was a fucking nightmare. The plane was three hours behind schedule, half a dozen babies squalled during most of the flight, and the attendants were rude. I had a severe case of the runs and spent more time in the toilet than in my fucking middle seat squeezed between two female buffalos who smelled like hell! I was a wreck by the time I got to my house. They needed me back at work as soon as possible, so I was back on the road a few hours after I got home. When I returned from my run, I was so exhausted I was almost delirious, so all I wanted to do was crawl into my bed and regroup my body and my mind.” My telling little lies here and there had become so necessary, there were times when I almost believed them myself. I could barely remember the man I used to be—a righteous dude who’d rarely told lies and had been honorable in every way, all the way up to the moment I killed Glinda. . . .

  “Well, I wouldn’t have minded crawling in that bed with you,” Sylvia said in a bleating voice. “If I had known you were sick, I could have come over and cooked you something.”

  “I know you would have, sweetheart. I know you’re getting ready for work, so I won’t keep you on the phone long. Are you busy Friday night?”

  “Me busy?” she gasped. “What would I be busy doing? I’ve been waiting on pins and needles for you to get back so we could be together. And you know I’m never too busy for you.”

  “I’m happy to hear that.”

  Sylvia remained quiet.

  “Are you still there?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” she said with hesitation and a loud sniff.

  Her hesitation and that unnecessary sniff annoyed me. “Sylvia, if there is something on your mind, I wish you’d tell me. You know I don’t like it when you beat around the bush.”

  “I’m just curious as to why you didn’t call me as soon as you got back into town.”

  “I tried!”

  “You tried what?”

  “I tried to call you the same night I got back. I got a recorded message that said your line was out of order.”

  “That’s news to me. I haven’t had any trouble with my phone lately. Are you sure you dialed the right number?”

  “I thought I did. But since I was so frazzled, it’s possible I dialed somebody else’s number by mistake.”

  “Why didn’t you call my cell phone number or send me a text message?”

  “Because you changed your cell phone number last week!” An anonymous caller had been making obscene calls to Sylvia and I’d encouraged her to have her number changed.

  “Calvin, I’ve called your number several times since then, so my new number has to be stored in your phone.”

  “I know it is, baby. To be honest with you, I just didn’t feel like talking to anybody. My uncle’s passing hit me real hard, and I’ve had a few flashbacks from the war this week. I know I should have been in touch with you. But since I got back in town, I’ve been so preoccupied and down in the doldrums I just—”

  “Calvin, that’s all the more reason why you should have called me,” Sylvia interrupted. “I know you’re still grieving the loss of your uncle and I know you still have a few flashbacks from the war. I love you and I want to do all I can to help ease your pain. The next time you feel down, please call me anyway. Otherwise, I won’t know what to think.”

  “Thank you, baby. I’ll do just that. Anyway, I was scared to show up at your house without calling first. It’s rude to just drop in on somebody unless they know you’re coming.”

  “Calvin, I’m sorry you think of me as just ‘somebody,’ but I’m letting you know now that you can come to my house any day, any time, whether I know you’re coming or not.”

  One of the many things I hated and would not tolerate was a woman reading me the riot act. Even though this was the first time for Sylvia.

  “Listen, let’s talk when you’re in a better mood. I’m still stressed out, so I’m not thinking too clearly. I don’t want to say something to you that I will regret—”

  “I’m sorry, Calvin! I . . . I am being selfish and inconsiderate. You can call me up, or come by my house when you can. I don’t know what I was thinking by being such a bitch.”

  “I’ll see you Friday evening. How’s that? Is seven okay with you?”

  She hesitated again. “That’s fine with me. I had planned to go over to my sister’s house so she could braid my hair, but I can do that another time.”

  “I don’t like braids,” I said quickly. “They’re too ethnic.”

  “Oh? I didn’t know you felt that way. I thought men liked braids on a woman, especially black men.”

  “Not this black man. Braids don’t look good on every woman.”

  “I wish you had told me that sooner. I would have never worn braids if you had.”

  “Well, I’m telling you now.”

  “I don’t like going to my sister’s house that often anyway. Baby, you get some rest and take care of yourself. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”

  As soon as I got off the phone, I turned on my laptop to check the messages on my AOL account. I didn’t even bother to read all the obvious junk and mundane shit from other people. I signed off and logged on to the Discreet Encounters website. I went directly to my in-box to see if Lola had sent me more messages. She had not. I immediately pulled up her profile. I stared at her wretched picture for five full minutes before I angrily logged off.

  Well, it was finally time for the second phase of my plan: sex.

  I didn’t want to discuss our first intimate encounter by e-mail, but it was too early in the day to call her up. I decided to wait a couple of hours and call her at work before I checked out of my motel.

  When I called Lola’s cell phone number a few minutes after ten, I purposely blocked my name and number. I wanted her to be surprised to hear my voice.

  “Hello, Lola,” I said.

  “Hello,” she said. “Who is this?”

  “It’s Calvin. You’ve forgotten how my voice sounds already?”

  “Oh! Um, I had no idea it was you. I didn’t see your name on my caller ID.”

  “I misplaced my cell phone, so I’m using my coworker’s. He’s got his programmed so it won’t show his name and number.”

  “Where are you?”

  “I’m at a rest stop in Fresno. I would have called you before now, but I had an emergency r
un to do to help out a sick coworker. And all kinds of other crazy shit’s been going down since I got back to California from Chicago. My run is over, so I’ll be heading home in a couple of hours. You suddenly popped into my mind and I didn’t want to wait until I got home to call you.” I coughed to clear my throat. “I’ve been thinking about you a lot, Lola. You were on my mind every day while I was in Chicago.”

  “Oh. I thought about you a lot too. I’m so glad you called, Calvin. I hope you still want to get together with me . . . someday.”

  “Someday is closer than you think.” I laughed. “Now that my schedule and everything else in my life is under control, I’d like to see you. I don’t want to spend time with any other woman in the club until I spend some time with you. If my uncle hadn’t died and I hadn’t had to do so many long hauls in the past couple of months, I would have made a date with you long before now.”

  “Oh. I’m happy to hear that. Uh, when?” She was actually panting.

  “How about tomorrow?”

  “Tomorrow?”

  “Yes, unless you have other plans.”

  “I don’t have any other plans!” she practically roared. She must have realized how ridiculous she sounded, because a second later her voice dropped almost to a whisper. “Tomorrow is good. Where do you want me to meet you?”

  “Do you have a favorite hotel in your area? I’ll reserve a room for us as soon as I get off the phone.”

  “We have a few nice hotels in South Bay City, but I’d rather go to one in San Jose if that’s okay with you.”

  “How about the downtown Hyatt? It’s a really nice hotel, and it’s in a convenient location. It’s a favorite spot among club members. I’ve had several hookups there.”

  “Me too,” she admitted. “What time?”

  “Is eight p.m. a good time for you?”

  “I’d rather get together a lot earlier. Tuesday is not so busy at my work, so I know I can take off early. And I’m not too crazy about driving alone at night. My car is not reliable, and I don’t want to get stranded on the freeway, or anywhere else. It’s pretty dangerous out there these days, especially for black women. I recently read in the newspaper that somebody killed another one of us and left her in an alley in one of the roughest neighborhoods in San Jose.”

  “I read about that. What a shame. As my grandmother used to say, ‘When you live by the sword, you die by the sword.’ ”

  “What do you mean? Did you know the dead woman?”

  “Oh, no, I didn’t know her. The paper did say she had been working the streets for a couple of years. That’s a very high-risk activity. I’m sure she ran into all kinds of nutcases. She could have been one herself, for all we know. Yep. Live fast, die young. Granny used to say that a lot too.”

  “I agree with that. Why don’t we firm up our plans by noon tomorrow?”

  “I’ll call or text you again then.”

  “And, Calvin . . .” she said sweetly. I was surprised when she abruptly stopped talking.

  “Yes, what is it?”

  “I’m sure I won’t disappoint you.” For Lola to be such a small woman, she sure had a big voice when she wanted to get a point across. She sounded like a female drill sergeant. “I can promise you that much!” she boomed.

  “I’m sure you won’t either. I’ve read the glowing reviews about you on the club’s review board.”

  “I wasn’t going to tell you, but I read the reviews about you too. We have the same number of five-star ratings.”

  We both laughed.

  Chapter 40

  Joan

  “GUESS WHAT?” I SAID AS SOON AS I MET UP WITH LOLA. WE’D decided to have lunch at a deli near her work two days after my dinner date with Reed. “I’m going to Phoenix this Thursday,” I said before she had time to answer my question.

  We occupied a table for two in a corner near the kitchen. We had both selected roast beef sandwiches and orange juice. I was not hungry, but I was going to make myself eat because Lola was treating. The deli was as crowded as usual with people we both knew. Each time before we spoke, we glanced around to make sure nobody was close enough to hear our conversation. Like the beauty shop and nail salons Lola and I patronized, this deli was a cesspool of gossip. I had heard some of the most intimate details of other people’s lives sitting in this place. If people knew half the shit that Lola and I were involved in, the gossip about us would reach epic proportions.

  I had originally invited her to meet me for drinks after she got off work today, but she’d declined. She told me that she had something real juicy to tell me and it couldn’t wait until the end of the day. Apparently it wasn’t that juicy, because when I asked her a few minutes ago, she told me she’d tell me in a few minutes. That was the reason I’d jump-started the conversation about my upcoming trip to Phoenix.

  Lola had just bitten off a piece of her sandwich and didn’t respond until she stopped chewing. “You’re going to Phoenix? What are you going there for? I—Oh my God!” She slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand and gave me an incredulous look. “Isn’t that where your love-struck lawyer lives?”

  I bobbed my head like a rooster. “Yup!”

  “You’re going to Phoenix to be with him?” I couldn’t tell if Lola was asking me a question or making a statement.

  “I talked to John Walden last night and told him I wanted to come down there for a few days. He got very excited. Reed is trying so hard to make up for forcing me to have sex with him, he told me I could take a little break and go somewhere nice to spend some time by myself. I didn’t ask John to send for me or book me a room. But he insisted on doing it anyway. Right now he’s the only man I know who can make me feel really relaxed.”

  From the flabbergasted look on Lola’s face, you would have thought that I was speaking Greek. “Girl, I’m surprised at you!” she practically roared.

  “Why?”

  “Joan, there must be at least four or five men coming this way in the next few days that you can make a date with. You just told me two days ago that DrFeelGood has another conference to attend out here next week. Why are you going all the way to Phoenix just for sex?”

  “What makes you think I’m going to Phoenix just for sex?”

  She gasped. “Girl, this is Lola you’re talking to. I know you. Why else would you be going out of town to spend time with one of the club’s members?”

  “John is more to me now than just ‘one of the club’s members. ’” I could tell from Lola’s body language and the various looks she kept giving me that I was exasperating her, but I didn’t care. She was exasperating me too.

  “Woman, have you lost your mind? You’ve repeatedly turned down his offer to move there to be his mistress and I’m sure he’s not happy about that.”

  “So?”

  “So? Joan, it is one thing for you to hook up with John when he comes to California. But it’s another thing for you to set foot on his turf. That’s a whole different ball game.”

  “What in the world are you trying to say?” I wasn’t paying enough attention to the volume of my voice. I was talking loud and people had started looking at us, so I started whispering. “What difference does it make where John and I hook up?”

  Lola started whispering too. “Going down there to fuck up a storm with this man might give him the wrong idea. Shit. You don’t even know him that well.”

  “Listen to the pot calling the kettle black! I know way more about John than you know about that truck driver! And you’re so hot and horny for that motherfucker it’s a damn shame.”

  “That’s different. John lived in Europe for years before he moved to the States. He and Calvin have had different cultural experiences. They are so unlike each other, you’d think they came from different planets. Men with European backgrounds have been known to do some crazy shit to women who piss them off,” she blubbered.

  “Different, my ass. You can’t pick up a newspaper and not read about an American man doing something crazy to his woman,
and anybody else that gets in his way. You talk about me not knowing John that well. At least I know where he works and lives. I Googled him one night right after our first date. His name, page after page of the high-profile cases he’s won, pictures of him with the other partners in his law firm, his wife and kids, pictures of him with politicians and other high-end associates were all over my monitor. He’s one of the most prominent men in the state of Arizona. Do you need to hear more?”

  “I’ve heard enough.”

  “So don’t tell me I don’t know John Walden that well.”

  “Um, Reed is also very prominent and you thought you knew—”

  I leaned forward and wagged my finger in Lola’s face. “You leave my husband out of this conversation or you’ll be sorry!” I warned.

  “Okay, okay,” she replied, holding up her hands. “You don’t need to get all uptight with me. I’m on your side.” It pleased me to see her smile. “I’m glad you’re going away for a few days, and I know you‘ll have a wonderful time. I just don’t want you to get yourself in trouble.”

  I rolled my eyes and let out a long, loud breath. “Stop! Let’s change the subject right now.”

  “That’s fine with me.” Lola exhaled and gave me a dry look. “You started it.”

  “Well, I’m ending it now.” I gritted my teeth and continued. “Now, what’s the juicy news you have to tell me?”

  There was a faraway look in her eyes and she remained silent.

  “Lola, you said you had something to tell me that couldn’t wait until you got off work. Do I have to guess what it is, or are you going to tell me before your lunch hour is over?”

  She glanced at her watch and shrugged. “I’ll tell you in a few minutes. I just want to think about it a little more first. I’m not sure I should even tell you. . . .”

  “If you’re not sure you should be telling me, maybe you shouldn’t.”

  “I will tell you, but let me finish my lunch first. What I have to tell you is not something I want to discuss on a half-empty stomach. Oh, did you see today’s newspaper? Macy’s is having a big sale.”