No Such Thing as a Free Ride (7 page)

“Yo, Brown Eyes. Whaddup?” Lonnie grinned, showing a lot of gold teeth, one of which had a diamond glued to the center of it. Franny’s husband, Eddie, is a jeweler and he could tell if it was merely cubic zirconium, but my eye isn’t that discerning.

Lonnie runs a lucrative extortion business, but, according to Nick, most of his profits get eaten up by a rather hefty addiction to black tar heroin. Nick says Lonnie’s harmless and maybe to a fifth degree black belt that holds true, but personally, the guy gives me the creeps, and I could tell Crystal wasn’t lovin’ him either. She slipped her hand into her back pocket and extracted a butterfly knife, palming it discreetly against her leg.

Lonnie hocked a good sized lugie and winked at Crystal.

“Okay,
then, Lonnie, good to see ya,” I said, steering Crystal toward the studio.

As I reached for the door bell my stomach began to tighten. That unfortunate encounter in the Betsy Ross wig not withstanding, I hadn’t been face to face with Nick since the morning I’d poured my heart out to him and he’d handed it back to me with a polite “thanks, but no thanks.”

Then I got to thinking.
Maybe I’d read the situation all wrong. Maybe he’d been up all night nursing a sick friend, (and it must’ve worked because she looked like the picture of health to me), so when he answered the door he was delirious from lack of sleep and he didn’t know what he was saying. What he meant to say was, “I love you too, Brandy, let’s get married and have many beautiful, mysterious little bambinos together,” but it came out as “I don’t love you” by mistake.

Then there was the whole “snooping in his bedroom” thing and finding my photo in his nightstand drawer. I wanted to confront him on why he’d spent so much money on a portrait of “just a friend,” but I wasn’t quite ready to confess I’d been pawing through his personal belongings.

As I’d already polled every friend I had on the subject, including a few I hadn’t seen since elementary school, I was about to ask Crystal her take on the matter, when the door opened and out walked Nick.

Crystal’s mouth hung slightly ajar as her eyes roved over five feet ten inches of male perfection. His lithe, muscular body was dressed in workout clothes; loose black pants and a tight white tee shirt, damp with sweat. On his wrist he wore his ever-present silver band. His hair was pulled back in a pony tail, revealing a two inch scar under his left ear that worked its way down along his jaw line. I was the reason Nick sported that scar. I felt guilty and honored at the same time and it only made me love him more.

“Does he always smell this good?” Crystal whispered, forgetting for a moment her “tough girl” persona.

“Uh huh.”

If Nick overheard he had the good grace not to show it.

“Hey, darlin’, come on in,” he said, and my heart skipped a couple of beats. He held the door open and we stepped inside.

There was a class in session. I recognized Tanya, one of Nick’s instructors, as she put a group of Samoan body guards through their paces. Tanya is one of those annoyingly beautiful women who thinks she’s better than everyone else just because she’s drop dead gorgeous, incredibly competent and unfailingly sweet. She looked up when she saw me and smiled in greeting.
Gaah, what a loser!

“I’m just finishing up here,” Nick told us. “You’re welcome to stick around for a few minutes or make yourselves comfortable in my office.”

“We’re okay, here,” Crystal said quickly and with uncharacteristic reverence. “I mean if that’s alright.”

I looked at her and tried hard not to laugh. Even “Ms. In-Your-Face-Tough-Girl” couldn’t escape the indescribable quality that was the essence of Nicholas Santiago.

No one volunteered to go mano e mano with Nick so class ended early.

“You need to tone it down a little, Nick,” Tanya told him, picking up the mats and stacking them against the wall. “You broke that guy’s leg this morning.”

“He wasn’t paying attention. It’s a good way to get himself killed.” His voice was hard and dispassionate and was the reminder I needed that you don’t want this man as your enemy.

Tanya shrugged. “You’re right,” she said, smiling. “You always are.”

Was she flirting with him?
I guessed it wouldn’t do to bitch slap her in front of Crystal. Besides, I was way out of my league.

Nick finished helping Tanya stack the mats and then he walked her to the door.

“Nice seeing you again,” she called back over her shoulder.

“You bet,” I told her.
You bet? Why did I say that? I sound like an idiot.
“I mean nice to see you too,” I called out lamely and too late. She was already out the door.

“Now,” Nick said, turning his dark liquid eyes on Crystal and me, and I got a rush in parts of my body I’d all but forgotten existed. “What can I do to help you?”

We sat in his office, a cozy sanctuary located in the back of the studio. It’s quiet in there and insulated from the worries of the outside world. I’d always felt nurtured and protected curled up in Nick’s red velvet armchair, and I hoped it would provide the same comfort now for Crystal.

There was a cigarette butt in a ceramic ashtray on the desk, and I noted with some surprise that he’d started smoking again.

“Just a minor setback, Angel.” He smiled, first at me, and then at Crystal. “Don’t start if you haven’t already. It’s a nasty habit and a bitch to kick.”

Nick listened intently and without interruption as Crystal filled him in on her missing friend. I was surprised at how freely she spoke to him, as if she sensed a kindred spirit.

“I’m going to run this by a couple of guys who work for me,” he told her when she had finished. “They have a lot of contacts on the streets and sometimes they hear things other people aren’t privy to. It would help if you had a recent photo of Star,” he added.

Crystal visibly stiffened. “Oh great. Some fuckwad walking around with Star’s picture asking questions about her. That won’t draw
too much
attention.”

Oy. I held my breath. This kid had no idea who she was talking to. Nick, however, didn’t appear to take offense. His response was remarkably calm and respectful.

“These people understand how important it is to be discreet, Crystal. They would never do anything to put you or your friend in jeopardy. A photo would just help make identification easier if they do run across her.”

Crystal was quiet for a moment. Then, making up her mind she dug deep into her backpack and pulled out a worn strip of photographs, the kind you get in those photo booths at the mall.

“This is me and Star at the arcade on Market Street.,” she whispered, handing the pictures to Nick. “They were taken a couple of months ago.”

Nick held them carefully, giving Crystal a silent nod of understanding.
They were more than just pictures. They were her lifeline.

He stood and walked over to a small copier and placed the picture on the glass. When he was finished, he gave Crystal back the original. Taking the copy, he carefully tore it in half and handed her the part of the photo with her image on it, keeping only the picture of Star. The gesture spoke volumes. He respected her privacy and was doing his best to preserve what little she had.

“You know, Crystal, there’s a chance your friend may not want to be found. If that’s the case, she won’t be.”

Crystal nodded, the possibility obviously having crossed her mind as well.

“We’ll take it one step at a time. In the mean time learning self defense was a good idea. I can help with that if you want.”

“I can’t pay you,” she said, regaining a bit of her edge.

“It’s on the house.”

“What’s the catch?”

“No catch. No strings. Just trying to help out one of my own.”

My mind had been wandering a bit, thinking about those Doritos the dog ate and wondering what I was going to make for dinner. But at Nick’s words I tuned back in.
“Just trying to help out one of my own”… What the heck does he mean by that?

*****

Returning Nick’s truck left Crystal and me without wheels, so Nick offered to drive us back to my place.

“Could you drop me off at Poplar and Taney?” Crystal asked.

At the mention of the street corner I did one of those cartoon “double takes” where the guy’s head swivels around and his eyes almost pop out of his head. Poplar and Taney is one of the worst neighborhoods in the city. Even the vilest criminal offenders won’t travel there alone after dark. I opened my mouth to protest, but Nick cut me a subtle warning look and climbed into the truck.

I got in on the other side and Crystal scrambled in next to me, forcing me to scoot in closer to Nick. My leg brushed up against his, and I felt an immediate surge of warmth spread throughout my belly to the region down below.
Oh boy!

Nick gave my knee a light squeeze. “Everything alright, darlin’?”

“Great!” I squeaked.

The ride to drop Crystal off was quiet. Nick had the windows up and the air on, drowning out the street sounds of a hostile neighborhood. He seemed preoccupied. Crystal sat slumped against the door, eyes closed, her head nodding slightly forward. I stole a glimpse of her as she dozed off. The bruises on her cheeks and neck had taken on a purplish hue, but at least the swelling had subsided. If anyone had ever dared raise a hand to me, my mom would have ripped his head off.
Didn’t Crystal— hell, didn’t all kids deserve that kind of love and attention?

A lump formed in my throat which I quickly squashed down with a handful of Hershey kisses I keep in my bag for emergency situations. Chocolate is a major stress reliever. It’s rich in antioxidants, plus it’s friggin’ delicious!

Crystal woke up when Nick cut the engine in front of an ancient gray brick building. She seemed embarrassed to have fallen asleep.

“Um, thanks for the ride,” she mumbled, opening the car door.

Outside it smelled like a frat house after a toga party. The air reeked of stale beer, month old garbage and fresh vomit.

“Are you sure this is where you want to be dropped off?” I asked. “I mean there doesn’t seem to be all that much going on here. Maybe—”

I felt Nick’s hand on my leg again. If he meant to render me speechless, mission accomplished.

“Crystal, come by the studio tomorrow at around three,” he cut in. “We’ll get you started on some basic training techniques.”

Crystal nodded, grabbed her backpack off the seat and hopped out of the truck. I watched as she rounded the corner of the building. As I glanced down at where she’d been sitting I noticed a small, stuffed bear that had fallen out of a rip on the side of her backpack.

“I’ll be right back,” I said, climbing out of the truck.

I turned the corner and walked down a narrow alley lined with abandoned tenement housing. The alley dead ended at the back wall of an old brick building. I found Crystal seated cross legged on the cement behind a dumpster, inspecting the hole in her backpack. She stood when she saw me, wiping her hands on her jeans. She looked like she’d been crying but I knew better than to mention it.

“You dropped this,” I said, showing her the stuffed bear.

“That’s not mine,” she replied in the belligerent tone I’d come to know and love. “But I guess I could hold onto it for a while.” She grabbed it from my outstretched hand and stuffed it into her back pack.

“Well, I’ll see ya,” I told her, having run out of excuses to stick around.

“Yeah. See ya—oh fucking shit!”

“What’s wrong?”

I turned in the direction of where Crystal was staring. A tall, chunky girl in her early 20’s had appeared out of nowhere and was now heading our way. She was about 5’ 8” with wiry, copper colored hair and arms covered in tattoos. She wore a dirty, gray tank top, shorts and army boots, and had a bow-legged swagger that made her look like Popeye’s twin sister.

“That’s the girl I told you about. Her name’s Bunny. She’s the one who’s been after me. Listen, you should go.”

“Bunny? Seriously?
Boy, is that ever a misnomer.”

Crystal heaved a frustrated sigh and explained. “As in ‘fucks like one.’ Really, just get the hell out of here before there’s trouble.”

The last thing I wanted was to make Crystal’s life harder, so I turned and began walking down the alley, sneaking quick peeks over my shoulder as I moved along.

Crystal didn’t wait for Bunny to approach her. She walked over to the older girl with an air of casual confidence I’d bet money she didn’t feel. Bunny eyed her, carefully.

“So Crystal, who’s the bitch?”
Well, that was uncalled for!

I slowed my pace so I could catch Crystal’s response, but she was speaking so softly it was impossible. So I retraced my steps a bit and leaned against the wall pretending to tie my shoe. I still couldn’t hear anything and when I looked up again, Crystal had disappeared. Street kids seemed to be especially adept at flying under the radar.

Bunny stood at a distance, arms akimbo, glaring at me. She was so mad I could actually feel the heat from her rage wafting toward me.
What the hell did Crystal say to her?

Before I could ponder that question, Bunny caught up to me and sandwiched me between her and the wall. She got up so close I could feel her hot breath on my face. It smelled like kosher pickles and I wondered if there might be a deli nearby.
Oh crap, Brandy, focus!

“Have we met?”

Apparently, Bunny didn’t have an ear for whimsy. I tried to duck out of her grasp, and she grabbed me by the hair, twisting it in her fist.

“Ow. Let go.” I tugged at her hands, but Popeye’s sister must’ve been eating her spinach, because she held on with an iron grip.

“Stay the fuck off from my corner and the fuck away from Crystal. You get up in my fucking face again and I’ll fucking cut you.”

“Wow. Four fucks in one breath. You should really mix it up a little.”

Okay, I should’ve figured Bunny wouldn’t be up for a grammar lesson, but it just slipped out.

She raised a meaty hand, all set to rearrange my face, so I jammed an elbow into hers and ran like hell. The one flaw in my plan was that I’d forgotten to retie my shoe. I got about three feet before I tripped over my shoelace and stumbled head first onto the filthy sidewalk. The palms of my hands stung like crazy, but my chin took the brunt of the fall. Dripping blood, I scrambled to my knees just as Bunny tackled me from behind, sending us both sprawling.