Pretty Dangerous (5 page)

“Oh hell naw.” Jazz burst out laughing.

“Keep your eyes on the road,” Willa said.

“Let’s turn in the car, get checked in and
hear the rest of this story.” Jazz laughed as she pulled to the
rental car parking lot.

Thirty minutes later they had their boarding
passes and sat in the Delta Sky Lounge. With four hours until their
flight, they had time to relax. All three took advantage of the
ladies restrooms that included an attendant. MiMi changed into
comfortable knit leggings, a long tunic and flats. Pulling her hair
into a ponytail, she breathed even easier now. They were actually
closer to being off the ground and away from her nightmare. Once
they got settled with beverages, Jazz grinned at MiMi.

“Spill it all,” she said.

“You would have been proud of me, Jazz. I
cold cocked that heffa with this, and this.” MiMi swung a fist and
then kicked out with her black Ferragamo leather flat. She let out
a genuine laugh for the first time in weeks.

“Oo-wee, I didn’t teach you that.” Jazz took
a drink of beer.

“Nah, my friend Luz and some other girls
showed me how to take care of myself. Of course, I had more
practice than they thought. Those girls in the sororities could get
rowdy, too.” MiMi pointed at Jazz and giggled.

“I thought y’all was all sister love and
stuff.” Jazz sat forward eager to hear more.

“MiMi is exaggerating. We don’t brawl like
street women,” Willa broke in with a scowl. She took a dainty sip
of her wine.

“Sorority girls have issues with each other.
We just don’t air our dirty laundry,” MiMi said.

“My old crew was sorta like that. We settled
out disputes in private. That’s why we got all this killin’. These
street gangstas need to evolve like those old school mafia guys did
back in the day.” Jazz nodded and tossed peanuts in her mouth.

“Really? Comparing sororities to gang
members?” Willa glared at both of them.

“The gangs do charity work, educate their
members, and have their own colors. Just like the cute little Greek
girls.” Jazz winked at MiMi, who giggled even harder.

Willa smacked her lips. “I’m not going to let
y’all push my buttons.”

“Aw c’mon, give us some of that bourgie
outrage,” Jazz said to needle her.

“Yeah, Willa. We like it when you...” MiMi
spotted a figure walking into the lounge. She stood slowly, eyes
narrowed as her gaze fixed on Roderick like lasers from an
automatic weapon. He took off his sunglasses as he looked back at
her.

“Uh-oh,” Jazz whispered. She put down her
frosted mug and stood.

Willa sprang from her seat. “Look, we’re
trying to get out of this country.”

“I’m not going to cause a scene,” MiMi said
softly. She continued to stare at Roderick for a few moments.
Seconds later she sat on the sofa again, picked up her drink, and
sipped.

Willa and Jazz heaved matching sighs of
relief as they joined her. Roderick’s lawyer strolled in. Both men
went to the bar to order drinks. MiMi stared through a large window
that gave them a view of one runway.

“I think you’re showing a lot of maturity,
MiMi. I have to congratulate... No, no. Please don’t come over
here,” Willa whispered.

Roderick walked over to them holding his
drink. His lawyer, Don Estrada, watched from the bar. MiMi gazed at
him with a blank expression. She didn’t have to wonder what she’d
ever seen in him. Six feet one inches in his socks, Roderick had
smooth clear skin the color of almonds. His full lips looked always
moist and utterly kissable. He wore a designer white camp shirt
with sky blue stripes, two hundred dollar blue jeans and tan
leather slip on shoes. Everything about him said he had money. As
he got closer, Roderick smiled. Female heads turned. A few glanced
at MiMi then back at Roderick. MiMi read their thoughts. They were
coming up with ways to pull his attention to them. Roderick had
that effect on women. He’d certainly had that effect on MiMi.

“Afternoon ladies,” Roderick said with a nod
to Willa and Jazz.

“Hello,” Willa murmured. She shot a worried
sideways glance at MiMi.

“Whatever.” Jazz sat back and crossed her
legs.

Roderick merely smiled at her dismissal even
as he gave Jazz’s shapely legs an appreciative scan. Then he
focused on MiMi again. “MiMi, can we talk?”

“Now’s not a good time,” Willa broke in
quickly.

“I don’t want us to go back to the states
enemies.” Roderick sat in a chair close to MiMi, which caused the
other two women to gasp in unison.

“Man, you livin’ dangerously,” Jazz
quipped.

“I’m fine. Give us a moment.” MiMi continued
to gaze at him.

“You sure?” Jazz squinted at Roderick.

“Our conversation will be short,” MiMi
replied and drained her glass.

A waitress came over with another glass on a
tray. She smiled at Roderick briefly before looking at MiMi.
“Another glass of Pinot Noir, ma’am.”

“I knew what you’d be drinking,” Roderick
said.

“He’s got style, gotta give him that.” Jazz
seemed to give him a second look of appraisal.

“Come on,” Willa retorted as she pulled her
sister by the arm.

Roderick gave a short laugh. “Your friends
are very protective. I’m glad you had support through this awful
situation.”

“A situation totally your fault. I bet you
didn’t admit responsibility to your parents or mine. You definitely
didn’t volunteer that little detail to the police or the judge.”
MiMi kept her voice low and calm.

“I explained to the judge that you weren’t
with me when I arrange to meet... my friend,” Roderick replied. He
paused when the waitress brought his bottle of expensive dark beer.
“Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.” The waitress beamed
with pleasure at his attention and left.

MiMi let out a snort at the little tableau of
seduction. “You mean when you met your local drug man. Did you
already know him or did you get the hook up once we arrived?”

Roderick looked around to make sure no one
was close by. Even though they were alone, he still got up and sat
next to MiMi on the sofa. “A couple of buddies introduced us.
Unfortunately, he was being watched by the police.”

“Because of you I may not have a job when I
get home. I have a baby to take care of...” MiMi breathed in and
out to keep from crying.

“I have a lot of connections. You’ll get a
job, maybe even work for me.” Roderick put a hand on MiMi’s
knee.

She shoved it away with a sharp motion. “I’ll
work at the dollar store first. One thing I don’t need is more of
your company.”

“I made a stupid decision. Guess my parents
have been telling me it’s time to settle down with a good woman,
raise a family.” Roderick stretched an arm across the back of the
sofa behind MiMi.

“Yeah, well good luck and God bless on your
search for Ms. Right,” MiMi muttered. She gulped some of the rich
red wine.

Roderick turned slightly toward MiMi, but
didn’t move closer. “I don’t have to search.”

MiMi gagged. “You’ve got to be freaking
kidding me. That greasy charm won’t work, not after this hellish
‘romantic trip’.”

“Honey, come on. One mistake.”

“Don’t you even think about us as a couple.
Ever.” MiMi stood over him, hands on both hips.

Willa and Jazz made it across the room in
record time. Estrada’s long legged stride helped him reach Roderick
and MiMi first. MiMi went into a profanity laced explanation of
what she thought of Roderick. His eyes went wide with shock. Though
MiMi spoke in a low tone, it didn’t lessen the intensity of her
verbal assault.

Willa stepped in front of MiMi. “Okay, chat
time over. Let’s just go our separate ways.”

“I think it’s best to let the lady finish her
drink and calm down, Roderick,” his lawyer added.

“I didn’t know you had such fire,” Roderick
said in a husky voice. His gaze swept over MiMi as he licked his
bottom lip.

“Damn, he’s a freak,” Jazz whispered over
Willa’s shoulder.

Willa got up in Roderick’s face. “Go
away.”

“MiMi, no matter how it looks, I have deep
feelings for you,” Roderick spoke over Willa’s head.

Willa pointed her forefinger at his nose
until her French manicured nail almost touched it. “If you don’t
get your--”

“Cop at three o’clock,” Jazz cut in
sharply.

All of them froze and looked toward the
entrance to the lounge. A tall man the color of brown sugar entered
dressed smartly in a suit. Roderick’s lawyer wore a frown as though
trying to figure out the man’s identity. Willa glanced at MiMi, who
shrugged back at her. The man went to the bar.

“We don’t know he’s a cop. He could be a
business traveler,” MiMi offered.

Jazz turned her back to the man, who now
spoke quietly to the lounge employee. “I have cop radar, and he’s
one. He’s plains clothes, a detective so something serious has gone
down.”

The man nodded to the employee. He walked
over to them, a hand in the inside of his jacket. He led with his
police identification. They were cornered, at least that’s how MiMi
felt.

“Hello, I’m Detective Juan Aguilar. I would
like to talk to Mr. Jefferson and Miss Landry.”

“I’m Mr. Jefferson’s attorney.”

“Senor Estrada, your legal work representing
defendants is well known to us,” Det. Aguilar cut him off.

“Then you know I won’t allow him to answers
questions until we have more information,” Estrada said
smoothly.

“If he has nothing to hide then Mr. Jefferson
should be eager to cooperate,” Det. Aguilar replied mildly. “Miss
Landry, I’ll speak with you first.”

“No, you’ll tell us why you’re here first,”
Willa said.

Det. Aguilar gazed at Willa for a few
seconds. Then he turned to Roderick. “You are friends with Benito
Herrera, yes?”

“Never heard of him,” Roderick said promptly
before Estrada could speak.

“You knew him as Benny, one of the three
aliases he used. He’s the drug dealer who sold you marijuana.” The
detective lifted a dark eyebrow at him and glanced at MiMi.

“Ah.” Roderick shrugged. “Calling him a
friend is a stretch. But yes, we met only once.”

“My client has gone to court and the case is
over, Detective Aguilar. I fail to see why you’re here,” Estrada
put in before Roderick could keep talking. He shot Roderick a look
of warning.

Aguilar noticed with a short grunt. He turned
his attention to MiMi. “How many times did you meet Mr. Herrera, or
Benny, Ms. Landry?”

“I’m not answering anymore questions because
my lawyer isn’t here.” MiMi showed him a look of confidence she
definitely didn’t feel. Her heart thudded so hard she heard blood
rushing through her arteries.

“If this man has gotten into more trouble,
Mr. Jefferson doesn’t know anything about it. My client is a
respected businessman in his country,” Estrada said firmly.

“Yes, a respected business man who likes to
smoke marijuana when he travels to foreign countries,” Det. Aguilar
said dryly.

Estrada drew up to his full five feet eight
inches, looking every bit the outraged attorney. “Unless you have a
reason to delay his departure, Mr. Jefferson will be leaving in
about two hours.”

“Not unless he answers more questions. Same
for you Miss Landry.” Det. Aguilar seemed unimpressed by Estrada’s
performance.

“Then stop playing games. We established in
court that my client doesn’t have information about the drug trade
in Santo Domingo, much less the country,” Estrada snapped, keeping
his voice low.

“This isn’t about petty drug dealing by a
tourist. Herrera is dead, murdered. His body was found on a country
road near Cotui.”

Det. Aguilar scanned their faces for
reactions. He got plenty. They all started talking at once. MiMi
stammered out incoherent sentences. Jazz cursed a few times. Willa
grabbed MiMi and Jazz by the arms as though she needed support.
Roderick stepped back as if he was about to run. Estrada glanced
around at the attention from other travelers in the lounge.

“Please, everyone, calm yourselves. Let’s go
to that table in the corner for more privacy,” Estrada said,
raising his voice to be heard.

“An excellent idea,” the detective said
calmly.

Aguilar strode over to the large round table
without looking to see if they followed, which of course they did.
Once they were all seated, he took out a note pad. He studied it
for a few seconds while they all squirmed.

“Benito Herrera, or Benny, disappeared five
days ago according to his girlfriend.” Det. Aguilar looked at
Roderick. “About the time you were released from jail, Mr.
Jefferson.”

For the first time Roderick lost his cocky
posture. “Now hold up a minute.”

Estrada frowned at Det. Aguilar. “You say
this girlfriend reported him missing. Did she give an exact
date?”

“She hadn’t heard from him in a while, so she
asked some of his friends,” Det. Aguilar replied.

“In other words you don’t know when he
disappeared. He’s a petty street criminal, known for being
transient. And by the way, his chosen profession means he led a
dangerous life. You should be tracking down his drug supplier and
other associates.” Estrada gave him a pointed stare.

“Mr. Jefferson and Ms. Landry are associates,
and we check all leads,” Det. Aguilar replied promptly and pressed
his lips together.

MiMi could tell the detective felt his
advantage had evaporated. Maybe he didn’t count on Roderick’s
lawyer being with him at the airport. Thank heavens for Roderick’s
fiercely protective mother. No doubt his parents had paid Estrada
handsomely to babysit their troublesome son until he was safely out
of the country.

“I appreciate you have to do a difficult job,
Detective Aguilar. But my connection to Mr. Herrera is
non-existent. Believe me, once I was arrested, the last person I
wanted to see was him.”