Topaz didn’t restrain her tears. “God, Mommy, I hope so.”
Patra set her mug aside and leaned over to grasp her daughter’s hands. “Sweetheart, have you thought that maybe he doesn’t think you’ll feel the same about him after he tells you?”
Topaz shook her head. “No,” she denied amid the sniffles. “Nothing could change how I feel. I know that.”
Patra’s expressive, almond-shaped eyes narrowed as she cupped Topaz’s cheek. “You love him, don’t you?”
Topaz nodded. “So much.”
Alex lounged in his home den. The house was silent—he wanted nothing to distract him as he pondered the decision he had to make. In his hand, he held a vial of pills—the prescription from his therapist. Silently, he read the label: Take one pill per day following meal. Hmph, may cause passive, punkish tendencies to arise, he added with a cynical smirk.
His stare narrowed as he thought of Topaz. She wanted to be with him in spite of everything he’d said and done to keep her away. She was so very special and he knew she’d stand by him at any cost.
“But these pills will keep me sane,” he said. Sane, but dead inside, a silent voice added.
The phone rang, its shrill sound breaking his train of thought. He welcomed the interruption.
“Alex Rice,” he curtly greeted.
The voice on the other end of the line seemed laced with humor. “Alex Rice, Calvin Fines.”
Alex’s hand clenched reflexively around the pill bottle. Of course, he would have recognized the man’s voice even if he hadn’t offered the name. His suspicion mounted quickly and steadily.
“So how are things down there in N.C.?”
“Good.”
“Paper doin’ well?”
“Very well.”
“So I hear.”
“So why don’t you tell me what’s goin’ on?” Alex requested, losing his patience for small talk. He could hear Calvin Fines chuckle on the other end of the line.
“Man, you ain’t changed a bit. You still all business.”
“And this call is about business, right?”
“It is. We have a situation I’d like you to handle. You’re the only one we trust with this.”
“Why?”
“Well, we know you tryin’ to go to the straight and narrow these days, but I had to try. Besides the fact that you live in the vicinity, we don’t need a softie on this.”
“What you mean, livin’ in the vicinity?”
“The job we want you to handle. The target lives in Charlotte.”
“Charlotte?”
“Yeah. It’s a woman and she’s a real dime. A lesser man could be persuaded not to carry out his duties.”
Alex straightened in his chair, his heart beginning to race as his breathing grew labored. “What’s this about, C.? he asked, his hands shaking as the man explained what Alex already knew.
“Anyway, it needs to be done before they complete the sale. If she’s killed, it’ll persuade the others to sell. It’s a moot point to kill her afterward. Besides, killin’ a woman would show these country niggas we mean business.”
Alex felt nauseated inside and regretted the fact that Calvin had always trusted him so. The man’s unnerving calm as he discussed ending Topaz Emerson’s life filled Alex with a murderous rage.
“Lex? You there, man?”
“Yeah, yeah, C., but I’m afraid I’m gonna have to turn this down. I’m handlin’ somethin’ in the Caribbean. Payment’s already changed hands, you know the drill.”
“Yeah ...damn. I really wanted you on this. But hell, everybody knows you the best. I just caught you too late.”
“Sorry, man.”
“Screw it. Handle your business, brother. I’ll holla.”
“Mmm-hmm,” Alex muttered, setting the phone aside. Then, slowly, he leaned close to the end table and extracted a tape from the answering machine that had recorded the conversation. He stared at the tiny cassette, then put it on the table. Focusing on the pill bottle, he grimaced and shook one tablet into his palm.
FOURTEEN
Topaz had been visiting with her parents for two weeks. The time away had given her the chance to rest and think. She realized that she was ready to let go of the garage and start fresh elsewhere. She thought about how crazy the last several months had been. She didn’t want to deem herself a quitter, but she’d had enough. Besides, throwing a huge wrench into the plans of their mysterious buyer was consolation enough, she thought.
Then, there was the matter regarding Alexander Rice. Topaz recalled the conversation with her mother. Patra Emerson had asked her daughter if she thought Alex would think she wouldn’t feel the same about him if he told her everything. Hearing that said made Topaz feel, for the first time, that Alex’s ghosts were truly eerie.
