Page 69 of Justice Delayed

Melender pulled into the parking lot at work. At least her cleaning clients didn’t require a lot of brain power, so she’d have plenty of time to think through the possibilities. Hurrying toward the office, she passed the alcove that housed the dumpsters and recycle bins for the building. A man stepped out of the shadows and into her path, his stance taut.

Menace poured off of him like he’d put on too much cologne. With her chin high, she moved to the left to let the man pass. As she’d anticipated, he moved with her, and from the corner of her eye, she spotted a second figure slip into place behind her. Praying for safety, she tamped down the fear threatening to incapacitate her as similar scenes enacted in the prison yard flashed in her mind.

She looked the man in front of her straight in the eye. “What do you want?” Her voice came out strong and steady, despite the hard rock in the pit of her stomach.

“You’re stirring up trouble where you shouldn’t be.” The man spoke causally, but Melender picked up on the iron behind the words. “You didn’t heed my warning.”

“So you’re the person who called to warn me?” The best defense was to go on the offensive. “Who are you working for?”

The man chuckled, the sound worming under her composure, but she held onto her calm front. “You have spunk. I like the spunky ones. It’s so much more satisfying when they finally crack.”

The words should have scared her, but anger overrode her fear. For her entire adult life, someone had told her what to do and when to do it. Her tired body tensed as anger loosened her tongue. “They say it’s important to enjoy your work.”

Surprise flickered in the man’s dark eyes. Before he could speak, Melender sidestepped him. His accomplice grabbed her arm, whirled her around, and slammed her body into the brick wall of the building. He shoved Melender’s head against the unyielding surface, scraping her right cheek along the spiky bricks. Fiery pain radiated throughout her entire being as her assailant kept her immobile.

“You will cease and desist in this Quixote quest to clear your name,” the first man hissed in her ear.

The man’s literary reference triggered a long-ago memory, but his accomplice smashed her head even harder against the brick, driving the thought far away.

“Do you understand me?”

Before Melender could reply, someone shouted, “Hey! What’s going on over there?”

The pressure suddenly lifted, and she sagged to the ground like a deflating balloon. A second later, someone touched her arm. “Mel, are you okay?”

Melender raised her head to see Yancy Simmons, one of her co-workers, gazing down with concern stamped on her face. “I think so. Are they gone?”

“Yeah. Tamika’s calling 911.” Yancy reached into her backpack and pulled out a folded bandana. “Here, your cheek’s bleeding.”

Melender pressed the cloth to her face. “Thank you.”

“Good thing I came along when I did.” Yancy squatted beside her, her warm brown eyes filled with compassion.

“I’m thankful you did too.” The man’s words ran in a loop in her brain.You didn’t heed the warning. Cease and desist. You didn’t heed the warning.Warning. Melender scrambled for her bag, then plunged her free hand inside to find her phone.

“What happened?” Yancy asked.

“I’m not sure.” With one hand still pressing the bandana to her cheek, Melender thumbed up her contacts list. “Would you let Janet know I won’t be able to take my shift tonight? I need to check on someone first.”

“Sure, I’ll let her know right away.” Yancy rose and moved away to call their boss as sirens wailed in the distance.

Melender called Brogan’s number and lifted the phone to her ear.Please, let him pick up.

One ring, then two.

Pick up, Brogan!

The call rolled to voice mail. “Brogan, it’s Melender. Please get back to me as soon as you get this message. It’s urgent.” She disconnected as a police cruiser parked near the alcove.

Yancy leaned down. “The police are here. Tamika asked for an ambulance too. I think that cut might need stitches.”

Melender had pushed thoughts about her cheek to the side in her frenzy to warn Brogan, but now she realized the cloth was sticky with blood. Dizziness swept over her. With her eyes closed, she leaned her head against the brick until the world righted itself.

“Miss?”

Melender met the gaze of Officer Gutierrez, the cop who’d come to her apartment last week following up on an alleged nuisance call. Great. That meant his partner, Officer Jones, would be here too. She had no desire to relate her story to Jones, who clearly had something against her for being an ex-con.

“Officer Gutierrez.” She craned her neck to see around the cop’s legs, not wanting to encounter Jones quite yet.

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