Page 104 of Into the Blue
Crossing my arms, I say, “Lying by omission is still a lie. I can’t trust her.”
“Have you considered that she needed to protect herself too? You fuckin’—” He looks around. “You fucking kidnapped her after she showed up that night and were actin’ crazy caveman protective about her. Like a fuckin’ Neanderthal! She did what she had to. If she still managed to hand you your ass, then you need to ally with her instead of fightin’ her.” He stabs a finger into the tabletop, making his point. “She could clearly sweep us off the map if she wanted to. But she doesn’t. Why do you think that is?”
I grind my teeth, hating every bit of sense he’s making. “I don’t know, but I can’t trust it. I should have killed her.”
He scoffs. “Yea right. We both know you couldn’t.”
“Fuck.”
His smirkis too jovial for his circumstances. “Gotta admit she is a far better partner than Senior or Junior. And it sounds like Senior is leavin’ it up to her anyway.”
I narrow my eyes on him. “When the fuck did you talk to her?”
Casually, he responds, “A couple of days before I popped Junior. Call a spade, a spade. You’re pissed that you fell for the jawn and she still has your heart. Probably more so now. What’s so bad about that?”
Gritting my teeth, I ask, “Did you miss that bit earlier about trust?”
“She offered you a fair deal.”
I squint at his observation. “How much did y’all talk?”
“A fair bit. She’s bad, man. That’s no lie. I wouldn’t have taken that shot just to spite you.” He sucks his teeth. “It’s a good deal.”
I put my face in my hands, rubbing my eyes with the heels of my palms. “I’m not convinced. It’s a gamble and I fuckin’ hate gamblin’.”
“You get the girl and you get the business back? Seems like a two birds, one stone kind of thing.” He waits for me to look up at him again. “That’s good business.”
It’s a stark contrast in the cutesy building I’m pulling up to the place that’s keeping my best friend. It’s been a while since I talked to her and I have to admit that I want to see a familiar face that has nothing to do with Dupont.
“Damn, you look like hell,” Steph comments when she sees me walking through the front door of her office building. The tiny receptionist that is supposed to greet me has been too scared to actually do such whenever I show up.
Steph gives Allison a smile on my behalf and we head back to her office.
“You know, I do have a home. You could come by and see me there.”
“Too risky,” I respond. The last thing I wanted was to get her involved in a capacity like that. Who knows which of my movements were benigntracked. She is my agent, after all. This could still be considered a business meeting.
She rolls her eyes. “Fucking Duponts. You both are a piece of work.”
“Trouble in paradise?” I ask, looking around her office. She’s got pictures of all her clients cutting ribbons in front of their new businesses and properties. There’s several awards on the walls, too. It’s clean and organized. And I catch a hint of whatever the smell is that Redd seems to be obsessed with. It’s coming from a small teardrop looking vase. The steam flowing into the air on a constant stream.
Her head tilts to the side and she slowly says. “We’ve been broken up for months, Blue. What are you talking about?”
“Oh,” is all I can manage. “Guess I’m out of the loop.”
“I’ll say. You’ve been out of everything for months. Ever heard of a phone?”
“Had a lot of shit on my plate. My mind’s been preoccupied keeping the business afloat.”
“Trouble in paradise?” She parrots back to me.
“Yea,” is all I say. “That would be one way to put it.”
She checks her watch then clicks on her computer a few times. “Well, I’ve got time.”
After a long sigh, I tell her everything. Nothing incriminating, but everything about Racquelle. How we first met, protecting her and then her staying at the house. I recognize that those months where I had her in my house weren’t conventional, but in this retelling to Steph, I leave out the part about her not leaving. Then finally, I tell her about the ultimatum that Racquelle gave me.
She listens patiently, waiting for me to give her all the details. I realize that I haven’t actually talked to anyone about her. Not like this.
