Page 21 of Joker's Ghost
We stare at each other, and I can tell the old man is holding back, but I don’t question him because I really didn’t wanna know what’s spinning around in his brain.
“Hate to say it, but the Shoshones have a sixth sense that exceeds anything in this world.”
“I was afraid you were gonna say something like that.”
“Hey, what the fuck do I know, right?” Gus pushes out of the chair. “You probably got nothing to worry about.”
He strides back into the garage and the word “probably” sticks in my brain like a thorn.
Before I leave the garage, I find Derek. He straightens from the Honda he’s working on and stares at me. “You all right?”
“Not a word of what happened today to Mom, understand?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“It’s not like I’m keeping shit from her, but she doesn’t need anything else to worry about with the baby coming and all.”
“I get it.” Derek nods, but I sense even he knows I’m a little edgy.
Fuck, a little edgy, I’m so far gone, I’m over the edge.
I leave the garage with a pounding headache and an ache in my stomach like someone is having a barbecue in my gut. It doesn’t help when I enter the condo and Daisy is frying chicken. It’s usually my favorite, but the smell of the oil turns my already tender stomach.
“Hey,” she moves from the stove, “I’m making your favorite.”
I nod and, of course, she picks up on my lack of enthusiasm.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing.” Except almost getting creamed by a lift today because some ancient shaman put a curse on me.
She kisses me and returns to the stove. “The party for the kids today was a huge success. Deana had so much fun. They all got to paint and carve pumpkins and eat tons of junk. Win-win. Which brings me to Derek. He wanted to state his case to me one more time for coming to the club party tonight.”
The kid is smart. He knows Daisy is more lenient than me, but this time it isn’t gonna work. “I already told him no more than once.”
“I know, but he is nineteen.” She gets a devilish gleam in her eyes. “Just think what we were up to at that age?”
“I’d rather not.”
“I was running cons in South Beach for the cartel. You were a father and the VP of one of the most notorious clubs on the East Coast.”
“Don’t remind me.”
Memories come flooding back of my first wife Desiree and us being teen parents. It wasn’t easy, but somehow we made it work until an old grudge resurfaced with a rival club, resulting in Desiree’s kidnapping and rape. When I finally got her back, she was damaged beyond repair, and three weeks later, she took her own life.
Her death tore me apart, and from then on, I becamefather and mother to Derek, swearing at Desiree’s gravesite that the kid would have the best life possible.
“Of course, I told him you had the final decision, but we don’t want to shield him too much either.”
“Maybe next year,” I placate because, although Daisy and Derek don’t share blood, they are both relentless when they get something in their brain.
“Come into the bedroom; I want to show you something.” Daisy grabs my hand, and I go willingly.
“I like the way that sounds.” I throw her a smirky grin. “Just what I need after a fucked-up day.”
I maneuver us to the bed and stop because it’s piled with clothes. Vintage clothes, and my stomach twists.
“I want to show you what we’re going to wear tonight.” She sorts through the jumble of clothing strewn across the bed.
