wilted streets: a novella & stories Read online

  towels and my old robe to put on. She began to

  undress while I stood there as if she were in a fog

  and I wasn’t there. Either that or she had no

  modesty. She was as beautiful naked as she was

  in her clothes. Her body was like an Olympic

  statue. She climbed in the shower and I took her

  clothes. I stripped my clothes off and put

  everything in the washing machine except her blazer which was linen and now a total ruin. I threw in some detergent and started the machine. I’m glad it was summer. In the winter I could not run the washer and the shower at the same time because the washer took all the hot water. In the summer the water was so warm that it didn’t matter. From June to October we

  had no cold or even cool water in Scottsdale. I knocked on the bathroom door. “Roxanne,

  if you need shampoo I have some under the sink

  in the cabinet. I got no reply and began to worry.

  I opened the door a crack and saw her huddled

  in the tub hugging her knees.

  “Roxanne, are you OK?” I got no answer. I

  knelt beside the tub. “It’s going to be fine, Doc.

  We have to stay strong, we’ll get help.”

  She lifted her head. Her eyes were all red and

  yet she was still stunning. “Oh Billy, I’m so

  scared. What are we going to do?”

  “Well how about if I shampoo the blood from

  your hair and get you out of the tub so I can get

  in.” I smiled at her. I tried to be reassuring but I

  was in as big a state of anxiety as her. I had never

  been in such an intimate situation with someone

  who, despite what we had been through, was still

  almost a complete stranger.

  She looked up at me and smiled. “I can’t

  believe that I am sitting naked in a suspect’s

  bathtub having this conversation. It is also

  obvious that you know nothing about black hair care. Now turn around while I get out of this

  tub.”

  As silly as it seemed at this point I did as she

  asked but could see her muscular body as she

  stepped out of the tub. She looked more like an

  athlete than a psychiatrist.

  “Man, you are in great shape. You must work

  out a lot.”

  “It’s dance, Billy. I have always danced; both

  ballet and modern. Some of my girlfriends call

  me Rocky.”

  She slipped into my robe and stared at

  herself in the mirror. “God, I look like shit. I need

  something to calm me down and teaching always

  helps me focus. Pay attention and let me give you

  a short tutorial about the care and maintenance

  of a black woman’s hair. I have what is known

  as relaxed hair. In other words it is straightened.

  When we got in that trough the water caused the

  oils to wash out and it returned to its natural

  curly state. Black folks hair is much dryer than

  whites because the oils don’t get all the way to

  the hair ends due to the curls and tightness. I

  only wash my hair once or twice a week and then

  it is mostly to keep the scalp clean.” She reached

  into her pack and pulled out a wide-toothed

  comb.

  “I have to comb it while it is wet. See how

  easy my comb goes through it? Then I have to

  put on a conditioner that stays there. I use a special oil I get from Morocco. When my hair is dry I can then brush it out and the relaxed look will return. At night, when I sleep or sit around the house I keep a silk scarf on so the hair’s oil won’t rub off. If it does then my hair will begin to

  fray and break.”

  She began to massage oil into her hair from a

  strange looking bottle. I watched her in

  fascination. I felt almost as if I were on an acid

  trip. In the middle of this surreal drama I was

  now getting schooled in hair care.

  “Jesus, I never knew that it took so much

  effort just to manage ones hair. I’m glad I’m a

  man and have to do almost nothing.”

  “Well the showers all yours. I’m going to see

  if you have anything to eat; I’m starving. Can you

  leave the door open? I’ll feel safer that way.” “Sure, Roxanne, that won’t be a problem.” I got in the shower and scrubbed myself as

  hard as I could. It felt great to finally get clean. I

  got dressed and entered my little kitchen to the

  smell of baking eggs and brewing coffee.

  “Gee, that smells good. I’m surprised you

  found anything to make.”

  “It’s just a cheese and chive omelet. There’s

  toast on the table.”

  “Hey Roxanne, you wan’t to move in; I could

  get used to this.”

  “I don’t think that will be happening anytime

  soon. Let’s eat and then we have to try and figure out what our next move is. I have client appointments set up for next week. Jesus, I have a life and a career and a home. Why is this happening? What in the hell are we going to

  do?”

  She sat down at my small table and a shudder

  went through her body. I felt the same way. I

  had no idea how much longer we could stay in

  my apartment. I had no idea if they, whoever

  they were, knew where I lived. After we ate I

  tried calling Ridley again. He was still out of the

  office so I called his cell. He answered but before

  I could say anything he told me to shut up. He

  said he would be at my place in an hour. He told

  me to not answer the phone and to not open the

  door to anyone but him.

  While we waited Roxanne dried her clothes

  and got dressed. Everything was wrinkled but at

  least she was clean. Her blazer was a total loss.

  In the meantime I started packing and retrieving

  my weapons. Despite what I had told the ATF

  agents, I was very well armed. I had a snubnosed .38 and a Glock 19 with three 17 round

  magazines. I also had a hammerless .22

  Airweight that held 8 rounds. I put the .22 into

  its ankle holster and strapped it on. The Glock I

  put into a waist holster and clipped it to my belt.

  The .38 I slipped into a shoulder bag.

  “Billy, why do you have all these weapons? I

  thought you were a writer.”

  “I am but I sort of collected these pieces over

  the years. I grew up around guns. My father was

  a career officer in the Army. I thought of getting

  rid of them because I don’t have anything

  showing legal ownership but now I’m glad I kept

  them. Who knows who or what is after us.” I went into my bedroom closet and removed

  the false wall panel in the back. I had my

  passport, some cash and a lot of ammo there for

  my weapons. I brought everything out to the

  table and began filling all the magazines I had for

  the Glock.

  Roxanne whistled at me. “That is a lot of

  firepower, Billy. Just who are you planning on

  shooting?”

  “Anyone that looks threatening. After what

  we went through today I’m trusting no one.” Someone began knocking at my door.

  Roxanne jumped out of her chair. I got up with

  the Glock in my hand. I racked the slide and put

  my finger to my lips signaling Roxanne to remain

  quiet.
I went to the door and peeked through the

  spy hole. It was Annie from down the hall. “I know you’re in there, Billy; open the door.

  Come on, I am not going away.”

  She kept pounding on the door. I did not

  want anyone else sticking their nose in this so I

  opened up. I pulled her inside and shut the door

  quickly.

  “Jesus Billy, what the hell is….”

  She saw Roxanne standing in the living room

  and then turned to me. Again I put my finger to

  my lips and shooed them both into the bedroom. “Listen to me Annie. We are in a lot of

  trouble here. I am waiting for Ridley but I do not

  think you want to be involved in this. Go home

  and just don’t say anything. I have a feeling this

  place will be flooded with cops or ATF agents

  real soon.”

  “What are you guys into? Talk to me Billy.

  Maybe I can help. Why are you carrying a Glock?

  And who is this lady?”

  I introduced them to each other. Before I

  could push her out of the apartment, the buzzer

  went off 3 times and then, after a short pause, it

  rang again. That was Ridley’s signal. I ran and

  pressed the door release and waited for him to

  reach the door. When I peeked through eyehole

  and made sure it was him and that he was alone I

  opened the door. He knew Annie and Roxanne

  introduced herself. He looked at her and shook

  his head. “This whole scenario is getting to be a

  Hitchcock movie, even down to the pretty female

  leads. Christ Billy, you have involved me in some

  pretty odd shit but this one takes the cake. Do

  either of you have any idea what the hell is going

  on? We are all in deep shit just standing here. I

  need to hear everything that has happened, in

  detail, but I don’t think it is safe to be here.” “Come to my place,” Said Annie.

  “Well that’s better than being here.” Ridley

  grabbed his case and went for the door. I

  gathered up my weapons, a jacket and hat, and

  threw them in a bag. I also took my suitcase that

  had some clothes and my manuscript. Roxanne

  grabbed her pack and we left.

  77

  CHAPTER NINE We ran down the hallway to Annie’s apartment. Once we were inside I again told Annie that she had no business being involved. She insisted that she was my friend and wanted to help. I threw up my hands and Ridley told everyone to be quiet. He said we only had so much time and he wanted all the facts before he risked his license for harboring a fugitive.

  Roxanne and I told him in detail what had transpired since I left my place with the two agents. He asked both Roxanne and I detailed questions. He took notes while Annie sat with her eyes wide open in disbelief.

  Annie stood up. “Holy shit, now I know why you’re carrying the arsenal. Excuse me a minute.” She turned and left the room.

  “I don’t have to tell you two what trouble you are in. If this plot of the ATF’s or whoever and the people involved in it could find you out in Eloy then finding you here is a given. Even if this Agent Johnson was in cahoots with them you both are now a major problem. I can only advise you both to turn yourselves in to the local cops or the FBI. I would not go to the ATF because we

  78

  have no idea who else may be involved in this.” The three of us turned as Annie came out of her bedroom in fatigues, combat boots, an armored vest and carrying an M-16. She also had a Beretta in a shoulder holster and an ammo bag slung over one shoulder. She looked ready for combat.

  I smiled in spite of the situation. “Jesus Annie, you look like a G.I. Joe doll. What the hell are you doing?”

  “I know this may come as a surprise to you both but I was in the Marines for 4 years and was a combat helicopter pilot in Iraq and Afghanistan. I also spent 2 months in a forward fire post. I know what I’m doing.”

  “No you do not.” Said Roxanne. “Are all of you crazy? I am a consultant for the ATF. I am a doctor. Do you two think you are going to have a gun battle with agents of the government? We have to inform the police or as your lawyer suggested, the FBI. We cannot try to run. Where would we go? Who are we running from?”

  She turned to Ridley. “And you are an officer of the court. Why are you even here? We are all in danger. I still am having trouble processing what happened this morning. I watched four men die and had parts of them splattered all over me. I held a federal agent in my arms while he bled out and I could do nothing. This is a living nightmare and you two seem to want to play Rambo. I’m getting out of here and going to the nearest police station. There has to be some explanation why this is happening. We are witnesses to murder and you did the murdering Billy.”

  “Murder? I saved our lives; don’t forget that. And you want to go to the police. The only thing they will do is turn us over to the ATF. You said the agents were dirty. Have you forgotten what you told me; about all the procedural problems? I can only believe that the agents, or at least one of them, are in with whoever I ran into that night. You said that under hypnosis I identified some of the people at that party. Who are they? Do you have names for any of them? Maybe that will give us a clue as to who they are.”

  I reached for Roxanne’s backpack but she snatched it away. She sat at a small table in the corner and began fishing out notes and documents. She spread out a series of photos. The faces were definitely not Mexican. The people looked sort of Eastern European or maybe Italian. She turned the pictures over but they had no names or any writing on them at all.

  “Well,” she said. “This is no help. You said you recognized these three men.” She placed three of the pictures in a row. “When I showed Agent Johnson the three faces you picked out he seemed to get really agitated. I assumed that was because he knew them from his investigation. I did think it strange at the time that he shut the file and did not say anything to Breck. I was missing stuff left and right but hell, I’m a doctor. How could I suspect the agents? I just thought this was some hush-hush deal, I kept thinking I was being paranoid and that it was really none of my business.”

  She fell into a chair and put her head in her hands. “Jesus, I’m scared. What are we going to do? Now you have me afraid to go to the police.”

  I turned to Ridley. He just said once again that we should turn ourselves in to some authority.

  “I have nothing else to tell you. I’m sorry I came here. I can’t help you anymore Billy. If you want I can call the FBI and be here when they come so I can see what I can do for you but you two have to make a decision. I have to get out of here. This is no position for me to be found in. I don’t want to lose my license; then I can’t help anyone.”

  Roxanne and I looked at each other. I had no idea which way to go. I did not trust the feds but what else could I do. I had no idea who was after us or if there even was anyone after us. Maybe they just wanted the agents.

  Annie spoke up. “Well whatever you decide I don’t think we should be hanging around here. Let’s get my car and find somewhere to hide until we can figure this out.”

  Ridley grabbed his briefcase and headed for the door. “You figure it out. I’m getting out of here. If you turn yourself in or get picked up you know where to find me. I know some really good criminal lawyers. And remember; I was never here.”

  He bowed to Roxanne and waved to Annie. He went to the door and slammed it behind him. I checked the peephole and watched him head down the hall to the fire exit. He knew better than to take the elevator where he might be seen.

  The three of us stood in the middle of the room trying to figure out our next move. We were at an impasse when Annie held her finger to her mouth. She went to the door and peeked through the peephole. I wondered if it was
Ridley returning.

  “There are 3 guys in front of your door, Billy.” I rushed to her side and took a look. Two of the guys were kneeling in front of my door lock. The third was standing sideways. He was holding a pistol in his hand. All three were

  dressed in blue coveralls as if they were some sort of maintenance crew. The man with the gun turned to look back down the hall. I recognized him as one of the men in the photos Roxanne had shown me.

  “Shit, I think it’s the 3 guys I identified from your pictures, Roxanne. I think they are trying to break into my place. One of them has a gun. Fuck, what should we do?”

  “Only one thing to do,” said Annie. “You’re going to open the door from on high. You cover me when the door swings open. I hope you can handle that Glock.”

  She turned to Roxanne. “Doc, get in the bathroom and close the door. Get in the tub and scrunch down. You’ll be safe.”

  Roxanne looked at her with the look of a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming truck. Annie frantically waved at her and she moved to the bathroom and closed the door.

  I peeked through the peephole once again. They seemed to be having trouble opening my door. I waved Annie forward. “I just hope everyone in the building is at work. Shooting in here will wake the dead.”

  Annie pulled out her Beretta. She waved it in front of me so that I could see it was fitted with a sound-suppressor. I nodded and took the doorknob in my hand. I swung the door open. She knelt while I stepped behind her.

  “Hey assholes; what’s going on?” she yelled. The man holding the gun spun towards the sound of her voice and brought his gun up as Annie put a slug into his forehead. Instantly and with barley a sound, a red rose blossomed above his eyes as brain matter splattered out the back of his head. The other two quickly stood up. One of then threw his hands in the air as his dead friend slid down against his legs. The other man brought up a shotgun he had been carrying in a sling. Annie shot him. She put two rounds into his chest and a third blew his face apart as he started to crumple. Jesus, she was deadly with that 9 mm. The noise from the gunfire was no louder than a dart hitting the bull’s-eye of a dartboard. He hit the floor with a loud thud and a soft moan. No doors opened so I guessed no one was home.

  We rushed down the hall. I told the man with his hands in the air to get down on his stomach. He dropped to his knees and was then face down in the blood and brains of his partners. Annie tied his hands with plastic handcuffs. I don’t know where she got all this stuff but I’m glad she had it. Roxanne was now standing in the doorway with a horrified look on her face. This was turning into a day of blood and carnage. We gathered up all the weapons and emptied the dead men’s pockets. I got the live one up and herded him into Annie’s apartment. She followed behind me with her gun sweeping the hallway. She came inside behind me. Her face was flush but she was smiling.