Good Woman Blues (2 page)

“I’ll help.”

“I’ve got a grand total of four outfits. I
can handle it.” Erikka went through the open door of their room.
The second single bed was hers.

“I know, I know. Look, I’m sorry about being
such a smart-ass.” Terri sat in a chair and pulled her knees up. “I
get that way when I’m upset.”

Erikka stopped piling her few belongings on
the bed and turned around. Terri stared at the wall instead of
looking at Erikka. Her pale complexion flushed pink, a sign she was
dejected.

“Hey, I’m going to miss you. Not even my baby
sister can get on my nerves as well as you. I have to admire that.”
Erikka walked over and sat on the arm of the chair.

Terri sniffed a few times, and then grinned.
She fished a tissue from the pocket of her designer jeans and
dabbed her nose. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. You’re going to be okay.
Right?” “Sure I will.” Terri’s grin faded.

Erikka gave her a quick hug. “Who’s the best
butt- whuppin’ defense attorney on the East Bank of New Orleans,
huh?”

“I give up. Who?” Terri said softly.

“Listen here, we are not going to sit on the
pity pot today.” When Terri didn’t respond, Erikka squeezed her
shoulder. “You can turn it around, sugar. I know you can.” “Going
into the hospital has been my crutch to avoid facing life,” Terri
said.

“That’s real insight. Those first few days we
had some deep conversations. You gave me a lot more than advice. I
appreciate it.”

“Thanks. People always say they’re going to
stay in touch, but— Really, let’s get together sometime. For lunch
or something.” Terri looked at her.

“No doubt.” Erikka stood.

“God, we’re getting way too mushy.” Terri
stood, too. “We’ll celebrate getting out of this expensive snake
pit. Drinks on the house.”

‘Terri.” Erikka cut a glance at her as she
folded her nightgown neatly.

“Iced tea. I’m talking about iced tea. C’mon,
we get our noon gruel in about twenty minutes. Until then I’ll
humiliate you one more time in a game of Uno.” Terri gestured for
her to follow.

“I’m going to miss the good times in here.”
Erikka dropped the blouse in her hand. “Only twelve more hours of
nonstop thrills.”

“You can always stick around,” Terri said.
Her cool green eyes twinkled. “I can show you how to freak out.
I’ve had a lot of practice.”

Erikka shivered. At eight o’clock sharp she’d
go back to her world. Even though anxiety competed with
anticipation Erikka wouldn’t look back, at the hospital or the
mistakes she had made. Moving forward was her main goal. She needed
to sort through her options. Maybe the peace and quiet of the
country would bring everything into focus.

“No, thanks. I’ve had enough of Hotel Hell,”
Erikka said. “Me, too. I’m not coming back. But then, I’ve said
that before.” Terri let out a high-pitched laugh.

Lord, have mercy. Erikka made a U-turn in the
opposite direction. “Catch you in a minute.”

“What the— Where in hell you going now?”
Terri called after her, hands on her narrow hips.

“One last therapeutic chitchat with the
social worker for good luck,” Erikka replied.

“Think their psychobabble crap will help,
huh? Good luck.” Terri snorted to punctuate her opinion.

Erikka turned around. “Beats plowing my car
into the wall of a Winn-Dixie store again. That sure as hell didn’t
do much for me. Not to mention how it screwed up my social
calendar.”

Chapter 1

Seven Days later that first burst of joy from
being out of the hospital was already gone. Erikka rocked the chair
back, balanced on her toes to keep it tilted, and stared at the
sky. Life definitely moved slowly in Iberia Parish. The scenery was
much the same as when she’d spent summers there as a child. The
swhish of cars passing by didn’t disturb the pastoral setting.
Thick bushes that sprouted aggressively in the sticky subtropical
climate muted mechanical noise. Grass grew by inches overnight.
Each breeze carried the scent of green leaves and sticky sweet
camellias, gardenias, and honeysuckle. When darkness came crickets
chirped so loud Erikka imagined them to be the size of compact
cars. They lulled her to sleep the first night. Maybe the contrast
to insane women weeping and moaning explained why monster insects
didn’t faze her. Erikka stretched out her arms and legs, letting
the chair sway with the movement. She waved to a man passing by in
a dusty blue pickup truck. Leon? No, that was Leroy. Hell, they
were all either Leon or Leroy around here. Same difference, she
thought, and went back to staring at the interesting way muggy wind
moved wild grass back and forth. She’d been at Aunt Darlene’s one
whole week, and the secret to lasting happiness had not popped out
of the swamp yet. So much for the mystical powers of the bayou
country, she mused. Where was a good voodoo queen when you needed
her? Still, there was something to be said for being far away from
the scene of your crimes. She’d come 130 miles from New Orleans to
Loreauville. That kind of distance had definitely given her a
different perspective. The downside was too much thinking.

Erikka did not remember much about the night
she’d crashed her car. What she did remember were the days that led
up to it. Now that she had insight, Erikka wasn’t sure what to do
with it. She wanted more in her life than chasing success, another
hard-bodied man in her bed, or one more party with the best wine
and food money could buy. Nothing she’d tried filled her. More of
what was the question. Her head hurt every time she tried to grab
hold of the answer. She adjusted the dark sunglasses she wore even
on cloudy days. Protection; the wide frames hid some of the scars
from broken windshield glass. At least Erikka liked to think they
did.

“How you doin’ out here?” Her aunt Darlene
let the screen door bump shut. She put both hands on her generous
size-twelve hips.

Erikka looked up at her. “Good.”

“Your cousins Sharia and Joy want to visit
again tomorrow,” Darlene said.

‘Tell them I won’t be here.” Erikka glanced
at Darlene.

“I’m not going to lie.” Darlene pursed her
lips.

“You won’t be lying. If those two come, I’m
heading out.” Erikka hissed out air. “You know how they are. They
just want to get up in my business. Gossips. They only came last
week to get all the dirty details.”

“Maybe you’re right. Still, they’re
family.”

Darlene dragged a chair closer to her and sat
down. Her forty-four-year-old aunt looked thirty-five. All of her
five nieces and six nephews called her Darlene. She crossed her
showgirl legs and carefully arranged the skirt of her sundress.
More men waved. Pickup trucks didn’t zip by quite as fast if males
were at the wheel. Looking young and fine was the curse of women in
their family; at least that was what Erikka’s grandfather, Paw Paw
Jules, always said. No more worries about that for her, Erikka
mused, and touched her face. To avoid the painful puzzle of her own
life, Erikka decided to explore Darlene’s.

“It’s Friday night, and you’ve been
babysitting me for days. Go out on a date like usual or something.”
Erikka hoped her subtle probe would strike pay dirt. It didn’t.

A nice-looking man with gray hair pulled up.
The polished surface of his late-model red Lincoln Town Car
sparkled. He flashed a wide grin that just barely included Erikka.
“Afternoon, ma’am. How you doin’, Darlene?”

“Fine, and you, Harry?” Darlene’s tone said
her question was asked out of politeness.

“Real good. See ya later.” His glance slipped
down to Darlene’s bare legs as he drove off.

“You sit out here all day like that, the
sheriff is going to declare you a traffic hazard.” Erikka waved a
hand at Darlene’s shapely legs.

“Smart-ass.”

“Inherited it from you,” Erikka tossed
back.

“You’re not doing too bad. That was sure nice
of your boyfriend to send flowers.” Darlene gestured toward the
inside of the house. A vase of pink roses with a card from Vaughn
sat on the mantel.

“Those are ‘let’s be friends, but don’t call
me’ flowers.” “Oh,” was all Darlene said, and waited.

“I don’t care.”

“Okay.” Darlene glanced at her sideways, and
then looked away.

“I wasn’t thinking bridal registry or
anything like that,” Erikka said, forcing the admission through her
lips. “A teeny-weeny bit of loyalty would have been nice.”

Erikka cared. Theirs was no grand romance,
but Vaughn could have at least stuck around for a month or two
longer. If she examined it closely enough, Erikka knew the deal.
They looked good on each other’s arms and liked being one of the
“hot” couples. They wore the right clothes, went to popular
restaurants, and had rising careers. Pretty superficial when she
faced it head-on. Vaughn started putting distance between them
after he found out Erikka was in a psychiatric hospital. The last
time they spoke he’d spent more time explaining how busy he was
than asking how she was feeling. Erikka couldn’t pretend surprise
when his phone calls stopped. One month and two days ago, not that
she was counting. She missed the idea of them more than she missed
Vaughn’s company. Without thinking, she touched her face again. No,
Vaughn would not be calling.

“You all right over there?”

“Uh-huh. Just getting used to all this
country air.” Erikka gave thoughts of Vaughn and their empty union
a firm shove. She sniffed in the aroma of soggy grass, hot
pavement, and manure. “Not exactly fresh.”

“Don’t complain. Being out here is just what
you need.” “I’ll take your word for it. Hey, Leroy,” Erikka yelled,
and fluttered her fingertips at a big white Silverado with sunlight
bouncing off its chrome bumpers.

Darlene flipped a hand without paying much
attention to the occupant. “That’s Dewayne. Told you to stop
calling every dude around here Leroy.” No trace of amusement
lightened her tone.

“Sorry,” Erikka said, and meant it. “I guess
after three days the joke has gotten old.”

“Yeah, it has. And since I’m telling you
’bout yourself, try to be nice to your cousins. They’re just trying
to make you feel at home.”

“I don’t mind Monique coming. She’s not like
them or her mama,” Erikka said.

“JoAnn is my sister, and Lord knows I love
her, but—” Darlene didn’t have to finish the sentence. They both
knew JoAnn spread more family rumors than a tabloid newspaper.

“I’ll try to be nicer anyway.”

Darlene looked at her. One arched black
eyebrow lifted to show she wasn’t convinced. “Oh yeah?”

“I promise.”

Darlene made a clicking sound with her
tongue. She patted Erikka’s arm. “Don’t sweat it. You’ve been
through a lot. Besides, I know those girls can work a nerve.”

When Erikka’s eyes filled with tears, she
pressed a hand to them. This was the Darlene she loved dearly,
tough and tender by turns. She turned her head to stare at the
streaks of blue sky turning orange as the sun set.

“Let it out, honey. Scream and cry.”

“I might never stop,” Erikka whispered low,
voicing the crushing fear she’d had since being released from the
hospital. She couldn’t afford to lose control again.

“What, baby?”

Erikka cleared her throat. “I said I need a
visit to the beauty shop. Look at my hair.”

Darlene smiled. “A good sign. We’ll go down
to Allyson’s salon. My treat.”

“I couldn’t let you do that.” Erikka easily
made twice Darlene’s modest income.

“I’m not exactly on welfare. No matter what
your mama has been saying behind my back.” Darlene stood. “I didn’t
mean—”

“Just accept a gift without us getting all
deep. We can discuss misguided family judgments later.” Darlene
laughed and jerked her head. “Let’s go.”

“Now?” Erikka blinked at her.

“Sure. She’ll take us as walk-ins. All we
need is a wash and set.” Darlene started off then paused when
Erikka did not get up.

“Maybe tomorrow or Friday. I’m enjoying this
evening breeze even if is still so hot. Geez, it’s late April and
already feels like July.” Erikka gripped the arms of the
rocker.

Darlene watched her for several beats before
she spoke. “Sure. No rush. You’re gonna be here another two weeks
or more.”

“Not that long,” Erikka said quickly. “I have
to get back to work.”

“Roz says your boss is real understanding.
You can have eight weeks if you need it.”

“One reason why I didn’t want to stay with
Roz. She just steamrolls her way into everything. Doesn’t let a
little thing like asking me first stop her.” Erikka let anger
toward her mother flare. She preferred that emotion to feeling lost
and afraid. “She had no business talking to Nadine!”

Erikka didn’t look at her. Instead she
focused her glare at the trunk of a big oak tree yards away. Of
course she wouldn’t be ready. The mere thought of tackling her load
of clients, of the stares at her face made beads of cold sweat roll
down her back. And anyway who was she kidding? Nadine had probably
started recruiting her replacement.

“I made a few mistakes. Drinking to make a
bad day seem better didn’t help.”

“Neither did almost driving your car into a
Winn Dixie produce section. Thank God you had slowed down to turn a
comer before you lost control,” Darlene added. “You told the
paramedics you wanted to die, Erikka.”

Erikka squeezed her eyes shut. “No, no, no! I
told the paramedics to let me bleed to death because I was a
no-good fuck-up. But that didn’t mean I crashed my car on purpose,”
Erikka said with force, too much force to sound convincing even to
herself. That little comment made them think she was suicidal,
which meant a trip to the psycho ward.

After a few moments Darlene sat down again
next to her. “Fine. So, by Monday of next week you’ll be ready to
go back to your office?” she asked quietly.