Barbara could almost taste the excitement in the air. The thought of seeing Earl again turned her stomach, but she was determined to make it work. He deserved to be humiliated, and if she could coax a confession out of him and they got it on camera, they’d have him right where they wanted him.
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Laura and Florence helped Barbara get ready that night. She was dressed in black leather shorts and a matching vest. The vest had a zipper in front and was so tight, her breasts bulged out the top. The zipper was down just far enough to give Earl an eyeful. Her shorts were cut low on top and high on the bottom, leaving little to the imagination. She put on her Dolly Parton wig and added three pairs of false eyelashes. The little black leather mask went on next.
Barbara looked in the mirror and adjusted the vest. “Not bad for forty-three, huh?”
“Not bad for any age,” said Laura. Barbara was a fine looking woman with a dynamite figure. She didn’t look old enough to be Luke’s mother, especially dressed in that outfit.
“Don’t forget this.” Florence handed her the headpiece and helped her fasten it in place. When they finished, all Laura could see of the headpiece were the two little black horns sticking out of the bushy blond wig.
“I always wondered what I’d look like with big hair,” Barbara muttered, fluffing the curls with her fingers.
Luke and Jay walked in, and Jay’s mouth dropped open. He couldn’t take his eyes off Barbara.
Luke squirmed with discomfort. “Nobody’s mother should look like that.”
Jay walked around Barbara, looking her over from head to toe. “She don’t look like nobody’s mama in that little thing.” He shook his hand. “Ooh, baby, you’re hot!”
“Stop drooling, Jay,” said Laura. “You can play when this is finished.”
Barbara pointed to the little walkie-talkie Jay held. “What’s that for?”
“Meg’s watchin’ for Earl. She’ll let us know when he gets here. Sure you’re ready for this?”
“I’m ready. Don’t worry and don’t fuss. I’ll be fine.” She snapped her whip.
Jay jumped and grinned. “Ooh, baby! I can’t hardly wait.”
Laura giggled. Barbara and Jay had found a way to cut the tension.
“Light me up, Jay.” Barbara stuck the cigar in her mouth. “God, these shoes hurt already. Why do women wear these things?”
“It’s part of the image,” said Florence. “And it’s another way to defend yourself, if it comes to that.”
“Grind my heel into his foot?”
Florence nodded. “Works real well.”
Jay’s walkie-talkie crackled and Meg said, “Here he comes.”
Luke, Laura, and Florence went through the new door directly into room three. Jay kissed Barbara and whispered something in her ear before he joined them. Barbara laughed softly. Laura loved seeing them together like this, but she was concerned about Barbara’s safety. So was Luke. He paced near the door between the rooms, glancing from the door to the television. If things went bad for Barbara, Luke and Jay would both be in there in a heartbeat, and nobody would be able to keep them from attacking Earl.
Laura sat on the end of the bed with Florence and watched the television screen. Barbara stood at the back of the room, smoking the cigar, when Earl tapped on the door. “Is that you, Earl?” she called.
“It’s me.”
“Well, come on in. The door’s unlocked, and I ain’t expectin’ nobody else tonight.” Barbara sounded more like Florence or Judy than she did herself. If he recognized Barbara, this whole thing could fall apart in seconds, and if it did, Luke would go after Earl with his fists. Laura thought his anger would abate somewhat over time, but the rage at Earl simmered right beneath the surface.
Earl walked through the door and took a long look at Barbara. “Priscilla?”
“Laura promised me you’d be nice. You gonna be nice to Priscilla tonight, Earl?”
Earl came closer, gaping at her cleavage. She said, “Don’t let’s get in a hurry now, honey. I wanta see whatcha got for me before you touch me.”
“Like hell! Take your clothes off and get on down on that bed.”
Barbara pulled the zipper on her vest down another inch. “You like this?” she asked, bending forward just a little.
He reached for her, but she stuck the cigar in her mouth. Earl stopped cold.
“You like see-gars, honey?”
“No. Get ridda that thing. Now.”
“If I get ridda my see-gar, you have to get ridda your clothes. I like my men buck naked.”
He pointed and ordered, “Get on over here on the bed.”
“Not ’til you take your clothes off, honey. I want to see you first.”
Laura watched from the other room as Earl started to pull his clothes off, his eyes on Barbara the whole time. He tossed his clothes on the chair by the door, the only chair in the room.
Luke perched on the edge of the bed, staring at the television screen. Jay’s back was rigid. Both men were wound up tight, ready to sprint into action if necessary.
Barbara looked Earl up and down. “Mmm, mmm, I’m gonna like this. You’re gonna have it like you ain’t never had it before.”
When Earl got down to his shorts, he sat on the bed by the night stand, the side nearest the back of the room. She purred, “All of it, honey. Let’s see whatcha got for Priscilla tonight. Ooh, baby. I can’t hardly wait. I’m gonna make sure you don’t never forget this night as long as you live.”
Earl still wore his shorts. Barbara coaxed, “C’mon, honey, I want to see what kinda condom to put on you.” She pulled the little whip out from behind her and cracked it once. Earl jumped, his eyes wide.
“You like it rough?” she asked. “Laura said you liked it rough.”
His eyes narrowed. “You hit me and I’ll knock you on your ass, girl.”
She snapped the little whip again and her voice hardened. “Take off your shorts.”
“You can’t order me around. Get ridda that damn cigar and that whip and get on over here or I’ll beat the stuffin’ outta ya.”
“Like you beat Laura Whitfield the night you tried to rape her?”
“Damn right, and when I finish with you, I’ll take care of that little bitch, too. Now get on over here.”
She put the cigar in the sink between the bathroom and closet. “Don’t ya wanta play first, sugar?”
“Play what?”
She walked around the bed slowly, still snapping the whip, keeping her distance from Earl. He stayed right where he was, watching her closely. She put her foot on the chair by the front window and slowly rolled down one stocking, teasing him, then reached up and pulled the zipper on her vest down another click or two. “Take off your shorts. I don’t like a man who’s ashamed of what he’s got.”
Earl slipped off his shorts and tossed them on the chair on top of his other clothes. Barbara stared. “That’s all you got? I ain’t even got a condom small enough to fit that little bitty thing!”
Earl looked down, his mouth open in shock, his manhood wilting, while Barbara grabbed his clothes and slipped out the door. He started after her, but stopped at the door.
Laura wiped away tears of silent laughter. It was the first time she’d ever seen a naked man, but it was the astonished look on Earl’s face that broke her up. She had to put her hand over her mouth to keep from screaming with laughter.
Jay, grinning like a fool, met Barbara at the door to room three. Barbara slipped inside and Jay quietly closed and locked the door. Luke sat on the bed, shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just seen.
Earl frantically searched for something to put on, swearing and muttering about killing Laura Whitfield. He pulled the heavy spread off the bed, but there were no sheets. He ran to the bathroom, but there were no towels, so he grabbed a pillow off the bed and held it in front of him. He went to the door and cautiously opened it.
Jay pointed to the other TV set in room three, the one hooked up to the camera he’d installed outside.
They watched as Earl ran toward Laura’s apartment, his bare, white behind glowing softly in the outside light. Laura’s apartment was locked and dark, so he turned and ran back to room five, but the door was locked there, too, thanks to Luke. Earl peered around again, then ran out toward his car.
Meg screamed right on cue. Laura immediately called 911. “There’s a woman screamin’ at Queenie’s Café. Please hurry!”
Jimmy Wallace, who worked part time as a Kingston police officer and part time as a mechanic at the Texaco station, answered the call. Meg’s act was perfect. She seemed hysterical, going on and on about the naked pervert peering in the window at the diner. “I was just finishin’ the cinnamon rolls when I stepped out for a smoke and saw him. He was actin’ crazy and his thing was just hangin’ out there for God and everybody to see. I’ve never been so shocked in my entire life!” She had her hand on her chest and her eyes were huge.
“Who was it? Did you recognize him?” asked Jimmy.
“Well, I wasn’t lookin’ at his face, if that’s what you mean. I saw him go out on the highway, out that way.” She pointed. “Maybe you’d better call the state patrol so they can pick him up before he hurts somebody.” She reached in her pocket and pulled out a little piece of paper. “I wrote down his license number.”
Jimmy called the state patrol on his radio. “This guy’s naked and actin’ crazy.”
“We got two cars in the area. We’ll get him,” said the dispatcher.
Meg still stood outside talking with Jimmy Wallace when his radio crackled and a voice said, “Suspect apprehended. The car’s registered to Earl Windsor, but this guy doesn’t have any ID on him. Shoot, he doesn’t have a pocket to put it in, but he looks a little like that guy on the TV.”
“Who does he say he is?”
“Says he’s Earl Windsor.”
“What’s Earl Windsor doin’ drivin’ around without his clothes on?”
Jimmy Wallace reassured Meg that the pervert had been caught, then he left and Meg came into room three with the others.
Barbara kicked her shoes off. “Well, that was fun.”
“Sure was,” said Meg.
Jay turned off the video so they could watch TV. “We should hear somethin’ soon,” he said, grinning. “You gals was somethin’ else.”
Laura rubbed Luke’s shoulders and felt the tension slowly ease from his muscles. He sat on the bed watching the news station. Every reporter listening to the police radio would undoubtedly be at the station when they brought Earl in. Because of his many TV commercials, Earl was well known in the state.
Luke pointed at the TV. “Here it comes now.”
They showed Earl Windsor standing in the station wearing a blanket and a red face. Reporters shoved microphones in his face, but Earl kept saying, “No comment. No comment. I don’t have no comment.”
The motel room filled with hoots and laughter. Barbara’s plan to embarrass Earl had worked beautifully, and no one got hurt.
“Ooh, girls, we done good,” said Florence.
“He’ll have trouble doing anything in private now,” said Luke. “Those reporters won’t leave him alone anytime soon.”
Barbara pulled off her wig and horns and mask. “Can’t remember when I’ve had such a good time.”
Laura said, “I thought Luke was going to rush through that door and help.”
“I had my trusty little whip.” Barbara cracked the whip in Jay’s direction.
Jay grinned broadly. “Ooh, baby.”
“You like that?” asked Barbara.
“Not in front of the children,” he teased.
They were having a good time now, but they’d infuriated a dangerous man. He might not come back soon, but he’d be back someday.
And Laura dreaded it.
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Laura wanted to spend some private time with Florence before she went back to Ocala. She not only wanted to know her mother better, she needed to hear why Florence left her when she was a baby.
In the apartment Florence was staying in, the two women sipped soft drinks and talked about Dad and Luke, and about the alligators at the fishing camp. When the small talk ran thin, Laura changed the subject. “Florence, will you tell me about your life before you met Dad? How old were you when you married your husband?”