White Lines III (25 page)

Mayra smiled, liking the sound of that. “Okay,” she said. “I'll do it. But before you tell me the particulars, I want you to know something.” Mayra folded her hands in front of her. “I may not always like you. And I know that you do not always like me. But Gillian, you are my only child. I love you always, and no matter what happens between us, you can always trust me.” Mayra looked down at the table in shame. “I cheated on your father. Doug had reasons not to trust me. But it was never about me trying to get my hands on his money. I loved your father. I just made some mistakes. But I won't make those mistakes again. From now on, I will never keep a secret like that from you again.”

Gillian felt herself getting choked up as she listened to her mother. She nodded. “Okay,” she said. She looked around to ensure that none of the workers were lurking nearby or eavesdropping. “So, here's what I need you to do.”

*   *   *

“My dad died a long time ago. But even before he died, he was already gone.” Born took a bite of his cheeseburger and chewed in his usual messy manner.

Sheldon frowned. “What does that mean?” The two of them were sitting in a McDonald's on Bay Street. Born had taken him there to talk after their heated confrontation earlier. In the car on the way there, Sheldon had sat in silence staring out the window at the passing scenery. But once they arrived and ordered their food, Born made it clear to him that he expected the kid to talk.
“We're not going back home until we get everything straight between me and you. So, you're gonna speak up about everything that's bothering you. We'll deal with it, move on, and everybody can live happily ever after.”

They had arrived at Mickey D's and gotten a booth in the back. They sat down with their food and Born had started the conversation off by telling him about his own childhood, in the hopes that it might humanize him more to the kid who acted as if Born was the big, bad wolf.

“I mean the drugs he was on, the wheelchair he was in, the way he was not the strong tough guy that he once was. Even before he passed away, the fact that he wasn't the man that he used to be … it kinda killed him inside.”

Sheldon chewed his French fries. “So was he my grandfather?” he asked.

Born nearly choked on his food as he looked at Sheldon wide-eyed.

“My mom told me that you and my father were brothers,” Sheldon explained.

Born shook his head. “Nah. I mean … not that I know of.” Born cleared his throat. He wondered what else Jada had told him, and chided himself for not finding out ahead of time. “Your father used to be my friend. We were close until something happened—”

“He stole your money,” Sheldon offered. “My mom told me.”

Born nodded. “Yeah. We stopped being cool after that. So I'm not sure if he said that about my father and his mother because he was jealous or if it was true. Personally, I don't believe it. But it doesn't matter.”

“It matters to me,” Sheldon said. “I don't remember my dad. So I want to know as much about him as I can.”

Born looked at Sheldon, sympathetically. He tried in vain to come up with something positive that he could say about Jamari. But he came up empty. “Listen, your father wasn't one of my favorite people, honestly. I didn't like the guy. But from what I hear, he loved you a whole lot.” Born took a sip of his orange soda. “I know how it feels to have no father in your life. Mine checked out long before he passed away. But what I learned to focus on was that I still had my mother. I didn't have sisters or brothers, didn't have my dad. But I had her. I still do. And she never lets me down. She reminds me a lot of your mother.” He winked at Sheldon and bit into his burger.

Sheldon thought about that.

Talking with his mouth full, Born continued. “Your mother went through a lot with you. She fought to get custody of you and she takes her job as your mother very seriously. So seriously, that she was willing to give up on our relationship in order to save her relationship with you.”

Sheldon felt a pang of guilt. He had purposely driven Born and Jada apart, hopeful that he might have her all to himself for once. Part of him felt good about the wedge he had managed to create between him. But hearing Born remind him about the sacrifices she had made for him, Sheldon felt convicted.

“I know you don't have it easy, Sheldon. You have to work harder than most of the kids your age because you were born addicted. You were really sick as a baby, and maybe now there's still some problems here or there. But you're not crazy. Don't let them teachers and school psychologists tell you that you're crazy. Cuz you're not. You
act
crazy a lot. But I think that's because it gets you attention, even if it's negative attention.” He waited for Sheldon to deny it, but he didn't. Instead, he continued to sit there in silence. “That shit stops now. The next time you act up, it's gonna be me and you. I'm not a fan of putting my hands on kids. But I will if it's necessary.”

Sheldon nodded, stared down at his food, and twirled a fry around in a pool of ketchup. Born noticed his hunched shoulders and defeated expression. He cleared his throat.

“I'm not just here to be a disciplinarian. I love your mother. I love you, too. And I know I'm not your father. I'm not trying to take his place,” Born assured the young man. “But I can be that male role model in your life if you let me. You can talk to me the same way that you would talk to your dad if he was alive. I might not respond the same way that he would. But I can promise you that I'll give you the same answer I would give to Ethan, or to DJ.” He looked Sheldon in the eyes. “I'm gonna be your stepfather whether you like that or not. So you might as well get to liking it.” He finished off his burger and watched Sheldon's reaction.

Sheldon stared back at him boldly. “I don't want beef with you,” he said.

Born had to resist the urge to laugh. Instead, he nodded. “Good.”

“So, I guess…” Sheldon wasn't sure what to say. “Okay.” He sat back as if resigned to his fate.

Born smirked. “Don't worry,” he said. “You'll grow to love me.”

Sheldon forced a smile. This would take some getting used to, having Born around all the time again and having to be “brothers” with Ethan again. But this time, maybe it could be different.

Before they left, Sheldon said that he needed to use the bathroom. Born followed him into the men's room and stood near the sinks while Sheldon took a leak. A man walked in. He wore a black hoodie, dark jeans, and a pair of Timbs. He looked to be of some exotic heritage. His hair was cut into a low Caesar, and his dark eyebrows and goatee framed a hard face. He wore both the uniform of the streets, and its countenance.

The man greeted Born nonchalantly with a quick nod of the head. He walked toward the urinals along the wall and stopped at one not too far from where Sheldon stood. He fumbled with his belt, but stopped suddenly and turned to face Born.

“That's your silver Benz parked outside, right?”

Born nodded. “Yeah. Just got it about three weeks ago.”

The man smiled. “That shit is beautiful,” he said.

Born smiled proudly. “Thanks.”

“I thought I saw it parked outside of your house the other day.” The guy said it so casually that Born thought he must have heard him wrong.

“What?” Born asked, confused.

The man stared back at Born. His smile had faded. “I said I was at your house the other day,” the man repeated. “I left a nice package for you on your doorstep.”

Born's heart rate quickened. The man stood facing him with his hands tucked into the front pocket of his hoodie. Instinctively, Born reached for the gun on his waist. Sensing that, the man shook his head.

“You don't want to see your son here get hurt,” he cautioned. He slid one hand out of his hoodie pocket, just enough for Born to see the handle of a gun. The man gestured toward Sheldon standing merely inches away. He smiled at the kid. “Stay right there, little man. This won't take long.”

Sheldon wasn't sure what was going on. But he sensed the tension between the two men, and it made him uneasy.

Born's adrenaline surged. He left his gun alone, aware that this man had the upper hand. “Who are you?” Born stared at the man and wracked his brain for some recollection of him. Had he known this man and crossed him in his past? Born was coming up empty.

The man shrugged. “Names don't matter much, do they?” He seemed to ponder his own question. “Actually, sometimes names do matter. And there's a name that's been on my mind for a lot of years now. You know what name that is?”

Born waited. He wanted to blow this clown's head off. But first he had to find out who he was and why he had tried to kill him. He took in every detail of him. He was of some kind of Mediterranean descent. He stood about five ten with a slim build and no visible tattoos. His voice was deep and melodious. He seemed to be unafraid. In fact, he was quite confident as he continued.

“Jada,” he said. “You know that name?”

Born's heart raced, and his hands instinctively balled into fists at the mention of Jada's name. He stepped forward toward the guy. But the man moved closer to Sheldon, halting Born in his tracks. He forced himself to calm down, though his heart was still pounding in his chest.

“Jada?” Born repeated.

“Yeah,” the man said, smiling. “You know Jada. She's a mutual friend of ours.” Both of his hands were in the front pocket of his hoodie, ensuring that Born kept his distance. He glanced at Sheldon. “She's your mother, right?”

Sheldon nodded.

“I want you to give Jada a little message for me,” the man continued. He fixed his gaze on Born. “Tell her that until she gives me what she owes me, I will never go away.”

“What she owes you?” Born repeated. “Who are you?”

“Aaaah…” the stranger said, the grin widening across his face. “That's the million-dollar question. Literally. That's what it will cost you. One million dollars and I will go away for good.” His smile faded again and he looked serious as he addressed Born. “Jada crossed me many years ago. She did more damage than she may realize. But it is payback time. If she does not cooperate, it will not be good.”

Again, Born resisted the urge to physically defend Jada, Sheldon, and himself. He wondered who this guy was. Born was well aware of Jada's past. During her time as a drug addict, she had resorted to many unfortunate means of survival. Born wondered if this was some guy Jada had slept with, or crossed in some terrible way. But more important than anything else, he had to protect Sheldon. With his right arm in a sling, and his torso in a brace, Born had only the gun on his left side for protection. And he wasn't left-handed. He was at a disadvantage, so he had no choice but to wait and see what the stranger would do next.

“I will give you a week to get the money together. I understand you have had a loss in the family, so to speak.”

Born wasn't sure whether the man was eluding to Sunny's death or to the recent rash of arrests that had occurred.

“You will hear from me in a week, exactly.” He stepped closer to Sheldon, but kept his eyes on Born. “You don't strike me as the type to involve the police. From what I hear, you've had your problems with them in the past. But just in case you change your mind, I know where Ethan lives.” He stared Born down as he said it. He knew he had hit a nerve when Born's jaw clenched involuntarily. “I know Anisa's schedule at school. And I know how often you like to spend the night over there. It took me a long time to get you alone at home. But I did. And I can do it agan.” The man laughed, cryptically. “I'm a reasonable man. But I don't have a problem crossing the line. When I cross it, though, I cross it all the way. Trust me on this.” He patted Sheldon on the head and then quickly walked out of the bathroom.

Sheldon and Born stood there for a couple of moments. Born could tell that the kid was scared. Truthfully, the encounter had left Born shaken as well, though he would never admit it. The man knew so much about Born, about Jada, their whole family. Born was terribly on edge. Still, he wanted to see which way the guy went, what kind of car he was driving, something. So he quickly reassured Sheldon, and together they hurried outside. But by the time they reached the parking lot, the guy was gone. And all four of Born's tires were slashed.

He grabbed Sheldon by the arm, and ducked into Next Level Barbershop across the street. The owner was a friend of his, so Born knew that it was a safe place to get his thoughts together. Once inside, he spoke with the owner in private, and was ushered into the back office where he could speak without being disturbed or overheard. Then he pulled out his cell phone and got busy. This was war.

*   *   *

Celia ushered Gillian into her home. Her visit was unexpected. It was early on a sunny Saturday morning, and Celia had just been on her way out for a jog.

“Come on in,” she said. “What brings you out to Long Island so early in the morning?”

Gillian smiled graciously. “I wanted to come and talk about Baron. Are you having trouble posting his bail?” Two days had passed since Baron's arraignment. His bail had been set. And although his bail was high, there was no shortage of resources at their disposal to use as collateral.

Celia arched an eyebrow. “No,” she said. “Not at all.”

Gillian adjusted her clutch bag under her arm. “So why is he still sitting in jail?”

Celia's eyes narrowed. “Excuse me?”

“With all due respect, Baron has been through a lot over the past few years. I'm worried about him.” Gillian's expression was serious.

Celia shook her head. “Gillian, who do you think you're fooling?”

Gillian frowned. “What do you mean?”

“First of all, I haven't bailed out Baron because he needs to sit in jail for a few days. His whole life, whenever something went wrong, his father would swoop in and fix it. Well, his father is gone now. And it's time that Baron learns to take responsibility for his own decisions.”