Lamar slowly shook his head. “No, I’m not. I’ve inspected my share of elevators in commercial and residential buildings to see at a glance that the cables you installed aren’t up to code. You’re lucky it caught fire now and not when guests were here. But I doubt that because it never would’ve passed the city’s inspection.”
The foreman narrowed his eyes. “Who the hell are you?”
“You don’t need to know who I am,” Lamar said in a quiet voice. “But you’ll find out when I tell the city inspector about how you tried to cut costs by installing cables that won’t support the weight of an empty elevator car.”
Hannah stood up, her hands curling into tight fists. “I want you to take your men and get off my property before I do something that may get me arrested. You’re going to hear from me, because I’m going to sue the hell out of you. And when I’m finished you won’t be able to get another job in the entire state.”
“I’ll leave, but not before you pay me for the work I’ve done.”
Nydia shared a glance with Tonya. She knew it was going to escalate into something nasty when she saw Hannah glare at the man. “Get the fuck out of my house before I go upstairs and get my daddy’s gun and blow your ass away.”
“I’m not going to stand here and let some bitch talk to me like that.”
“Coño!”Nydia shouted. “She just did, buddy. So I suggest you listen to her and get to stepping.”
Tonya slowly shook her head. “I think he’s begging for me to carve his ass up like a Thanksgiving turkey.”
“What’s up with these uppity bitches,” he snarled, as spittle formed at the corners of his mouth.
In a move too quick for the hand to follow, Lamar grabbed the man’s throat and shook him like a Rottweiler would a Chihuahua. “That’s the last time you’re going to call someone a bitch before I kick your ass,little man.”
The two other workmen grabbed their boss’s shirt. “Let’s go. You can settle this later.”
Lamar tightened his grip on the man’s windpipe as gurgling sounds came from his gaping mouth. “Now apologize to these ladies.”
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, clawing at Lamar’s hand on his throat.
Lamar shook him again. “Louder, so they can hear you.”
“I’m sorry.”
He released him and wiped his hand on the denim fabric covering his thigh. “That’s better.” He flashed a cold smile that did not reach his light brown eyes. “Gentlemen, please pack up your stuff and leave the premises. Meanwhile I’m going to call the superintendent of the city’s building department and have him send out a few inspectors to check over your work. Don’t be surprised if he suspends or even revokes your license. And in case you’re not aware of it, Mrs. McNair is a lawyer, so make certain your business insurance is paid up, or you’ll be out of business for good.”
Nydia put her hands to her mouth in a prayerful gesture as she watched the three men pack up their tools and walk out. She hadn’t realized how fast her heart was beating when she saw Lamar grab the man’s throat. She remembered his stating that “nerds can get gangsta, too.” And he’d just shown her another side of his easygoing personality that she didn’t need to see, and didn’t want to see again.
He walked over to Hannah and held her while she cried on his shoulder. He stroked her hair. “It’s going to be all right. I know a company that can clean up the smoke damage, and once that’s done I’ll have my elevator people replace the cables so it can pass inspection.”
Tonya came over to Nydia. “Let’s go outside so Hannah can have time to pull herself together.”
* * *
Nydia sat on the porch on a rocker next to Tonya. “That was some shit!”
Tonya ran a hand over her short, curly hair. “I thought it was really going to get ratchet when Lamar choked that cocky little bastard. He really fooled me, because I’d expect that type of behavior from Gage.”
Nydia gave her friend a questioning look. “I can’t believe you said Gage. He seems so laid back.”
“Yeah, right,” Tonya drawled. She recounted the time Gage went off on his ex-wife because she was abusing drugs along with his son. “If I hadn’t been there, I’m certain he would’ve broken her arms. He was just that enraged.”
Nydia remembered Tonya telling her that Wesley had been in and out of rehab for substance addiction that began in his teens, but after she married his father and he came to live with them he’d turned his life around.
“Lamar may look benign but he’s anything but that.” She told Tonya everything about Danny’s setup engagement and Lamar coming up to New York to help her out of what had been a situation that could have ruined her reputation once her face was splashed across the pages of several tabloids.
Tonya’s dimples winked at her when she smiled. “So he’s a knight in shining armor rescuing damsels in distress.”
She nodded. “Hannah claims he’s a romance novel hero.”
“I agree with her.” Tonya quickly sobered. “I should call St. John and let him know his wife is going to need his support until we’re able to clear up this mess.”
