His gates are already open and he’s talking to the guy who failed to get Amelia home yesterday. Before I can park and head over to see what they’re talking about, he’s climbing in his car and driving by me.
Collecting Elsa and her changing bag, Mr. Haynes opens the front door for me, and I follow him into the kitchen. He smiles down at Elsa and strokes her cheek as I settle her car seat on the table and then Catherine swoops in and takes care of her.
“I’m going to ask you one question and by God, you better tell me the truth.”
“I’m listening,” I say, interested to see where this goes.
“Do you have anything to do with this?”
I don’t want to lie to him. We’ve reached a place where we can speak and agree on most things to do with Elsa.
So I say, “You’re better off talking to Clare.”
Though by the time this plays out, no one will find her, not even the cockroaches.
“Is it that boyfriend of hers? I saw him the day her and Amelia graduated. He must be a friend of yours? Has he got her peddling drugs?”
He’ll never hear the truth from my lips, so I say, “You’d have to ask her.”
“I’m not stupid, I know who you are out there on the streets. You must know more than you’re telling me.”
“Mr. Haynes, the moment I fell in love with your daughter, I ended it so she didn’t have anything to do with my world.”
“You love her?”
“Love isn’t what you live on, or survive on. I’ve never been blinded by it, it’ll never cloud my judgement. I love her so much, I was prepared to lose her. So to answer your earlier question, where she is now is not because of me.”
We hear Elsa’s cries coming from the living room and Catherine appears for her bag. She pulls out a bottle and disappears again.
Her cries fade out and I sink into the nearest chair. “I’ll do what I can to bring her home,” I vow.
“I can’t see how, not when I can’t seem to do anything.”
This is because of the Mayor and his hard-on to combat crime. Any other time and Amelia’s father would have been able to pay her way out.
Jermaine is waiting on me when I pull up to Tariq’s house. I stay in the car, and he jogs over and leans on my window.
“Tell me you’ve got something for me.”
I’m going to lose my shit if I don’t hear something good soon.
“CeCe’s in county with April and Jacks. Then we’ve got Baby, Nina and eight others in Bolton Corrections. CeCe is the most approachable, so I put her on Amelia, told her not to tell her who she is. If it doesn’t go her way at trial, I’ll make it known she’s to be looked after at corrections.”
“I don’t care what it costs me, you feel me?”
“I’ve got you, bro.”
I fucking hope it doesn’t come to having to protect her further down the line but the only thing I can do now is prepare.
Mom takes Elsa from me the second I’m through the door. Dumping her changing bag by the coat stand, I lean against theliving room doorframe and watch on as Mom unbuckles Elsa and holds her to her chest.
“Any news?”
“Nothing.”
“I still can’t believe Richard couldn’t get her out of this.”
Word is getting around and the Dogs are watching their backs harder than ever, if someone like Amelia is refused bail, people around here stand no chance.
