Page 40 of Justice

“I go places,” Skye protested.

“Where? The grocery store don’t count.”

I leaned in the doorway and watched them a second, my grandmother and this woman, thick as thieves at my kitchen island like they’d known each other twenty years. It did something to my chest I didn’t examine too close.

“Since Rita brought it up.” I came in and grabbed a piece of pineapple off the board before Rita could smack my hand. “There’s a party at the casino Friday.” I looked at Skye. “You should come. Storie’s staying with Kira this weekend and Dream’s got a sleepover, so you’re free. We can get someone from the agency to sit with Rita for the night. Bring a friend if you want. That loud one you always on the phone with.”

“Aubrey,” she laughed.

“GO.” Rita smacked the counter. “Lord, go put on a dress and be young somewhere. You act sixty and I’m the one who’s actually old. Take your friend and go have a good time. But why you ain’t invite me?” Rita sassed.

“You wanna come Grandma?” I teased.

“I don’t want your half-assed invite. You didn’t think of me first. I could slip on my Freakum dress and my red bottoms too. Tuh. I been throwing parties since before you were just a thought.”

Skye laughed at Rita. “Well we can go together.”

“Nope, I know when I ain’t wanted. You have fun baby.”

“Okay,” she finally said to me. “One night out won’t kill me. Thank you.”

“Friday, then.” I held her eyes a beat too long, right there in front of my grandmother, and I didn’t much care that I did. “Wear something nice. Not scrubs.”

“I’ll consider it.”

I grabbed another piece of pineapple and walked out before I said something else, feeling better than I had any right to feel. The business was solid. My hard girl had hugged me the night before like she used to. And Friday I’d get to see what Skye Mercer looked like when she wasn’t working.

Everything was finally coming together.

21

SKYE

Some days with Rita were harder than others. This one fought me from the jump. Not long after Justice left for work, she turned. All that talk about the party must have stirred something loose in her. One minute she was fine at the kitchen table. The next she was up on her feet, gripping my arm, her eyes gone wide and far away.

“We got to get the cash out the safe,” she whispered, urgent, like she was letting me in on a secret. “Right now. Before they get here.”

“Before who gets here, Miss Rita?”

“The police.” She said it like I was slow. “They coming to shut us down again. You know how they do. You pay them, they go on about their business and leave us be. But you got to have it ready, baby, you got to have it counted out and ready in an envelope when they knock, or they take the whole night’s money and run us all down to the station.” Her hands were shaking. “Where’s the safe? They moved the safe. Why would they move the safe?”

I didn’t argue with her. You never argue with where their mind has gone. You go in and meet them there.

“I already handled it,” I said, easy and sure, taking both her hands in mine. “Counted it out this morning, put it in the envelope, tucked it right by the door. Soon as they knock, it’s ready. You taught me to always keep it ready, remember? So we’re good. We’re covered.”

“You counted it?”

“Down to the dollar. We’re safe tonight. Nobody’s taking anything from you. Not on my watch.”

It took a while. It always did. I sat with her, held her hands, let the storm move through her. I agreed with everything and told her the club was locked up tight, the money was safe, the police were handled. Little by little the fear drained out of her, and it left her tired and small, blinking up at me like she wasn’t sure how she’d gotten out of her chair.

I got her down for a nap after that. She slept for hours. These spells took everything out of her, wrung her dry. I sat outside her door a long while listening to her breathe, aching for these people who weren’t mine to ache over.

By evening the house was quiet, Justice still at work, both girls in bed, Rita down deep, and I finally took myself up to my room and turned the lock behind me.

I took a deep breath and exhaled the day away. I was slowly but surely getting my money in order to leave, but my strategy was still not complete. I had no way of getting to him yet. I didn’t even know how it would be possible yet.

But while I’m waiting, I guess I can enjoy the life that Justice has to offer. I was actually excited about going to the party.