“Do you know who he owed the money to?”
“Not really. He used to deal with some guy who calls himself Chilly. And the only reason I say that is because it’s the only name I ever heard him say. It might be him, it might not. To be honest with you, I have no idea. I’d been giving him money to support his habit and get people off his back for years. But the one time that I tell him no, he gets killed.”
“You can’t do this to yourself, Me’shelle. You don’t even know if that’s what he got killed over. And even if it was, that’s how he chose to live his life. You are not responsible for anybody’s choices but your own.”
“I know, I know. We’ve had this conversation before, but I still feel the way I feel, and I can only hope that over time I get to the point where I can deal with it a little better.”
“I hope so.”
“The funeral is the day after tomorrow. Will you come? I need you to be there for me.”
Travis wanted to make some excuse for why he couldn’t be there. He knew the best thing for him to do was stay away from her as long as it took for the investigation into her brother’s murder to play itself out. “I’ll be there for you, Me’shelle.”
“I want to see you.”
“I wanna see you.”
“I love you, Travis.”
“Yeah, I know. I got your message. I gotta say it felt so good to hear you say it, since I’ve been in love with you since the first time I saw you. But still, I gotta ask. Are you sayin’ it because of what’s going on with you?”
“No, it’s not that. And I’m sorry that it took all this to get me to say it out loud. But do I love you, Travis. I love everything about you. I love the way you talk to me. I love the way you make me feel. I am so into the way we are together. I feel like you are so much a part of me now. These last couple of days without you have been so hard for me. I love you, Travis. So please, don’t think it’s only because of this.”
“Okay.”
“And besides, you never told me that you loved me.”
“Not in words, Me’shelle. But you know everything about me screams I love you.”
“I know, so stop all this talk. I need you now.”
“I’m on my way.”
“No. This place reminds me too much of Bruce and that night. I’m coming over there.”
“I’ll see you when you get here.”
Chapter Twenty-nine
Funeral services for Bruce and Natalie Lawrence were a small family affair. Nobody from Natalie’s family bothered to show up. Her parents, a deeply religious couple, had disowned her years ago because of the life of drugs and prostitution she had chosen for herself. They were, however, very concerned about Brandy. The doctor thought that in her still very unstable condition, attending her parents’ funeral might be too much for her. So, the attendees were Me’shelle and Travis, along with her aunts, Miranda and Juanita.
There were two other guests who came late to the funeral: Detectives Kirkland and Richards. The sight of them made Travis’s blood run cold. They sat in the back of the church and waited until Pastor Franks completed his eulogy, then waited outside for Me’shelle.
“Ms. Lawrence,” Detective Kirkland said. “I’m really sorry to have to bother you at a time like this. I’ve left several messages for you, but you haven’t returned my calls.”
“I’ve been staying with my aunts these last few days,” Me’shelle said tearfully to the detectives as her aunts gathered around to support her.
“Young man,” Juanita began. “I don’t mean you any disrespect, and I know you got a job to do, but as you can imagine-”
“Maybe he can’t,” Miranda interrupted with much attitude.
“Miranda,” Juanita said quickly, cutting her eyes at her sister. “Detective Kirkland, these last few days have been very hard on my niece and our family.”
“I understand that, but I really do need for her to come in and talk with us.”
“And I’m quite sure that she will, but today, young man, I’ll thank you to show our family some respect and allow us to bury our dead in peace,” Juanita said and walked away. The family followed her lead and went straight to the limousine. Travis fought the urge to give him the finger. Pastor Franks did, however, wave a chastising finger at the detectives as he joined the family in the limousine.
After the funeral, Travis kept his word to Freeze and brought Me’shelle to Cuisine for dinner. Although Freeze had mentioned it, Travis was surprised at how much the atmosphere had changed since the last time he was there. Freeze had moved quickly and returned to supper club to its former stature as a place of fine dining and intimate atmosphere.
“Travis Burns. I have a reservation for two.”
“Good evening, Mr. Burns. Welcome back to Cuisine,” the hostess said. “If you and your guest will please follow me, I have an excellent table waiting for you.” She grabbed two menus. Travis and Me’shelle followed the hostess to their table and found a waitress waiting.
“Good evening, Mr. Burns. Welcome back to Cuisine,” the waitress said. “We’re glad to have you dining with us again,” she said as she held the chair for Me’shelle. “My name is Bianca, and I will be your sever this evening. Would you like something from the bar?”
Travis looked at Me’shelle. “Just some wine, maybe.”
“Would you like to see our wine list?” she asked Me’shelle.
“Yes, thank you.”
“I’ll be back with our wine list. But before I go, let me just mention that today’s special is grilled Tilapia with a white wine sauce.” The waitress departed.
“Well, Mr. Burns, I take it you’ve been here quite a bit,” Me’shelle said as she looked over the menu.
“Yes. Do you remember me mentioning a friend of mine named Freeze?”
“The very dangerous one. I remember.”
“He runs this place. But it’s changed a lot since I was last here.”
“How so?”
“That reception, for starters. You didn’t need reservations before. And it was never this crowded so early in the day. It’s a more upscale atmosphere now,” Travis explained as their waitress returned with the wine list, accompanied by another server carrying a bottle of champagne and a bucket of ice.
“Dom Perignon, 1982, compliments of the management,” the server said as she prepared to pour. “Mr. Burns, Freeze asked me to tell you and your guest to enjoy your meal. He will join you once you’ve finished,” the waitress said after she handed Me’shelle the wine list. “Take your time. Look over both the menu and the wine list, and I’ll be back to take your order.”
Travis and Me’shelle enjoyed their meal, and as promised, Freeze joined them afterwards for cocktails and conversation. Travis looked up and couldn’t believe what he saw coming toward him: Freeze wearing a suit.
“This must be Me’shelle,” Freeze said and extended his hand.
“And you must be Freeze,” Me’shelle said, accepting it. From that point, the three laughed and talked for the remainder of the evening. At first, Me’shelle was a little apprehensive about Freeze because Travis had told her that he was a dangerous man. But as the evening wore on and the drinks flowed and the conversation turned to this and that, Freeze made Me’shelle feel as comfortable as if they were old friends.
By the time Travis and Me’shelle left Cuisine, she was just a little drunk, and feeling kind of horny. As soon as they got in the door of Me’shelle’s apartment, she stripped Travis down and led him into the bedroom and made love to him. Afterwards, she lay in his arms and they talked.
And then Me’shelle dropped it.
“I’m gonna go and talk to those detectives tomorrow,” Me’shelle said and placed her head on Travis’s chest.
“Have fun.”
