“You okay, Nevada?” she asked, turning to me as soon he exited the car. “I know this is kind of awkward for you.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m good. I mean, I really don’t have a choice, do I?” I shrugged. “It’s just this dude is kinda weird.”
“I know, but he’s harmless, and he did drive us all the way here.”
“I get it. I’ll be okay. I just feel like an outsider. He keeps treating me like I’m a kid,” I complained.
“I’ll talk to him. I promise.” She gave me that look that always gave me butterflies.
“Thanks. So, where’d you guys go this morning?”
“To the Dr. Pepper museum. We were both up, and he wanted to go, so I said yes. No big deal. It was actually a lot cooler than you’d think.”
I nodded, and we sat in silence while we waited for Bob, who came out a few minutes later.
“Did you see her? Was she there?” Kia asked him.
“No, she wasn’t there. There was a girl who looked like her that they offered me, but you know I only have eyes for you. I would never do that.” He reached for her hand, but Kia moved before he could touch it. She looked a little annoyed.
She reached into her purse and took out several bills. “Bobby, listen to me. Take this money and go back in there. Tell them you really wanna find this girl and spend time with her.”
“She wasn’t very friendly when I turned the other girl down. I don’t think she’ll tell me anything,” Bob said, looking at the money.
“You offer her this five hundred dollars, and she’ll tell you whatever you want to know. The girls who work at the front desk are just locals. They don’t make any real money. It’s enough to get the information.”
“I don’t know about this.”
“Well, if you don’t think you can handle it, I’m sure Nevada can. Right?” She turned around and held the money out to me.
“No problem.” I reached for the cash, but Bob pushed her hand away from me.
“Never send a boy to do a man’s job.” He glared at me as he stepped out of the car. “I’ll be back.”
“Bob, the money!” Kia yelled.
“Don’t worry. I’ll pay whatever,” he said as he ran back inside the building.
“Never send a boy to do a man’s job.” I repeated his words, pretending to be gruff. Kia couldn’t help but laugh.
“I told you he’s harmless, Nevada. And I really do appreciate you doing this for me. There’s no one else I’d rather have going through this with me.”
Our eyes met, and we stared at each other for a few seconds. Bob had been right about one thing: she really was the one of the most beautiful girls in the world.
“And if anyone is an outsider, it’s him,” she continued. “He’s doing this because he wants sex. He has some fantasy about who I could be to him, but you’re doing this because you’re my friend. I know the difference.”
“I got it!” Bob announced, ruining the moment as he opened the door.
“What did she tell you?” Kia asked.
“The girl we’re looking for works somewhere else.”
“Did she tell you where?”
“Not exactly, but she’s in El Paso, so I guess that’s our next stop.” He leaned in to kiss her, and she turned her head.
“You know the rules,” Kia chastised him. “No kissing.”
Roman
40
After a few days of negotiating with Lex on the phone, we finally got him to agree to pay us the two hundred grand a piece. We were supposed to meet him for the exchange at midnight in a parking lot on the Queens side of the Throgs Neck Bridge. When he pulled up in a passenger van, I was the only one waiting with the truck.
“Where’s your partner?” Lex began to inspect the truck the moment he stepped out of the van.
“We decided he should stay somewhere safe just in case this was a setup and you tried to kill us. That way, one of us would be around to return the favor.” I smirked.
“I get the premise, but I don’t operate that way. It’s bad for business.” I swear he was looking at that truck like he wanted to make love to it. “Everything looks okay.”
“Good, then give us our money,” I demanded.
He opened the passenger side door of the van and retrieved a large black bag, then walked over to me. “It’s all right here, four hundred K. You boys drive a hard bargain.”
“I’m sure you’ll make out on the deal.”
“Oh, I’ll do all right.” He handed me the bag. As I reached for it, he pulled it back. “Roman, a little advice.”
“What?” I said with an attitude, thinking he was about to give me some bullshit about our money being short.
“You guys need to disappear for a while. Just get in your car and drive out of town immediately. And I’m not talking Atlantic City. I’m talking Colorado or California. Just stay the fuck out of Texas.” His tone was dead serious.
“Man, I ain’t going nowhere. My mama’s in ICU about to have a transplant thanks to this money.” I snatched the bag from him.
Before I knew it, Lex collared me and pulled me close. “I like you boys, which is why I’m trying to save your fucking lives. This isn’t Louie the Jeweler you’ve stolen from. These people are animals. Unless you want your sick mama to have to bury your dumb ass, disappear for a couple of weeks. Once I unload this shit, I’m taking off for a few months myself.”
“A’ight, Lex, I hear you.” I pushed him off of me and straightened my shirt. “What the fuck is in that
