‘I’m sorry, I’ll fix this.’
‘You better,’ Vanessa said with a teasing tone. ‘The force paid for this, I’m not having my reputation in more tatters than it is.’
Vanessa switched on the news channel as they entered the living room. There was a live press conference from the White House, where Vice President Joe Biden took the stand. It should’ve been Obama’s victory speech but it was far from a priority.
‘My fellow Americans.’ Joe Biden looked into the camera. ‘In the early hours of November 7th, a team of crooks entered Oak Ridge Cemetery and took Abraham Lincoln’s body. Why? We do not know. Where? We will find out. Who did this? Whoever it was will be punished. We ask that you bear with us while our best men and women find President Lincoln and bring him home. Thank you.’
‘Best men and women, huh?’ Darnell chuckled. ‘Hardly.’
Vanessa switched off the television and slumped into her chair. The grey armchair wasn’t for lounging, but she had little else. Like her bedroom, the space felt empty without the warmth of a long-term tenant. Olive green walls were broken up by wooden beams. A forest green tiled fireplace reminded her of the British pubs she had visited in London with her father when she turned twenty-one. None of it was to her taste but it was hers for now. As she tried to lie back and gather her thoughts, she glimpsed at her colleague who appeared equally drained. He hadn’t shaved and he was in the same shirt as the day before.
‘Where did you sleep last night?’
‘In my car.’ Darnell sighed and bowed his head.
‘Oh Darnell, you should’ve come over,’ Vanessa replied with a sympathetic tone.
‘We weren’t talking.’
I wouldn’t see my worst enemy on the streets.’
‘Is that what I am now? Your worst enemy?’ A morose look drained Darnell’s face.
‘Of course not. Why don’t you take a shower?’
‘I’ll be fine.’ He waved his hand, brushing her kindness away.
‘Don’t be silly. I have spare towels. Go, otherwise you’ll end up stinking out the place.’ She stood up, walked over to a storage closet, picked out two towels and threw them at her colleague.
‘Yeah you’re probably right.’ Darnell sniffed his pits. ‘I’m a bit whiffy. I’ll go and get some clothes from my car and take advantage of that shower.’
Vanessa was left alone in her living room. She looked over her notes regarding Darnell’s son, Thomas, and desperately searched for any clue to his involvement. The boiler rumbled from the kitchen as Darnell showered upstairs, giving her confidence that he’d be away for some time.
A knock at the door disturbed her concentration. At the entrance of her house, a tall beautiful African American woman with long black silky hair stood before her. Her beauty was tarnished by the scowl on her face.
‘Where is he?’
‘Who?’ Vanessa asked, surprised by the disgruntled visitor.
‘Darnell. I know he’s here. His car is out front. I’m his wife.’ She pushed past the detective and walked into the lounge and Vanessa followed.
‘Listen, Jasmine,’ Vanessa protested. ‘Nothing is going on between me and your husband. I don’t know what has been said to you but he’s my colleague and nothing else.’
Jasmine’s fury appeared to soften as she took in Vanessa’s pleas. Her shoulders relaxed and what looked like the formation of a smile curled at the edge of her lips. Footsteps trampled down the stairs and the two women turned their heads towards the living room door. It opened. Within the frame, Darnell stood dripping wet with just a towel around his midriff to cover his modesty.
‘Nothing going on? My ass it ain’t. Look at you two. So this is where you were last night. How cosy. Well you won’t mind staying a bit longer then. I’ve left your stuff out on the lawn.’ Jasmine turned to Vanessa. ‘He’s all yours. I want a divorce, Darnell. Goodbye!’
Jasmine stormed out of the house. Darnell ran after her, instantly feeling the sharp bite of the Illinois winter against his dripping half-naked body. Across the street, Vanessa’s neighbours gasped as they witnessed the towel flap within the wind leaving little to the imagination.
‘Jasmine! Please!’ As he reached her car, he found his eldest, Thomas, sitting in the front seat. He wore a cap, the same red cap which that skater had been wearing just days before, rolling past just as Vanessa and Darnell exchanged a friendly embrace, which could’ve been misinterpreted to any passing snoopers.
‘You!’ Darnell growled. ‘It was you skating past the other night. You stitched me up and brought your mother here! We were only hugging, nothing more, you little shit.’
‘Leave him alone,’ Jasmine intervened. ‘He only confirmed what I had already suspected. I know all about you and that whore in your motel in Indiana. Well, she’s welcome to you! I’m done! See how long she sticks around when you begin asking her to change your shit bag!’
‘What about the motel in Indiana? I don’t understand?’ Darnell threw his hands up in the air but Jasmine had driven off, leaving his questions unanswered.
Darnell looked down at his colostomy bag, which was now beginning to show as the tip of his towel loosened, hanging below his bulging belly. He considered calling her up and defending his brief fondle with his colleague on their business trip, but years in the force had taught him that no response was often better than attempting to defend yourself. If only he could’ve instructed a lawyer now as he was interrogated by his wife. He didn’t know what had been said to her about the night in Indiana but he was determined to find out.
He nodded his head and
