“You should really grow out your hair Ima, honestly, you look like a boy.” Cathy said, eyeing her daughter.
“Mom.” Imani said in warning, began to dig into the fish, avoiding the bones.
“Well honey, I mean, if you’re gay, or is it lesbian, that’s all well and good.” Cathy continued, ignoring the warning.
“Mom! Stop it.”
“Oh honey, I don’t care if you’re a lesbian. Do you have a girlfriend? We’d love to meet her.” She said, taking a drink of her wine.
“Mom! I’m not gay. And stop, for goodness sakes.”
“Oh, well that’s fine. Do you have a boyfriend?” Her mother persisted.
“No mom, I don’t.” Imani said, looking at her father for help. He was no help, his eyes crinkled in humor. She could see his shoulders shaking from silent mirth.
“Well no wonder, with that short hair. Honestly. I’d like some grandchildren soon. You’re thirty and your eggs aren’t getting any younger. They’re drying out as we speak. You do want kids, don’t you?” Her mother asked, her brows high near her hairline.
Imani let her head fall to the table and bounce, causing the dishes to rattle violently. Her eyes looked to her father, imploring. He was now laughing outright. Her mouth twitched and she grinned, her own eyes crinkling.
“Leave her alone Cathy. She’ll either have kids or she won’t, but you nagging her will ensure she won’t.” Nicholas told his wife, who shot him a dirty look, causing Imani’s grin to grow.
This discussion was nothing new. She knew her mother wanted grandchildren. She could not tell her parents that an assassin didn’t have children. It was an occupational no no. She took a long drink of her sangria and reached for another one of the herrings. The fish was flaky and well-seasoned. Her mother could cook, she’d give her that.
“I know you want grandchildren mom. But I don’t know if I want kids. If and when it happens, you’ll be the first to know.”
“Well, at least grow your hair out.” Cathy pushed.
“Mom!”
Ϫ
Nobu scoured the net, it had bothered him about the Dallas job. Lawbreaker had seemed pleased about the hit and the money had been sent promptly to the appropriate account, so no issues on that avenue. He’d seen no grumbling or side comments in other venues on the net. He hoped that it was just Ima and nerves. Though that didn’t bode well, he knew his friend needed to stay focused when on a job.
Nobu had also been trolling for human traffickers and had a bead on a group over in Waukegan. He’d followed their IP address. He was putting out feelers. It would not do to send Imani into a sting operation, where she’d end up killing policemen. They’d hunt her down without restraint then. It was a ticklish business and too much interest was just as dangerous.
He had a solid network of likeminded cohorts and crimefighters. He ran this Waukegan group by them.
“You think they’re legit? Looks like they’ve got a stable of young women.” Nobu wrote.
“Yeah, looks like they’ve been doing this for a couple years. Mom and Pop operation.” Dragon’s Breath wrote.
“I’m looking at their IP address and trying to get a better location for them. Can you help?” He wrote.
“I gotta friend that can. Let me see what I can do. Also, these folks are nasty. They seem to be in with the Lithuanian underground, also an offshoot of the Russian mob.” Dragon’s Breath wrote.
“Good to know. Let me know what you find out and I’ll take care of things on my end. Talk soon.” Nobu ended the conversation.
He brought up his Zoosk account to check for possible dates. He smiled, he had one. He pulled up the profile and looked at the man before him. Looked like a hipster, but that was okay. He read the man’s bio, and liked what he saw. He typed out an invite for a lunch date and sent it off. He’d not had a lot of luck dating, too many immature men and he wanted someone grounded.
Getting up, he left the operations room and went into the living room. He smiled, thinking about Ima and her mother. He sniggered, knowing what would happen when she first arrived. It never failed, the call and cry for grandchildren. Then the smile vanished. She’d have to have a boyfriend for that. He didn’t think she’d dated in years. Oh, she’d dated in Japan, when they’d been stationed there. But she’d not been on a date or even talked about a man since he’d moved in.
She was so dedicated to her job that she’d either not had time, nor inclination to date.
“Who the hell would she date?” Nobu asked aloud to the room? Their world was a relatively secretive one and though Nobu dated, he’d been careful about who he brought to the apartment. He explained the cipher lock to the room as Imani’s room, a dark room, for her photography. He’d told his dates that even he didn’t have access to it.
But he wondered, who would she date? Her skill sets and her intellect were so high, that she couldn’t date the average Joe. She most assuredly couldn’t date a cop, he’d want to know what was behind that door. Also, what kind of man would she fall for?
He was suddenly sad for his friend. Would she be alone for the rest of her life? Would he and she grow old together? And who ever he fell in love with, would he let that man into their lives? Could a relationship stand up to that kind of secrecy? It was something to think about.
Maybe if he looked around, he could find someone for her. But again, there was such danger in that. Besides, she’d kick his ass for trying to hook her up. He’d tried it once three years ago. She’d
