“Awesome, huh?” “More than once?”
She nodded.
Thunder rumbled, long and low.
“Lord almighty, I hope this weather won’t cause a delay.”
“How did that play?” I asked.
“It wasn’t grand romance, if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“What was it?”
She sighed. “The usual. I was sixteen. Cale was older, seemed worldly and sophisticated. We were both horny as hounds in heat.”
“Did Cindi know?”
“I don’t think so. She was a trusting person. Very sweet.”
“But not putting out.” Despite my resolve, disgust filtered through.
“You’re right. I was a world-class bitch.”
Rain was drumming the plastic canopy now. Padgett poked her head out, looked up at the sky, then at her watch.
“Bogan learned that you and Cale were cheating on Cindi,” I guessed.
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Does that really matter?”
Probably not.
“He resented you because he cared for her.”
Padgett looked at me as if I’d said warthogs could fly. “How much effort have y’all put into this investigation?”
“I’m new to the case.”
Padgett assessed me for a long moment. “Craig Bogan hated Cindi Gamble as much as he hated me. Maybe more.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t understand.”
She spread her arms. “What do you see?”
“Ms. Padgett—”
“Seriously.” She held the pose.
Though the jumpsuit was far from slimming, I could tell Padgett’s body was fit and trim. She wore a string of red beads around her neck, probably coral. The subtle touch of femininity showed a flair for fashion that I’ve always admired but never possessed.
Padgett’s makeup was understated and skillfully applied. And completely unnecessary.
“You’re a beautiful woman—” I began, slightly embarrassed.
“Black woman.” She dropped her arms to her sides. “A beautiful black woman.”
“You’re saying Craig Bogan is a racist?”
“The man is a Neanderthal.”
As I’d suspected.
“And Cale wasn’t?”
Padgett shook her head. “Honey, I’m not kidding myself. Wasn’t then. There was no way Cale was going to put a ring on my finger. And my game plan didn’t involve settling for a high school dropout. We were both just sowing our oats.”
Rain was coming down hard. As Padgett continued, I pulled a windbreaker from my purse and slipped it on.
“But it wasn’t totally sex. Cale and I talked. I came to understand his way of thinking. He started out buying in to his old man’s racist horseshit. Why wouldn’t he? As a kid, he’d been brainwashed. And Bogan had a wicked temper. It was good Cale put distance between them.”
“You’re saying Cale became more liberal after getting away from his father?”
“He took up with me, didn’t he?”
“Why the change?”
Padgett didn’t hear my question. She was listening to an announcement coming over the loudspeakers.
“Son of a buck.” She kicked the tires in irritation. “They’ve raised the red flag.”
“The race is on hold?”
“Yeah. I’m going to have to cut this short.”
