“I don’t give a damn. He’s a recovery agent I’ve contracted for my bounty.”
“God, you are such an ass,” she went on.
The crowd was still increasing as people started to frown on Ron and agree with Brian’s heroine, thanking her for busting up his disrespectful one-man show. Many still believed that men and women who served in the armed forces, who put their lives on the line for America’s freedom should be treated with respect when they came home. Not publicly ridiculed.
Grace had the name of angel, but she also had the sharp tongue of the devil. She’d been known to cut people down to size when they tried to flex their muscles on her or in general, and Ron the bondsman wouldn’t be spared. She always put Brian in the mind of an Amazon. Tall, lean, sexy and fierce. She had her jet-black hair pulled back at her neck and her face was devoid of any makeup. Revlon wasn’t needed for natural beauty. Grace put her hands on her hips, unbuttoned the jacket on one of her notorious pant suits and stood with her feet shoulder width apart as if she had to brace herself for what she was about to say next. Looking over the heads in the crowd, Brian could see some court officials making their way over to the spectacle, their hands resting on the butts of their tasers. He tapped Grace on her shoulder, but she waved him off as if she couldn’t be deterred.
“It’s no one’s fault that you bit off more than your dumb ass can chew. Took a bond that was too big for what was in your tiny bank account and now you want to take it out on everyone else.” She pointed over her shoulder. “If I was Duke, I wouldn’t have sent anyone to help you. I’d let you go bankrupt, asshole. You’d be right up shit’s creek, after I beat your ass with your own paddle.”
“You’re not Duke, so stay the hell out of it, Grace.” Ron’s face was now as red as Brian’s.
She nodded as if she was in complete agreement with herself as the crowd egged her on. “If you were on fire, I wouldn’t squat and piss on you, Ron.”
Ron growled and threw his hands up. “You talk too damn much, woman. No wonder you’re still single at forty-five.”
That earned Ron a few ‘ohhhs’ from the audience but mostly scowls from the women.
Grace threw her head back and laughed like a crazed jackal. She moved right up to Ron’s face and snarled. “I’m single because I have standards.” She looked Ron up and down with disgust. “If me and you were stranded on an island, and there wasn’t another dick in sight; I’d still fuck myself with a pine cone before I touch you.”
Raucous laughter rang out just as the officials arrived, waving their hands for the crowd to disperse. They were well aware who Grace was and instead of reprimanding her—which was useless—another bailiff just pointed towards the door with a clipped warning to move it out of the building.
When they got outside, Ron made a quick getaway, never sparing Brian another glance. He smirked down at Grace who was shooting daggers at Ron’s back and tapped her again. He mouthed ‘thank you’, hoping she could tell how grateful he was. It wasn’t easy for him to let a female come to his rescue but the look on Ron’s face had been priceless. The guy had that coming.
“No problem, Brian. You know I hate that guy.” She hefted her briefcase higher on her shoulder and gave him a devilish grin. “That was fun. I enjoyed that. Tell Duke and the crew I said, ‘hey’. And tell him my invite to his Fourth of July charity youth cookout better not be late.”
Brian watched her until she got to her black and silver Lexus. Damn, that’s a lot of woman. He drove back to the office to pick up his weapons before he went out to do surveillance. He’d just turned on to the M.L.K. when his phone buzzed on the center console.
The office was empty. They didn’t keep tabs on each other. They knew what their jobs were. He went about putting his equipment in his large duffle. His camera, night vision binoculars, and a few other cool toys he liked to tinker with when he got bored. Staring at one house for hours waiting for any sign of movement could make anyone restless. Bounty hunting sounded fun and exciting, but it was mostly a lot of sitting and waiting.
His phone buzzed again in his pocket. He remembered he hadn’t checked what the first notification was for. He was back in his Mustang when he finally looked to see who it was. He’d thought it might have been his boss or that asshole, Ron the bondsman.