“No, Detective Kirkland, that is not what I want to know.”
“Okay, here it is. I not only like Mike Black, but I respect him.” Kirk stood up. “And a part of that is because even though I knew exactly what he was doing, I never could make a case against him.”
Dawkins stood up. “Couldn’t make a case, huh?”
“Nope, not without compromising my integrity and falsifying evidence,” Kirk said as he walked away. “Black and Jada West, huh?”
“Hot and heavy until his wife came back from the dead.”
“No shit.”
“No shit,” Dawkins said as they approached their cars.
“Come on, detective, ride with me,” Kirk said, and then held the door open for her.
“Thank you,” she said and got in the car. Kirk shut her door and then walked around the car to get in. “You know what, detective,” she said when he got in the car.
“What’s that?”
“I think I’d like for you to call me Racheal.”
Kirk smiled. “Okay. Racheal, it is.” He started the car and drove off.
“So, does that mean that I can call you William?”
Kirk looked at her. “I prefer that you didn’t, but I won’t have you brought up on charges if you do.”
Chapter Eleven
It was afternoon by the time they had visited and evaluated all of the places where bodies were dropped.
“So, what now, detective?” Dawkins asked as they drove away from the sight.
“In situations like this, I’d go talk to Black.”
“Really? Why?”
“The streets belonged to him; he’d hear things long before we would. But he’s gone now; retired, living the good life in the Bahamas,” Kirk said, thinking that he could call Wanda for help if he really needed to.
“Well, if we apply that same logic, maybe the person we need to see is Rain Robinson,” Dawkins suggested. “The streets belong to her now.”
“You’re right. These are her streets now.”
“So, you wanna roll by J.R.’s?”
Kirk looked at his watch. “She’s probably not there, but it wouldn’t hurt.”
But Rain was just arriving at J.R.’s. She was there to meet Carla. She had called Rain and said that she had some things that she wanted to share about David Petty. And since they were going to talk about David Petty, Rain asked Carter to join her.
Demi, who was the bar manager, had just opened the club for happy hour when the detectives came in. She knew who Kirk was and she headed straight for him.
“Good evening, Detective Kirkland. My name is Demi Smothers and I’m the bar manager. Is there something I can help you with?”
“I’d like to talk to Rain. And before you tell me she’s not here,” Kirk said and pointed toward the door. “Her car’s outside … and it’s still warm.”
Demi smiled, and Dawkins wanted to.
“If you’d excuse me for a minute, I’ll see if she’s available,” she said and walked away putting on her headset. That’s when Carter came through the door. Demi called the office.