I open my eyes, jump back, and squeal for a good five seconds. The man on the other side of the fence is large, African American and scowling at me. The look in his eyes says some rude cuss words.
Taking a second to compose myself, I breathe deep and put a hand to my chest. When I’m good I step closer to the fence and ask, “How do I get to Uncle Jerm?”
The man’s face hardens and he replies coldly, “If you don’t know how to get to him you shouldn’t be here, shawty. ”
Anxiety clogs my throat and desperation sets in. I croak, “This is an emergency. I haven’t slept all night because of that freak Omarr. I need to see Jermaine. ” I close my eyes and beg in a whisper, “Please. This is important. ”
My eyes are still closed but I hear the large man sigh. He asks, “What’s your name?”
I open my misty eyes and reply, “Tina. Jermaine knows me. ”
The man’s eyes widen and he repeats, “Tina?” I nod and he continues, “As in Leokov’s woman?” I nod. He lets out a long, low whistle and says, “He said you had balls but I had no idea you’d be stupid enough to come here. He won’t be happy about this but if I leave you here he’ll have my ass. ” He looks me up and down then nods to the side gate and sighs, “C’mon, shawty. ”
Large man walks me to the first warehouse then leads me to an office. He says, “Uncle Jerm will be here soon. Make yourself comfortable. ”
Then he opens the door to Uncle Jerm’s office, I walk in and he closes it behind me. I take the CD out of my purse and sit on the sofa. I lean my head on the arm of the sofa and sigh.
I’ll just rest my eyes for a moment.
***
My eyes flutter open and I see Uncle Jerm sitting behind his desk, leaning to the side with a hand over his eyes.
The CD I brought with me is gone. I jerk and Uncle Jerm looks up.
He doesn’t look happy. Not that I thought he would be happy about my visit. His nephew wants him dead, for god sake!
I begin to speak but Uncle Jerm cuts me off with a firm, “Damn fool of a woman!”
Well, that’s not quite what I was expecting.
He continues, “Do you realize the danger you’ve put yourself in? Nik is going to be livid. I am livid. Of all the things you could’ve done, this was the dumbest. ”
And that’s when I burst into tears.
My body shakes with sobs and I croak, “He wants to kill you, Jermaine. He wants Nik to hurt. I—I—I didn’t know what else to do. I heard Nik say you needed evidence that Omarr was recruiting and now you have it. So, do something!” I shake and whisper, “Please do something. I can’t lose Nik. ” I cover my face with my hands and weep.
Uncle Jerm pulls my hands from my face and kneels before me. He wipes tears from my cheeks and assures, “Omarr isn’t a concern anymore, child. ” My body slumps back with relief. He continues, “As of ten minutes ago, Omarr has a price on his head. ”
Oh, no!
I stammer, “B—B—But I thought you would get him some help!” My face pales and I whisper shout. “I didn’t want him dead, Jermaine!”
He shakes his head slowly and answers me softly, “Tina, Omarr isn’t right. Think of it this way, it’s you and Nik or it’s him. And be warned, he will come after you. He will find out about this, baby girl. I know you had good intentions but it was crazy. Straightjackets, padded rooms, out of your damn mind, crazy. You feel me?”
If I pale any more I’ll be transparent.
What have I done?
Uncle Jerm smirks, “But, by god, you’ve got a set of balls on you. ” Then he sobers and says, “We got to tell Nik about this. ”
I nod.
That should be fun.
***
The CD Uncle Jerm had expressed to The White Rabbit plays on my computer. I sit at my desk and listen.