Courageous (11 page)

“Has he made contact with you?”

“He got custody of my sister, who had major issues with Mom. I’ve only seen him once and Wendy twice since then. No reason to get together. My family’s split right down the middle.”

Nathan sighed. “I guess my dad wasn’t much more than a sperm donor himself. I know his name, and that’s about it.”

David’s eyes twitched. “Look, Nathan, I really don’t want the other guys to find out what I told you. I’m not up to the ‘your daddy was a sperm donor’ jokes. They already beat up on me for being a rookie. Nobody takes me seriously.”

“That’s not how it is, David.”

“Please don’t tell anyone.”

“They won’t hear it from me. We’re partners. You have to be able to trust your partner. Right?”

“Right.”

Nathan glanced out the window a moment, then met David’s eyes. “For what it’s worth, even though I don’t have a father on earth, the Bible says I do have a Father in heaven. God created us. He searches for us when we’re lost, and He forgives us. And it says the way to know the Father is through His Son Jesus.”

David listened.

“I want to tell you just two verses I’ve memorized, okay? First, Psalm 68:5. It says God is ‘a father to the fatherless, a defender of widows.’ Your mother and mine weren’t widows in the way we normally think because our dads didn’t die. But they’re like widows because they were abandoned and husbandless, just like we’re fatherless. Does that make sense?”

David nodded.

“The other verse is Psalm 27:10. It says, ‘Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.’ When I came to faith in Christ, God became my Father.”

David looked doubtful.

“This isn’t pretend, David. It really happened and it changed my life. When William Barrett showed me what a dad could be like, it made me open my heart to God as a Father. The search for
a
father is a search for
the
Father. God is all-powerful and proved His love by going to the cross for me. In my life, that has made all the difference.”

Nathan stood, smiled, and put his hand on his young partner’s shoulder. “Next time we get the cheappuccino. And it’s on you.”

TJ and his Gangster Nation gathered in a vacant building to jump in their new recruit, who would join the family with his blood.

Several young boys gathered outside to watch the initiation through a window. Someday, they hoped, they would join the gang too. The women’s world of home and church wasn’t for them. What they couldn’t find there, they would find someday in a street family where the leaders were men, untamed and unfeminized.

TJ circled the boy, watching to measure his fear. “You ready to become a man, baby G?”

Derrick Freeman, dressed in his school clothes, swallowed hard, then nodded. TJ slapped him to the ground. Ten other gang members hit and kicked him. After thirty seconds, blood flowed. TJ yelled, “Fight back, tiny!”

Derrick fought, swinging his long arms. He got in a few good hits. Some hit him harder while others gave him a wider berth.

“That’s it,” TJ yelled after two minutes that felt like two hours to Derrick. “I said, that’s it!”

Everyone backed off.

Though bleeding badly, Derrick had drawn blood on a couple of them too.

Derrick held his stomach and breathed hard. His golf shirt was dirty and ripped, his face bruised and scratched.

TJ sat in front of Derrick on a makeshift throne. His head was wrapped in a black bandanna. His gold chain with the crown pendant stood out against a black tank top.

“You done good, little G,” TJ said. “Tore up your preppy outfit, didn’t they? Don’t go high sidin’ us, honor student, thinkin’ you’re better than us. Got that?”

Derrick nodded, wondering what he dared not say aloud—
If this is family, why’d you have me beat up so bad?

TJ leaned forward and stared Derrick down. He spoke not only to him but to every member of the gang. “You said you wanted in. This is how we do this thing. And the pain you feelin’ now ain’t nothin’ compared to what we’ll do if you ever try to leave or turn on one of us.”

“So I’m in?” Derrick said.

“Yeah, you in. You ain’t just a hood rat now. You family. Once you in, we take care of our own, dawg. You belong to
us
now. Get him up, ’Toine.”

The big man pulled Derrick to his feet. A voice deep inside Derrick, which he feared was his grandmother’s, said,
“Why would you
want
to be
in
? What you need is to be
out
.”
But that voice was overpowered by another that said,
“You’re legit now. You belong. You got a real family of men, not just a gramma.”

TJ stood up and stepped toward Derrick. “Now that I ain’t got Clyde and Jamar no more, thanks to them county brownies, I’m gonna need someone makin’ those runs for me.”

Derrick wasn’t excited about selling drugs, but cash was king.

TJ beckoned to Antoine. “Get me a deuce-deuce.”

Antoine tossed the little gun to TJ, who handed it to Derrick. “This your first piece?”

Derrick nodded, taking the .22.

“You show what you can do with it; then Daddy get you somethin’ bigger than this peashooter.”

TJ put his arms around Derrick, hugging him.

It felt like the hug of a father. At least Derrick imagined it did.

Since he had never experienced a father’s hug, how was he to know the difference?

Chapter Twelve

Adam tried to wait it out, but Javy never stopped. Finally Adam said, “I’m meeting some buddies for lunch. Take a break!”

Javier waved and went right on working. Day before yesterday Adam had been worried the guy wouldn’t be a hard worker; now he was bugged that Javy worked harder than he did. He could barely keep up.

Adam turned down Westover toward Old Dawson, then to Meredyth Drive, his mouth watering for the beef brisket at Austin’s Barbeque & Oyster Bar. As he pulled into the parking lot, he deliberated about which two of the six sauces to combine on his brisket. Manual labor gave him a king-size appetite.

He entered wearing a sweaty gray T-shirt, jeans, a navy-blue DCSD ball cap, and work boots. Nathan, David, and Shane were wearing their uniforms and were halfway through their meal. As he approached the table, Adam noticed the remains of fried dill pickle chips and cheese grits.

“Okay, guys, I’m seriously hungry. While you drive around town on your backsides, I’ve been doing honest work.” Adam gripped the menu tighter as if trying to wrest from it something it was holding back. “Well, brisket sounds good. Or a side of oysters. Maybe pork chops. Or some wings. Fried shrimp might hit the spot. What’s the Wednesday special?”

A tall, cute brunette approached the table. “My name’s Julianna, and I’ll take your order. Have you decided?”

Shane said to her, “This will go faster if he just tells you what he doesn’t want.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll have the brisket. And . . . a half side of ribs. And mashed potatoes. And mac ’n’ cheese. And green beans to make it healthy.”

The server stared at Adam. “Are you expecting someone else, sir?”

“No. If anything’s left, I’ll take it home in a doggie bag.”

“How big is your dog?” Julianna asked. The other guys grinned.

“For the sauce I want  . . . chipotle and . . . honey spiced. Or . . . the pepper and mustard’s good, isn’t it? Remind me of the others; does one of them have bacon?”

After the usual ribbing, Nathan turned to Adam. “Hope you’re enjoying your vacation ’cause you missed a nasty fight on Ninth Avenue this morning.”

“Vacation? I’ve spent the last three days building a shed, and it’s kickin’ my tail.”

Shane winced. “Hey, I really am sorry about Javier not showing up. I meant to tell you that he called me Sunday night from the hospital. He has some serious kidney stones.”

“What are you talking about? He’s been helping me with my shed for the last three days.”

“No, I’m talking about my friend Javier.”

“That’s who I’m talking about. He showed up Monday morning, and he’s been working like a machine.”

“Impossible. The guy’s in the hospital.”

Adam put down the menu. “Shane, he’s at my house right now.”

“You’re outta your mind.”

“What does Javier look like?” Adam asked.

“He’s six-two, thin as a rail. Has a goatee.”

“I’d say no taller than five-nine, probably 240 pounds. Clean shaven.”

Nathan said, “I’m no genius, but you guys aren’t talkin’ about the same dude.”

Shane smiled broadly and laughed. “I don’t know who’s at your house, Adam, but it ain’t Javier!”

Adam jumped to his feet. “I’ll talk to you guys later.”

There was a stranger on his property. Brisket would have to wait.

Adam exceeded the speed limit and pulled into his driveway four minutes later. He was relieved to see Javier exactly where he’d left him, nailing boards into the shed frame—as opposed to chasing Victoria with a nail gun. Adam jumped out with a cold-cop expression.

“Hey!”

“Back from lunch already?”

“Javier, what’s your name?”

Javier eyed Adam. “Javier?”

“No, what’s your full name?”

“Javier Eduardo Martinez. What’s
your
full name?”

“Adam Thomas Mitchell.”
What’s that got to do with . . . ?
“You know Shane Fuller?”

“Shane Fuller? No. What’s his full name?”

“It’s Shane . . . no, no. Who told you I was building a shed?”

“You did.”

“Who told you I’d pay you $150 a day?”

“You did.”

“What? You’re not the guy I thought I was hiring!”

“Then how did you know to call me Javier?”

“I thought your name was Javier.”

“It is.”

Adam scanned his brain cells. They were already in jeopardy from not having had one bite of brisket or mashed potatoes.

“Why were you standing in my alley Monday morning?”

“I needed a job. Why did you ask me to help you?”

“Because I thought you were a guy named Javier.”

“I am.”

“No, I mean . . . you don’t have kidney problems, do you?”

“No.” Javier paused. “Do you?”

“No.”
Adam stood still, hoping for a burst of clarity that didn’t arrive.

“I can tell you this,” Javier said. “By you giving me this job, it has been an answer to my family’s prayers.”

“Well, you’re doing good work. Uh . . . you sure I can’t get you anything to eat?”

“No thanks. My wife’s lunch was big enough.”

Adam walked away, wondering whether he should go check the fridge, hurry back to Austin’s Barbeque, or just find an animal on the street, shoot it, and throw it on the grill.

He said to Javier, “I’m going to go get some lunch.”

“You are hungry again?
Already?
”

That evening the Hayes family was preparing for dinner when a tricked-out Dodge rolled down their street and stopped in front of their house. The driver stepped out with a newfound swagger and rang the doorbell.

When Jade opened the door, her eyes opened wide. She smiled, stepped outside, and closed the door behind her.

“Hey, how are you doing?” she asked.