“I can’t keep things from my husband,” I told him.
“They play with him, he’ll deal. They branch out to you, what’s he gonna do, Lexie?” he asked, gave me a second and then advised, “Think about that.”
What I thought was, if Ty knew they were playing with me and I didn’t tell him, he’d lose his mind. He would, of course, lose his mind that they were playing with me but he’d lose his mind more if he knew I’d endured it, didn’t tell him and contacted Officer Frank, a man in a Carnal PD uniform I did not know but I did know I couldn’t trust.
Ty knew I could take care of myself, he knew I knew the score and he knew I had his back. He wouldn’t like it if this continued happening but he’d deal. If I kept something from him, he might not.
This, I wouldn’t know until hours later and events that led to heartbreak, was a very bad decision.
At the time, I just nodded because I was beginning to shake and I needed to get home.
“I have perishables in the car,” I told him softly.
He nodded. Then he said, “Sorry, Lexie. Really sorry.” He tapped both hands on the edge of my window and finished, “Drive safe.”
Then he lifted his hands in front of him, stepped back and moved away from my car.
I tossed the stuff in my hand to the passenger seat, put my car in gear and carefully checked all my mirrors before I pulled out, terrified, in my state, that I’d not pay attention and get hurt or hurt my baby so I paid acute attention to my every move. And I did this until my baby was in the garage and the garage door was falling behind her.
Home. Safe.
I sucked in breath.
Then I grabbed my purse, got out and flew up the steps.
“Yo, baby doll,” Julius greeted from his place camped out in front of the television.
“Uh… hey, Julius,” I muttered distractedly, moving directly to the island, putting my purse on it and, with trembling hands, digging for my phone.
“Hey, Lexie, you okay?” Julius asked and I had my phone in my hand and my thumb was finding Ty.
“Uh… uh…” I put my phone to my ear because I’d dialed Ty and my eyes went to him to see he’d made it to the kitchen. When he saw my face he stopped dead. “Kinda… no.”
“Mama,” Ty said in my ear and I dropped my head and looked at my hand holding onto the edge of the island.
“Uh, hey, honey.”
Silence then, “What?”
God, he could hear it in my voice.
“I got… um,” I swallowed. “I got pulled over on the way home.”
Now I got total silence on the phone.
Silence on the phone but in the kitchen a big, angry man rumbled, “Fuckin’ shit.”
When what I got over the phone lengthened, I whispered, “Ty?”
“Please tell me you were speeding.”
“No.” I was still whispering.
“Fuckin’ with you?”
“Crabtree,” I confirmed. “Until another cop stopped, named Frank and he –”
Ty didn’t let me finish. He bit off, “Right.”