Justice Black: The Game Never Ends Page 7

  “Go to hell,” Justice whispered as Bryan left. He could imagine how his next golf session would go; there would be no living this down.

  Now he was late for his appointment, and he didn’t need a speeding ticket this morning. He called Jeri, then jogged to the complex office purposely to avoid any more crowds. Marvin again caught him and blocked his way.

  “Damn it,” he swore.

  “Dr. Black, this is fortuitous indeed. I was on my way to see you.”

  “What do you want, Marvin?”

  There was no warmth in his question, but Marvin felt he needed to settle things quickly.

  “There was another complaint lodged against you, Dr. Black.” Marvin quickly stepped back. He had seen the van leave his place. “If there is a violation, you are aware of the penalty.” Rules were rules, and Dr. Black must understand them. He tried to calm his nerves by adjusting his tie, but it didn’t help. “I would hate to take this matter to the association,” he added.

  Justice could barely contain the urge to ram Marvin and his rules against the wall. “Marvin, today is not the day, I assure you.” His jaw muscles tightened when he emphasized his name. “Are you responsible? And don’t play coy with me.” There was no need to explain what he meant.

  “Who? Me? Why, I would never do that.” Marvin’s voice quivered out of fear of Justice and the reputation of the complex.

  “I’m out of here by the end of the week.”

  Marvin couldn’t let that happen and worked fast to do damage control. His mother had gone to great lengths paving the way for him to get this job; there was no way he was going to lose it now. This wasn’t worth the risk. The company would definitely fire him. Nope, Dr. Black could not move.

  “Dr. Black,” Marvin pleaded, “please don’t move. Again, Dr. Black, I’m sorry for the unfortunate misunderstanding.” No, sir, with all the benefits the company offered, he couldn’t afford to lose this job. He noticed the bruise on Justice’s head and believed it was from a fight. Yesterday he’d witnessed that temper in the parking lot and feared Justice would have injured the tenant who backed into him if the man hadn’t raced back into his car. “I’m sure there was a mistake about the excessive noise. Please don’t worry, Dr. Black. I will speak to the association about false reports.”

  Justice walked away and never looked back at Marvin. “Marvin, you tell that tenant to feel free to come see me anytime.”

  Marvin panicked and said, “This is a crisis. I have to find another apartment for Dr. Joseph.”

  chapter

  SIXTEEN

  Ed’s luck was changing. The chairman told him there was information on who was responsible for his scar and his downfall.

  He remembered that night. Everyone was asleep when they were raided. They’d fought as hard as they could but still lost. It was his fault. He hadn’t told anyone but his friend. Ed’d sent most of the men out for recruitments and deliveries. One other camp was raided, and there were only the elderly and children at that camp. The women fought the best as they could, but they were outnumbered. It was chaos. Not only did he lose everything, he lost several good soldiers that night. So in a way, some had a right to hate him. But he’d make it right. Wait and see.

  Ed calmly crushed his cigarette into the dirt and blew the smoke in the direction of Bandlo Inc. “I’m a patient man, Justice Black. You won’t escape.” He then walked to the pay phone located across the street. He hadn’t gotten his pills from Dragus. He dialed the number, and Dragus’s rough voice answered. “Dragus, you said you’d have my pills. Where are they?”

  “Don’t worry. There’s another meeting in a half hour, and you need to be there. You can pick up your pills then. By the way, I heard you had a confrontation with the chairman. You’d better steer clear of that.”

  “No, the chairman better not push me.”

  Ed took his usual spot in the corner of the meeting room. It was easier to go unnoticed and watch everyone’s faces as they sweated their potential losses. One by one each moaned about this Ghost the chairman worried about. It made him happy.

  The chairman started the meeting with the major roll call, then turned to Dragus. “Dragus, the shooter was sloppy. Take care of it. Have you found Jarrod Weatherman?”

  “No, not since he took off to Africa. Jarrod’s wife hasn’t heard from him. She wants to find him for child support.”

  “She can forget that, and tell her I said so. I don’t want anyone else looking for Jarrod. He’s a weakling; I don’t trust Jarrod not to talk. Find him. Don’t forget to check the jails. We get a lot more information inside than we can ever get outside.”

  Kyle frowned at the order. “Chairman, that means more payouts, and our budget is already strained.” He hated his next words, but they had to be said. “Sir, our airport people were arrested. I’m checking our immigration contacts.”

  Murmurs could be heard throughout the small room. Someone asked whether Justice Black was worth the money. A woman asked what was being done about the Ghost. The chairman didn’t like hearing any of it.

  “Everyone, listen to me. What I’m hearing isn’t making me happy, and you”—the chairman turned to Kyle—“I don’t want to hear the budget is strained ever again. Justice Black must be discredited. I want a full report on how much that loss will cost us. I have someone working on this Ghost, and once we find that person, our worries will be over. Why are you standing there, Dragus? Get the hell out of here, and do as I say. We need to do damage control. Why must I always be surrounded by imbeciles?”

  The chairman was falling apart. This was good for Ed to see. That last financial fiasco had major consequences. Without the money from that operation, they wouldn’t be able to buy that villa for the families ready to be planted.

  Dragus pulled Ed to the corridor and handed him the pills. “Don’t you think you should ease up on these pills? It’s getting to be a habit.”

  Ed paid Dragus no attention, “Look you get your high your way, I get mind my way. Let’s just keep it at that and we’ll get along just fine, how about that?”

  “You know Drayton I really don’t give a damn,” Dragus replied and handed him an envelope. “Here’s the next assignment. The chairman wants it done the same time you handle Justice Black. You’ll find your money in the usual location. Do this well, and you’ll never be broke again.”

  “As long as I get paid and you understand I don’t give a damn either.” Ed grinned. “But now I need to get ready for a date.”

  chapter

  SEVENTEEN

  Silence and darkness, there was a time Justice appreciated both. Alone in his office Margie’s cryptic journal read like a horror book as it gave insight to Legion. For once he was happy his phone rang because he was too deep into the madness of the journal. He was saved by the familiar “Oh Happy Day” ringtone.

  “Boss, how much longer are you planning on being there? It’s almost eight o’clock.”

  “Maybe a couple more hours. Why?”

  “An anonymous caller gave a name of the possible shooter. I’m on my way to check it out. It’s probably bogus like the last one, but I’ll take a ride out to the hinterlands anyway.”

  “Go ahead,” Justice said. “Take Lane with you.”

  “Will do. Did I ever tell you how I hate this godforsaken town?”

  “Caldwell, I stopped counting,” Justice answered.

  Leo’s Fish Emporium would be closed in an hour. Now was a good time to shut everything down anyway. One of the blue fish didn’t make it through the disaster, and the owner had ordered him a new one. The male fish always had a hard time; the mate kept biting his tail off. As Justice pulled into the parking lot, two men hanging around a white Corvette saw him and suddenly walked away, but not far. The taller one glanced at Justice but went in a different direction. Justice recognized the jacket pinned with several medallions. He knew who it was. The sho
rter man nearly ran into Justice when he rushed into the store.

  Leo Hooker had owned the Fish Emporium for thirty years and knew his customers; usually he was easy to get along with, unless one of his six sons damaged his car, again.

  “Hey, Leo, you have my fish?”

  “Man, when are you going to stop putting a male with that female? This is the second one in a month.”

  Justice gave a small laugh. “This time he had breathing difficulties.”

  Leo laughed and placed the fish inside a container with a shrug. “See how long this one will last, JT. Tell your folks I said hi.”

  Justice laughed. In southern towns, folks identified you by your parents. Most still saw him as Isaac and Hazel Black’s son, JT. Because of his parents, no one was surprised of his accomplishments.

  The small man moved aimlessly around the store as he kept his eyes on Justice.

  “Hey, Percival,” Leo yelled, “I’m closing. If you ain’t buying something, you’d better leave.”

  “In a minute, Leo. Give me a few more minutes.”

  A light mist started. The parking lot was empty when Justice walked outside. The white pit bull tied to the bike rack growled at him. “Aw hell,” he murmured. He knew who the dog belonged to. When Justice placed his fish inside the car, the man wearing the medallion jacket stepped into the light.

  “Tate,” Justice calmly said, “if you come at me, I’d suggest you do it like a man and call your dog off.”

  “I’m just walking my dog.”

  “Tied to the bike rack?”

  Since high school, Tate Washington hated Justice. He believed Justice had taken a woman from him—Jeremiah’s mother.

  “Big-shot Dr. JT Black. So you come back here to run shit. I’ll see that you don’t.”

  Tate was high and dangerous. Starting with the mother, the family breathed destruction on anyone who came in contact with them. Tate was sixteen when his older brother and father were killed in a shootout with the cops; the mother swore the cops set her family up, and afterward bred hate into the rest of her children.

  “Cat got your tongue? You forgot the English language, mister college-educated man?”

  “Tate, why don’t you quietly move out of here with your dog before one of you gets hurt?”

  “You and what little army is gonna see that we do?”

  Tate then moved toward Justice, but Justice was faster and not high. Tate found himself pinned to the cold, wet asphalt with a strong hold, his gun, now in Justice’s hand, pressed firmly against his cheek.

  Percival walked up, clearly surprised to see Tate on the ground. “Tate, what d’ya want me to do, man?”

  “You can move out of here unless you want Tate handed to you in pieces,” Justice answered. Percival didn’t move until Justice jerked Tate’s arm. “Tate, tell him now.”

  Tate grunted. “Go, man. I’ll handle this.”

  After Percival ran away, Justice snatched Tate to his feet but knocked him back to the ground with a deadly warning as he stood over him. “Tate, if you ever come at me again, you’re not walking away. You tell that to whoever gives you orders.”

  chapter

  EIGHTEEN

  “Dr. Eastermann, Dr. Joseph is here.”

  “Thanks, Alice. I’ll be right out.”

  Wil stepped out of her office and smiled at Kaitlyn. “Dr. Joseph, good to see you, and welcome aboard.” She led Kaitlyn to the office and closed the door. They both laughed and hugged each other. “Gianna, I’m so glad you’re here.”

  Wil stood back and looked at her friend. She’d met Kaitlyn while they were in college. Wil recruited students to be paid participants in a research study that she was conducting on fear. Kaitlyn had looked so pitiful and desperate standing there that Wil pulled her out of the line. She knew how tight money was and later got Kaitlyn a job working part-time with her in a chicken-processing plant, and they became instant friends.

  “I see the power is back,” Kaitlyn laughed.

  “Thank goodness,” Wil said. She wasted no time getting Kaitlyn prepared for the day. “I need to brief you on the restaurant fire. It is very political, so you will be working with the head of this region’s defense. With the exception of Desirae Miller, you’ll be treating the other survivors of the fire. One of the victims, Peter Harrison, was scheduled to see you for an evaluation for visits with his children.” Wil handed her a folder. “Before I forget, here is a list of applicants for office clerk, and your first client is scheduled for tomorrow.”

  Kaitlyn accepted the folder and laughed, “Nothing like diving right in.” She was glad she could get right into her work. She’d rested long enough. She breathed a deep sigh at the thought of the people being trapped inside of the restaurant. It was the common conversation in the grocery lines. The disease of the human mind was always a puzzle to her, and the extent of human damage it could cause was what pulled her into her field. Suddenly she thought of the sociopath living above her.

  Familiar with her worried look, Wil asked, “What’s wrong? You look tired.” For as long as Wil had known Kaitlyn, Kaitlyn had always been particular about the way she appeared in public. She always looked fresh and ready to tackle anything. Today she didn’t. Even though Wil hated those blue, brown, and gray suits Kaitlyn insisted on wearing, Kaitlyn was a beautiful woman good at camouflaging.

  “Nothing really. My furniture was late in arriving; all of my clothes are either wrinkled or too thick for this weather.” Kaitlyn leaned back in her chair. “A sociopath lives above me with screaming parrots, and I hardly sleep. He is the noisiest, rudest individual I’ve met and a true aberration. That place should be ashamed the way they false advertise.” She adjusted her body properly in the chair and turned her head toward the window in a valiant attempt to calm herself. “I’m so tired I could faint right here. My eyes feel as if someone threw a shovel of sand in them.”

  “That’s horrible. Have you spoken to the manager—or him?”

  “Well, no, not in a direct way. I don’t want to know him. I called him an idiot and a moron. The jerk had the gall to tell me to shut up. Imagine him telling me to shut up. He started everything.” Thinking about it made her even madder. “I fixed him, and yes, I did complain to the manager.”

  “So you actually met and spoke to him?” Wil watched suspiciously as Kaitlyn sat rigid in her chair. She’d done something. “I know you, Gianna. You fixed him how?”

  “You sound like Grandmom. No, I didn’t meet him. I was a little ticked off, not peeved, as you may think.” She thought about what she’d done. “Before I came in this morning, I made an important call to animal control and reported my suspicion of animal cruelty and exotic bird smuggling. That’s all.” She shrugged. “My heart goes out to those parrots. There have to be at least ten or twenty with all that noise.”

  “That’s all! Woman, you didn’t feel sorry for the birds. Don’t give me that.” Wil wasn’t surprised. One thing about her friend she’d learned was to beware when she said, “I fixed.”

  At that precise moment, Alice interrupted with the announcement of Wil’s appointment, saving her from unprofessional laughing.

  Too tired to be formal, Kaitlyn didn’t bother getting up or turning around when the guest arrived.

  “Hello, Justice. Please come in.” Wil was taken aback at the haggard look of a customarily impeccably dressed Dr. Justice Black. “What happened to you?”

  The scowl and the ugly purple bruise on his forehead could hardly be ignored.

  “This has started out to be one hell of a day, Doc. First thing this morning, the animal people were at my door with a complaint of animal cruelty, illegal harboring of exotic birds, operating a pet store without a license, and running a breeding farm. It took me over an hour to show proof I was not guilty of any of those damn allegations.”

  Justice, annoyed, took the seat next to Kaitl
yn, who never looked his way.

  “I tell you, Doc, when I find out who’s responsible for that, the person will know exactly what cruelty is. That person must be hard up and desperate for entertainment.”

  Wil was dumbfounded. So Justice Black was the “sociopath” and Kaitlyn’s neighbor. She tried not to look at Kaitlyn, whose shoulders rose two inches higher with indignation.

  Kaitlyn really struggled not to face Justice. Clearly, unlike her friend, Justice was in the dark as to the guilty party. Kaitlyn’s next move: she’d put on sunglasses and sit there and pretend to be clueless. On cue she fumbled through her purse, but not before Wil gave her a disapproving look.

  “Hard up for entertainment,” Kaitlyn mumbled as she dug deeper and hurriedly placed sunglasses on. “The arrogant jerk.”

  “Oh my goodness, Justice,” Wil said, “I can’t imagine anyone saying that you are cruel to animals. There must be a mistake.”

  “Well, we will see about that mistake,” Justice replied through clenched teeth. He was not in a mood to laugh anything off.

  Kaitlyn cleared her throat. Enough of Wil’s silent torture. She was sure Wil had enjoyed every bit of it.

  “Forgive me, Dr. Joseph.” Wil’s tone shifted to business. “This is Dr. Justice Black. Dr. Black is the director of Southern Region Defense. Dr. Black, this is Dr. Adeena Gianna Joseph, the psychologist I mentioned that would be working with you and your team. This is also her first day.” Wil waited with genuine curiosity for Kaitlyn’s reaction and added, “Dr. Joseph and her staff will also be working with the fire victims.”

  Kaitlyn hadn’t said a word. Wil had conveniently failed to tell her she’d be working with the director of defense, who, to Kaitlyn’s surprise, happened to be the person who lived above her.

  Justice politely stood but briefly frowned. Everything the woman wore blended with her skin. She had on ridiculous round brown sunglasses, a brown suit, brown flat shoes, and a tan blouse. Her hair was pulled tightly into a coil and held with a brown clip. He thought, Damn, she must work hard to get that matronly look.