Alyssa's Desire (11 page)

    The courier was ready to deliver twenty-five crates filled with cheap, imported knick knacks, such as snow globes, music boxes, ceramic decorative items, etc. Generally speaking each box contained an item that was manufactured for pennies on the dollar, and each one
contained a small amount of heroin hidden inside. Most of the items had a secret compartment where the special additions could be easily removed; leaving the cheap souvenir intact, but a few items had to be broken to reach the goods inside. The compartmentalized goods could be reused but they could only hold a very small bag of goodies. The larger, breakable items were used to hide the greater drug quantities.

   
A man wearing a dark hoodie and black jeans jumped off of the boat and tied it to the port. He then waved Trevor and his crew over. His attire made identifying the man impossible, but neither Trevor nor his associates thought anything of that. They all figured he was dressed that way to avoid being identified if anyone witnessed what they were about to do. So Trevor motioned for his men to start unloading the crates from the ship and putting them on their trucks. With each crate, Trevor opened one of the compartmentalized items to ensure that his product was inside. Once he was satisfied with what he found he would give his approval for the goods to go on the trucks. The man in the dark hoodie ignored this and he just kept handing crates down to Trevor's crew. When all the crates were transferred, Trevor walked up to the boat and he tossed the man aboard a bag containing a large amount of cash as payment for the special delivery. The man opened the bag and looked at the money. Then suddenly he reached behind his bag and pulled a gun on Trevor. Seconds later DEA agents came out from their hiding places around the port. The man with the hoodie pulled out a badge and then he addressed Trevor Barnes directly.

    "Get on your knees and put your hands above your head! I am special agent, John Monroe with the Drug Enforcement Administration. Trevor Barnes you are under arrest for the possession of, and intent to distribute heroin as well as drug transporting. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand these rights?"

    Trevor Barnes did not say a word. He did not try to fight. He simply sank to his knees and put his hands up as a DEA agent cuffed him. He glanced around a saw that everyone he was with was also being handcuffed or placed into police cars at the same time. He watched as agents seized his precious cargo, nearly 40 million dollars of heroin was slipping away from his grasp forever. The loss of the money stung to no end but he did not fear incarceration. He knew he would have a fair amount of power even behind bars. He was no stranger to doing time either as he has spent most of his teen years in lock up. All he was thinking about was finding out if one of his guys had flipped on him. Something deep inside told him that someone, somewhere had talked. Trevor gave a sinister smile as he slipped into an all-consuming mindset of finding the snitch and plotting his revenge. 

  Antonio was taking Alyssa home when she received a text message from Jack Coleman. It said "Barnes is behind bars." Alyssa smiled to herself feeling a deep sense of relief at the knowledge that Trevor Barnes was finally arrested. Plus she was happy that Jack had made good on his promises to her. She smiled at Antonio and then she looked out the window of his car. She didn't want to think about Jack when she was with Antonio. When they arrived at Alyssa's apartment, she invited Antonio to come inside but he politely declined.

    "Let's take it slow, okay? Some things are better when you wait," he said which disappointed Alyssa but then he leaned forward and kissed her.  His full and
delicious Italian lips pressed against hers and his tongue slipped in her mouth for just a few sweet moments.
Oh how good that tongue would feel somewhere else, she thought.

     "Can I see you again?" Antonio asked as his lips left hers.

    "Definitely," Alyssa replied. Antonio told her that he would call her and then he blew her a kiss goodbye as he left.

Chapter Eleven: The Road to Recovery

    After Alyssa's first date with Antonio she wondered if she had said too much about the problems in her personal life. She feared that all of the drama and the association with drug dealers might have freaked him out. He certainly looked like he was in shock when she told him. Alyssa figured that there was a very good possibility that she would never see him again, but much to her surprise Antonio called her the very next day and asked her to meet him at Central Park. When Alyssa arrived at the park, Antonio looked genuinely pleased to see her. The two of them decided to walk along one of the paths and just talk for a while. Alyssa told Antonio that she was worried that she might have scared him off when she told him about her mother. Antonio stopped walking and he stepped in front of Alyssa so that he could rest his hands gently on her arms and look her directly in her eyes as he spoke.

    "Bellissima, you did what you thought was right for your mother. It was a lot to take in but I admire your courage and I am sorry for everythi
ng you have been through. I'm certainly not going to turn my back on you because of it," Antonio said with genuine sincerity.

    After that Alyssa felt far more comfortable with Antonio. She was glad that she decided to say something or else she probably would have dismissed any chance of having a true relationship with him, and she was starting to really like him. Antonio was more than a hot piece of Italian ass, he was really kind and respectful and truthfully Alyssa appreciated those qualities in a man.  The rest of the afternoon, the new couple delighted in sharing stories of their dreams and
ambitions. They talked about their interests and they shared hot dogs and ice cream from the street vendors in the park. It was a simple date, but it was a great one. The highlight came when they sat down on a bench to rest and Antonio leaned in for a kiss that turned into a ten minute make out session. Alyssa had to admit he really got her hot and bothered, even though it was essentially just kissing. Unfortunately some hot kisses in the park were all that Alyssa was going to get today because Antonio had to be at the pizza shop by twelve o'clock. He regretfully took his leave to go to work and Alyssa happily made her way home.

    When Alyssa got home there was a message from her mother. Valerie had completed the required rehabilitation program set by the jail and she was now allowed to receive visitors, mail and she could make
phone calls twice per week. Alyssa immediately called the jail back and asked them when she would be able to visit. It turned out that visiting hours were in effect until 5pm that day and since Alyssa was already on her mother's list she was welcome to come down and see her mom. Alyssa decided to go for a visit immediately.

    Alyssa was incredibly excited to go and visit her mother. Hearing that her mom had completed rehab was tremendous news and she wanted to hear all about it and ask her mom how the new lawyer was working out. However when Alyssa got to the state prison, the memories of being arrested and being kept in the cold, dark holding cell rushed over Alyssa. She felt a lingering sickness in the pit of her stomach and for a few moments she thought she might need to find a restroom. Determined to see her mother, Alyssa
swallowed hard and forced herself to content with her bad feelings and to put on a happy face for her mom. Nevertheless she was shaking when she walked in the front door and as she made her way to the visitor's check in area.

    Alyssa presented her ID to the guard and asked to see Valerie Snyder. Before long the guards escorted Alyssa to the visitation area and they instructed her to wait while they went to get the prisoner. Alyssa quietly nodded and then she sat down trying really hard not to stare at the inmates who were already visiting their friends and family in the same room. Some of these women looked like normal everyday girls, but some of them were terrifying. Alyssa was grateful that she never made it out of a holding cell during her jail time adventure. Then she wondered if her mother had any
idea that she had been arrested as well. Alyssa hoped that her mom had no knowledge of it as she certainly didn't want to explain how she got out of her charges.

    Her thoughts were interrupted when a female guard escorted Valerie into the room. Alyssa smiled at her mom and was amazed at how good she looked. She was wearing an awful prison blue jump suit and her hands and feet were chained and cuffed, but otherwise she looked great. She looked like she was truly free of her addiction. Her eyes were clear and blue, not the hazy bloodshot ones that Alyssa had come to know. Her hair was washed and brushed and she had clearly taken a shower recently. That was actually a big deal for Valerie, who would sometimes go for up to a week without bathing when she was high all the time. Above all else, Valerie looked happy, well as happy as
someone who is incarcerated could be. She was smiling and she gave Alyssa a big hug once the guards took off her handcuffs. Alyssa gladly returned the embrace and whispered to her mom that she loved her, to which Valerie said the same. Then the two women sat down at the table together.

    "Thank you so much for coming to see me. I didn't know if you would since you were so upset the last time we talked," Valerie began.

    "Well I was mad at you for going back on the junk, Mom. I just wanted you to get some help, you know to get clean."

    "Well mission accomplished. It took about three months but I am officially in recovery and I think the worst of it is over," Valerie said with pride in her voice. Alyssa started to tear up at these words and she told her
mother that she was very proud of her. Alyssa asked her mom all about the rehab process and Valerie told her about seeing the doctors and going to support meetings. They had set a list of goals for her and they were checking on her regularly. Alyssa was happy to hear that her mom was receiving good care for her addiction. Then Valerie asked her daughter how she managed to get her a new lawyer for free, especially one who was normally so high priced. Alyssa didn't want to tell her mother about her arrest and especially not about making the statement that extended her mother's sentence to begin with and so she simply said that she had asked her boss for help and that he had called in a favor to get Valerie better representation. Valerie started to cry softly but she choked back her tears and tried to put on a brave face. She knew better than to show weakness or emotion in front of the other inmates, even if they were doing the same thing.

   
"Alyssa, thank you so much. This new guy thinks he can get some of these charges revoked or at the very least get my sentence cut in half. He said I'd have to keep going to recovery meetings, and see a parole officer. I'd probably get community service too, but right now I'm looking at ten years. This new lawyer says he can probably get me out in one to two years, maybe even six months if I testify against Trevor Barnes."

    "You should testify, Mom," Alyssa interrupted.

    "I'm no narc, Honey," Valerie responded with a heavy sigh. She tapped her fingers lightly on the table and stared down at her hands. She had obviously struggled with that decision but as dishonorable as is the life of a criminal, ratting someone out is considered an outright immoral act.

    "Mom, Trevor Barnes tried to kill you! He beat the piss out of you and left you for dead! How can you even hesitate? Send that fucker down the river where he belongs," Alyssa said in a voice that was much too loud for the not so private visitation area. Her outburst was met with the icy stares of several other women and their respective visitors.

    "It's not that simple, Alyssa. Besides Trevor only did that because I used the drugs he gave me to sell and I couldn't pay for them. I would have done the same thing in his position," Valerie insisted.

    "But you have a chance at going free in six months! You have a chance at having a life again. Screw Trevor Barnes!" Alyssa said angrily. An inmate that was seated
across the room clearly overheard this conversation. She sat with pressed lips and stared at Alyssa and Valerie with intense hatred in her eyes. The woman who was visiting her, held the same glare and awful expression. The inmate looked at her friend and nodded, to which the other woman nodded back. The two women clearly shared an unspoken understanding. The visiting woman had received the message loud and clear and then she left.

   
Alyssa and her mother did not notice the interaction between these two women. Instead they were intently focused on each other. They spent the remainder of their time discussing the goals and terms that were set for Valerie and they talked about ideas for finding Valerie some work and a new place to live once she was released. Alyssa promised to come and visit her mom once a week until then. Then when their visiting time was over, the mother and daughter hugged each other goodbye and both left feeling good about their conversation and about Valerie's progress.

    The other woman who had overheard their conversation was not feeling so good about what she had heard. This woman, whose name was Laquesha Reynolds, happened to be Trevor Barnes' ex-girlfriend. The two of them had broken up years earlier but they were still good friends and Laquesha was currently running drugs for Trevor and his crew. The woman she was visiting was her sister, Mica. She was also one of Trevor Barnes close friends and business associates. She was currently doing a five year stretch for distributing heroin. She had also been offered a deal to roll over on her distributor but she was loyal enough to
Barnes that she kept quiet and she had settled in to do her five years. In exchange for her silence, Trevor Barnes had arranged for some drugs to be brought in via a crooked prison guard. It was a small amount but it was enough to keep Mica high and happy and she had enough left over to barter with other inmates for a variety of other sought after items. Needless to say the idea of Barnes getting arrested would mean the end of her fun and so Mica and her sister were determined to prevent that at all costs.