Yesterday's Stardust (36 page)

C.J. did another sweep of eyes to ceiling. “I seen those people. They painted my ma’s house one time. Whole bunch of squeaky cleans in matching shirts.” She jabbed a finger toward her tonsils. “Made the house all pretty outside while my brother’s shooting up in the basement. What’s the point?”

Venus shook her head. “Maybe the point shoulda been showin’ your brother how to paint his own house and get off his lazy—”

“Stop it.” The quiet command came from the doorway to the kitchen.

Dani’s jaw unhinged. All eyes turned to China.

“We sit around complaining about the way things are, and then somebody comes along who wants to change things, and we put her down. I say we give her a chance.”

Yamile swiveled on her throne. “One second you want to kill her, and now you’re sayin’ give her a chance?”

“Yeah.” China glanced at Dani then back at Yamile. In that second, Dani sensed a significant change. “We owe it to the younger ones.” She pointed at C.J. “I don’t want her thinkin’ she’s gotta do whatever some guy says just to survive. We owe it to them to give them choices.”

Dani finally found the presence of mind to close her mouth.

Venus narrowed eyes thick with mascara. “What do you want from us?”

“Tell me your stories. Your hopes and dreams and hurts. I’ll make up names so no one will know who you are. Leave me out of anything that isn’t legal, but let me hang out with you for a couple of weeks.”

Yamile tapped fingernails on the chair’s aluminum arms. Leah leaned forward. “The guys won’t like it.”

The scarred side of Yamile’s face tightened, puckered. A steely gaze swept the room. “Then we don’t tell them. Everybody got that?”

Like a roomful of bobble head dolls, they all agreed.

Nerves stretching and thinning like violin strings, Dani waited for the conditions. Yamile rose slowly to her feet. The room hushed. “Two weeks. Fourteen days. You write your story, and I get to read it. If I say change something, you change it.” She stepped closer, face within inches of Dani’s. “Like Chi said, we’ll do it for the younger ones. But you turn on us, you make one wrong move”—she pointed at her scar—“you’ll be lucky if you look like this. Got it?”

“Yes.”

Yamile brushed past her. “Let’s get.”

She walked out the door, Leah and Venus at her heels.

C.J. stopped at the door and turned, her face void of expression. “You tell those church ladies if they want to make it outta this neighborhood with all their teeth, they better bring cookies.” Laughter sparkled in her eyes.

Relief coursed out of Dani in a rippling laugh. “You give me two weeks, and I’ll throw in chocolate chip and oatmeal and peanut butter and snickerdoodles.”

“Oreos.”

“Yes. Oreos. Lots and lots of Oreos.”

C.J. walked out the door and down the steps.

China dropped her paper bag on the floor and stared into the living room.

Dani rested a hand on her back. “You can have the bedroom.”

Unanswered questions woke Nicky before ten on Tuesday morning. He’d spent his evening off in the kitchen, gluing down loose vinyl floor tiles, soaking stove burners in degreaser, and replacing a pot handle. He’d even fixed the three-legged chair.

Mind-numbing work that didn’t help him figure things out. Or tire him. Even after four hours of baking, his thoughts still raced. At best he’d gotten five hours of restless sleep. Disjointed dreams had haunted his night. A lingering kiss, a crucifix, an angry black seven dripping red.

Face down on the mattress, he pulled a pillow over his head.
Sleep… sleep…
He tried a hypnotic chant followed by counting backward from a hundred.
Ninety-nine…ninety-eight…ninety-seven
… Rena was in a gang.
“Is that why they leave us alone?”Ninety-two…ninety-one… “You don’t have to worry. I’m getting out.” Eighty-one…eighty… seventy-nine
…
“Can you?” Seventy-seven…seven…seven…seven
…

Crack!
The sound zinged through the open windows and reverberated off the kitchen walls.
Wake up.
The nightmare again. He knew he was in it, knew it wasn’t real, but he couldn’t get out. The sound was so close. Just outside. He dropped the spoon, ran to the back door, but stopped and called 911.
This isn’t real. Wake up.

“Stay inside, sir. Someone’s on the way.”

Stay inside when he didn’t know who was outside? This was his neighborhood. His people. He opened the back door. The smell of the gunshot filled his nostrils. It came from the alley.

“Nicky!”
Not a boy’s yell…a cry. Weak and desperate.

Tony! Where are you? Dear God…

Wake up!

Sides heaving, sweat soaking his pillow, he flopped onto his back.
Make it stop.
The nightmare that had been in retreat was back. Thanks to his sister.

He had to do something. Punching walls wasn’t producing results. He sat up and grabbed his phone. He needed advice, needed to talk to Todd about Rena. That wasn’t going to happen until they made peace.

Todd was no longer competition. Not after that kiss.

Unless she’d only meant it as a token of sympathy. Or unless she’d meant it as a starting point, and then he’d gone and ignored her for two days. She might be spitting tacks by now.

He hadn’t had time to figure out the next step. He definitely needed a better grip on his emotions before spending time with her. No more soap opera scenes. He still couldn’t believe he’d been on the verge of losing it like that. Every time he thought about it, it was like watching some bad actor on TV. Whoever that mental wreck was, it wasn’t Nicky Fiorini. Though the end result was sweet.

He pushed a button on the side of his phone. If Todd didn’t have plans until work, maybe they’d take his uncle’s boat out and hash over the Rena problem on the lake. Then again, if the Kenosha Police had the answers, he wouldn’t have to be asking the questions.

The screen came to life and nagged about his missed calls.

Dani.
Yesterday.

Tacks. She’d definitely be spitting tacks.

He glanced at the leather-bound book half concealed by his jeans on the chair. She would have been expecting him to call to set up a time to get together on his day off. Would she get it that he’d needed some space after finding out his little sister was in a gang? Would she get it that he’d hoped to have an answer to her question before he saw her again?

He dialed his voice mail. Her voice, stumbling over an apology for “that k—what I did” washed over him—the perfect antidote for the nightmare.

The smell of coffee wafted through the vents. Throwing off the covers, he loped down the stairs and threw open the kitchen door. “Morning, Dad.”

“Morning. Things look good around here.”

“Thanks. Hey, Alonzo’s working tonight, and I was wondering if you’re going to be around—”

“You want the night off? Take it.”

“Thanks.”

“A girl?”

“I hope so.”

He took the steps two at a time, pushing her number as he reached his bedroom.

“Hello.” Her voice held a cool edge.

“Hi. Hey, I know I didn’t call, but…I’ve been thinking about you.” The smooth voice could have been his dad’s. Not what he was shooting for.

“You have?” She paused. “I’m afraid to ask what.”

“So don’t ask.” Had his great-grandfather laughed in the same way as he coaxed a young flapper into the storeroom? “I got the night off. Do you have plans after work?”

“No.”

“Want to have plans?”

“Y-yes.”

“You don’t sound so sure.”

“I’m just…” Her sigh echoed in his ear. “Yes. I’d love to. We’ll talk. About things. Then.”

“Okay. What time are you done?”

“I’m getting a lot done this morning. I could leave early—for a story.”

“So that’s all I am to you, huh?” He grinned at the wall.

“To be honest, Mr. Fiorini, I’m not quite sure what you are to me. But I’d like to find out.”

His lips parted then puckered in a silent whistle. “Well then, you name a time and maybe we can figure it out together.”

“How about noon?”

That barely gave him time to shower and pick up the car. But it gave them what? Eight or ten hours together? The thought did strange things to his gut. How would they fill all that time?
Think fast.
“How would you like to go with me to visit my grandfather? Late afternoon is the best time to visit. You can read on the way, and maybe we’ll get lucky and it’ll be a good day for him. Maybe some female charm will spark his memory.”

“Sounds like a wonderful plan. Pick me up at my place.”

She gave him directions. He knew the area well. It was a neighborhood he passed through but had never had reason to stop. “Are you a cold pizza fan?”

“Love it.”

“Then I’ll bring lunch, and we can eat at Veteran’s Park. See you then.”
And we’ll figure it out together.
He left the words in his head where they belonged. “Bye.”

As Nicky turned onto Sheridan Road, Dani opened to the bookmark in the diary. Nicky gestured toward the page. “I hope the cat goes away again. It was fun to see her enjoying life.”

“And it’s fun to see you getting into her story like it’s all happening now.”

“Imagine this playing out on Facebook. Status: owned and controlled by bf.”

She laughed. “Think how different her situation would be if we could rewrite her story and add technology. She could meet prince charming on a dating site, and he’d locate her with his GPS.”

“And he’d sneak in and steal her away right under T’s nose with his night-vision goggles, and if the guy came after them, he’d blast him with an RPG.”

“I think you’re writing a different book.”

“I’m writing a bestseller. Women swoon for the strong, silent good guys who pack antitank weapons.”

Your eyes are weapons enough for me.
“Men.”

“Can’t live with us, can’t shoot us.” He pulled into the right lane. “Before you start reading, maybe we should talk.”

Did he hear her gulp? “So you’re not the strong
silent
type.” At the moment, she wasn’t so sure she wanted him to be in touch with his feelings. If he said anything—

“About that kiss…”

Her teeth sank into her lip. She let her grimace serve as an answer.

“It was nice. Very nice.”

An unplanned sigh rushed from her lungs. She closed her eyes and sank against the seat. “I’m not usually that forward. I’ve been second-guessing and wondering what you thought of me.” She heard the tick of the turn signal. “I just gave in to an impulse, and it seemed the right thing at the time, but then afterward I—”

The car stopped. She opened her eyes. They were parked at a gas station but not at a pump.

Nicky stared at her. He unfastened his seat belt. His gaze caressed every inch of her face, lingering on her eyes then her lips. “It was nice. No second-guessing, okay?” He leaned closer. “I give you permission to always”—his hand conformed to her cheek—“give into”—his lips grazed her mouth—“your impulses.” He pressed his lips to hers, and she responded in a way that would leave him no doubt she’d kissed him back.

“Hey.” Dani shook her finger at him. “I just saw something important we skimmed over.
You
skimmed over. ‘T caught me with A.’”