Like Sheep Gone Astray (11 page)

The distinct ring of a cell phone interrupted him. Anthony started to check his phone, but then remembered that he had turned it off hours ago. He had not wanted any disruptions.

Walter checked his suit and pants pockets and then followed the ring to his overcoat, which was draped on the back of a chair.

“Where did this come from?” he asked gravely, his eyes darting back to the office door.

“Hello? Hello? Who's this?” Councilman Banks's eyes widened as he held the phone to his ear. After a few seconds passed, he slowly flipped the phone closed and stared vacantly at it before picking at his cold fried rice.

“Anthony.” His voice was hoarse. “I don't know what's going on. Please bring that check here as soon as you can.”

She was tired of working for him. Tired of the confusion he brought into her life. Tired of doing his dirty work. Tired of all the lies. One day she was going to tell him that too. She had the whole conversation all planned out. She would look him straight in the eye and tell him that before she took another order from him, he would have to kiss her black behind. And then she would turn her back to him so he could get a good look at her behind leaving the room.

Of course then he would try to kiss it and she would remember why she was working for him. Leaving him was impossible, dangerous even. But at least the perks were good.

Nikki was mad that she'd had to leave the fur stole in the car. But even she knew it didn't go too well with the plain-Jane black skirt suit she was wearing. She loved that mink stole. It showed the world her power. She would wrap that dead thing around her voluptuous curves the way she wrapped men around her pinky. She was absolutely irresistible. Or so she would like to think.

Nikki looked down at the hideous long skirt that skimmed her calves and the green wool overcoat she had on instead of the silky mink stole. She turned up her nose at the ensemble. Much too conservative for her taste.

She was on assignment. A new assignment. But then again, when was any assignment ever new? They were all one and the same. Only now they had gotten more complicated, building treacherously one on top of another. She thought of the blocks her three-year-old son, Devin, played with at the day-care center. Each one piled one on top of another, higher and higher, until they all fell down.
All fall down
. Wasn't there a nursery rhyme or something that went like that? Nikki shook her head, dismissing the thought.

She looked down at her red, yellow, and black fingernails. Each nail sported a different lavish design. “Don't be mad 'cause I didn't take them off,” she said smugly to herself as she added a drop of glue to one of them.

She knew the nails were too loud and too busy for the image she needed to portray. But it was too late. She had waited until she'd gotten out of the car before she threw off the fur-trimmed leather gloves, brashly exposing all ten colorful tips. She enjoyed slamming that pretty black Jaguar's door in that man's pretty face. Couldn't say nothing to her. Hmph. It felt good to have some power.

Nikki blew a large pink bubble and then sucked it back into her mouth with a loud
pop
! She realized her mistake immediately and took a quick look around her, hoping that nobody had heard or seen her blow that bubble. She quickly spit the gum out of her mouth, wrapped it in a piece of tissue she found in her purse, and tossed it into the bus-stop trash can. Fortunately, there was no visible living soul within blocks to view her mishap. Who would want to be around this desolate part of town? Even so, she would have to be more careful.

“This task involves subtle sophistication and class,” she mimicked his words out loud to herself. “You must be dedicated, sincere, and, above all, convincing.”

She rolled her eyes and sucked her teeth. This assignment wouldn't be any different from any other. All men were the same at heart. Weak. Especially when she started working her prizewinning walk. Eat your heart out, Tyra Banks. Nikki knew the exact moment when she had a man where she wanted him. Her mother would tell her that's what got her in all this trouble in the first place.

She'd been sitting at the bus stop for almost two hours and had watched six buses pass. She was just starting to wonder if she should do something to keep from looking fishy when finally he emerged from the building across the street. She knew he was coming to the bus stop. He would be catching the number fifty-seven to Drylaw Avenue, where he would transfer to the twenty-nine. The next bus was coming in three minutes. She would have to work quickly. Nikki didn't even break a sweat.

As soon as he neared the bus stop, she let out a loud, mournful sob, just as she had practiced. Men were suckers for beautiful women who were crying.

“Ma'am, are you okay?” He rested a foot on the bench and leaned in toward her. His eyes were gentle and sincere, but Nikki was not swayed. She had a job to do.

“Ooohh,” she moaned tearfully. “I don't know what to do. I just got laid off and—I'm not going to bother you with my problems.” She let her sentence end in a whimper.

“It's no bother, ma'am. I know what it's like to be down and out.” He sat down next to her. A good sign.

“That's very kind of you, but I'll be okay.” Nikki carefully flickered her wet eyelashes.

“Just got laid off, huh?” He seemed to be looking past her eyelashes and straight into her eyes. Nikki looked down quickly, hoping he had not looked beyond her eyes.

“It's just that I promised my son that we would go to Disney World this year—he calls it Mickey Mouse House—and now, and now—” She broke down in sobs again. “And now, I'm not even sure how I'm going to pay the rent for our own house.” Was that doubt in his face? Nikki held her breath, kept her eyes on his dusty tennis shoes, and waited. As the seconds grew longer, she deployed her last-resort weapon. Her lower lip, coated with a fresh layer of glimmering red lipstick, began quivering until a full, irresistible pout had formed.

He began fumbling with a dark blue baseball cap, swinging it between his thumb and forefinger. “Well, I actually was about to put out a want ad for a secretary. Do you have any office skills?”

Nikki dabbed the corners of her eyes with a tissue. Black mascara smudged onto the tattered shreds. “Yes, I do. I'm a hard worker, and I will take whatever salary you can offer.” This was too easy.

He sighed again as he finally pushed the cap down over his bushy hair. “Okay,” he said slowly, “come to room number four-sixteen in the building across the street.” He pointed as he spoke. “Come tomorrow morning, nine o'clock sharp, and, well, I guess you can start working. My name is Eric Johnson and my organization is called the Citizens' Alliance of Shepherd Hills. You may have heard of it—CASH for short.”

“CASH? Hmmm, I've never heard of it,” Nikki lied. “But I can't wait to learn more about what you do. Thank you, Mr. Johnson. I won't let you down.” That violin music from the sappy scenes in the movies should be playing now. Nikki fought to hold back laughter.

“Here comes my bus. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning, Miss—what's your name?” Eric Johnson rose to his feet and extended his right hand.

“Galloway. Nikki Galloway.” Nikki shook his hand and watched him board the bus. She waited until all the exhaust cleared before she pulled her cell phone from her purse and dialed. Easy enough. She smiled to herself. The bus disappeared around a corner farther up the street.

“Suckers. All of you are suckers.” She sneered as she hung up the phone. Nikki unwrapped a new piece of gum and within seconds was popping bubbles as loudly as she could.

Anthony replayed the message for the sixth time to make sure he had not missed anything. “Hi, baby. Just wanted to let you know that I'm looking forward to our dinner tonight at Romano's. Oh, what the heck! I also wanted to let you know that I have a wonderful surprise for you! Wait until you find out where I've been today!”

Her words were punctuated with several dramatic pauses and her tone was unmistakably giddy.
A wonderful surprise
, the words swirled around over and over in Anthony's head. He listened to Terri's message one more time before shutting off his phone once again.

A
wonderful surprise
. Anthony stirred in his seat, nearly oblivious to the smells of basil and parmigiana wafting over from the table across the aisle. A tuxedoed waiter passed him carrying a bottle of white wine. Anthony took a sip of his ice water.

A
wonderful surprise
. Could it be?
Lord, you know I could use some good news right about now
. Anthony smiled to himself. Where could Terri have been that would leave her so excited? Anthony reached inside his suit jacket for his appointment book to see if he had made any notes about Terri's schedule. September 15. The day was blank. Anthony shook his head with an uneasy smile. He wished the day had been as uneventful in reality as it was on paper.

A
wonderful surprise
. Anthony remembered how annoyed Terri had been when he'd first raised the topic of children. It was the day after their first wedding anniversary and he had casually joked about having a child to help celebrate their next anniversary. Terri went berserk, accusing him of thinking only of his own selfish wants and not about her career.

“I thought you supported my dreams,” she'd yelled for two days.

“You know that I do and I always will,” Anthony had reassured her, secretly hurt that his desire to create something eternally tangible out of his love for her had been mistaken as an attack on her dreams.

“Would you like to order an antipasto as you are awaiting your party?” A tuxedoed waiter interrupted his thoughts. “The calamari is especially tempting this evening.” The waiter's fake Italian accent amused Anthony.

“I'm fine, thank you.” Anthony decided to wait for Terri before ordering anything. He wanted to see if her tastes were changing.
If she orders something way out of the ordinary, then I'll know that her surprise is what I'm thinking it is
. Anthony made a mental note that Terri usually ordered some variation of a pasta primavera dish when they dined Italian.

“Good evening, Anthony.”

Anthony looked up from his menu to see Terri standing next to the green-cloth-covered table. She was wearing a black sheath dress with sheer sleeves. Crystals embellished each seam of the dress, tracing up and down her body and along the V-cut neckline. Even in the dim candlelight she was undeniably glowing.

“Baby, you look like you're—” Anthony caught himself as he stood to help Terri to her seat. “It's the dress. It draws out the warmth in your skin, the golden undertones. The dress—it's new, isn't it?” Anthony ran his fingers over Terri's freshly manicured hand. Her skin was still silky from a luxurious day-spa treatment she'd just had along with Cherisse.

“Yes, the occasion called for something new.” Terri was all smiles. “I did some shopping today. With all that's happening, you know I had to get a new wardrobe.” Terri did not mean to wink, but she could not help it. Being a millionaire had its privileges. You did not have to explain your actions. You just did as you pleased.

Anthony sat back in his seat, his eyes never leaving Terri's. The flickering candlelight seemed to be trapped deep inside her pupils. He could not remember the last time they had looked so deeply into each other's eyes. He did not want the moment to end.

“
Buona sera, signora
.” The waiter with the mock accent had returned. “Are you ready to order? May I interest you in our specials this evening? For antipasti, we have calamari, lightly seasoned and delicately fried in our specially aged olive oil. We also have—”

Terri held up a hand. “Please, just bring the veal scallopini. And I'll also take a small order of the beef, proscuitto, and mushroom dish. And a couple of the lobster tails that come with the seafood marinara special would be nice also.” Terri gave a curt smile as she put the menu down.

Both Anthony and the waiter raised an eyebrow. “Signora, you understand that these are three separate dishes?” His accent was fading. Terri ignored the question. The waiter turned to Anthony.

“And what would you like,
signore
?”

Anthony smiled as a hint of a Brooklyn upbringing sneaked into the waiter's voice.

“I'll have the fettuccine alfredo.”

“That's all you're getting?” Terri whispered as the waiter disappeared.

“I'm sure I'll get full watching you eat all of your food.” Anthony's stomach was fluttering.
She ordered everything but the primavera
. He was convinced. Terri had to be pregnant. What other surprise would leave her glowing and eating Romano's out of business? His inner suspicions had been right all along. She was excited about having children once she knew one was coming. Anthony relaxed. He had never seen Terri so happy.

“So tell me”—she had been watching the smile ease onto his face—”how was your day?”

Anthony thought about all the stories he'd heard about pregnant women and their moods.
Lord, is this the right time to tell her
?

“Well,” he began, “things have happened today—actually they've been happening over the past six months.”

Anthony looked down as he continued.
Is this really the right time
? “I've made some decisions in the past that I should have told you about. But I didn't. And now things have gotten even more…” His voice trailed off as he stared into the reddish orange flame of the elaborate candle centerpiece.
Now, Lord
?

He tried to continue. “Terri, life as we've known it is about to change. I have been wanting to give back—”

“To the community! And to the church!” Terri interjected. She was too excited to wait for him to finish speaking. “And I know you will! But I think that before we make definite plans of what to do from here, we need to spend some time deciding together what's best for…for
us
.”

Anthony looked back into her eyes. The glowing candlelight still danced wickedly in her gaze. He decided once again to ignore the voice shouting from his conscience.
This is not the time to wreck her world, he
convinced himself.