Lying to Live (3 page)

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Authors: Darrien Lee

BOOK: Lying to Live
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“Silly head, I'm your only sister.”
“That's right,” he answered as he grabbed her foot and started tickling it.
“You two need to stop playing and get ready for school,” Mrs. Graham said as she passed by the room with Zakia's dirty laundry.
“Okay, Mom,” Julius replied. “Zakia, get dressed so I can walk you to the bus stop.”
She kissed him on the cheek and said, “Okay!”
 
 
An hour later Julius slowly made his way down the street with Zakia right by his side. She was talking a mile a minute about the latest episode of the TV show
Glee.
Once they reached the bus stop, her bus came almost immediately. Before she boarded it, he reminded her to call him if she needed anything. She nodded and gave him a kiss on the cheek before climbing on the bus. After Zakia's bus pulled away from the curb and while waiting for his own bus, he put his earplugs in his ears and tucked his iPod in his pocket. The last thing he wanted was to get jacked for his iPod, and there were plenty of bullies in the neighborhood who took advantage of kids like him all the time. Luckily for him, he looked older than fourteen, so he didn't become a target as much as other kids did. At the bus stop he normally didn't socialize with the other kids unless his best friend Domingo was there. Domingo rode the bus only when he didn't ride to school with his cousin. Most of the other kids were still too sleepy to socialize, and there were a few who kept themselves occupied with texting, talking on their cell phones, or listening to music. There were a few who actually studied at the bus stop, but it was mostly girls. Julian continued to listen to the sounds of Drake, Trey Songz, and Lil Wayne until Domingo walked over and shook his hand.
“What's up, Julius?”
Julius turned off his iPod and said, “Nothing much. Still trying to wake up. I haven't been sleeping much lately.”
“I'm right there with you. Did you hear about that store clerk getting blasted a few nights ago?”
Julius lowered his eyes and said, “Yeah, I heard about it. Remy was cool. I hate that somebody took him out like that.”
Domingo moved closer to Julius and said, “Word on the street is that Viper did it.”
There it was. Julius didn't want to think about it or even admit it to himself, but now it was a reality for sure. Viper was approximately twenty years old and had long blond dreadlocks. He had a long criminal history and spent most of his juvenile life in and out of jail. Now he had graduated to murder, and there was nothing he wouldn't do to stay out of jail, including killing Julius.
“Who told you Viper did it?” Julius asked curiously as he looked around to make sure no one could hear their conversation.
“I said it was word on the street,” Domingo replied. “There's also a rumor that the police are going door to door, looking for somebody who might've seen something or been in the store at the time.”
Julius's heart started pounding in his chest. He knew he couldn't trust the police.
“What kind of witness?” Julius asked.
“I don't know, but if Viper finds out there's somebody out there who could get him locked, there's going to be another murder.”
Concerned for his safety even more, Julius asked, “Who told you all this information?”
“Bro, I told you it's just talk in the streets. If you hung out on the basketball court more often, you would know what was going on.”
Julius shook his head and said, “I know, but my time is going to be even shorter now that I have a tutor to help me with my grades, especially in algebra.”
Domingo playfully pushed him and said, “I didn't know you were failing algebra.”
Julius pushed him back and said, “I'm not failing, but I have a C, and I want to bring it up.”
“That's cool,” Domingo replied as the bus pulled up.
As the teens waited their turn to get on the bus, Domingo turned to Julius and said, “I'd better see you on the basketball court on the days you're not getting tutored, because I know you and I both know you have game.”
“I'll be there,” Julius answered as they found a seat together on the bus. On the ride to school Julius's heart rate accelerated again as he thought about Viper. If what Domingo had said was true, he was going to have to watch his back very carefully and make sure Viper never found out he was the witness the police were trying to flush out.
Chapter Three
Denim sat in the library with Dré as she waited for her new client at the physical therapy clinic where she assisted as a technician. Both were studying for upcoming exams, and this also gave them a little time to spend together before they had to go their separate ways. Denim was off work today, but Dré had to meet the basketball team in the weight room for weight training. Just then her cell phone vibrated. She read the message and then blushed. She looked up at Dré and whispered, “You are going to have to stop sending me these nasty messages. What if my parents accidentally see them?”
“I can't help myself,” he admitted to her. “It's your responsibility to delete them out of your phone. I love you, so you're going to get messages like that from me. I'm joking around most of the time, but you know how I feel about you.”
Tears formed in Denim's eyes as she got up, walked around the table, and hugged his neck. She gave him a tender kiss on the lips and said, “I love you too, Dré.”
“I'd better go,” he said, then stood and gave her a warm hug and a kiss on the lips. The young couple looked around to make sure the librarian hadn't seen them. He started putting his books in his book bag just as Julius walked up.
“Are you Denim Mitchell?” he asked nervously.
Denim smiled and held out her hand and said, “I am. And you must be Julius. It's nice to meet you.”
Julius placed his book bag on the chair and said, “It's nice to meet you too.”
Denim pointed at Dré and said, “Julius, this is my boyfriend, André Patterson. Dré, this is Julius Graham, my new client.”
Julius shook Dré's hand and said, “I know who you are. You've been on the cover of every newspaper in the state. You have some mad skills on the court.”
“Thanks, Julius,” Dré humbly replied. “You're a freshman, right?”
“Yeah.”
“You're tall for your age, and you have big hands. Do you play ball?” Dré asked.
“A little bit. Mostly around the neighborhood with friends.”
“You should think about going out for the team.”
Flattered that Dré had made such a suggestion, Julius answered, “I'll think about it.”
“Good,” Dré answered before turning to give Denim one last kiss. “I hate to leave you two, but I have to go work out. I'll see you later.”
Denim blushed and said, “Have a good workout.”
“I will,” he replied. “Julius, you're in good hands, and take care of my girl for me while I'm gone.”
Julius gave Dré one last handshake before he walked away and said, “I'll try.”
Denim turned to Julius and asked, “Are you ready to get started?”
“I guess,” he answered as he sat down and opened up his book.
“Okay, we have an hour, so show me what you're studying in your class and what you have the most problem with, and we'll go from there.”
He smiled and began to show Denim his lesson plan. An hour later she felt like she had made a lot of progress with Julius.
“You did great, Julius. You'll have that A in no time.”
Julius gathered his books and said, “I hope so. I appreciate you helping me.”
“It's my pleasure,” she answered as she checked her cell phone for messages.
“Thanks again,” he said as he handed her the money to pay for his session.
She tucked the money into her pocket and said, “You don't have to pay me daily if you don't want to. You can do whatever is easiest for you and your parents.”
“I know, but I'd rather do it this way, if it's okay with you.”
“Cool,” she answered they walked toward the exit together. Once outside Julius noticed his father parked outside the school with Zakia.
“Well, there's my ride. I'll see you Wednesday.”
“Good-bye, Julius.”
Julius watched Denim as she walked away, and couldn't help but admire her curvy figure. He knew admiring her was all he could do too, since she was the girlfriend of one of the most popular guys in school. Improving his grade in algebra should be easy with a tutor as pretty as Denim.
He opened the car door and climbed in next to his father. “Hey, Dad.”
“Hello, Julius. Was that your tutor walking with you?” he asked.
“Yes, sir.”
He pulled away from the curb and said, “She sure is pretty. I don't know how you're going to learn anything working with her.”
Julius laughed and said, “That's true, but she's actually cool. I was able to concentrate.”
“Sure you were,” Zakia teased her brother.
Julius rolled his eyes at his sister. “Be quiet, Zakia.”
She laughed and started singing along with a Rihanna song playing on the radio.
Mr. Graham smiled and said, “Julius, you're my son, and I know you don't remember a damn thing that young lady said today.”
Julius laughed.
“What's so funny?” Zakia asked.
“Nothing, sweetheart. Your brother was just telling me about one of his classmates,” Mr. Graham answered. He didn't want her to know the details of his man-to-man conversation with his son, so he was vague with his response.
“Oh!” Zakia responded before she started singing along with the radio again.
Julius glanced back at his sister and then said, “She's dating André Patterson.”
“The all-American?” Paul asked.
“The one and only,” Julius answered. “I got a chance to meet him in the library. He was talking to me about going out for the team.”
“I see. Maybe you should try out,” his father suggested. “I hear he's a nice kid and that he's some type of artist too. I think I read somewhere that he's painted murals in some office buildings around town. A lot of colleges are salivating over him.”
Julius changed the station on the radio and said, “He is nice, but I don't know about trying out for the team.”
“What do you have to lose?”
He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Nothing I guess, but I like football a little more than basketball.”
“I'm behind you one hundred percent with whatever you want to do, son. You're built for both sports, so either one would be fine.”
“Thanks, Dad,” he replied with a smile.
Mr. Graham pulled into their neighborhood and said, “You want to hear some good news?”
“Sure.”
“I have a job interview tomorrow for a management position at the automotive plant.”
“For real?” Julius asked with excitement.
“You bet, and when I get the job, we're out of here. No more gunshots in the middle of the night, and you, your mom, and your sister will be safe and sound.”
“That's my dream too, Dad, because I don't think those cops are going to let up.”
“What cops?” Zakia asked.
“The ones on the TV show,” Julius replied to throw her off. He'd forgotten she was in the car since she'd stopped singing.
Mr. Graham put the car in park and said, “Zakia, run on in house. I want to talk to your brother for a second. We'll be in shortly.”
“Okay, Daddy,” she replied as she opened the car door and made her way into the house.
Mr. Graham turned to his son and asked, “Have the police tried to contact you at school?”
“No, sir, but they know I know something. I think it's only a matter of time before they try to talk to me again.”
“If they do, you don't say a word. Just call me and I'll come right away. Understood?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Listen, son, we haven't had a chance to talk about what happened in the store that night. Your mother told me you haven't been sleeping much. Do you want to talk about it?”
Julius laid his head on the headrest and sighed. “It's bad, Dad.”
“It's okay. No matter how bad it is, I'm your father, and I'll die before I let anybody hurt you. I don't want you feeling burdened with this. What you saw was tragic and scary, and as long as the killer's on the street, I won't rest knowing you don't feel safe. You'll probably feel better if you talk about it, son.”
With tears in his eyes Julius told his father exactly what had happened. He even revealed to him that it was Viper who shot the store clerk and that word on the street confirmed it was him as well. Mr. Graham knew Viper well, and so did most families in the area. He felt his blood pressure rise because of the possible threat if Viper ever found out his son was a witness.
“It doesn't surprise me that Viper was involved, because that kid's been on the fast track to nowhere for years. Julius, I'm glad you told me. That kid is dangerous, and I don't want you to tell anybody you were anywhere near that store, especially those detectives. You feel me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Mr. Graham opened his car door and said, “Great. Now, don't say anything to your mother about this, because she'll really freak out. I'll tell her information on a need-to-know basis. Besides, she's worried enough already.”
“I won't, Dad,” Julius replied as they walked into the house to the smell of fried pork chops, macaroni and cheese, and green beans.
 
 
It was an unusually warm fall afternoon, and Detectives Daniels and Young were back in Julius's neighborhood, looking for anyone that could provide them with clues to the homicide. It wasn't the first time they had canvassed the area, and it wouldn't be the last. They knocked on doors and stopped everyone on the street for any information they could gather on the murder. On this day they parked on the corner near the store to watch the daily traffic of people going up and down the block in the hope of finding someone they hadn't already spoken to. There was one group of young men making their way down the block, bouncing a basketball, and they noticed a familiar figure in the group, so they exited their vehicle and made their way across the street in their direction.
“What's up, guys? Where are you headed? ” Detective Young said to the young men.
“What's it to you?” Domingo asked.
Detective Daniels pointed at Julius and asked, “You're Julius Graham, right?”
Julius opened his mouth to answer, but nothing came out. Detective Young knew his partner had made a potentially fatal mistake by insinuating that they knew Julius.
Domingo and his friends looked at Julius, confused about how the detectives would know him, and the last thing Julius wanted his friends to think was that he was some type of informant for them.
“Julius, how do you know these cops?” Domingo asked.
Detective Young stepped forward and said, “We don't really know Julius. We found a job application with his name on it in the store where that homicide happened the other day. We asked around, and someone pointed him out to us. That's all. We're following up all leads in the case until we catch the shooter. Have you guys heard anything on the streets about the shooting?”
Domingo answered, “Hell no! You guys are crazy if you think you're going to get anyone to talk around here. We know nothing about nothing. Let's go, guys.”
“We're just making conversation, kid. Chill out,” Detective Daniels replied with a firm tone.
Angry at the detectives for drawing attention to him, Julius answered in anger, “You cops need to back up off me and my boys and get the hell away from us. If you keep this shit up, we're going to have the NAACP, the ACLU, and everybody else on your asses. Now step!”
“That's right!” Domingo yelled to support his best friend.
Detective Daniels put his hands up in defense and said, “Look, we're only here to help the community. I heard Remy was good to you kids. I would think you would want to make sure the person who killed him is arrested.”
Julius stepped forward and said, “What we want if is for you to leave us alone. We have to live here, and if the wrong people see us talking to you, it could get us killed.”
“Forget it, Julius. These clowns don't have a clue,” Domingo said to back up his friend. “We know you have snitches. Go ask them, because we're no snitches!”
With that statement, Julius, Domingo, and the other young men walked away from the detectives, leaving them empty-handed. They had hoped to scare Julius into cooperating with their investigation, but they were unsuccessful once again.
 
 
Inside the store Julius hurried over to the refrigerator and pulled out two large bottles of Gatorade and a bottle of water to purchase. His throat was dry, and he was sweating profusely. He was standing almost in the exact spot he was in the night of the shooting. All the emotions of that night came back to him like a flood, and his heart started pounding in his chest.

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