Philadelphia (8 page)

Billie got an angle and punched Isis in her throat. Isis released Billie and grabbed her own throat as she gasped for air. Billie got up and started running for the door.

Billie got swallowed up by the crowd and pushed her way out the door. As soon as people made it outside, they scattered in all directions. It was chaos inside and outside of the club. Police cruisers with their lights flashing and their sirens blaring started screeching up to the club. Billie started running down the street, avoiding the police cruisers that were flying in from everywhere.

“Billie!” a voice called out from across the street.

Billie turned and saw Walter running toward her.

“Come with me!” He grabbed her and they started running in the direction that Walter had just come from. They both jumped in his car that was parked across from the club. Walter pulled away from the curb and sped down the street.

When they were far enough from the chaos, he slowed the car. “What were you doing there?” he asked.

“I was out with some girlfriends. I could ask you the same thing.” Billie was going crazy on the inside. How long had he been there? What had he seen? She needed to find out what Walter knew.

“I was on a stakeout following a suspect. What happened in there?”

“Gunshots. Everyone started running. You weren't inside?”

“No. I was waiting outside. Been following this fool, waiting for him to slip up.” Walter didn't want to tell her he was following Phareed because he was doing it for her and he was feeling a little self-conscious about that, especially since the other night at dinner hadn't ended well.

Fuck. Did he see me show up with Stone?
“Who you following?” She was trying to remain calm and act normal. It wasn't easy—the gunshots, the fight, the running all had Billie's heart racing.

“I don't want to get into it,” said Walter.

“You better tell me what you were doing there, Walter.”

“Or else what?”

“Or else I'm gonna start thinking you were following me. That's it, isn't it? You were following me.”

“Billie—”

“You just can't leave well enough alone, can you?”

“Billie!”

“I can't be smothered, Walter. You smother me, we're not going to see each other anymore. Oh, I'm sorry, actually you will see me . . . walking away from you.”

“Billie, I was following Phareed.”

Billie stopped in the middle of her rant. “You were?”

“Yes. I just don't want to fight anymore.”

Thank God,
Billie thought with such relief she almost said it out loud.
He got there after me.
Billie was grateful to her father or whoever else was looking out for her that she had arrived before Walter. He hadn't seen her arrive. This was too close of a call for her. She would need to be more careful from now on. “The force is starting an investigation?”

“We're always after this guy, but this is on my own.”

“What?” She scrunched her face in confusion.

Walter kneaded the steering wheel. He didn't want to admit this part of the story to her, but as he looked over at her and saw once again how beautiful she was, he remembered how much he loved her. He couldn't help himself; he wanted to share everything with her, always. Finally, he broke down, sighed, and said, “When I saw you after you got jumped, I couldn't handle it. I went to that corner and busted some heads, and this little shit started talking about Phareed this and Phareed that. That was it. I've had it. Phareed is responsible for hurting you, so I have made it my mission to arrest him, with or without the help of the force.”

Even though Billie had more dire plans for Phareed, she was touched by Walter's valor. She would just have to get to him first and make sure that Walter never saw her.

She leaned over and kissed Walter on his cheek. “Let's go back to your place tonight.”

He looked at her with a shocked expression. “You're not mad I'm going after him?”

“Why would I be?”

“You seemed like you just wanted all of this swept under the rug. Your attack and everything.”

She shook her head. “How could I be mad at my knight in shining armor?”

As they pulled into Walter's driveway, a surge of excitement ran through Billie's body. In truth, her night at the club had her amped, and she needed to exert this energy and fuck Walter good. She could hardly make it to the door without grabbing Walter's manhood.

“Baby, you're ready, aren't you?” Walter said.

“Ready to get fucked,” Billie replied.

“Oh, I'll fuck you all right, but first I'm going to lick that pussy real good.”

Billie moaned at the thought of Walter's tongue circling her clit. She did not want to waste any time.

As they entered Walter's bedroom, he hoisted Billie on to her back and pulled down her jeans. As she lay there in her black leopard Hanky Panky thong, Walter took a minute to examine her body.

“With all the work that you do, baby, how do you have time to look this damn good? Mmm, I'm going to tear that shit up tonight,” Walter said.

As he pulled off Billie's thong, he spread her legs and began devouring her pussy, moving his tongue up and down her lips. He licked her clit, and Billie gripped the sheets in ecstasy.

“Right there, baby. Just like that,” Billie said. It felt so good she could hardly take it.

Just as she could feel her body tensing up for what she knew would be an earth-shattering orgasm, Walter quickly dropped his pants, jumped on top, and started pounding Billie with his hard cock.

“Fuck, Walter! Keep going. I'm going to cum!”

“Hold on, baby. I'm almost there with you,” Walter replied.

“Grab my tits!” Billie shouted. “It's coming.”

At this request, Walter was so turned on that he could hardly keep from squirting right then inside of Billie. He managed to keep fucking her hard with his monster dick as Billie let out a scream that could have woken the neighbors.

He could feel her love-hole tighten around his cock, and he quickly pulled out and came all over her tits.

“Holy fucking shit, baby. That was intense,” Walter said.

“No shit. And so damn hot,” Billie responded.

They lay there a minute in silence, catching their breath. Billie grabbed a Kleenex on the bedside table, wiped herself off, and turned on her side to face Walter.

She watched his chest rise and fall as he regained his normal breathing pattern. She felt a little sorry for this man who'd just had his way with her. He was a good man, and yet, there he was, lying beside a woman who killed the very men he wanted to put behind bars. If he only knew he just fucked the woman who chopped off a man's dick.

Billie crouched under her umbrella, shielding herself from the sideways rain as she ran into the archway entrance of the Widener building. The building was in downtown Philadelphia, where the main office of the district attorney was located.

She stood in the oversized entrance and shook out her umbrella, twisting it like a dog shaking its wet fur. She checked her phone for any messages in an attempt to stall the inevitable start of the workday. There were no messages.

Morphing into her “business bitch” mode, Billie confidently entered the building and headed for her office. She didn't really want to be in the office. In fact she hadn't really been in the office all that much since her last victory. Her priorities changed and she was more interested in her hunt than in sifting through legal documents. For the past few weeks, most days she would leave for an early lunch and just not return. Punishing criminals through the law seemed trivial to Billie at this point. She had her own form of justice that was much more satisfying.

As she walked down the carpeted hall, Kevin stuck his head out of his office. “Billie.”

She rolled her eyes before turning around. She wasn't in the mood for his flirtations today.

“Yes, Kevin?” she said.

“Come here. I want to talk to you about something.”

“Can it wait? I just got to work. I'd like to settle in.” Listening to some of Kevin's bullshit first thing in the morning was not how Billie wanted to start the day.

“I think you'll want to hear this.” He waved her toward his office.

Billie grudgingly entered his office, and Kevin closed the door behind her. She took a seat in one of the chairs across from his desk. His office was not very inviting. On his desk he had the typical picture of him holding up a large fish from a fishing trip, and one of him at an Eagles game. On the wall he had hung his diplomas and a mirror. A bookcase filled with legal books dominated the wall to Billie's left.

“So?” Billie said impatiently.

Kevin sat at his desk. “I've been looking for ways to go after Phareed, and I think I might have found one.” He smiled.

What the fuck?
Billie thought. “Since when have you been going after Phareed?” she asked with some agitation in her voice.

“A little while now. I'm looking to become mayor someday. If I initiate and win a high-profile case like Phareed's would be, my name would suddenly be thrown into the mix for mayor. At the very least for the next DA.” Kevin seemed very pleased with himself.

Billie was infuriated that all of a sudden everyone around her seemed so hell-bent on catching Phareed. He was her target. Everyone else needed to step back and let her operate.

“Sounds like you got big plans,” she said evenly, trying to keep a calm exterior.

“I do, and I'm telling you this could be a huge break for me,” he said excitedly.

Billie needed answers. “So what do you have on him? Something with those murders?”

She was not happy about this development. But if he was arrested at least she could take comfort in the fact that she had something to do with putting him away if he was tied to the murders. Even though death would be a better form of justice, maybe the organization would crumble if he was put away. At least that's what Billie had to tell herself in order to not fly off the handle and beat Kevin's ass.

“No. His taxes.” Kevin said this like it was the most amazing revelation.

“What? Taxes?” Billie was disgusted.

“Yep.” Kevin smugly leaned back in his chair.

“What kind of bullshit case are you going to bring with that? We need to get him on some real shit. You convict him on tax evasion charges and he may not even go to prison. Even if he does, he'll go to some country club minimum security.” Billie was worked up.

“I don't care what kind of prison he goes to. At least we get him off the streets.” Kevin was surprised by Billie's reaction.

“We need to bring serious justice down on his ass. He is ruining our city. He uses children to sell drugs in our communities. Who knows how many deaths he is responsible for? The man is a monster.”

“Yes, that's why I'm going after him.” Kevin was getting annoyed. “Look, you don't think he's prepared in case charges are brought against him for drugs, or even those murders? Do you know how many fall guys are lined up in case that happens? He won't see tax evasion coming, and if that's the only way I can get this guy, then so be it.”

But Billie wasn't listening to his brand of logic. “We need to get him on more serious charges or it isn't worth it,” she said, digging in her heels.

“Well, I'm going after him on whatever charges I can. Then next stop, City Hall,” Kevin said with finality to his tone.

“Good luck with that.” Billie couldn't stand to be in the room any longer. She felt like leaping over the desk and strangling Kevin. His pursuit of Phareed could seriously interfere with her plans. Kevin didn't care about justice; all he cared about was advancing his career.

Billie stomped back down the hall to her own office. She slammed her door behind her, and yanked her chair away from her desk to sit down. She threw herself down in it, and spun it around toward the window so she could look out at the lightning flashes and the pouring rain. Her mood matched the weather: angry.

It seemed that all of a sudden she had competition in the pursuit of Phareed, and if anyone else got to him first, she would not be happy. She was only going to gain satisfaction if she was able to get to him and kill him. She needed to spend all of her time infiltrating his crew and gaining his trust. Work hadn't been a priority for her recently, and now it was going to be even less so.

Billie grabbed her cell phone to call Stone, but before she was able to make the call, her office phone rang. She hesitated for a second to decide whether to answer it or let it go to voice mail.

“This is Billie,” she answered.

“Billie, can you come to my office?” It was her boss.

“Now?”

“Yes, now.” He sounded exasperated.

“Okay.” She hung up.

“Damn. I knew I shouldn't have answered,” she said as she got up from her desk.

On her way down to the DA's office, Billie took a few deep breaths, and pulled herself together. She pasted a cordial smile on her face before entering his main office, and then greeted the portly secretary guarding DA Lewis's inner office. “Hello, Diane.”

“Hello, Billie. He's waiting.” She raised her eyebrows and motioned toward his door.

“Thanks.” Billie headed for the thick oak door.

“Good luck.”

Billie turned her head to the secretary and rolled her eyes.

The secretary just smiled and shook her head at the confidence Billie always exuded.

When Billie entered the office, Stanley Lewis leaned back in his soft leather chair. “Come in, Billie.”

She sat in the cream-colored velvet chair opposite her boss. It was a chair she had sat in many times before, mostly following another court victory or to strategize about how to take down the next criminal on their list.

“How are you?” he asked.

“I'm fine,” she said nonchalantly.

“Do you know why I called you in here?”

Billie couldn't help thinking that her boss sounded like a junior high principal about to scold a student. She found the question demeaning.

“If I could read minds, I wouldn't be working for the low pay I get here.”

He wasn't amused by her answer or her tone. “Billie, what's going on with you?”

“Nothing.” She didn't want to get into some personal conversation with her boss. They weren't friends, and they never would be.

“Okay, look. Your work has obviously been lacking lately. I expect a lot from you, and what you have been producing lately, which has been nothing, isn't cutting it. So what is going on?”

The last thing Billie wanted to do was answer his stupid question, but she wanted this conversation to be as short as possible. “I'm having some private, personal issues that I don't want to discuss at the moment.”

Stanley shook his head in concerned agreement. “I understand. If you need to talk about it, my door is always open.”

Again, Billie couldn't help but think of junior high school. She almost laughed in Stanley's face at his attempt to bond with her.

She controlled her laugh and answered, “Thank you.”

“With that being said, if you are working, you need to put those issues to the side and focus. I have big ambitions for you, and I don't want this dip in production to affect any of that.”

“You're right.” She wanted to appease him and get the hell out.

“I'm glad we agree. Now, I want you to assist Kevin on the Mendez case.”

“Wouldn't you rather I help him compile the case against Phareed and his crew?”

“We aren't going after Phareed.” He had a curious look on his face.

“We're not?” asked Billie, before she realized that when Kevin had said he was initiating a case against Phareed, he really meant it.

“What gave you that idea?”

Billie waved it off. “I guess I was mistaken.” She realized that her boss had no idea that Kevin was going after Phareed. Billie could see the wheels turning in her boss's head. This was the first he had heard anything about this. Billie was pleased that she had let the cat out of the bag. Maybe her boss would stop Kevin from investigating.

“Yes, you must be. Anyway, we are about to get Mendez to cop to a plea.”

“Didn't they catch Mendez with thirty-five grams of heroin and a gun implicated in a murder?” Billie was taken aback that they would even consider bargaining with him.

“Yes, they know our case is a slam dunk, so they are about to plead guilty to get fifteen years,” he said proudly.

“That's bullshit.” She raised her voice. “You should be going after him with the max sentence.”

“Relax. We're winning the case and putting him away for a long time.”

“Not long enough. Everyone is so damn complacent in this office.” Her voice trailed off as she shook her head in frustration.

“Sometimes we have to make sacrifices. Did I ever tell you about my first year in the DA's office? I was handed this major case—”

“I'm done.” Billie had had enough. She stopped her boss from telling one of his boringly endless stories about the good old days. She was through with playing by the rules.

“Excuse me?” Stanley was a little offended at being cut off.

“I need to take a leave of absence. I have some vacation days and personal days that I want to use, and then I want to officially be on a leave of absence,” she said matter-of-factly.

“Billie, think about this. Are you sure?”

“I've never been more sure of anything.” She stood from her chair. Before she exited, she turned to her boss with one final parting shot. “It's not me you should be worried about going after your job. You've got another shark circling your office.” With that she walked out of the office ready to hunt her prey.

She got back to her office and was gathering her things when Kevin popped his head into her office. “What happened?”

“What do you mean? Nothing happened.” She picked up her purse.

“What did the boss say?”

“He said nothing. I'm taking some time off.”

“Did he suspend you?” Kevin asked.

“Stop being such a gossiping little girl.” She brushed past him, then stopped and turned. “By the way, the boss knows you are trying to build a case against Phareed behind his back.”

Kevin's face went red with a look of panic. Billie got the reaction she wanted then proceeded to the exit.