Portia
Bledsoe has just come into an inheritance from a great-uncle she
barely knew. He left her his home in Florida, as well as enough money
to fix it up. She meets Wood Cirroco when her neighbor, Carl (his
uncle) introduces them. Wood is a contractor, which she badly needs.
When his mother finds out they are dating, she insists upon meeting
Portia. Wood's ex-wife caused a lot of trouble and Carlotta wants to
make sure he's not repeating his mistake.
We
had a wonderful lunch, laughing and enjoying one another's company. I
think Carlotta and I were a little tipsy by the time we started home.
She sat in the back seat with me, while Carl drove back to his house.
I wondered how we'd get her home, because it was quite obvious she
couldn't drive herself. I needn't have worried. We got to his house
and Wood got the keys to Carl's truck. He and I followed Carl to his
mother's house in Ormond Beach. Once she was safely tucked away, Carl
rode back with us.
"I
want ice cream," Wood said as we passed the Dairy Queen. He
pulled over and parked in the lot. I waited for him to open my door
and help me out. I was just tipsy enough not to trust my own legs. I
clutched his arm as we walked up to the window to order.
Carl
walked me to a nearby table and Wood waited for the treats. He seemed
to know many of the people, and they all greeted him in a friendly
fashion. All except for one man. He was slightly older than Wood,
bulky, mean looking. His blond hair was cut in a faux hawk, with
mutton chop sideburns. He wore a frown and sported a gold hoop
earring on the right ear. He'd arrived shortly after we had and
stayed on the edge of the parking lot, not approaching the building.
Instead, he stood by his truck door, arms and legs crossed,
glowering.
"Isn't
that what's his face?" Carl asked when Wood arrived with our
treats. He nodded at the blond man.
"Tall,
blond and ugly?" Wood flashed a look in that direction. "Yeah."
"Who?"
I asked, somewhat worried about the man's presence.
"Monique's
retard brother," Wood replied, deliberately raising his voice so
the other man could hear.
Unfortunately,
the other patrons at the DQ heard as well. Wood didn't seem to care.
The blond man shifted slightly, his frown deepening.
"He
thinks he's subtle, following me around. What he doesn't realize is,
I don't care!" Wood yelled in the other man's direction. "You're
violating the restraining order," he hurled at the other man.
"You're not supposed to be within five hundred yards. You're
less than two hundred. Sorry," he said to all the other
customers. "But some people can't seem to figure out when they
aren't wanted." He stood, walking over to the truck.
Monique's
brother walked on a parallel track, shadowing his movements. He was
less than a hundred yards away, muttering and flexing. Wood ignored
him and climbed in the truck. I started to follow, but Carl grabbed
my arm, telling me to stay put. The brother stood across from the
truck, hands in fists, shoulders rounded. He looked like an angry
bull, ready to charge.
Wood's
phone appeared out the window. I could see him getting a video of the
man. He said something that made the other man rush the truck.
Furious, he slammed his fist on the hood. Wood continued filming it.
Moments
later, two police cars pulled up. I recognized one of them as Joel
McMurtry who had arrived the day that we found Hezikiah's body. He
and the other officer looked so much alike, I knew they had to be
brothers. They approached the truck and the blond monster spun
around. He rushed Joel, who zapped him with a taser. The big man
fell, body jerking uncontrollably. They moved in and cuffed him. Joel
and the other cop lifted the brother to his feet and shoved him in
the back of Joel's cruiser. Once he was locked in there, Wood got out
of the truck and walked over to greet them.
Everyone
at the restaurant stared, wondering what they'd just witnessed. Wood
excused himself from the police officers and went to the restaurant.
He spoke to the manager and handed him something.
"Blizzards
for everyone, courtesy of Mr. Cirocco!"
©
2017 Dellani Oakes
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