A Wrong Turn Towards Love

  ~PP ~

  There was a knocking noise. It seemed like it had been going on forever. How aggravating. She was so tired…what was making that damned noise?!

  Suddenly Shaun leaped out of bed. Oh shit. Someone was knocking on the door.

  “Uh…Just a minute!” She wrapped a blanket around her partially nude body and then ran to open the door.

  When she checked the peephole she saw that Bodie was standing there looking pissed. She quickly unlocked the door and let him in.

  “Not a light sleeper are you?”

  “I am so sorry. How long have you been standing here?”

  “Ten minutes.”

  “Oh shit. I’m sorry!” She picked up clothes. “I must have been more tired than I thought,” then she hurried into the bathroom to change. Bodie had already noticed that Shaun hadn’t brought any bags. From Chicago Illinois to Richmond Kentucky with no luggage? And he was the fifth Beatle.

  To her credit she didn’t leave him waiting for long and when she came out of the bathroom she looked even prettier than she had the night before.

  “Bodie…I’ve been thinking about ditching that piece of shit car and just taking a bus into Richmond.”

  He stroked his goatee. “Well, I guess I could junk it for you. Might get you a couple hundred.” He could get a nice tidy sum off the parts. This venture might prove quite lucrative. “I brought the tow truck so we’ll go up to the bar, pick up the car, take it down to the garage and then I’ll drive you into town and drop you off to the bus station.”

  She smiled relieved. “Thank you Bodie. How much do I owe you for the tow?”

  “Nothing. We’ll call it a win win situation.”

  Back in the tow truck Bodie passed Shaun a cup of coffee. “You drink coffee?”

  “Oh God yes! I’m fiending!” She took it gratefully, sipping it black.

  “Cream or sugar?”

  “No, this is good. Thank You. You’re going to make me lose my negative impression of country boys…or is it mountain men?”

  “Just old fashioned common courtesy, Ma’am. Sorry about that guy in the woods wearing that costume. We’re not all like that you know. There’s quite a large population of Native Americans on this mountain and the Klan don’t like us just as much as they don’t like you.” He had been called a Bush nigger, Prairie nigger, Redskin, Savage, Cochise, Featherhead and a half a dozen other names in his life.

  “You’re Indian…uh native American?”

  “Part Cherokee.” The other part was a Frenchman that had made his way to the states in order to seek his fortune.

  Shaun appraised him. So that’s why he had that dark skin. But he didn’t look like an Indian beyond that, especially not with those hazel green eyes and that sun-blonde hair. She wondered how old he was; definitely older than her but not as old as Craig who was 42. No, Bodie appeared to be in his thirties and she was twenty-four.

  She sniffed and looked out the window, dismissing the direction of her thoughts.

  When they arrived at Stubby’s there were two police cars parked next to Shaun’s Honda. Her mouth dropped open.

  “You didn’t steal that car did you?” he asked while pulling up alongside the police cruisers.

  Shaun just looked at him wide-eyed.

  “Shit.” Bodie cursed and stepped down from the truck. Should’ve minded his own business last night and kept on driving. “Stay here.” He commanded.

  “Hey Bodie.” One of the deputies greeted.

  “Hey, Lloyd. What’s goin’ on?”

  “Hey Bodie.” Cyrus spoke. “See you got that colored gal in your truck.” Cyrus really was a good ol’ boy and the words he used not only offended Bodie but Lloyd didn’t seem too happy about them either. Bodie was suddenly happy that he’d had Shaun stay in the truck. Somehow he suspected that she’d let him know how outdated that term was.

  “There was a shooting last night. Keegan McMichaels turned up dead in those woods,” Lloyd continued.

  Bodie’s brow drew together. “What time?”

  “Found him early this morning. We don’t know how long he’s been dead. Not long, though.” Lloyd glanced at the tow truck. “Funny thing is, he was wearing Klan gear; just the hood. Heard about the black woman in Stubby’s last night and how a couple folks might have given her a hard time.”

  Bodie turned back to the truck. Shaun was watching them with a frightened expression. He looked at Lloyd again. “How many times was he shot?”

  “Twice.”

  “I didn’t smell any gunpowder and I was in my truck with her. I drove her down to the Holiday Inn about 2:30.” He nodded at Lloyd. “I’ll vouch for her.”

  Lloyd nodded agreeably. They had gone to school together, but more importantly, they had played college football together. To Lloyd Bodie’s word was his bond.

  “Good enough for me. We’re going to need to get a statement from her. Can you bring her down to the station in a few hours? I’d carry her down now but that’d just scare her.”

  “No, I’ll do it.” He went back to the truck to the passenger side. Shaun rolled down her window.

  “There was a shooting last night.”

  Shaun gasped.

  “Some fool man in the woods wearing a Klan’s hood was found dead earlier this morning.” He sucked air through his teeth. “You don’t know anything about any Klansman in the woods, you got me?” He said, voice growing low. “Last night you didn’t see anything out of the ordinary—other than JD making a fool out of himself—which isn’t all that out of the ordinary.”

  “Dead?” She looked upset.

  “You didn’t hear any shots did you?”

  “No,” She said still shocked.

  He relaxed. “Look, I’m going to need to take you down to the station to make a statement-”

  Her eyes shot back to his. “They don’t think I had anything to do with it, do they?”

  “No. They just need to ask you questions.” Bodie got into the truck and pulled into position to tow the car. He glanced at her. She was chewing her lower lip, looking worried. He had an urge to lay his hand over hers to reassure her. ‘Course she’d likely leap out of the car and run to the police if he did that.

  He got out and hooked up the car, limiting his small talk with his police friends. When he got back into the truck Shaun was staring into the woods.”

  “Don’t do that,” he whispered. “You don’t know where he was in those woods, remember?”

  “Oh.” She looked at him earnestly. “Thank you for coming back, Bodie. Somebody was shooting and it could have been me dead last night.”

  He shook his head silently contemplating the nature of stupidity. He heard a sniffle. He peeked over at Shaun and his worst fear was confirmed; she was crying.

  “Uh…Uh…” he stammered.

  “This has really been screwed up. All I’m trying to do is get to my grandma’s, you know? I walk in the house and Craig’s in bed with Patrice. Then I’m stuck in traffic and lost most of the time, just to end up in the middle of nowhere with a broke down car and a dead Klansman in the woods!” Then she really started to boo-hoo.

  Bodie pulled off to the side of the road. “Shaundea.” Her face was hidden in her hands as she sobbed. “Shaun, hey now…” He patted her shoulder. “Uh…you know, it’s going to be okay, I guess. I mean I know it must be tough to catch your ol’ man in bed with another woman-”

  “Craig is not my ol’ man, he’s my Dad!” she hollered. “And Patrice is not a woman. She’s a transsexual who happens to be my age! PRE-OPERATIVE!” Then she sobbed harder.

  Bodie looked as if he had just found his own Dad in bed with a man.

  “Jesus, God in heaven…” he said finally. “I’m sorry. You just go right ahead and cry. I’d be crying too if I was you. Jeez…”

  She looked at him. “I knew Craig was gay! I just didn’t know he was screwing my best friend!”

  Bodie’s face went pale as something occurred to him. “Uh…are you a guy, Shaun???
?

  Shaun’s eyes grew large with shock. “You think I look like a guy?!”

  “No—I just…your name is Shaun-”

  “I’m not a guy!” She said defensively.

  “Sorry.” He quickly pulled back onto the road. His head was reeling.

  “Craig has always gone for the leather type or men like you,” she explained while swiping away her tears.

  “Like me? What do you mean like me?!”

  “Real men; A man’s man. And Patrice has always gone for men like you, too.”

  Bodie squirmed in his seat.

  “So you tell me why Craig would be with Patrice? Wouldn’t you think that if a man sleeps with a girly-man then he’d be able to sleep with a woman? Because every since I went to live with my dad he has told me that he couldn’t do that with a woman other than when he did it that one time with my mother. He said it sickened him so I was never going to have another mommy; just maybe two daddy’s. So why, Bodie? Why do this with someone like Patrice who is even more girly girl than me?!”

  He didn’t want to answer but she kept staring at him, waiting. “Because she has a penis? Oh god…look, if a man sleeps with anything having a penis and or balls—he falls out of my realm of understanding, therefore I have no opinion.”

  Shaun paused and then smiled. And then she began chuckling and Bodie soon joined her.

  “Thank you for making me laugh,” she said.

  A short time later they pulled into a small but well maintained garage.

  “Bodie’s Garage,” she read with awe.

  “Yup. Home sweet home.” He walked over to her door to let her out, remembering his manners and then he began the process of unhooking the car.

  “Why don’t you climb inside and try to start her up.”

  She did as he requested and just like the night before nothing happened.

  He closed the hood and eyed her. “Okay, you want to junk her than try fixing her?”

  “Yeah.”

  He went inside and when he returned he had two hundred dollars in hand. “I think this is fair.”

  She smiled. “Thanks!”

  “Okay, lets grab some breakfast and then I’ll take you on over to the police station.”

  “I’m starving.” She said but her expression clouded.

  Chapter 3

  Bodie took her to Mary Lou’s Old Country Kitchen and when they stepped inside you best believe that all eyes were on them. Old men sitting at the counter practically broke their necks craning their heads to see. Old women began whispering to each other. Bodie chose a booth when he usually just sat at the counter. The stares didn’t bother him one way or another—but it might bother Shaun.

  “Dang,” she whispered. “Black folks ain’t allowed in here or something?”

  “Blacks come in here all the time.” He was kind of lying since there were only two black families on the mountain.

  “Just not with whites?”

  Her suspicious attitude was growing stale. Yes they were in the south, yes this was the mountains and yes there was Klan here. “Maybe,” he said more sharply than he had intended, “you’re being looked at because they think you killed someone.”

  Her mouth twisted and then she picked up the plastic covered menu and immediately Bodie regretted putting his foot in his mouth. He picked up his menu and studied it even though nothing had changed on it in over seven years.

  Sure enough he heard the telltale sniffling and when he looked up tears were running down her cheeks.

  “Oh God. Please don’t start crying again…I don’t know what to do when women cry.”

  “You make women cry often?” She asked.

  Then he did something that he didn’t think he’d do in a million years. He covered her hand with his own and squeezed it gently.

  A waitress came by with a pot of coffee and two mugs. Bodie quickly pulled his hand back.

  “Hey Bodie. What’s been going on?”

  “Oh. Same ol’ same ol’,” he lied.

  “You two ready to order?”

  “I’ll have some of that coffee.” Shaun said. “And 2 scrambled eggs, hash browns, 2 pancakes with sausage and a side order of bacon…and grits. And iced water.”

  Lucille, the waitress gave her a surprised look. Bodie was not going to comment and possibly get her crying again. “I’ll have the same but with a glass of milk.”

  “Uhm…I’ll have a glass of milk too,” Shaun added.

  When the waitress was gone Shaun sipped her coffee.

  “Bodie I’m going to treat you to breakfast.”

  “You ain’t got do that-”

  She held up her hand. “I’ve been a pure-D pain in the ass. The least I can do is pick up breakfast.”

  “Well, I aint too easy to get along with either,” he said in the way of an apology.

  “Bodie, I’m…” she hesitated.

  “What?”

  “A little scared,” she swallowed.

  “Of?” he asked surprised.

  “Them pinning this shooting on me. Maybe I should call the NAACP or something.”

  Bodie tried not to laugh. Was she serious!

  “The NAACP? I think you’re jumping the gun. You’re just coming in to make a statement. Look. I know Lloyd. He’s good people. If he truly suspected you, you wouldn’t be sitting here about to eat breakfast. Besides, the time to be scared was when you walked into a redneck bar all alone.”

  She shrugged. “I didn’t know a man would end up dead within yards of me.” Tentatively she put her hands on the table and allowed them to creep closer to his. Bodie opened his hand nonchalantly, although his heart was beating in his chest a mile a minute. Shaun slipped both of her hands into his. Gently he closed them over hers, and then he could breathe again.

  They had a peaceful breakfast and afterwards Bodie drove her to the police station.

  “Still scared?” He asked while opening her door.

  She nodded wordlessly.

  “Just remember what we talked about.”

  “Right. Nothing out of the ordinary happened.

  ~PP ~

  Bodie waited for Shaun in the small waiting area but she was out before he knew it; smiling. Even though he had told her not to worry, he had been a bit worried himself.

  “Done?” he asked.

  “Done,” she replied. They got into the truck and he headed for the bus station.

  “They didn’t say you had to stay in town did they?” he asked hopefully.

  “No.”

  “Oh.” The rest of the ride was quiet. When they finally got to the bus station Shaun stopped him before he could get out of the truck.

  “I think I can take it from here. Bodie, you sure I can’t give you any money?”

  “No…but no ones going to be coming after me because I junk that car, are they?”

  “Craig ain’t coming all the way up on this mountain for that thing. Besides, he gave it to me to use.” She suddenly reached over and hugged him. “Thank you.”

  His hand came up to her back a bit surprised. He closed his eyes and inhaled her essence. She smelled beautiful.

  “Bye. I appreciate everything you did.”

  “You have a safe trip.” She disappeared into the station. Bodie reached for a cigarette and lit up.

  Chapter 4

  Bodie decided to head back to the garage to work on the car. He pulled on a pair of coveralls with the sleeves cut off which showcased his considerable biceps. He’d been working on it for about an hour when he felt a shadow fall over him.

  He glanced over his shoulder to see Derrick McMichaels, Keegan’s brother. This wasn’t a social call as none of the McMichaels’ held much of a liking for anyone not of a pure Aryan lineage. Bodie’s pure-bred Cherokee grandmother knocked him out of that category.

  “You heard about my brother?” Derrick asked, although it wasn’t quite a question.

  “Yeah. Heard he was found shot in the woods behind Stubby’s.”

  Derrick’s ada
m’s apple bobbed briefly. His grey eyes watched Bodie coolly, nonetheless.

  “Heard you took that nigger down to the police station.”

  Bodie turned back to the car and shut the hood. “Police talked to a lot of people that were at Stubby’s last night.”

  “Where she at Bodie?”

  Bodie turned to him coldly. He was bigger and taller than Derrick and him being in the Klan didn’t phase Bodie in the least because under the hoods and stupid white sheets that they wore was just another stupid redneck that he would pound to within an inch of his life it he were fucked with.

  “Fuck you. I wouldn’t tell you where she was if I thought she did shoot Keegan—and I know she didn’t. Because I left Stubby’s one step ahead of her and then I drove her to the Holiday Inn.”

  Derrick spit in the dirt. “Bullshit. You drove off and left her. See, I was there.”

  Bodie didn’t waiver. “If you was there than you know she didn’t shoot anybody.”

  Derrick took a step back. “If it wasn’t her then it was another black bitch in the parking lot of Stubby’s shooting.” He turned on his heels and walked away.

  Bodie watched Derrick climbed into his Charger and speed off then he went into the garage. “Pete, I’m going out. Keep an eye on things.”

  “Sure boss.”

  On his way to his pickup Bodie grabbed a tire iron.

  ~PP ~

  Bodie drove with one eye on the road and one eye on the lookout for anyone following him. He didn’t bother to park, he just pulled up to the curb and then walked into the bus station carrying the tire iron. People stared--not because he was a mechanic who was holding a tire iron like it was a baseball bat, but because of the rage on his face. Women grabbed children, men stepped out of his path and the security guard decided to take a coffee break.

  Shaun was sitting in a hard plastic chair reading a 2 year old Field and Stream magazine. She glanced up to see a huge man in dirty coveralls stalking towards her carrying a tire iron.