Janika said, “Shoot, one Sunday my pastor had the congregation pray for the Dope Busters. He called them ‘God’s wrath.’”
“So everybody liked them?” Lacy asked.
Janika tossed back, “Everybody but the dealers and the crackheads. There were some reports about dealers being hauled away, but hey, what’s one less dealer? The Busters took down dope houses near schools the police wouldn’t touch, and those houses didn’t reopen a few days later like they do most times.”
Lacy didn’t know what to think. “And the police never caught them?”
“Nope.”
She looked at the blurry figure on the flyer again. That couldn’t be Drake, could it? She shook her head and handed the paper back to Ida. “I need to get ready for the Circus.” The Circus was the name Ida and a few hundred thousand Detroit citizens called the Detroit City Council. Lacy had to present the info on Metro Metals in one hour. She was not looking forward to seeing Councilman Reynard Parker again.
One hour later she was standing against a wall in the jam-packed boardroom of the City Council waiting for the long agenda to wind its way down to her and her report. She was standing because there was no place to sit. Although the council members had seats around the long executive-size table, the surrounding chairs were filled with citizens waiting to state their cases on various issues, local media representatives, secretaries, aides, police officers, and a slew of other folks in the room for whatever reason. And because of all the bodies, the temperature in the room was warm enough for Lacy to feel a sheen of perspiration on her forehead.
The council was known for its feuding, bickering, and sometimes bizarre interactions between its members. In the past, members had challenged each other to fights, talked about folks’ mamas, and generally behaved worse than spoiled children. Today there were no such shenanigans. The agenda items were handled precisely and professionally.
Fifty minutes passed before it became Lacy’s turn. She stepped up to the podium, introduced herself, and referred the council members to the packets given to them earlier by one of the council aides. She had just begun to speak when Councilwoman Lola Draper stopped her with a wave of her beringed hand. “This is that site on the east side that was in the paper?”
Lacy studied the middle-age face of the former beauty queen. She knew Draper had a reputation for being difficult. “Yes.”
Seated beside Draper was Parker, and he didn’t bother to hide his look of contempt. Across the table sat Councilman Winters. The rotund, gray-haired Winters was a former schoolteacher. Back in February, his wife had stormed into a City Council meeting demanding to know about Winters and his “other woman.” The local media had had a field day. Next to him sat Carolyn Clawson, the oldest member of the council at age seventy-eight. She raised a liver-spotted hand and asked, “Are you the same L. Green who put this together?”
Lacy saw that she was holding a copy of the Blight Court report. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Forget Metro Metals, talk to us about this.”
A surprised Lacy grabbed hold of her scrambled brain and began to speak.
When she was done, Clawson said, “Councilman Parker has decided this is a waste of money. What do you say to that?”
Lacy ignored Parker’s truly angry face and said, “Mr. Parker has expressed his concerns, but I believe anytime we can make the environment cleaner for our children, the small amount of money we invest now will reap thousands more in future benefits. We can have fewer hospital visits for children with asthma, cleaner ground water, cleaner alleys, and fewer abandoned homes. I don’t see it as a waste, and this program has worked successfully in Chicago for years.”
Parker said, “The landlords of the city already have a big enough burden. They’ve removed lead paint, put up smoke detectors. Even when the tenants tear them out, the landlord is required to put up new ones. They don’t need any new ordinances.”
Councilman Pierce, the youngest male on the council, cracked, “No, they just need new tenants.” Then he said, “I like this proposal too, and I make a motion that we put this to a vote, here and now.”
Lacy forced herself not to show surprise.
The vote was nine to two. The dissenters were Parker and Draper, the Scalia and Thomas of Detroit politics.
Lacy was congratulated by the members who’d voted in favor of her proposal. Draper left the room to take a phone call, but Parker watched Lacy with such evil eyes, she left the room as soon as she could. Only after she entered the elevator did she smile at the victory.
When Ida and Janika got back from lunch, the happy Lacy was in her office seated at her desk.
Ida said, “Brought you something back. How’d it go?”
Lacy took the salad and set it aside. “They want to implement the Blight Court as soon as possible.”
Ida looked confused. “I thought you went to talk about Metro Metals?”
“I did.” Then Lacy explained what happened and Parker’s attempts to derail the proposal.
Ida waved a dismissive hand. “Who cares about Parker? That’s fabulous news!”
Lacy grinned. “In about ten days we can start taking down polluters.”
“Can we take down Parker too?”
“Only if he’s the one dumping the barrels.”
“We should be so lucky.” Ida smiled and headed back to her desk.
Janika stuck her head around Lacy’s door. “His Fineness called around 10:45. I told him you were with the council. He said call him whenever you get the time.”
“Thanks.”
Janika disappeared and Lacy picked up the phone.
When he came on the line, the first thing he said was, “Heard you blew the council away this morning. I’m getting all kinds of calls from folks singing your praises. Even the media.”
“Glad you approve, Your Honor.”
“I do.” Then his voice changed to a more personal tone. “So, how are you?”
“I’m okay. What about you? Ida showed me the flyer.”
He sighed. “I’ve been dealing with the press on that all morning.”
“Do you have any idea where the pictures came from?”
“From what I’ve been told, the image was taken from a home video that used to be in a file over at police headquarters until a few days ago.”
“Was it stolen?”
“Looks that way.”
“The newspapers aren’t taking this seriously, are they?”
“For now, no, but rumors can sometimes take on a life of their own, so I just have to wait and see. I’d like to get my hands on the people responsible for putting up the flyers, though.”
“Well, I knew it was you the moment I saw it.”
He went silent.
When he didn’t respond, Lacy was instantly contrite. “I’m kidding, Drake, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be playing.”
“That’s okay. I was so distracted by you last night, I forgot to tell you, I’m leaving for Cleveland today. In fact, I’m on my way to the airport in about an hour. Be back Thursday, so I guess we won’t see each other until then.”
“Okay.” She tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice but failed.
The amusement in his voice was easy to hear when he said, “I can put you in my suitcase. No one would ever know.”
She did enjoy his humor. “Maybe next time.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay, then I’ll call you soon as I get back.”
“You’d better,” she said softly.
“’Bye, baby.”
“Take care.”
She set the phone down, then leaned back in her chair and thought about how much she was already missing him.
Drake set the phone down and wondered how a relationship based on untruths could ever work. Lacy had been right about the man on the flyer looking just like him, because it was him. NIA knew the film existed. It had been shown repeatedly on the local television stations during the height of NIA’s
initial campaign a few years back. However, because of the terrible quality of the video, no one associated with NIA had been concerned about it being kept as evidence in a police file. Now they were, at least on the surface. It was still impossible to prove that he and the man in the film were one and the same, yet it alarmed NIA that someone had seemingly made the connection. The police brass were scrambling, trying to get a line on who might have taken the tape from headquarters. NIA’s question was: What did this all mean? Did they have a mole in their secret organization? Were there going to be more revelations? They had no way of knowing, but the search for answers was on.
At Drake’s press conference that morning the media had a ball trying to connect the dots. Drake called the photo a hoax and did his best to answer as many of the questions as they put to him. There’d been plenty: from what did he think, to was that really him, to what was the city doing about finding the mysterious black vans and their vigilante occupants? He’d been pleasant, witty, and charming, but underneath the facade had been fury. Whoever printed the flyers had to know how damaging a rumor like this could be to him, and it made him wonder if that had been the intent. Maybe they weren’t targeting NIA at all but were after him. Whoever it was had to have had help in order to blanket the city in such a short amount of time. It begged the question if there was another shadowy organization out there somewhere. If so, he couldn’t wait for them to be found, and he had no doubt they would be because he wanted to know who they were.
In the meantime, he had to live with the guilt of having lied to Lacy, and hoped this would be the first and last time.
At two that afternoon Lacy’s phone rang. Seeing Ida’s light, she picked it up. “Yes, Ida?”
“Lenny Durant’s on the phone. Wants to talk to you.”
“Thanks.” Lacy clicked over to the outside line. “This is Lacy Green. How may I help you?”
“It’s me. Lenny.”
“What can I do for you?”
“How you been?”
“Fine,” she responded coolly. “Still wondering how you got my number.”
“Got a friend in Personnel.”
“I see. Lose my number, Lenny. I don’t want you calling me at home.”
“Whatever.”
“No whatever. Don’t call me. If you do, I’ll turn you in to the cops.”
“Okay, okay. I won’t call again.”
“Good.” Lacy wondered what this young man did in real life besides target polluters and illegally access people’s phone numbers.
“Got somebody I want you to meet,” Lenny said.
“Who?”
“A man who works for the dumpers.”
Lacy went still. “What’s his name?”
“Can’t tell you right now.”
“Then take him to the police.”
“So they can mess it up? No. When he’s ready to talk, I’ll let you know.”
“Okay, but—”
He hung up.
Frustrated, Lacy replaced the phone. She wished she had a way to track him so she’d know what he was up to. She also hoped he’d been telling the truth, because she wanted this dumping epidemic to end.
She went back to her work, only to have the phone ring again. It was an outside line. She hit the speaker button. “Lacy Green, may I help you?”
“Hello, Ms. Green.” The male voice was unfamiliar.
“Yes, speaking.”
“We don’t like people coming into our town and changing up the way things are done.”
“Who is this?”
“Somebody giving you some advice, so you won’t get hurt.”
Lacy went still.
“Landlords around here don’t want you changing the codes. Businesses doesn’t want changes. You’re making a lot of enemies, Ms. Green. If I were you, I’d be real careful, especially driving that sweet car of yours. Have a nice day.”
He hung up.
Lacy’s heart was racing and she was shaking. “Ida!”
The police sent over a detective named Mitchell Franks. Nice-looking man, but he hadn’t come to be judged on his cute quotient. He asked questions, and Lacy answered as best she could.
“You’ve never heard the voice before?”
“Never.” Lacy could see Ida and Janika looking on with concern.
“And this is about what proposal again?”
“I’m assuming it’s the Blight Court,” she said, and explained the plan as quickly as she could.
He was taking notes on the pages of a pocket-sized spiral notebook. “People can get real serious about stuff like that, especially if they think its going to, one, affect their economics, and two, if they think it’s going to negatively impact whatever illegalities they’re involved in. Looks like your proposal may be hitting two nails with one hammer.”
He looked up from his writing. “Has anyone been particularly upset about this plan, besides your caller?”
“Councilman Parker. He’s been very vocal about how he feels.”
“And how does he feel?”
“That it’s a waste of money.” She told him about the visit Parker had paid her and how furious he’d been.
“Mr. Parker is a pretty big fish. I can’t see him being behind this, but I’ll talk to him on my way back to headquarters. In the meantime, I’ll file my report, and you watch your back. Let me know if you get another call. Maybe we can get a lead on where he’s calling from.”
Lacy didn’t care what the police had to do. She just wanted the person found. “Thank you, Detective Franks.”
“My pleasure.” He gave her his card. “Make sure you contact us if he calls back.”
“I will.”
Once he left the office, Ida said, “I can’t believe this.”
“Neither can I.”
Janika added, “I wonder who it is?”
Ida said, “Not telling, but somebody’s mad.”
Lacy found this all so crazy. She wanted to talk to Drake but he was already gone. She’d just have to wait until he called. Admittedly, it was getting kind of scary.
Ida asked, “Remember you telling me about your daddy asking about your gun license?”
“Yes?”
“Now’s the time, baby girl. Now’s the time.”
Lacy had no desire to carry a .45 in her purse, but maybe her daddy and Ida were right. She didn’t know if she had it in her to actually shoot another human being, but if push came to shove, she needed to be able to protect herself. The police couldn’t be everywhere. “I’ll call the detective and find out what I need to do to bring my license up to date.”
Ida nodded. “Good girl.”
Janika nodded her approval too.
Lacy finally got back to work, but the threatening voice on the phone kept replaying in her mind. What kind of drama had she stepped into?
At three o’clock she and Ida took their fifteen-minute afternoon break and went outside. Janika’s daughter had a doctor’s appointment, so she left for the day.
Lacy took in deep breaths of the fresh air and basked in the warm sunshine. She wanted to get in her car and go home, but quitting time was five o’clock, not three-fifteen, so she regretfully followed Ida and the other workers back into the building.
Back inside, she felt much better until she saw Councilman Parker standing by the windows in her office. Before she could ask what he wanted, he turned and barked, “How dare you sic the police on me.”
Lacy fought to remain calm. “Good afternoon, councilman. How are you?”
“Don’t get cute. You told Franks I threatened you?”
She went to her desk and sat. “No. Franks asked me if I knew anyone upset about the Blight Court and you instantly came to mind.”
“I had nothing to do with the call you got today.”
“I never said you did.”
“You don’t want me as an enemy.”
Lacy bit her tongue. She already considered him one. “Is there anything else?”
He studied her. “You th
ink you’re pretty damn smart, don’t you?”
She remained silent.
He looked her up and down. “This can be a violent town sometimes, Ms. Green. Let’s hope your meddling doesn’t make you a statistic.”
And he left.
Lacy dropped her head on her desk and banged it softly. First a threatening phone call and now this. All she wanted to do was help clean up the city!
At the end of the day Ida stuck her head around Lacy’s door. “How you doing?”
“Terrible.”
“Well, I’m not going home until you do, so get your stuff and let’s go. Herbert and I have our ballroom dancing class tonight. If I’m late, he won’t tango with me.”
Lacy smiled for what seemed the first time that day. Herbert was a former defensive lineman, and the image of the six-foot-seven-inch football player tangoing with his short five-by-five wife was a sweet but comical one. “Okay. I was going to stay late, but I just want to go home.”
“If you’re worried about being alone tonight, you know you’re more than welcome to one of the spare rooms at the house.”
“I know.” When she first moved to Detroit, Ida had been kind enough to let her stay in one of her upstairs bedrooms while she looked for a place to stay. “I think I’ll be okay, at least for now.”
Ida said, “If you change your mind, just come on over.”
“Thanks.”
On the heels of that, the two women left the office and headed to the elevator.
Back home, Lacy parked her car in the garage of her building then went upstairs to the community mailboxes to see if she’d received anything. There were bills, a couple of magazines, and a postcard from her mother. It read: Amsterdam is smoking. Have a high old time. Hope you like the car. Love, your mama!
Lacy started to laugh. Her fifty-four-year-old mother was a trip! Shaking her head, she headed down the quiet carpeted hall to the elevator. She spotted Wanda Moore, the building manager, coming toward her. “Hey Wanda. How are you?”
The tall dark-skinned woman had on a green T-shirt that read, KISS ME. I’M BLACK IRISH.
Lacy said, “Like the shirt.”
Wanda grinned. “Not many folks get it.” She then looked up and down the hall before leaning close and asking, “Is the mayor really a Dope Buster?”