Chapter 3
Where would she be going?
Napoleon told his bodyguards he was going to bed then slipped out of his mansion and arrived at the Bel Glades Hotel in record time. He checked in, went to the suite, undressed, and got in bed. After the first half-hour of waiting, he appeased his impatience by rationalizing that a woman had to pack a bag, fix her hair, put on the appropriate amount of makeup, and find just the right outfit. He knew she couldn’t leave her home until she looked at herself in the mirror and saw perfection. Then and only then could she leave feeling sexy and desirable; not a second before.
After an hour and fifteen minutes had passed, he became antsy, wondering where she was and what was taking so long. He wanted to plow her territory and plant his seed in her fertile soil. He waited another fifteen minutes and called the front desk, believing he knew what had happened. It occurred to him that some racist desk clerk wouldn’t let her up because he forgot to tell them the lady he was expecting was a Negro. After all, the Bel Glades didn’t allow Negroes in the lobby, let alone in a hotel suite without the proxy of a guest whose financial statement warranted that particular perk. In Napoleon’s case, he was the resident Mob Boss and with that title, people did what he told them or they took a fierce professional beating. In some cases, people got killed. It was that simple.
To his surprise, the desk clerk told him no one had come in the hotel after him. He called Johnnie’s home and let the phone ring twenty times. No answer. He called back a couple more times and still got no answer. He smiled because it had occurred to him that she had skillfully teased him and left him waiting in an expensive hotel suite with only his plow for company.
He began to wonder if she had figured it all out. Is that what the tease was all about? Had she figured out that Lucas was in jail because of his lethal orchestration? After a few moments, he rejected the notion because she wasn’t the type of girl to hold her cards close to the vest. If she suspected that he had cold-bloodedly set up the man she loved, she would have said something about it. For that reason, he knew she didn’t know anything. Another possible reason for the no-show entered his mind. He thought he had offended Johnnie by soliciting her on Christmas night while Lucas was languishing in prison. That had to be her reason for leading him on. Undeterred, he laughed to himself, got out of bed and dressed. It was going to take a little longer, but he was going to have her all to himself, he thought, and left the room.
As he made his way to Riviera Heights, where he lived, for some reason he couldn’t explain, he found himself headed over to Ashland Estates. As a made Mafioso, he knew better than to be in the company of Negroes, let alone be seen in their neighborhood, at the house of the woman who for all intents and purposes had started a race riot. Mafia rules notwithstanding, Negroes were the only people he trusted. There was no way he’d ever trust anyone in the Mafia because treachery was a way of life with those guys.
Negroes, on the other hand, were simple folk. If you did right by them, treated them with respect, they would be totally loyal. Nevertheless, it was still dangerous because people talked too much about things they didn’t think mattered. If someone saw him going to Johnnie’s house, it wouldn’t be a big deal; lots of white men had dalliances with Negro women, but gossip would never be muzzled. Someone could say something to the wrong person, and he could be killed without hesitation.
It felt a lot like Christmas seeing all the decorative lights on every house in Ashland Estates. Fake snow covered the front yards in the upscale parish. Nativity scenes, angels, Santa Claus on a sleigh led by the most famous reindeer, Rudolph, were common fixtures in virtually every yard.
As he approached Johnnie’s house, he noticed that her kitchen light was still on. He remembered the first time he’d come to her home, meeting her friend Sadie in the kitchen, eating pie, and overhearing an outrageous tale about Johnnie’s secret life. That’s when he realized why his lovely date hadn’t shown up for their much anticipated rendezvous. He figured that Sadie had come over at the last minute and Johnnie couldn’t leave that late in the evening without an explanation. Lucas was in jail. Where would she be going?
He was about to drive past her house and go home, but for some reason, he was compelled to see if he was right. After pulling into her driveway, he shut off his Cadillac, got out, and looked around nervously, hoping everyone in Ashland Estates had stuffed themselves with food and drink, and had fallen into a deep slumber. Satisfied that he wasn’t spotted, he made his way around the side of the house, careful not to step on anything that might alert whoever was in the kitchen to his presence. With his back against the house, he peeked in quickly, but didn’t see anybody in the kitchen. Feeling more comfortable, he took his time and looked in again. This time he saw Johnnie on the floor, naked. It never even crossed his mind that something terrible could have happened to her.