FREDDY PRINCE | CH. 8
Chapter Eight
To keep his nerves calm, Freddy smoked weed. Being a philanthropist and spokesperson for the people was hard work that often went unnoticed. Until the person ended up dead or trending on social media for something negative.
On his way home from his sister's that night, he made a pit stop to pick up his monthly dose of ganja. On his way out from there, he spotted a familiar figure walking the dangerous streets of the hood with no regard for her own safety.
“Yo, what you doing out here?”
He spoke through the open passenger window of his car.
“You shouldn’t be out here by yourself right now.”
He pulled over at the curb and got out to check on Kalani. After all the write-ups he published about violence against women, he couldn’t stand to see any woman walk the streets alone. Especially at night.
“What you doing out here?” he asked again when he caught up to her.
“Conducting interviews.”
She gave him a questioning look with a half smile.
“What are you doing following me?”
“Following you?” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t say following. I SAW you and thought you shouldn’t be out here by yourself. You know?”
Kalani knew exactly what he meant. The streets were dangerous for women at night. She had that thought in her mind while gathering information from people in the area, but people knew not to fuck with her; she was the mayor's daughter, and he was a crooked man. Besides, she knew Mack wasn’t too far behind.
“I know,” she said. “Don’t look, but there’s a guy following me. He works for my dad, and they think I'm too stupid to notice him back there.”
“Oh, shit.” Freddy laughed at that. “What, Mayor Montgomery got mob ties or something?”
“Yeah, right,” Kalani laughed. “He just does a lot of fucked up shit, so he has to watch his back all the time. That’s one of the many reasons I left Virginia. I wish my mom would’ve done the same.”
That feeling of regret crept up in Freddy’s gut again. He hated knowing he was holding onto information that could’ve possibly solved her mother's murder, but his hands were tied, and his mouth was gagged.
“Let me give you a ride.”
A thought crossed Freddy’s mind when he looked at her.
“We can talk about your mom and how to move forward with finding out what happened to her.”
“Are you for real?”
Her eyes lit up with excitement.
“I don’t want you to give in just because you feel bad for me or anything,” she said.
“Nah, it’s nothing like that. I just know how it feels to not have answers.”
Kalani accepted Freddy’s ride that night. She was on her way back to her hotel, which was in the direction of his home, so it worked out for both of them. It also allowed them to get more familiar with each other since they had to work side by side.
She knew all about what happened to his mother, so she knew they shared the same pain. It was the reason she sought him out for help in the first place. That, and she felt like her father played a role in what happened to Elm too.
Kalani didn’t tell Freddy that right away, because she needed some kind of leverage or something she could hold on to if he turned away from her cry for help.
“How come you don’t have a car?” he asked. “I mean, you’re the mayor's daughter and an excellent journalist, so I know you got some coins in the bank.”
She laughed as she adjusted her seat in his ride. When Tesla first came out, she wanted one so bad that she accepted the one her father gifted to her. Time took a toll on that gift, though. After such a tragic turn of events, her joy for her favorite gadget slowly faded.
“I might have a few coins in the bank,” she said. “I just don’t like to drive anymore, though. Walking or taking the train is easier. I don’t know, something about the nostalgia reminds me we’re on borrowed time.”
Before they made it back to her hotel, she wanted to make a stop, and since Freddy insisted he give her a ride, he felt obligated to take her wherever she wanted to go. Besides, he didn’t mind being in the presence of a woman so beautiful.
“This is your mom's rehab center.”
Freddy parked his car in front of the building he hadn’t driven past in a long time.
“Well, I’m not sure who’s running it now, but when she first opened this place, we saw instant changes. She really cared about the people who went to her for help.”
“Oh yeah,” Kalani said as she removed her seatbelt. “Somebody gave me a tip about this place. I was away so long building my career; I never had time to come back and see it. I was told my mother helped many people here.”
“Yeah.” Freddy nodded. “I used to see her all the time when I came to visit a friend of mine here. She was always either bringing in someone new or taking someone new home with her.”
The memory of Kalani’s mother made him smile. He couldn’t remember a time when Naomi wasn’t trying to help someone. Even people he felt didn’t deserve to be helped. It never mattered to her. She felt like everyone deserved a chance, and she gave it to them.
“She took people home with her from this place?”
It surprised Kalani that her mother trusted anyone enough to take them home with her. After her parents got divorced, she remembered her mom being so timid and paranoid about her surroundings; she felt like she needed a bodyguard.
“Yeah,” Freddy said. “I was worried about that too, but she said she always had somebody looking out for her.”
“She does know a lot of people.” Kalani chuckled. “Thanks for bringing me here. I just wanted to see what I’d be getting myself into once I started my interviews.”
Freddy watched as she stood in front of the building in silence. She looked like she was silently paying homage to everything her mother left behind. The longer she stood there, staring at the brick foundation, the more his guilt ate him up inside.
There was a burning desire to tell Kalani what he witnessed three years ago. He thought that desire had to be one of those demons Fantasia warned him about. Of course, he wanted to help Kalani find out the truth, but he was bound. Silenced. A slave to her father’s NDA.
“Hey, uh, you wanna stop and grab a drink before I take you back?”
His eyes were hopeful. To Kalani, he looked like he had a lot to say. She was a great reader of people, and she was sure Freddy knew more than what he told her. Her instincts told her the only way she could get that information from wherever he buried it was to spend more time with him.
“Sure,” she shrugged. “I’m not on a set schedule, and I could use a drink after today.”
“Anywhere specific you’d like to go?”
“You’re the one who invited me,” she laughed slightly. “I thought you had already decided.”
Freddy’s favorite bar wasn’t too far from where they were. He only asked because he wanted to make sure she didn’t mind going to a hole-in-the-wall over someplace fancy.
Any time Freddy got the chance to be a regular human being and step away from his spotlight in the community and politics, he jumped on the opportunity. Even if it meant sitting down at one of his favorite neighborhood bars or visiting the old basketball court he remembered playing on growing up. Losing his mom made him realize how important the small things were in life.
“Oh, you took it way back, I see.”
Kalani smiled when she saw the huge fluorescent sign that read “MA’s KITCHEN.” Even though she was Pakistani and was raised on the food from her culture, she loved Ma’s Kitchen. It was the most upscale soul food restaurant in the area and had rightfully won several foodie awards from several magazines.
“What you know about Ma’s Kitchen?” Freddy asked. “I thought a woman like you would only eat Lobster and filet mignon every night.”
“Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
The inside of Ma’s Kitchen was a whole vibe. The dimmed lights, plants, decorations, red velvety carpet, and dark walls gave the place a mysterious feel. Much like the way Freddy felt for Kalani. She was interesting; shelled in, but still willing to be vulnerable. Something Freddy didn’t know how to be.
Although he worked in the public eye and fought hard for change, he kept his own life as private as he could. He gave the people just enough to show his character, and then he pulled back. It was hard for him to say why. Some days he felt like it was because he lost someone so valuable in his life, and other days he felt like it was because he didn’t get to experience having a father. Either way, opening up about his challenges was a struggle.
“Have you heard anything useful to your investigation since you've been here?” he asked.
“Not yet.” Kalani shook her head. “I feel like people are afraid to talk. They can only point me toward the next person to ask more questions. You would think after everything my mom has done for this place, someone would at least speak out.”
Freddy sipped from his beer and nodded his head as if he wasn’t a part of that group of people. He thought talking to Kalani about her research and what she knew about the case would make things easier for him, but it only proved to make things harder.
“You got any theories about what happened?” he asked. “Like, why would anyone wanna hurt Naomi? She was a pillar of the community. She was all about helping people and getting better funding for the city. I mean, it’s easy to see why someone at the top would want her out of the way. But do you really think they would actually do it? Why not just pay her off?”
“I don’t know.”
Kalani shrugged and took a sip from her own drink.
“Maybe she knew something, and they wanted to silence her. Maybe she was preparing to run and take over my dad’s position. It could’ve been anything.”
“Why do you think he’s the one who did it? What dirt could she have had on him to make him wanna go that far?”
Kalani thought long and hard before she answered. The truth was, she didn’t know if her father was guilty or not. She wanted to believe he was because she was so angry at him for not being an active father, but she didn’t know for sure.
“Maybe you’re right.”
She nodded her head as she accepted Freddy’s question.
“Maybe he didn’t do it. I think he knows more than what he’s saying he does, though. You won’t change my mind about that.”
“That’s fair.”
As they talked more, Freddy gained insight into what kind of woman Kalani was. She was the Nia Long, Love Jones type of gal. She was resilient and confident, but still humble and down to earth. Sexy as hell too. Kalani possessed an uncommon beauty from the women he’d dealt with in the past. Hers was more soulful and sensual. It was as if her physical appearance was merely an added extra to the beauty that radiated from the inside.
“I guess we’re partners now?” Freddy asked.
“I guess so,” Kalani said, smiling. “Don’t worry, I don’t expect you to work for free. I’m willing to pay you whatever it is you charge.”
“Good,” he smiled back. “Because the last time I worked for free was never in my life.”
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