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“My manager, Brad, who was also my best friend. I secretly loved him but never told him. Maybe that’s my fault. Anyway, he took one look at her and fell in love. At first, all three of us would hang out. Then she started sleeping over at our place.” Judith clenched her fists.
“You two lived together?” How did she live with this guy and not tell him how she felt?
“He had a tent. I didn’t. I was sleeping on a bench. He offered a spot in his tent. And she would come over and hook up with him while I was right there!” She sounded like she was jealous. It didn’t seem like Ava was a terrible person.
“So you hate her because she hooked up with a guy you liked?” I rolled my eyes.
“I know how it sounds, but it was so much more. She had him kick me out of his tent. Then she turned everyone against him, so he had to leave town. Even if I could never have him, I didn’t want him to leave.” She looked like she was on the verge of tears. “Then there was the nickname. I was called Two hits Judith. Then she started calling me Big Booty Judy, and that name stuck.”
“How did she turn everyone against him?” I wasn’t convinced this wasn’t just jealousy.
“She convinced people he was hitting her. Total bullshit. Her marks were from fighting, same as me.”
“I would like to meet this guy. Is he still out of town?” I would send for him if he was. Maybe he could shed some light on Ava Palmer.
CHAPTER20
Adam (Day 4)
Judith spent the night.I wasn’t too keen on the idea, but Bri insisted. He was too tired to drive her back.
In the morning, we had breakfast. Neither Brian nor I were good cooks. Luckily Judith was. She cooked a feast of eggs, bacon, potatoes, and pancakes. It was amazing. Normally for that type of food, Brian would have to send out for it.
It wasn’t until after we finished our meal that I realized my mask was upstairs. Not once did Judith stare at my face. Maybe she was right, we all have scars. It was nice having company in the house. Since I corrected Judith on what to call Brian, she was overly pleasant to him. I could tell from the smile on his face that he liked her.
“So what’s the plan?” I asked through mouths full of food.
“Brad will be at work. He’s a server at La Temp. You can’t call him by his real name. People are still out for him because of Ava. Her best friend Felix is a fighter. No way could Brad defend himself.” She hissed when she mentioned Felix.
“Why couldn’t Brad defend himself? And what do I call him?” The more I talked to Judith, the more I wondered if she was telling the truth about Ava.
“Call him Vernon. As for him defending himself, you’ll see.” She grabbed her plate, then Brian’s, and lastly mine. Why would she clean up after me if she was a bad person?
A few minutes later, we were out the door and heading to La Temp. Judith told me not to bring the mask, but I did. She may have been comfortable with my face, but most weren’t. When we arrived at the restaurant, she had us sneak in the back when we arrived at the restaurant. I didn’t bother to tell her my sister owned the restaurant, and we could have walked through the front door.
Brian wanted to go and see my sister, Tara. I told him she probably wouldn’t be there and that it would take longer if he went. He would have wanted to see who was there and how everyone was. It would have taken too much time.
Tons of servers and cooks moved about the kitchen. Since I had last been there, most of the workers had changed. I kept asking if each one was Vernon. She kindly told me to be patient and wait. It had been so long since I went anywhere that all the people and noise were jarring. The odd thing was no one gave me a second glance. Even though that was nice, I was still pissed to be outside. I spent six years inside. Since Brian bought me Ava a few days ago, I had already left the house twice. I was starting to hate Ava Palmer.
Judith elbowed my side and pointed at a server. “That’s him.”
I’m not sure what I expected, but he wasn’t it. He looked like a movie star. His black hair was gelled back. When he saw Judith, he smiled at her. His teeth literally glistened across the room. I wasn’t into men, but if I was, he would be my type.
He set the tray down and came over to us. With his left arm, he pulled Judith into a hug and kissed her cheek. Her face reddened.
“Vernon, this is Adam. Adam, this is Vernon.” Judith introduced us.
I stuck out my hand to shake his. “Nice to meet you.”
He put out his left hand. “Sorry, bro, my right arm doesn’t work.”
“Oh, what happened?” That would explain why he couldn’t defend himself.
“I used to be a fighter. Took a hard hit to the shoulder. It hasn’t worked since.” He slapped his other arm to accentuate his point.
“Vernon, this is Adam Gould, the man who bought Ava. Well, one of them,” she hissed.
Anger flashed across his face, or maybe it was jealousy. I wasn’t sure. Either way, he composed himself quickly.
