AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She looks at me like I’ve hung the moon, and damn if I don’t feel as if I have.
That night our lovemaking is just that: a thing of love. As I tuck her into me, I pray to a God I gave up on a long time ago that this lasts forever.
My phone ringingwhen I get out the shower is an indication of hell breaking loose.
The message is from LL: CODE RED. CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS
The next message is from Nat:
YOUR WIFE LIED ABT HER AGE. CALL ME ASAP.
IT MAY NOT BE TOO LATE TO FIX THIS.
“What’s going on, Thi?” Nikki comes into the room dressed and looking fresh. She was going down to visit her sister while I was going to check in at the campaign headquarters in Shelby-Love to strategize how best to bring the win home.
“I don’t really know,” I say, quickly brushing my hair into some semblance of a style. “LL texted me code red and to get to headquarters. Nat texted saying something about your age. Then said to call her. I won’t,” I hurry to reassure Nikki. Listening to Nat was how I almost lost my wife last time. “Don’t worry about it. C’mon. I’ll drop you off.
The drive down is mostly quiet. “I don’t see how anyone can claim you’re lying when I looked all over for your birth certificate. I found nothing. Did Mama- and Pa-Pete have it?” I quiz her as I pull up alongside the Kandie Shoppe.
“No.” She’s looking down, obviously upset to be seen as causing more problems for my campaign.
“Nicolette,” I say firmly, making her look my way. “This is not on you. It’s just some erroneous opposition research. We’ll get to the bottom of it.”
After getting out, I come around to her side to help her down from the truck.
“Don’t worry.” I walk her to the door of the bakery before giving her a kiss. Once I’m back in the truck, I pull off, determined to put out this last fire.
“It’s grainy as hell,”LL says. “There is no way to prove its authenticity. We need the original document.” He waves at the digital birth certificate that’s marked as exclusive to theShelby-Love County Chronicle, posted by none other than Joi Love.
It seems Joi not only hates me but seems determined to hurt her cousin as well. My mind goes back to our brief conversation when I confronted Joi while looking for her cousin.
The little loft apartment over the Shelby County Chronicle was a mess, packed to the gills with old editions of the Shelby-Love Chronicle.
“What do you want, Shelby?” Joi cocked her head, crossing a leg over the other like she had not a care in the world.
“Where’s my fucking wife?”
She was already shrugging and moving to close the door in my face.
My strong arm stops her.
“Dude, she’s not here. I haven’t talked to her since before she married your sorry ass.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe she actually did it.”
“She did. She’s mine, and I want her back.”
“Umm, a Shelby not getting his way. Well, MA-THI-ASS, you can’t have everything and everyone.” She smirked.
“My, how far we’ve fallen from a Pulitzer nominee. What happened to you, sweetie? Got run through by a dick you couldn’t handle?” I asked in mock sincerity. “You do have that look about you. Used up and tossed away.”
“Fuck you.” She slammed the door in my face.
“Well, that’s one vote I don’t mind losing.” I called to her through the door before heading back to my truck.
Nat toldme later that she knew a little about Joi, and she’d always seemed, in her words,unstable. There were plenty of unstable people living exceptional lives; that was no excuse for what she did to her cousin. From the woman’s vitriol, I knew there was nothing she wouldn’t do or anyone she wouldn’t use. Nikki had no part in her plan, I surmised.
Looking now this latest post, it isn’t hard for me to deduce Joi is back to her old tactics.
“Get your firm on it. Unless they can provide the original document, I want it taken off the site immediately. Get a court order if you need to.”
