started out pretty good, I didn’t think being carried in the pocket of Aaron’s grimy sweatshirt could help. “So who’s Zee? And where is he?” I asked.
Aaron looked around. “I dunno. Haven’t seen him.”
“So what are you going to do with the rest of the pizza?”
“Eat it, I guess. I think I got the munchies.” He giggled. “You want a piece?”
“You already asked me that. No, thanks.”
He crammed the next piece in his mouth, took a swig of the contents of his bottle in the bag, and gestured toward me with it. “Want a drink?”
“No, thanks.” I had visions of serious bodily fluids smeared all over the mouth of the bottle, not to mention swimming around in whatever was in the bottle. I’d have to be dying of thirst before I’d share Aaron’s drink. He was pretty skinny, his skin was bad, and he itched. He probably used drugs any way he could, including intravenously. I couldn’t imagine he’d be any more fastidious about sharing the rig he stuck in his arm than he was about his jacket or his food. A recipe for AIDS.
“Look,” I said. “Why do you spend so much time hanging out around here? There ain’t a whole lot going on around here. Most of the stores are out of business. Even the liquor store’s shut down. Just me and the old folks who live on the second floor are around. Except for the nutcases who come to the Tabernacle.”
Aaron scratched the side of his neck. Hard. He drew blood.
“Don’t nobody bother me here,” he said. He got a crafty look in his eyes. “Maybe you’ll get some oxys for me? Or meth? I can pay good money for it.”
“If you got money, you can get whatever you want. You don’t need me.”
His mouth sank into a sulky pout. “I got to go to Baltimore to get anything like the meth you got. Down on Park Heights. It’s a long way. The gas is expensive, and besides, they cheat me.”
City drug dealers cheating a naïve redneck who came down looking for a deal, pockets full of money? Big surprise there. I grinned, remembering his woeful tale of the white pebbles they’d sold him as crack.
If this was being recorded, I needed to clear up the bit about him ever getting meth from me.
“You never got meth from me. Or anything else. I’m clean. I plan to stay clean. Tell that to whoever’s putting you up to hanging around asking me for drugs. The answer is—and always will be—NO!”
Aaron blinked rapidly again. “You don’t have to yell.”
I took a deep breath. I needed to keep control of myself. “Look,” I said more calmly. “I’m on parole. I’m not getting involved in drugs. They won’t do you any good, either. You plan to hold onto that job?”
“Of course,” Aaron said. “I been in the last day or so.”
“I noticed.”
He smiled and licked his dry lips. “But I don’t think I got to worry too much.”
“You got a doctor’s note or something?” I asked.
“I don’t need no doctor’s note. But I can get one if I need it.”
I supposed he could, if the police were using him as an informant. Since I’d been working at Quality Steel, the cops had broken up a scheme a few of the employees had set up, hiding drugs and fake IDs in shipments. One of the people involved had been an executive. I was pretty sure that if they wanted to continue the investigation the management would cooperate. Even if it meant leaving a loose cannon like Aaron in a job. At least, on the packing line, he wasn’t likely to get anybody hurt.
I stepped past Aaron and started down the stairs. “I got to get some sleep,” I said. “I got to go to work tonight.”
“Okay.” Aaron took a long drink from his bottle. “I’ll just hang out here for a little while more.”
“What for?” I asked.
“In case somebody shows up.”
“Who would show up?”
Aaron shrugged and pulled another piece of pizza out of his pocket. He raised his eyes to look straight into mine and grinned. “Just somebody’ll make sure I get what I need. And that you
Aaron looked around. “I dunno. Haven’t seen him.”
“So what are you going to do with the rest of the pizza?”
“Eat it, I guess. I think I got the munchies.” He giggled. “You want a piece?”
“You already asked me that. No, thanks.”
He crammed the next piece in his mouth, took a swig of the contents of his bottle in the bag, and gestured toward me with it. “Want a drink?”
“No, thanks.” I had visions of serious bodily fluids smeared all over the mouth of the bottle, not to mention swimming around in whatever was in the bottle. I’d have to be dying of thirst before I’d share Aaron’s drink. He was pretty skinny, his skin was bad, and he itched. He probably used drugs any way he could, including intravenously. I couldn’t imagine he’d be any more fastidious about sharing the rig he stuck in his arm than he was about his jacket or his food. A recipe for AIDS.
“Look,” I said. “Why do you spend so much time hanging out around here? There ain’t a whole lot going on around here. Most of the stores are out of business. Even the liquor store’s shut down. Just me and the old folks who live on the second floor are around. Except for the nutcases who come to the Tabernacle.”
Aaron scratched the side of his neck. Hard. He drew blood.
“Don’t nobody bother me here,” he said. He got a crafty look in his eyes. “Maybe you’ll get some oxys for me? Or meth? I can pay good money for it.”
“If you got money, you can get whatever you want. You don’t need me.”
His mouth sank into a sulky pout. “I got to go to Baltimore to get anything like the meth you got. Down on Park Heights. It’s a long way. The gas is expensive, and besides, they cheat me.”
City drug dealers cheating a naïve redneck who came down looking for a deal, pockets full of money? Big surprise there. I grinned, remembering his woeful tale of the white pebbles they’d sold him as crack.
If this was being recorded, I needed to clear up the bit about him ever getting meth from me.
“You never got meth from me. Or anything else. I’m clean. I plan to stay clean. Tell that to whoever’s putting you up to hanging around asking me for drugs. The answer is—and always will be—NO!”
Aaron blinked rapidly again. “You don’t have to yell.”
I took a deep breath. I needed to keep control of myself. “Look,” I said more calmly. “I’m on parole. I’m not getting involved in drugs. They won’t do you any good, either. You plan to hold onto that job?”
“Of course,” Aaron said. “I been in the last day or so.”
“I noticed.”
He smiled and licked his dry lips. “But I don’t think I got to worry too much.”
“You got a doctor’s note or something?” I asked.
“I don’t need no doctor’s note. But I can get one if I need it.”
I supposed he could, if the police were using him as an informant. Since I’d been working at Quality Steel, the cops had broken up a scheme a few of the employees had set up, hiding drugs and fake IDs in shipments. One of the people involved had been an executive. I was pretty sure that if they wanted to continue the investigation the management would cooperate. Even if it meant leaving a loose cannon like Aaron in a job. At least, on the packing line, he wasn’t likely to get anybody hurt.
I stepped past Aaron and started down the stairs. “I got to get some sleep,” I said. “I got to go to work tonight.”
“Okay.” Aaron took a long drink from his bottle. “I’ll just hang out here for a little while more.”
“What for?” I asked.
“In case somebody shows up.”
“Who would show up?”
Aaron shrugged and pulled another piece of pizza out of his pocket. He raised his eyes to look straight into mine and grinned. “Just somebody’ll make sure I get what I need. And that you
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