I could think of one.
Drugs.
Maybe Mrs. Phillips didn’t know Zakiya like she thought she did. Wouldn’t be the first time the parents were surprised by what their child was really into. I continued to look around for anything that would support my conclusion. If she really was involved with somebody who was involved in the game, maybe there were some clues here that would lead me in the right direction. The only thing I found was a picture that she took at some club, and a business card for a beauty shop.
I took both and left her apartment, and once again decided against goin’ home and gettin’ in the bed. The beauty shop was to be my next stop. I went in the beauty shop to ask if anyone knew Zakiya and could tell me anything about her. While the beauticians told me their stories about what a nice girl Zakiya was, and how they couldn’t imagine why anybody would want to kill her, one of the customers, who was looking at me but not offering any comment, got up and left. “Where you goin’, Dee? You’re next,” one of the beauticians said as she headed for the door.
“I just got to get something from my car. I’ll be right back,” she replied and left the shop.
I asked a few more questions and listened to a few more glowing endorsements about how wonderful Zakiya was, and then I left the shop. Before I made it to my car the woman stopped me.
“Hey mister.”
“Yes,” I said and walked toward her.
“You want to know about Zakiya?”
“I do. Were you and her friends?”
“Yeah, we were friends. We weren’t real tight or anything like that, but I knew her. We used to hangout, you know, hit the clubs or whatever. I know her better than any of those bitches in there.”
“Why didn’t you say anything before?”
“I don’t want any of them gossipy bitches up in my business. Other than them being here when Zakiya got her hair done, ain’t none of them know anything about her.”
“What can you tell me about her?”
“Not much. Like I said, we wasn’t real tight. I’ll tell you what I do know if it will help you find out who killed her. Just not right now. I gotta get back in there before I lose my place. I don’t want to be here all day. Can I meet you sometime later?”
“When they’re finished with your hair, I’ll be right here in that car waiting for you,” I said and pointed at the Caddy.
“You don’t mind waiting?”
“Not if you got something to tell me, I don’t,” I told Dee and got in the car.
I don’t know how long I had been waiting when Dee tapped on the window; probably ’cause I fell asleep as soon as I got comfortable in the car.
I motioned for her to come around to the passenger side and she got in. “So what can you tell me about Zakiya?”
“What you want to know?”
“Did she have a job?” was my first question. I really only had two.
“Yeah, she had a part-time job at Cross County Mall.”
“Do you know where?”
“No. Just that she worked out there.”
“Do you know if she was involved with drugs or anybody that sells drugs?”
“If she did, she never said anything about it. And I can tell you for sure, when you got a baller on the hook, you tell everybody.”
“Even if it ruined her good-girl image?”
Dee laughed when I said good girl. “Zakiya was cool, and I don’t think she was rollin’ with no ballers, but good girl-I don’t think so.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Good girls don’t fuck married men.”
“Do you know who this married man was?”
“No, she never would tell us what his name was or what he did. Just that he was married and had enough paper to take good care of her.”
“But you’re sure it wasn’t a baller?”
“Sure? No. But Zakiya didn’t have no heart for drugs. She never said why she was so against it, but she was. Her feeling that way, I seriously doubt that she would get involved with somebody like that.”
“Thanks for your help.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Go ahead.”
“Why you keep asking me about this drug thing?”
“Cops say her murder was drug related. Her grandmother doesn’t believe it.”
“Neither do I,” Dee said and started to get out of the car.
“Where can I find you if I have anymore questions?”
Dee dug around in her purse for some paper and something to write with. She wrote down her number and handed it to me. “You can call me anytime; whether you got questions or not.”
Chapter 8
I decided to go by Paradise Fish and Chicken. On the way there I called Wanda’s personal assistant to find out who the manager of Paradise was. She told me that his name was Al Harris, and she offered to call ahead so he would be expecting me.
The place was crowded when I got there, so I took a seat and waited for them to clear the line before I approached the two ladies behind the counter. While I waited I noticed the security cameras behind the counter and another one in the dining area. I wondered if they had a recording.
Once the line was gone, I stepped to the counter. “Hello, ladies. Is Al Harris here?”
“You must be Nick Simmons,” one of the ladies said. She had light, almost blonde braided hair and light eyes, neither of which appeared to be her own.
“That’s right.”
“Al said we should be nice to you,” light eyes said.
“Said we should treat you like we treated Freeze,” the other said.
“How did you treat Freeze?”
“I was scared of him, but Shameka liked him. She thought he was cute,” light eyes said, and Shameka took a playful swing at her.
“Tasheka?”
“What? You was always talkin’ ’bout what a cutie he was.”
“Yeah, but he don’t need to know all that,” Shameka said. “I’ll go get Al for you.”
“So you want somethin’ to eat, somethin’ to drink?” Tasheka asked. “I guess since we supposed to treat you like Freeze, everything is free. You can have anything you want,” she said with her arms open as Al Harris came rushing out of the back. “Chicken is fresh out the fryer and I just made the lemonade.”
“Lemonade sounds good, but don’t put a lot of ice in it.”
Tasheka smiled at me and went to get the lemonade.
“Mr. Simmons. I’m Al Harris, I’m the manager here,” he said nervously. He was an older gentleman, in his late fifties maybe.
“Call me Nick,” I said and shook his hand.
“What can I do to help you?”
“I wanted to talk you about the robbery and the people that got shot here.”
“I was in the back, so I didn’t see what happened. I told the police that. Tasheka and Shameka were both working; they can tell you what happened.”
“I notice that you have cameras, do you have a recording of it?”
“Yes, sir. You could look at it in the back or I could make you a copy.”
“Why don’t you go ahead and make me a copy while I talk to the ladies. I’ll look at the video after that,” I told Al and he rushed off.
“So tell me what happened.”
“Well, I was workin’ the register and Tasheka was gettin’ the food when they came in.”
“Where were the two people that got killed?” I asked.
“Right where you’re standing,” Tasheka said.
“Go on.”
“They walked straight up here, pulled their guns, and one said give me all the money,” Shameka said.
“The other one stepped up and shot them,” Tasheka added.
“What did they look like?”
“They were both dark-skinned. They both had on baseball hats, dark glasses and black scarves, so I couldn’t see their faces,” Tasheka told me.
“But one of them, the one that shot those people, had dreads,” Shameka said.
“What happened then?”
“I gave them what was in the drawer which was nothing but a hundred and fifty dollars.”
“Good thing they didn’t go in the back ’cause Al had just came and got the money out the register. They probably woulda killed him too.”
“Did either of the people say or do anything before they shot them?” I asked.