CHAPTER 20
After what happened earlier today, I'm a bit apprehensive about going over to Josh's. Knowing that your boyfriend's father wants you dead isn't a comforting thought. Still, I can't help but feel that it isn't him. The only way I can prove that those morons were lying is by looking for clues.
At five, Josh comes to pick me up.
"Candace, Josh has arrived so I'm leaving now."
"Okay dear. Be back by nine."
"Sure thing."
I spare Janice a glance and she puts her pinkie and thumb to her ear, indicating that I should give her a call. I give her the okay sign before heading out the door.
"Hey Naise. You look good."
"Thanks Joshua. You don't look bad yourself."
"Why thank you! Shall we?"
"We shall." I try to keep the conversation light, but it seem my brain to mouth filter just broke because I hear myself asking Josh, "What does your father do?"
"My dad? He is a businessman. Why?" He asks, confused at the sudden change of topic.
"Oh! no plausible reason. Just curious I guess."
"Oh okay."
"What business though?"
"I don't really know. I've never really been interested in what he does. I want to do something different from what he does, so I never paid attention to his explanations."
"That's just naughty Joshua." I playfully hit his arm.
"Hey what can I say? I'm a naughty boy." He winks at me.
"Boys!" I raise my hands in exasperation. He laughs at me.
Before long, we arrive at his home.
"Hi Anaise." Sandra and Susie call out at the same time.
"Hey Sandra."
"Hey Susie."
"Hello Rosa."
"Nice to see you again dear. How are you?" Rosa, Josh's mom asks.
"I'm great. Thanks for inviting me over."
"It's no biggie. It's lovely to have you over."
"Where is Dad?" Josh looks around the living room for his dad but he is no where to be seen.
"Your dad had a call, so he had to leave."
"This evening?" Josh asks baffled.
"Yes. He said something about snitches."
Snitches?! Huh?!
"Oh okay."
"Anaise dear, can you come keep me company in the kitchen?"
"Sure Rosa."
I followed Rosa to the kitchen, leaving Josh and his sisters in the living room.
"So Anaise, how old are you?"
"I'm seventeen." I tell her my real age. I don't know why Mentor gave me sixteen. Maybe it's because my face looks like a sixteen year old.
"Oh okay. But you look younger than seventeen. More like a sixteen year old."
Ah well! Mentor knew what he was doing.
"Do you have any siblings? Or a parent?"
"No not really. I'm an orphan but I'm living with Candace and Aaron Cain and their children Janice and Tyler for a while.
"Oh I'm so sorry dear."
"It's okay. I'm good now. The Cains are a wonderful family and good people.
"Yes they are. But what do you mean by for a while?"
"Umm... I'll be leaving in two weeks time.
"Oh. Does Josh know this?"
"Yes. I told him before we started dating."
"Hmmm okay. As long as he is okay then I'm okay. Josh is a good kid."
"Your son is a great person."
"He is. Always so stubborn but so smart. I remember when he was a child..." Rosa tells me a lot of stories about Josh's childhood. She is such a nice person and I wouldn't want to be the one to split her family by putting her husband in jail for drug dealings, but if he is guilty then he has to go.
Dinner was a jolly affair. Rosa is a very good cook. She made some mean apple pie for dessert which had me asking for more till I had a food baby. Mr. Carmichael arrived later in the evening after dinner was over. I stumbled upon their conversation in the kitchen.
"Honey, you are late. Dinner is over, but I kept some food aside for you. What kept you so long?"
"The two idiots I sent to do a work for me failed. They also snitched on the company. Those two can't do anything right."
"Oh honey, don't stress yourself out. Send different people then. Now come eat your dinner." Rosa is serving a scowling husband when I decide to walk into the kitchen as though I hadn't heard anything.
"Hello Mr. Carmichael." I say gauging his reaction.
He looks away from his wife and gives me a sincere smile.
"Hello Anaise. I'm sorry that I wasn't here for dinner. I had important work to do."
"That's no problem Mr. Carmichael." He gives me a smile before turning back to his wife.
"Rosa?"
"Yes?"
"Could you show me where the restroom is?"
"Tell Susie to show you the guest restroom."
"Okay thanks."
I head to the living room to look for Susie.
"Susie, do you think you could show me the guest restroom is?"
"Follow me."
She leads me to the restroom and I use the opportunity to ask for Mr. Carmichael's office.
"Susie?"
"Hmmm?"
"Where is your daddy's office?"
"It's over there." She points to where the office is.
"Here we are. Do you remember your way back?"
"Yes. Thank you Susie."
"Welkies." She answers before skipping away.
Instead of going in the restroom, I move towards the direction of Mr. Carmichael's office. I look up for any cameras and I don't notice any in the house so far. I turn the doorknob only to realize the room is locked.
Now I have to break into my boyfriend father's office?! You've gotta be kidding me.
I know how to pick locks, so I do just that with a hair pin I always place in my hair. When the door opens, I enter inside and close the door quickly and quietly behind me. I rummage through his papers and files but I don't see any containing records of drug deals. All I see is a lot of files containing figures and payments made to and from his Cocoa company. No drug deal stuff here. I open a lot of drawers but find nothing useful until I open a drawer and notice the information on some two men I'm assuming are the ones Mr. Carmichael was referring to as the snitches and morons. The picture I'm looking at looks nothing like the two thugs in jail right now.
I knew it. Mr. Carmichael isn't the one who sent them. But why would they frame him? I've gotta get out of this room now before someone comes and catches me.
I arrange all the things I touched back to their respective places. When the room looks like how it did before I ransacked the place, I leave. As I'm processing this information, I hear my name.
"Naise?! Where have you been? And why are you coming from the direction of my dad's office?"
Oh crap!!