Chapter 19: Driving Miss Resha

Friday May 30
The Law Offices
2 in the Afternoon.

Friday I put in a long shift, 2 in the morning to 2 in the afternoon. At around Noon I got Resha as a service girl. She got naked but I said I just wanted to sit on the couch, share some scotch and talk. She said that would not be fair unless she was in my lap, so I let her have her way. In the past she would have been hesitant about such a request, but today she was more open with me. It was because of Li; Resha said Li was “changed” since my date with her.

Resha knew that I really liked putting my hands on her so we both felt good. She didn’t let other lawyers do that, but we were now friends so she was eager for it. While we relaxed she shared the office gossip and even a few glimpses into her life. Towards the end I asked if I could take her home instead of her taking the bus. We both knew I had to meet her away from the office, but she agreed. She was waiting at the bus stop when I picked her up in my repaired and repainted Chevy Silverado.

She asked what was up and I got right to it. “I’d like you to take a ride with me, to show you something. It will take an hour or so, then I will drive you home. Does that work for you?”

That meant she had to trust me, so she had to think about it. We had gotten better, but trust was not in her nature, every time her baby cried she was reminded of the pain that misplaced trust could bring. On the other hand, Li had talked to Resha about our fabulous date, she got few details but she saw how her friend’s attitude about life had changed in a big way with the one date. Resha also enjoyed another hour-long pleasure session with Sam in her office Thursday, when Sam talked about the overnight date she had with me; Sam was especially excited about a friend’s involvement. You could say both incidents reflected well on me.

As we pulled away from the bus stop Resha asked, “Are you going to ask me out on a date? I heard you do that sometimes.”

“Do you think we are ready for that yet?” I asked. “You are a little skittish.”

“I have so much riding on my job ... so I guess I am not ready yet. But I have to wonder, are you interested?”

“I clearly like having my hands on you, so of course I like you. You are attractive to me ... but this is about you, not me. Look, I know you have issues so I won’t ask you to trust me that far. But maybe someday we will be much closer. This is something else.” That seemed to satisfy her.

During the drive I asked her about what ties she had to her present address; close friends for her or the grannies (her child’s two widowed grandmothers), babysitters, things like that.

She did not have any attachments, it was just a place to live. “You know it is gang territory, right?” she said.

“Most of LA with affordable rent is. Scorpions claim it but it is outside their core. There are no drug corners on either street, they are too busy.” She lived on a corner, it was dangerous as she was exposed on the front and side, and there were plenty of escape routes for shooters. The nearest drug corner was a block over and a block up. “Snakes are probing but they don’t have the manpower to make a move. G-Vice wants the area, and they will take it, that is just a matter of time. Unless the rat-bastard Poccos grab it first, if they do it becomes a war zone. It is not the worst place for drive-byes ... but as a corner ... Lousy schools.”

“A war zone? How long do you think?”

“That type of move? Probably August if they made it a priority. Best case is two years until it gets hot. Depends.”

“You know a lot about local gangs for a fancy lawyer. My only attachment is the bus line, the stop is a few yards from my back door. I thought that was good, but ... We moved there when I got the job, we stay to ourselves. I worry, the house is no protection from shooting, and those Scorpions don’t care about us. I ... I have to service the block boss and his people every month. They call and tell me when, we do it outside, in the back of the house at night. Just what I do at work ... so far. They joke about a summer spit roast, which scares me. Otherwise they leave us alone.” She realized that what she just said could get her fired, but I just went by it.

“Tell me about this waste of life.”

She thought that was pretty funny ... and true. She confirmed what I already knew. The block boss Zark (real name was Mark) and his side-kick/cousin B-man (real name Bradley) lived two houses from Resha in a foreclosure they had grabbed. For company they kept two terrified girls, runaways from Salt Lake City. These charmers chatted them up when they were vulnerable and got them both hooked on drugs. Yeah, I knew that song, I had my own choir singing it.

Jocko, the head Scorpion, put Zark in charge of 4 blocks, including the low volume drug corner. Zark was a regular disappointment to Jocko, but as long as he was not the worst disappointment in the gang he kept breathing. I knew Zark really needed Resha’s rent check to pay his boss each month.

Zark and B-man were from New Mexico, they had no other relatives involved. I knew they were wanted for “failure to appear” for a string of minor-to-medium crimes back home.

Resha mentioned that Zark always carried a big knife and a gun on his belt, under a jacket, with a small gun in a ankle holster; I guess you learn things when a guy has his dick in your mouth. The side-kick was a tall guy who carried a cut-down AK under a duster, even in the summer. That meant for most of the year he sweated under the long coat in the LA heat. Plus he always had a phone in his hand. An AK requires two hands when you use the stock, which was something B-man cut off because it made the gun too big to hide. So they were both armed and stupid.

“What if I could arrange to move you to a better place, cheaper and much safer. Would you be interested?”

“Security deposit plus first and last months rent, I can’t afford it, I’m sure. Plus Zark would not let me go.”

“Oh, I’m sure you could afford it. The bus ride is ten minutes longer, but it is a direct route, no transfers in Dragon territory.” She looked at me because I knew that, it was the bad thing she did not know before she moved and got locked-into the bus route. Her schedule always put her going to or from work after dark, and if either bus was delayed the wait could go bad; it had for other girls.

“Taxi’s won’t pick up at my house after dark,” she said bitterly. “Only a few companies will drop off in the area. I can’t afford a car.”

“That is not an issue with the new place.”

“Is there a gang?”

“Of course, this is LA. The 49 runs the territory. We have an understanding.”

“They are hispanic ... How do you know them?”

“You know some gang things too.” She smiled at that. “Actually, they are pretty open. I know a few of the bosses from my disreputable past. Lawyers always do. You know, we don’t pick our clients ... except they are always in trouble.”

That got a delightful laugh. I say it with sincerity because it is true.

After that we talked space and costs, the new place was bigger and $100 a month less. I told her it was a two story house in the middle of the block with 3 bedrooms upstairs. Both were big selling points, she thought that was safer because shooters always shot low, and a thief did not like to climb noisy stairs. The same for rapists. Actually, rapes, break-ins and drive-bys were not an issue. I knew the grannies would tire of the stairs, but to move her I had to get her attention. I also said pets, including large dogs, were allowed. She said it sounded too good to be true.

“Wait ... I heard the 49 patrol with dogs. How can residents have their own?”

That was a very insightful question, and again, it showed more knowledge than I expected. “Dogs make friends easier that people do, assuming the dog is trained and not abused. There is a top dog for the area, more wolf actually, he will make friends. A pack leader like that ends a lot of the fighting and foolishness. The vet only allows dogs that fit in.”

She asked, “If they patrol with dogs, does that mean they don’t have a rat problem?” Rats are one of our fair city’s dirty secrets, and a constant terror for a mother with a child.

“They have pretty good control of rats, and most other vermin,” I said.

We pulled up. “Come on, let’s check this house out.” We were two blocks from the 8-story apartment building. I helped her out and she noticed I didn’t lock the door. Once I was out a black guy walking a large German Shepherd came into view, and she saw two hispanic guys, one across the street and the other down the block, watching everyplace but where we were.

“Don’t you want to lock your wheels, boss?” she asked nervously. She was very scared, people without wheels were helpless prey in some neighborhoods.

“No. They all know me and who I hang with. We are safer here than ... oh ... the law office parking lot. Here, I’ll show you.” I whistled and yelled loudly, “Viva Toad!”

All three responded with fists in the air as a salute and a yell. The black guy said, “Right On Amigo.” The others were similar.

Despite her fear about the territory she thought the law office thing was a funny thing to say. Well, I knew a wind from the south was coming. She also did not understand about Toad, clearly it was a name, but the solidarity was impressive.

When we walked into the living room a 49 soldier with an M-16 was sitting on the stairs. He showed me respect, tipped his hat at Resha, and went out the back without a word. Resha could not understand what was going on, especially why I got respect from a guy with a gun, but again I said I knew some of the bosses.

I showed her the house like I was a real estate agent. Full bath and one bedroom downstairs, three small bedrooms and two half-bath upstairs. (The family now made do with two bedrooms and one bath.) There was a working second floor fire escape to the fenced back yard with a two-car garage. When we went outside a neighbor greeted us in a cheerful voice as she watched her 2 pre-school children.