Chapter 24
Sherry
I was just about packed to move back up to Chicago and I had gotten Charlie to agree to come get me. I was hoping that it would be Rex sent in his stead again, but it was Charlie that showed up, alone.
Not hearing from Rex, I wondered what he was doing or if I was going to see him while I was in Chicago, but for now I was just going to have to hold my tongue. Charlie and I had a lot to talk about, especially now that he knows about me being at the club and what I had seen there.
It didn’t take long at all for him to start in and I didn’t know what to say. “So how did you find out about the club Sherry?”
“Dang you didn’t wait long. We aren’t even out of the city limits.”
“I am just curious. I tried so hard to keep it a secret and you aren’t back a few days and already know. I just don’t get it, so help me out here.”
I had known that we were going to have this discussion, but now I felt like it was just the start of something more.
“Well it wasn’t too hard to figure out. You hired a girl like Candy and it is clear that she wasn’t going to be doing any kind of clerical work. I would bet that she can’t even make a full sentence properly. Then you had those little matchbooks all over the apartment. It just seemed like it all made sense, though I couldn’t have been sure until I went.”
“So you went to the club?”
I nodded my head and found that I couldn’t meet his gaze. I didn’t know what else to say, but I had gone to see for myself. It was just how I was. I wanted to make sure instead of assuming something.
“Yeah.”
“And?”
“Well, it is not what I expected. I mean, I just never saw you as that guy.”
He shook his head. “I knew you wouldn’t understand. I mean, I can see it from your side. This is normal here though. These places are going to be here no matter what.”
“So why not be the one making the money on it?”
He shrugged and focused more on the road.
“I get it. You were always a really nice guy and maybe you think that if you are a good boss, they will be taken care of better.”
“Sort of like that.”
“But you are making a boatload of money on it, so it isn’t like you are a charity bro. I am not going to judge you, but I just know that you could have done anything great if you would have put your mind to it. This is just the route you wanted to take.”
“No judgment, huh?”
“Sorry, I don’t know. That place, those people. I don’t know how you do it. I would never tell mom and dad. They would freak out.”
And that was a major understatement. My mother would blame herself for raising such a devilish boy and he would have one hell of a time trying to convince her of anything. She would want him to talk to the preacher at our church. No, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. I wouldn’t want him to have to go through that. The shaming would be great.
“Yeah, I know.”
“So why?”
“Because it was a good business to get into and it just seemed like the right time to do it. I don’t think I am a charity, but I treat the girls well and they have protection and make good money. I mean really good money.”
“So is that why you wouldn’t give me a job there?”
I giggled, but he told me that he would rather jab out his eyes. I didn’t know if I should laugh to that or not. He was always so funny and the more I thought about it, the more I could see his anxiety about it.
“Well at least I know why you have been acting so weird. I won’t rat on you, I promise. You don’t have to worry about it anymore.”
“It isn’t just that. I have to ask you something.”
Oh no, here it comes. Here is the something else that I had felt from him and I was finally going to know what it was that he was here for. Charlie was a busy guy, really busy, so that meant he had come here to get me for one reason or another. Unless mom hounded him to do it, the reason was going to be hinged on the question that he all of a sudden had a burning interest to ask me.
“So what is it?”
“I want to ask you about Rex.”
My heart stopped for a minute and I didn’t know what to say. There was a million answers running through my head simultaneously, but I had the good sense not to try and pick it apart. I knew that there was a reason he was asking about him, but that didn’t mean that I should give anything away for free. He may not really know anything.
“What about him?”
“Come on Sherry. You aren’t the only one that has bullshit radar. Something is going on with the two of you, isn’t there?”
“What? No? Charlie, why would you ask that?”
He didn’t seem sure of my answer, but his shoulders slumped a little bit in relief. “I don’t know. I just got this crazy idea in my head and I guess I just went with it. I know that you two would never do that, but it was just on my mind and I figured I would ask before I let it drive me crazy. I mean the thought of my little sister and my best friend getting it on is just more than I ever want to think about again.”
He was babbling now and I could tell that a huge weight was lifted off of his shoulders. If I didn’t know before how he felt about all of it, I sure did now.
“Don’t worry about that Charlie. There is nothing going on between us.”