Frieda called Violet as school let out, "hey, I think I see your moms car driving around the school."
"My moms here again? Patty's calling me."
As she talks, she has Patty calling on the other line, switching over; "I just saw your dad storming in to the school!"
"He's here too?! They must've seen the news, shit we gotta go!"
Violet hung up, catching up Sally and Peppermint Patty.
"I heard your parents are here, c'mon," Peppermint Patty grabbed her and ran.
Lucy and Franklin were waiting by the door, Charlie and Frieda came from another direction, Schroder was outside looking. Marcie, Patty, and Linus came running from another door.
"I just saw your dad peel off in his car," Linus said.
"C'mon Vee, we gotta bounce," Franklin snapped.
They ran to their cars, keeping an eye out, Franklin unlocked his doors, getting in, Violet stood on the doorsill looking around.
"Shit! There's my dad, he's coming," she sat down, closed the door, "he saw us!"
"Damn… how are we gonna get away?"
"Hey, climb over and get in here," Sally yelled, "he won't see you change cars."
"Good idea, c'mon baby," Franklin agreed.
Violet climbed through his door, getting in Charlie's backseat.
"Lay down, so they don't see you," Linus blurted.
"Chuck, we'll distract him, so Franklin can get away… just follow my lead," Peppermint Patty smiled.
Schroder pulled out, blocking a bus, to give them time to get out, Frieda was behind him. Charlie followed Peppermint Patty, once she was on the road, she started smoking her tires in a rolling burnout, he figured it out and followed suit, both cars started to kick out sideways a bit, bellowing tire smoke partially blocking James view. Franklin took off shortly after with Patty behind him, the other way.
Franklin saw Heather try and block him, putting the passenger tires on the sidewalk, zooming by, Patty blew her horn at her as she straightened up back in her lane, Schroder and Frieda behind her. The three acted as roadblocks so Franklin could gain distance as James tried to close in, but once traffic cleared a bit, he zoomed past them.
James was up on Franklins tail blowing his horn and flashing his lights, he could see him fuming and yelling, thinking about all the slurs he must be calling him and Violet. He cuts down an alley to slow the performance luxury sedan down, but James is having none of that. Back on the street he rounds a corner and gasses it, watching in the rearview as James slides through the turn, gaining back on him. There's no way his lumbering Tahoe can outpace that Maserati on the streets, so he looks for a place to pull over, spotting a gas station.
"I hope yall got good security cameras."
Franklin pulled up to a pump close to the building, James pulled up next to him, hoping out of his car, rushing over there yelling, ignoring the people around.
"Thought you could get away from me, huh?! You little jiggaboo! Violet, get out of that thing, now," he walked up.
Peoples ears perked up a bit more, some took out their phones.
"Hey man, why are you chasing me, Mr. Gray?"
"You know why! I know you got your monkey hands on my daughter, I saw you, I seen her get in," he opened the driver door.
"Whoa! Mr. Gray! She's not here!"
He pulled him out of his seat, "I'm not stupid, I saw what I saw! You fucking monkey, she's probably hiding," he shook him.
James pushed him in to his own Ghibli, climbing in the driver seat, unlocking the door.
"Man, there's no reason to call me names like that, bruh!"
"Where's my nigger-loving daughter… Bruh," he unlocked the doors, running to open the rear.
"Mr. Gray! Don't call her that, she's not with me!"
"She loves you doesn't she," he tosses stuff out of the back, "you're a nigger, aren't you?"
"No I'm not, but you're sure acting like one," he glances at the crowd.
James opens the side doors, seeing it was just him in there the whole time, running up in his face, "Where's my fucking daughter, god damn it?! There was no way she had time to escape with me tailing you… you… fucking nigger! You're ruining my family, making my Violet some kinda whore! She's a fucking nigger whore now," he grabbed Franklins neck, "you going to pass her around with your nigglette friends like… like… a blunt?!"
"Get off of me, clearly you can see she's not here, stop fucking choking me," he tries to fight him off.
James punches him in the stomach, walks back over to the Tahoe, pulling out a jack handle," you stay away from my daughter, you porch monkey," he swung it in to the side rear window, shattering it.
"C'mon man! I can't afford to fix that!"
"That's because you're black, and you're poor," he hit the glass in the left rear trunk door.
"Dude!"
"That's far enough, James," a voice said behind him, "you okay, Frank?"
"Yeah, Mr. Reichardt."
"That's my daughters friend your botherin'," he takes the jack handle from him with force.
"Who the fuck are you to call me 'James', mind your business!"
"You don't remember me, I'm Patricia's dad."
"Hmm… you must mean the butch dyke girl, you a nigger lover too?"
"Yeah, I am, if that's how ya wanna put it. You get this only warning, don't you ever speak ill of my little girl," he pushed him halfway to his car, "Franklin is a great kid, from good stock, tha son I ain't neva had, you should be honored a boy likes him wants to make your daughter happy, ya kids happiness should be import'un to any parent," he pokes him in the chest all the way to his car, "look around James… this is the grave you just dug."
For the first time James looks around at all the people standing around recording, for the first time he was speechless.
"You really are a racist prick," one yelled.
"Kill yourself."
"Money don't buy common sense!"
Sirens started blaring in the background, people started closing in around his car.
"There goes the undertakers, James."
Franklin stood near Peppermint Patty's dad as two police cars showed up.
"Ah… voices of reason," James clasped his hands together, "I hope all is well, gentlemen."
His smug smile faded as two black officers stepped out of the first car, "it doesn't look very well, Mr. Gray. Why don't you tell us what happened here."
The other officers step out of their car, looking around.
"Oh.. hello gentlemen," James greeted.
"Oh no, nevermind them," one officer said.
"We'll take the other statements, one white officer said.
The other officers went to talk to the crowd, who shown them the videos they took, James demanded his lawyer, so the one he simply put him in cuffs, sitting him on the ground by his car, going to talk to Peppermint Patty's dad, whom explained he pulled up to see the crowd and James smashing his daughters friends windows, putting a stop to it. Franklin laid out what happened up to that point.
"Welp… James Gray; we have enough probable cause to put you under arrest," they helped him up.
"Sir… on god, if I wasn't in this uniform. You should be better than that. I would ask if you had somebody to pick up your car, but I'm sure the boys would love to impound it. Eighty dollars a day is chump change, I'm sure," he laughed.
"Umm… officer," Franklin called out.
"What's up lil man?"
"I'm sure Violet wouldn't mind picking up her dads car. I know her mom would, but then she'd hafts leave her car, and they took Violets from her."
"Good thinking lil man, that okay with you, Mr. Gray, we would love to impound it."
James grumbled.
"Sounded like a yes to impoundment, l know you got some fancy lawyers, either way it goes; you won't be getting that car anytime soon. It might even get auctioned off before you're free to retrieve it, police policy is only the owner can retrieve a car from impound."
"Don't. Don't impound my car, you apes!"
He simply dug in his pocket for the fob, tossing it to Franklin, "tell her Mr. Gray sent his best wishes, and keep your head up, bruh… there's always people trying to keep you down, just keep doing you."
"I will… thanks.
James screamed as he was shut in the car.
"You going to be okay, right Franklin," Reichardt asked.
"Oh yeah, I'm going to get Violet so she can pick up this car."
"Aye lil man, I'll let the store know not to tow it, okay? Go and get your girl."
"Thanks man," he put his stuff back in the trunk."
He gave Violet a call, explaining what happened and to figure out where she was at.
Franklin pulled up to Charlie's house, walking inside to see Violet very happy to see him, jumping up and giving him a hug.
"Awww." Lucy cooed.
"So my dad got arrested?"
"Yep. I made sure to stop at a place with people and cameras, I knew he'd never stop following me as long as he thought you were with me. He broke windows on my ride, I almost wanted to beat his ass."
"What the hell," Lucy blurted.
"Damn," Charlie jumped up, looking out the window, "holy shit!"
"So I kinda got a surprise, Vee. Since your dad didn't want to have his car impounded, the cops gave me the key to give to you, so now you have a car for however long you can keep it. We just gotta go get it."
"Shit, I've always wanted to drive that Masaratti, this is great! Can we come back over here?"
"Whatever you want, as long as Charlie is cool."
"It's cool."
"Let's go get it," she took the key, running outside, stopping at the step, "baby… your car."
"I know. It'll get fixed eventually."
She walked around it, "he knocked out two of them? Baby no, we're fixing this now."
"I don't have the money to fix it."
"I have the money, We're going to find a place right now and fix it! It's the least I can do for my boyfriend."
"You're not changing her mind on this, Franklin," Lucy smiled.
