On the Rocks

The loud buzz always made her jump, well that and the sound of slamming metal doors. She sat waiting for Jimmy Cole to shuffle over to the table and tell her what the new information was he bragged about when they spoke the other day.

"Hey, Jo," he said as he sat in front of her.

"What's the good word, Cole?" she said and smiled.

"Well, you did good, Lovely Lady," he grinned.

"I just got word that our happy CSI was thrown out of that nice, big, house he has with my girl... he's been out for three weeks already."

"NO! She did it! It worked?" she nearly yelled.

"Yes, but I also hear he has been sniffing around and she might be wavering. I need more. I need a nail in that coffin," he frowned thinking.

"Yeah, sounds like it," Jolene said, "I'm not surprised, Cole, those two are pretty damned tight.

"I don't want to hear that, Jo," Cole frowned before continuing. "I need you to fly back out to Texas. I need you to meet with Brooke Latham again, and tell her I know the CSI was thrown out and I am pleased," he nodded. "I want you to give her the rest of the money I promised," he said.

Jolene Parker nodded, "Right, I get it."

"I want you to tell her if she can continue to make their lives miserable, I will pay her more. And the offer still stands if she can get a divorce out of these two lovebirds, I'll throw another three to five grand her way…a bonus, if you will, depending on how well she does," he growled, "In fact, tell her I threw in an extra five hundred just for splashing that shit all over Jules' FaceBook wall…BRILLIANT!"

"She did? How do you know that?" Jolene asked.

"C'mon, Little Lady!" he laughed, "Are you serious? I know everything!" Cole started laughing at the thought of Jules' face when she saw her husband having his old girlfriend straddle him and getting it on all over her FaceBook wall. He wondered how many of her friends saw it even before she did.

"Wow, Cole, you're really giving the bucks away. What's in it for me?" she said with greed in her blood.

"Don't I always take care of you?" he told her, 'You will get another thousand, first class air fair and a nice hotel for the weekend...all expenses paid. Don't be greedy, Jo, or I will get someone else to do it!" he told her outright.

"No, no, Cole, I'll do it," she back pedaled.

Jolene smiled at the stewardess and ordered another Scotch on the rocks, and guzzled it down like water. She was proud to be carrying thousands of dollars in her purse. It gave her an arrogance even though the money wasn't even hers.

Jolene rested her head back on the leather airplane seat and thought about how nice the hotel was she stayed at last time she was in Texas. She knew Cole would hook her up with another beautiful suite. She loved it. She felt like a real important lady. She thought about her daughter. She never wanted that kid, but Juliana Parker turned out to be a great bargaining chip but even still, she couldn't stomach her.

"She thinks she is so smart. She is a stupid idiot. How she could throw away such a powerful rich guy for a CSI was absolutely ridiculous. She thinks she's too high and mighty to be with a dealer and a pimp. She'd rather be with a mediocre CSI?" she laughed to herself. "Idiot. Please, money is money and damn Cole makes a lot of it. Even from prison that man has his hooks in the business…you're too stupid to know that aren't ya, Juliana."

Cole impressed Jolene highly. Her daughter, on the other hand, made her sick. "Why Cole even tried so hard to keep you blows my mind," she laughed out loud before realizing she should be quieter on the plane, "He tried hard to keep ya and I couldn't get rid of you fast enough." The thought struck her funny.

Jolene thought about the day she decided to unload her baggage. She thought about dropping her baby off at a Safe Haven but the only one she knew of was across town and she really didn't feel like going ten miles out of the way. After all, she had plans and she had a destination to get to. She had a new life to start and damn it, nothing was going to hold her back from her dream; certainly not a six month old baby girl. So, she figured leaving her in the crib was good enough.

"Heck, she thought, "I locked the door at least. Whatever," she thought to herself, "…that was the past. I am still her mother, and she could still throw me some of that money she has. Greedy little wench. Who the fuck makes nearly two hundred thousand dollars a year in the first few years of their career? For Christ's sake, the girl was only twenty three when she got that job. Then by twenty four she get's a job in Jersey making that ridiculous amount of money? Fucking lucky bitch." It truly infuriated Jolene. "Who would have thought my daughter could be so smart?"

Jolene thought hard. She furrowed her brow and bit her bottom lip. "I'm pretty sure it was Frank that knocked me up. He wasn't so smart. Could have been Artie but he's too stupid to be her father. I guess her father must be Pete from the Tavern. He was pretty smart, I think. All I know is I surely can't take all the credit for giving that girl the brains she had to become a top chemist in her field," she said to herself.

She squinted her eyes in deep thought. "I can't imagine Esther Brown teaching her anything but ghetto shit," she pondered. "And who the fuck did Esther Brown think she was? A fucking hero? Please. And Warrick...Warrick was such a nosy, little, fuck. Who said he could look into my window and get that baby?" she grumbled. "Now she thinks she is a 'Brown'? Unbelievable. Yeah right, Juliana, you're so smart you think you're a BLACK family's kid. Idiot, idiot, idiot!" she felt like yelling it in the plane but instead she just ordered yet another Scotch on the rocks.

"We'll see who the winner is, Juliana. You think you can make such a cozy life for yourself. You think you can dismiss me like a piece of shit? You think you can keep all that cash to yourself and share it only with your CSI loser? Well, I can't wait to watch you crash and burn and be a single mother. Let's see if you think you're so great at it. Maybe you won't be so quick to judge me!" she frowned angrily and threw back more of her Scotch.

A limousine met her outside the airport and took her to the fancy hotel she stayed in last time. She smirked as she got off the elevator on the concierge level. She walked with a drunken stagger down the hall and went into her lovely suite. She threw herself on the bed and passed out for an hour before getting up and running the bath.

As she lay soaking in the jet tub she picked up the phone and called Brooke Latham.

"Listen, Doll. I made it here and I want to see you. Jimmy Cole is pleased with you and has the rest of your cash. He also has another opportunity for you," she told her.

"I like the sound of that!" Brooke said, "when do you want to see me?"

"How about in an hour…nah, make it two," Jolene felt important ordering her around.

"I'll be there," Brooke said happily.

"I don't doubt it, Doll," Jolene said and hung up without saying goodbye.