Neal Pollack

Can’t help thinking while I dig, though, my mind moving around. Thinking about the night after I get out of Joliet, hanging around Blue’s bar when Katrina comes in. Place is on Dobson Avenue right near to 95th Street. Busy spot, but not too busy. Neighborhood place, mostly people Blue know coming in.

“Don’t make that much money, but it’s just like I like it,” Blue say to me, cranking the music. Always great music playing in Blue’s place, just like his crib.

They call the man Blue cuz his skin so black they say it looks blue, which all I see is dark brown, but then I don’t care about that shit. Always funny to me how the brothers and sisters always got their skin tone in mind, like it matter somehow, while a white boy like me don’t give it no real thought. I never understand that.

Katrina goes back in the office with Blue that first night and right quick they send word out I should come back. Blue introduces us and right off she flirtatious. I look at Blue and he laughs with Katrina coming off all mad hot for me, which is all the okay I need. This, you know, like, especially being inside Joliet for that amount of time, kinda gets my attention.

You also have to understand one thing, I’m impressed as hell with the fact Blue and Katrina bringing me in this way, me being white and all. Hardly ever works that way in Chicago, or anywhere that I know. But I tell myself they smart, cuz all they interested in, and all they should be interested in, is talent. That and loyalty, which I proved to Blue some years back.

So I’m thinking right away in the bar this Katrina chick’s got a thing for me, partly cuz of what I am to Blue, and I’m real happy about that. Right off, I’m taking my time sucking in air and eyeing her up and down, like some kind of real stud, which let’s face it is a stretch for somebody look like me. But ’tude always counts for a lot with chicks and I got plenty a dat, so in half a snap Katrina has me in a cab back to her hotel and I’m already thinking I da man.

We get in the room and things don’t quite go like I think. I mean, Katrina lets this inner tigress out to play. This stone freak Amazon lady is surprising the hell outta me, all pure aggressiveness and shit, and I’m thinking, hell, not what I’m used to but this gonna be good. She pulls out this box of toys, and I’m like, okay, fine, she must be one of them electromagnetized robo-chicks who gets off on modern technology, plenty of those around. But then she announces the toys are for me, not her, and now I’m in way too deep to refuse.

Let’s just say we go at it real good, till we both like totally wrung out. And I’m thinking later she uses me maybe like some prison daddy might, only I don’t give a shit what she do to me, it being a long, long time for me.

After all that, she figures I'’ll do whatever she wants— even dig a grave. For her. And even though I see that clear enough, she right about it anyway. I mean, I take the job for the money alone, but she show me some personal interest and it’s just what the doctor ordered. I leave that room sure she got a thing for white boys, sure she wants me to be her Chicago man for a while. Cuz all the signs are there. And I need ’em all to be true.

Next night, things with me all arranged, she comes back to the bar and Blue puts her in touch with Hector. Blue got some mad blues playing on the system and I’m watching them from a stool down the other end, sipping drinks while Blue’s driver goes on about how Blue got some big-ass moves in the works. I want to see how Katrina plays it with Hector, see if last night’s jag was for me alone or if she do that with just anybody.

Katrina start doing the flirt thing with Hector and He’'s real funny, man. He’'s like drooling at hello, and right away she know he so totally into her she don’t even need to toss him a tumble like she did me. She just shoot him some hot looks, and tease him with a little dirty dance in the middle of the floor. Seems like the dance leaves him half-unconscious with desire. And that is that. Deal is sealed. She tells me later in her room that Hector even buys her excuse why they can’t go somewhere and do it tonight, so I figure Katrina really plays that macho muchacho hands down, bitch is something else.

After that, though, when Katrina tells me Hector’s the goddamned uncle we gotta take care of, you could push me over with a fingertip. I would never make that guy as an undercover cop. She tells me they find out he the one sours a whole bunch of gigs they got going on while I’m in the joint, tells me it’s Hector put some of Blue’s key guys in jail, and now they gotta put an end to it. That’s when I’m thinking maybe Hector allows Katrina to play him that way in the bar that night, cuz cops ain’t supposed to get it on with the women they working to put away.