Leopard's Baby

Emil Drekler sidled up to the female inmate during morning exercise and said, “How’s it going Donna?”

“Shit, Drekler,” Donna said. She grinned. Several of her teeth were missing and others were black. Her face was covered with acne scars, and her breath was foul. It took a conscious effort on Drekler’s part to keep from gagging. “What the fuck happened to your face? Looks like hamburger.”

“I tripped and fell,” Drekler said, trying to make light of his injuries. “Hit my nose and it busted. No big deal.”

“Bullshit!” Donna said. She shoved him and he staggered back. Unlike most crystal meth users, she was heavy. Almost as heavy as he was. “You got punched. Probably got drunk in a biker bar and challenged the wrong guy. You’re enough of an asshole to do that.”

“Whatever,” Drekler said. “How’d you like to get double your usual supply?”

Donna tilted her head to the side and looked at him sideways. “Who I gotta kill?”

“Nobody. This’ll be a piece a cake, I swear.”

“Don’t trust you Drekler. You want something I ain’t gonna like.”

“I’ll give you a down payment,” Drekler said. He held up a small vial of white powder. “You agree to do what I want, and you can have this right now. When the job is done, you get two, no make it three more just like this.”

Donna licked her lips and gazed greedily at the vial. She reached for it and Drekler pulled it back. “You bastard,” she said. “Okay, what I gotta do?”

“See the white girl jogging around the yard with the two blacks?” Drekler pointed at Tammy. “Start a fight with her.”

“No fucking way!” Donna exclaimed. “I’m not fucking crazy. That’s the bitch beat the shit out of Sheila. She’d bust me up real bad. Don’t fancy that.”

“I’ll double the down payment,” Drekler said as he added a second vial to the first. “Afterwards you’ll get four vials.”

“She always hangs with the Niggers,” Donna said. “How I supposed to get to her?”

“The black girls play basketball in the afternoon. She jogs by herself. Step in her path. Push her, do something to piss her off. I’ll be nearby. I’ll break up the fight before you hardly get hurt.”

“Three now and six later,” Donna said with a sly look on her face.

“Done,” Drekler said. He took a third vial out of his pocket and handed all three to Donna.

***

“Are we going to get in trouble over this, Tyler?” Candi asked as he brought the car to a halt in front of the Roberts’s house. “They threatened to have your mother arrested if she came back, and last week a judge said they could stop her from seeing him.”

“This is different,” Tyler said. He and his girlfriend started up the walkway. “The senator is up for reelection. He’s away campaigning and his wife is with him.”

An armed security guard stepped in front of Tyler and Candi and said, “State your purpose in approaching this house.”

“We’re friends of Karla Roberts,” Tyler said. “We’ve come to see her. Tell her Tyler and Candi are here.”

The guard examined a handheld device and said, “I don’t have your names on the visitor list.”

“I know,” Tyler replied. “We happened to be in the neighborhood and we thought we’d stop by. Give her a call. She’ll vouch for us.”

The guard called the house. A few minutes later Karla came out and greeted them warmly. She apologized and told them nobody was allowed inside unless they’d been previously approved. Tyler suggested they tour the grounds, circling the house, and Karla agreed. As they walked along they saw several armed guards patrolling the area. All of them appeared to be alert. Two trailed behind Karla, Tyler, and Candi, staying about twenty feet back. A third paralleled their course, maybe thirty feet to the side, watching them attentively. Tyler paid careful attention to everything they passed.

“I’m surprised you don’t have dogs,” Candi remarked.

“We did at first,” Karla said. She grinned. “One day my mother took the baby out in a carriage. She’d just stepped out the back door, when two dogs went nuts. They charged the carriage barking and howling. Fortunately the nanny was with them. She scooped up Brendan and ran inside, just managing to close the door before one of the dogs slammed into it. I wish I’d seen it.” Karla lowered her voice to make sure she couldn’t be overheard and asked, “Does this mean Brendan will become a leopard? Tammy told me dogs go crazy when she’s around, even when she’s in human form.”

“There’s not enough data to be sure,” Tyler replied. “Tammy and I are leopards. We have two leopard parents. My mom’s great-grandmother was a leopard, but her grandfather wasn’t and her father isn’t. He also has trouble with dogs and cats even though he’s not a leopard.”

“Is Tiffany a leopard?” Karla asked.

“Not yet, but she’s exhibiting all the pre-leopard symptoms Tammy and I did, so it’s likely she will be. Listen Karla, we appreciate that you haven’t disclosed our… family trait. Tammy’s having a hard time in jail, and if it came out she’s a were-leopard it would be worse. Who knows what they’d do to her. Probably lock her away forever to ‘examine’ her. Either that or kill her.”

“No problem,” Karla said. “I owe her a lot, and I love her like a sister. I don’t think she’s responsible for my brother’s death no matter what my mother says. I don’t think my father believes she is either, but he doesn’t want to go against my mom.”

“How’s our mutual nephew doing?”

“It was tough for him at first, but he’s better now,” Karla said. She barked out a laugh. “He doesn’t seem to like my mother. It drives her nuts. He’ll snuggle with me or the nanny, but not her.”

“Poetic justice,” Tyler said after laughing loud enough that the guards closed in on them. Karla waved them back. “I have a favor to ask, Karla.”

“Anything I can do, I will.”

“Can you take some pictures of Brendan and email them to me?”

“I’ll try, but it may be tough. My mother says wealthy families like ours have to be on the alert for kidnappers, so she restricts pictures of the baby. She says it’ll make things easier for criminals if they know exactly what he looks like.”

They returned to the front of the house. Tyler and Candi left. As their car pulled away, Candi said, “I saw you making mental notes about the grounds. What do you have in mind.”

“I’m going to see if I can get into the house after dark.”

“You’re going to see if you can get Brendan?”

“Not immediately. I’m just going to see if it’s feasible. If it is, it may affect future plans.”

“I’ll go with you,” Candi said. “I’ll keep the car running in case you have to leave in a hurry.”

***

Tammy was on the other side of the yard from the basketball court taking her usual afternoon jog when a heavyset woman charged into her, screaming incoherently, and swinging her fists wildly. One of her punches caught Tammy on the lip, drawing blood. Tammy pushed the woman aside and continued running while dabbing at her lip. The woman ran at her again and butted her in the behind causing Tammy to stumble. She whirled around to face her assailant who charged again.

“What’s your problem, you crazy bitch?” Tammy shouted as she dodged the flailing arms.

The woman ran by, lost her balance and fell to her knees. She got up and ran at Tammy again. Tammy had enough. She blocked most of the punches, allowed one to whistle by her head, stepped inside the thrashing arms, and clobbered her opponent once in the mouth. Two rotted teeth flew, blood spurted, and woman went to the ground crying loudly.

Two guards appeared, each taking one of Tammy’s arms. Tammy’s first instinct was to fight them, but she thought better of it and allowed herself to be led away. They put her in shackles, loaded her into a van, and it drove away. Thirty minutes later the van stopped. Tammy was led into a courthouse and into the chambers of Judge Carlton Newhouse.

“They phoned me about you,” Newhouse said as he looked at his watch. “I’ve agree to stay and adjudicate your case, Tamara. I don’t have much time, but I doubt I’ll need much. It appears you’re incorrigible. You’ve been in jail for barely a month. In that time you’ve been in two fights and attacked a guard.”

“The guard attacked me, and both fights were started by the other person,” Tammy protested. “What was I supposed to do? Let them beat on me.”

“Nevertheless, the county lockup seems incapable of dealing with you. You’re just too… volatile for them. You need time to get over your… aggressiveness. You’re minimum prison time is now twelve months. I’m ordering you to be transferred to a women’s state prison for the remainder of your sentence. You’ll be transported there immediately. Following your time in prison you will still undergo a psychiatric examination to see if you’re fit to rejoin society. I realize you’ve been through a lot, but you must learn to control your angry impulses.”

“What about due process?” Tammy asked.

“Tamara,” Newhouse said and sighed. “You might not believe it, but I’m doing you a favor. If you wish you could stand trial for attempted assault based on your actions at the hearing. You’d be remanded without bail. The trial itself wouldn’t take place for several months. Maybe a year. A guilty verdict is assured. Your sentence could be several years. Do you want to chance that?”

“No,” Tammy said. With difficulty she suppressed the urge to change.

***

At the prison the doctor who gave Tammy her physical was a middle-aged woman with a no-nonsense attitude. She was assisted by a competent and efficient nurse. The guards seemed much more professional than those at the lockup.

After completing her processing Tammy was placed in a cell. The configuration was similar to her accommodations in the county lockup. Her new cellmate was a young, short, slender Hispanic woman. She had hollowed out eyes with circles under them. She was gaunt, almost to the point of emaciation. She jumped off the lower bunk when the cell door was closed behind Tammy.

“I been using the lower bunk since there wasn’t nobody else here, but you can have it,” the woman said, speaking with an obvious Spanish accent. Fear showed in her eyes. Tammy had the mental image of a rabbit trapped by a bobcat.

“That’s okay,” Tammy said. This woman would have trouble even climbing into the upper bunk, she thought. “You keep the lower bunk. You were here first. I like the upper bunk. I’m Tammy.”

“Miranda,” the woman said. She relaxed a bit, but was still wary. “What you in for?”

“I tried to attack the woman who stole my son,” Tammy replied with more calm than she felt. She was surprised since it was not a question inmates usually asked. “I’m serving twelve to eighteen months. What about you?”

“Murder,” Miranda said. Tammy was startled. Miranda didn’t look as if she could kill a fly. “Stabbed my husband when I found him in bed with my sister. Woulda killed her too, but she got away. Worse part is they took away my little girl. Gave her to my fucking sister! I’ll be here for thirty years. Well twenty-nine left to go. Won’t get to see her grow up. At least you’ll see yours while he still little.”

“Yes I will!” Tammy declared with such vehemence that Miranda jumped back in fright. “No matter what my former mother-in-law does.”

Tammy felt a little guilty about scaring Miranda. Tears glistened in the young woman’s eyes. Tammy went over to her, wrapped an arm around her, led her over to the bunk, and sat down next to her.

“I’m not mad at you, Miranda,” Tammy said. She used the sleeve of her shirt to wipe the smaller woman’s eyes. “I won’t hurt you. You don’t have to be afraid of me.”

“You one of them girls likes to have other girls lick their pussy?” Miranda asked. “I don’t like doin’ it, but I could. I gotta do it for Gretchen. At least you don’t hit me.”

“I’m not gay,” Tammy said. No wonder she’s so afraid of me. This place is like the jungle. The strong prey on the weak. With her size she probably gets picked on a lot. “Who’s Gretchen?”

“Head of the Aryan Women. Real mean bitch. Just wait. Won’t be long before she starts something with you. Might want you to join them.”

“I don’t join gangs. How many are there?”

“Niggers have a couple. So do the Spics.”

“Could you get protection from the other Hispanic women?”

“No fucking way,” Miranda said with a bitter laugh. “I’m too small to join them, and I ain’t got no money to pay them.”

Just what I need, Tammy thought. To be drawn into gang violence. I was hoping to mind my own business, be a model prisoner, and maybe get out before eighteen months. On the other hand, can I stand by and watch them pick on Miranda?