Thread: Southern Sins (Kassy & Reaperlament)

The sweet smell of fried dough filled Jim's nostrils as the door swung open and he was greeted by the pretty colored girl with curlers in her hair and it immediately brought back memories of fair food and the joyous summers of youth he'd spent down by the shore. It could have been those fond memories of late nights spent gallivanting with his school yard chums in the twinkling lights of carny rides that had disarmed him, but more likely it was those warm hazel eyes set in the heart shaped face of the young woman standing before him. Either way Jim nearly forgot he was on official business, if only for a second. Ah...Sleepin' huh? I guess it is a bit late... Jim stammered, his eyes freeing from her gaze long enough to scan the room. The place was neat and well kept, not a spec of filth to be found. The aroma he'd smelled emanating from a plate on the kitchen table with a half eaten griddle cake still steaming. ...Sorry to interrupt your meal, but I'm afraid I'm gonna have to ask you to wake him. I've got some questions on a bit of an urgent matter I need to discuss with him. Jim finished, returning his eyes to the beautiful young woman's visage. She had the look of someone famous, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it. Had he seen her somewhere before? You see there has been....a....an accident ... down the way in the swamp. Has your Pa been in all night, Miss? Jim asked, knowing the car hadn't been moved any time lately. Again Jim's blue eyes ran the track around the small open floor plan of the house and this time he saw the half drank bottle of gin sitting on the counter, as well as several empties sitting down near the trash can. He smelled no liquor on her, and could guess that her father would indeed be sleeping quite hard just as she'd said. She hadn't invited him in, but that was no surprise, afterall he was a white man wearing a badge on his chest and cordiality wasn't usually extended in these sorts of situations. I can wait right here while ya go and fetch him if'n ya like? Jim said, taking off his flat brimmed deputy's hat and holding respectfully in his hands and waited for her to comply. It wasn't until she turned from him and started to walk for the bedroom that it finally clicked in his mind, he had seen her before. She was a waitress, not in any of the diners downtown but in the colored joint out on Palm road. The good ol' boys in town called it 'Nigga Ned's Chicken Shack' but Jim remembered the hand painted sign out front just said Ned's Diner. Those same boys would crack jokes, but the simple truth was that if you wanted the best fried chicken in a 3 hour drive that was the place you went. Jim's own graduation party had served that chicken and everybody had raved about it. That was when he'd seen her first, Sophie, he thought he remembered her nametag had read. He'd remembered just fresh out of high school driving out to pick up the big order of chicken and she'd been behind the counter, dressed in a yellow waitress smock and just as pretty as she was tonight. It was that sauntering walk that had refreshed his memory. Those hips shifting back and forth like a woman with some bluesy rhythm hiding inside her, a rhythm of a woman much older than her years let on. Jim had to pull his mind out of the lustful reminiscing he'd started, reminding himself again how serious the business he was attending to was. There was a dead white woman out in the swamp just up the road and if his Uncle Earl wanted words with the man of this house than things would be getting very serious very quickly. He nervously tapped his fingers on the stiff brim of his hat while he waited for Sophie to return with her father.