Don't Ask, Don't Tell

By John D. McCray

Warren Davis tries to be a loving and devoted husband and father to his wife and son. After losing his job at the steel plant three years ago, he fell on hard times, struggling with drugs and alcohol.

Warren struggles to find himself and lands a job at Ervin Institution as a mental health specialist. Warren is excited about his new job but something about it just doesn’t feel right. After a week of working at the Institution, Warren discovers the hidden secret that no one wants to talk about.

Will Warren do something about what he’s discovered on the job or will he just keep his mouth shut and follow the advice of everyone else to “don’t ask, don’t tell”?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Mar 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781669872597

John D. McCray

John D. McCray is a 43-year old African American born and raised in Alcolu, South Carolina. He now resides in North Carolina, and works with adults with disabilities and special needs. John has been writing for over thirty years and is the author of “Who Am I,” “When the Mask Comes Off,” and “My Winning Season.

Book preview

Contents

Dedication

Chapter 1     A New Start

Chapter 2     My First Night

Chapter 3     Are You A Monster Too?

Chapter 4     I Can’t Do This By Myself

Chapter 5     Roland Matthews

Chapter 6     The Storage Room

Chapter 7     My Investigation

Chapter 8     No One To Talk To

Chapter 9     Not You Too

Chapter 10   Everyone Was Doing It

Chapter 11   Have A Little Fun

Chapter 12   You Look So Sad, Daddy

Chapter 13   I’m Sorry I Didn’t Listen

Chapter 14   Protecting Them

Chapter 15   I Needed Proof

Chapter 16   Almost Getting Caught

Chapter 17   We Got Them

Chapter 18   I Let Her Down

Chapter 19   My Sister

Chapter 20   My Meeting

Chapter 21   My Evidence

Chapter 22   Another Murder

Chapter 23   What I Saw

Chapter 24   I’m Being Followed

Chapter 25   The Set Up

Chapter 26   I’m In Jail

Chapter 27   Goodbye Nicole

Chapter 28   The Subpoena

Chapter 29   A Flash Of My Life

Chapter 30   They Have Our Son

Chapter 31   Joshua Comes Home

Chapter 32   The Trial Begins

Chapter 33   Called To The Stand

Chapter 34   It’s You Or Me

Dedication

First and foremost, I would like to thank God for blessing me with my special talent to be able to write my fourth book. I would like to thank my mom and dad for always encouraging me to do my best in whatever I do in life. I would like to thank my siblings for always supporting me, Lamont, Brian, Shakelia, Tyra and Leana. I would also like to thank some special people that always gave me that extra push that I needed when I felt like giving up, Erica Capers, Matthew Collins, Misa Griffin, and Anitra Hammett. I would like to thank three people who are no longer here and are looking down on me from above, Lee Pickens, Tyrone Fogle, and Warren Pazky. Last but not least, I would like to thank my grandparents who are no longer here, the late John and Daisy Carraway and Richard and Ida Mae McCray. Thank you all for your love through the years. You are definitely appreciated.

Chapter 1

A NEW START

I heard the alarm clock blasting by my bed, and I knew it was time for me to get up. I had it set for 5:30 p.m., but I swear ten more minutes of sleep would be great. Tonya knocked on the door and walked inside. Baby, are you up? It’s time for you to get ready for work, Tonya said, cutting the alarm clock off and sitting beside me on the bed. Damn baby, can a brother have ten more minutes, I said, turning back over. No, sir. You don’t want to be late for your first night at your new job. Tonya said, raising her voice. You’re right, baby, I said, sitting on our king-size bed to stretch.

Tonya laid her head on my shoulder and then kissed me on the lips. I’m so proud of you, baby, for getting this job, Tonya said. Thank you, baby. Let me grab my scrubs and jump in the shower. I said, getting up from our bed. OK, I’ll get your dinner ready so you can take it to work with you, Tonya replied, walking toward our bedroom door. Thanks, baby, I replied, walking into the bathroom.

I adjusted the temperature of the shower and removed my clothes. The water hit my face, and I started to reflect on my life of where Tonya and I came from. Tonya and I had been married for six years now, and if it wasn’t for the good Lord being on our side, our marriage would’ve ended basically before it really started. I went from being a drug addict, as well as an alcoholic, to even cheating on Tonya. I was just thankful I had a forgiving wife who told me either I was going to fly right or fly the hell on. I started slowly getting my life back together, knowing that I couldn’t bear to lose my wife.

I couldn’t help feeling sad all of a sudden, thinking about what I put Tonya and our son through. I took my family through hell and back, and all they wanted to do was to love me and for me to love them in return. After my mother died five years ago and Tonya had our son Joshua, I just felt so much pressure on me and didn’t know how to come out of that dark place I was in. It took me almost losing everything for me to realize what I had. I lost my mother, my job that I had for almost eight years, and almost lost my wife and child.

Going through that roller coaster in my life caused me to really wake up from that make-believe life I slipped into and face the real world once again. Mama always told me, Son, sometimes you have to hit rock bottom in order to see the good in your life and where God has brought you from. As those very words appeared to me from my deceased mother’s mouth, they made me smile.

I cut the shower off, dried myself, and started brushing my teeth. I grabbed my blue scrubs from off the top of the hamper and got dressed. As I prepared myself for work, I started thanking God for allowing me to find a pretty decent job, especially with the economy being as slow as it was. I got fired from my old job three years ago, along with my friend Ron, from fooling up with his crazy-ass ex-girlfriend, Kanita.

I remember that day like it was yesterday. My boy Ron and I used to work together at a steel plant, and we usually hung out every Friday night and got high together. It wasn’t anything major, just a little weed but some good-ass weed, though. One night, Ron and his stupid-ass ex-girlfriend Kanita got into a physical domestic dispute, and she ended up leaving that night to stay with her mother. Boy, did Kanita had something for our asses that Monday morning. She called our job and told them that Ron and I used drugs every day after work. Later that morning, Human Resources came and got both of us from our workstations and brought us back to her office. Ms. Eva Stanley, the rep, gave us an on-the-spot drug test. I just knew they had our asses. When we both failed, they immediately terminated us.

That was when all my troubles started, and my marriage started going downhill from there. I lost the best job I ever had at the steel plant, making over twenty-five dollars an hour. Ms. Eva was a little nice about the situation, though. She helped us get all of our 401k out, and she told us to put her name down on our job applications as our supervisor, and she would tell the employers that we just got laid off due to lack of work instead of being terminated.

Once I got all my 401k, I started doing all kinds of crazy shit, like experimenting with other drugs, drinking at the bars, and even spending it on other women. I got back about seventy-three thousand after taxes. Instead of me paying off our house with the money or investing it, I just blew right through it. My weed habit quickly went out the door, and I started using crack-cocaine. I depended on my drugs and alcohol in order to make it through the day since I didn’t have a job anymore to occupy my time.

I was dressed for work, and I grabbed my keys off the dresser. Tonya had my dinner in a Tupperware bowl inside a plastic bag. You ready to go, baby? Tonya asked, handing me my dinner. Yes, I am. I sure hope I like this damn job, I said, taking my dinner from her. You will, baby, and if you don’t, your ass better stays there. Shit, we have bills to pay, plus a son to support. Tonya said, hugging me tightly and giving me a kiss on the lips. I know, baby, and you’re right, I replied. Baby, have a good night at work, and I love you, Tonya said, kissing me once again. Thanks, baby, I said.

I held my dinner and walked into Joshua’s room to give him a hug before I left. Joshua looked like he had just left work himself by how tired he looked. Hey, Daddy, you going to your new job? Joshua asked, rubbing his eyes with his hand. Yes, little man. Daddy gotta do what I have to do in order to help take care of you, I said. OK, Daddy. Love ya, Joshua said, grabbing me by my neck. Love you too, son, I said, embracing him and giving him a peck on the cheek.

I walked into the living room, where Tonya was sitting, watching the news. My wife was so beautiful—long black hair passed her shoulders, beautiful caramel brown skin complexion, and hazel brown eyes. I dared not leave out her beautiful figure that would put the average twenty-one-year-old to shame. Damn, my baby is a damn knockout, I said to myself. Baby, I’m going on to work before I end up taking you back to the bedroom, I said, smiling. Tonya looked up at me and smiled. You better take your ass to work. We got tomorrow to take care of that, Tonya said, pointing her finger at me and laughing.

As I walked out the door and got inside the car, I thought about how lucky I was to have a handsome, healthy son and a loving and supportive wife. They said being rich wouldn’t always require money and material things; just having the support and love from your family was worth more than all the money in the world. So in that aspect, I was incredibly rich.

Chapter 2

MY FIRST NIGHT

I pulled up to my new job at the Ervin Institution parking lot. I would start tonight as a mental health specialist. I had never worked in the mental health field before, but I had heard about it, though. I heard some of the patients could get crazy as hell and wanted to fight and attack the staff. I sure hoped that wouldn’t happen here; otherwise, I might forget where I was at. I didn’t need a job that I had to end up fighting or end up getting locked up behind it.

I was supposed to be here at 6:45 p.m. and meet Mr. Kevin Wilson up front. I thought he was the supervisor. I glanced at my watch and saw it was 6:40 p.m., so I headed into the building, carrying my dinner in my hand.

I stood up front, waiting after telling the receptionist my name. The receptionist tried holding a friendly conversation with me, but I just smiled a little, not saying much of anything. I guess it was my nerves of being my first day on the job. The receptionist must have seen I wasn’t interested in her conversation, so she quickly stopped talking, which was perfectly fine by me.

A tall brown-skinned man, wearing a pair of Khaki pants and a pink Polo Ralph Lauren long-sleeve shirt, walked toward me. Good afternoon, sir. I’m Kevin Wilson, your night shift supervisor, the man said, extending his hand toward me. Nice to meet you, Mr. Wilson. I’m Warren Davis. I said, returning Mr. Wilson’s handshake. Nice to meet you as well, Warren, and you don’t have to call me Mr. Wilson. I’m probably younger than you, and besides that, we’re not so formal around here. Kevin said with a cocky-ass smile. That’s cool, I said.

Kevin took me around the facility, showing me the cafeteria, the library, the laundry area, the storage rooms, as well as all the janitor closets. He told me to make sure to check them all throughout the night to make sure the patients were not hiding in there or involved in any suspicious activities. I smiled, knowing what Kevin meant exactly. You mean to tell me even the patients be getting their freak on too? I’ll be damned, I said to myself, laughing.

Kevin and I were about to go through some double glass doors when he suddenly paused and looked at me. What’s wrong? I asked, wondering why the hell he stopped so suddenly. Warren, remember this is a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ facility. Meaning what you see, you don’t ask about it, and they won’t tell you anything. I’m just warning you so you won’t be surprised if you ever see something out of the ordinary that you’re not used to seeing, Kevin said with a smirk on his face. OK, I replied, feeling a little uncomfortable when he made that statement. Hell, they expressed that a lot in the week training orientation they gave us, but only certain people said it, though. What is this ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy really about? I wondered.

Kevin and I walked on through the double glass doors, and people were hanging around in the hallways and lying on the floor. Warren, we call this ‘the hole.’ It’s common for the patients to be in the hallways, lying on the floor and all. They’re not allowed to go in each other’s rooms or anything like that. If they want to visit one another to communicate, they can either go in the dayroom or out in the hallway. Do you understand so far? Kevin asked. Yes, I do, I replied.

Kevin took me to another area where the patients looked a lot differently. Warren, this hall is called ‘the whoring’ hall. I looked at Kevin strangely. The whoring hall? I repeated. Yes, the whoring hall. Trust me, you’ll see very shortly why we call it that, but Warren, if any administrators come around and ask you about this side, the correct name is the ‘village.’ Please don’t call it the whoring hall, Kevin said. OK," I replied.

Listening to Kevin definitely made a red flag go up in my head. Why would anyone call a hall the whoring hall but then say that was not the real name for it and not ever use that word around the administrative staff. Something very unhanded was going on around here. I was feeling a little unsure about this damn job now. I felt this way even before I left home. Hell, if something wasn’t right about this job, and if I thought it was going to jeopardize my health, my safety, my family, or my freedom, then I was definitely bailing on their ass.

Kevin and I explored the whoring hall side a little more. All the patients were women that were in the age range of eighteen to about forty. The majority of all the women looked like models or actresses. Shit, these women were damn gorgeous. I shook my head, thinking, How could someone this fine be so messed up in the head? What a damn shame. Hey, Mr. Kevin, a young light-skinned woman said, waving her hand. What’s up, Denise? Kevin said, smiling. Wow, Denise was wearing some kind of cat-suit-looking outfit. Denise had to be about five feet six and 160 pounds, and all her weight had to be in her breast and ass. The sister was shaped like a brick house with a tiny little waistline. Kevin, is that a patient? I asked, still couldn’t believe how fine she was. Yes, sir. That’s how a lot of the women look and are shaped on this hall. Kevin said with a little smirk on his face.

Kevin took me down to another hall. "Warren, this is the hall where all the young men are. The guys’ age ranged from eighteen to forty as well. A lot of the patients are under a thirty-day evaluation on a