by Jahquel J
A Staten Island Love Letter 5
The Forgotten Borough
Jahquel J.
Copyright © 2019
Published by Urban Chapters Publications
www.urbanchapterspublications.com
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Any unauthorized reprint or use of the material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage without express permission by the publisher. This is an original work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.
Contains explicit languages and adult themes
suitable for ages 16+
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This book is dedicated to all the children who were bullied and felt you had no other choice, but to end your life. We love you. We pray for you. And we’re here for you.
To those that are victims of bullying, it gets better. There is sun at the end of the tunnel. We’re here for you!
-Jahquel J.
Note From The Author:
The finale. Seriously. Enjoy, and if you have a complaint, I told yo’ ass not to read it if you were gonna complain. This for my readers who asked for it. Period.
Bless up,
Jah!
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1
Staten
“Mami, what the fuck are you doing?” Maliah screamed as the bullet grazed my shoulder. If I hadn’t moved when I did, that shit would have hit me right in the chest.
After being shot up more than a few times a while back, I was grateful that this shit grazed my shoulder. Maliah stomped down the stairs and went straight up to her mother and father. Rasheed had snatched the gun out of Messiah’s hand and was staring at her just as confused as the rest of us. Messiah had a nonchalant expression on her face like she hadn’t just tried to end my life in the middle of broad daylight. Neighbors were filing out of their houses, so Rasheed tossed the gun inside of her opened car door.
“Did you hear those gunshots?” Maliah’s neighbor asked, as she eyed down Messiah and Rasheed.
I could tell from Maliah’s expression she didn’t know what to say. How could she deny seeing it when I was standing here with a bloody shoulder? “My boyfriend’s gun had fell off his holster and accidentally went off. We’re sorry if it interrupted you,” she lied.
“I’m sorry. I thought my holster was secured and the safety on my gun was on,” I added on to her lie.
“Is it legal?”
“Of course,” I leaned in closer. “I’m a DEA agent, so I would appreciate if this didn’t get back to them. One harmless accident and they’ll be ready to sit me behind a desk,” I chuckled.
I could tell from her expression that she was believing everything that I had said. “They’re so hard on their workers, but not enough on these street hooligans,” she sucked her teeth. “Your secret is safe with me… thank you for letting me know,” she smiled and tapped Maliah’s shoulder.
We all watched as she told the rest of the neighbors the bullshit excuse and then went back into her house. I shook my head because Messiah was being reckless as fuck with what she pulled. My mind was getting to Liberty and now I had to deal with this shit.
“Get in the house now,” Rasheed said through gritted teeth.
Messiah rolled her eyes and walked past us on the stairs and entered the house. Maliah followed behind and I followed behind her, with Rasheed closing and locking the door behind us. I went into the kitchen where Maliah started cleaning out the wound and shit. I wasn’t worried about this shit; I was more worried about how shit would pan out between me and Messiah.
“What the fuck was that about?” Rasheed’s voice roared through the house. “Do you know how fucking reckless that was? I was going to come by later, but something told me to come soon as I landed, and I find you doing this shit!”
“Maybe if you came home more often then you would know what was going on. Staten is fucking our daughter,” she shook her head. Her voice was so low, yet even, that you wouldn’t have assumed she was bothered by it.
“You telling me something that I already knew. I may be always on the go, but I know what the fuck goes on in the streets and with my daughters.”
“And you didn’t think to fucking tell me? This is what I mean by you keeping shit from me!” Messiah raised her voice. “I should be told on what is going on with my daughters.”
“Um, I’m a grown woman. Nothing should be discussed about my life. Mami, you need to realize that I’m grown and can make my own decisions. Both me and Mariah are old enough to decide what we want to happen in our lives.”
“Staten is like fucking family,” she stood up from the couch and looked at me. “And you, I trusted you around my daughter and you took advantage of her.”
“Messiah kill all that shit. You know like I know that pussy comes a dime a dozen. Do you really think I would take advantage of her?”
“She’s twenty-one. You’re in your thirties. What do you want with her? She’s young.”
“She’s young when it comes to dating, but when you got her moving more weight than a fucking cartel it’s fine, right?” she was silent and sat back down on the couch. “You tried to fucking kill me before coming to talk to me…. We’re family and you couldn’t come and talk to me first?”
She remained silent.
“Yo’ crazy ass ain’t got shit to say now, huh?” Rasheed stood over her with his arms crossed. I could tell he was pissed at what his wife did.
“She’s pregnant,” Messiah revealed.
Rasheed looked at Maliah. “This true?”
“Yeah. I’m keeping my baby too. I don’t want to hear anything about getting rid of my mistake, like Mami said.”
“Your body, your choice. Is this what you want though?”
“Yes.”
“And you?” he looked at me.
“I know it’s my baby and I’m gonna make sure I’m in my child’s life. No matter what.”
Rasheed sighed and sat down. “I need to get up with you. Alone.”
“Tell me the time and the place,” I replied.
Me and Maliah wasn’t something I had planned. I also couldn’t front like I wasn’t falling for her. She had always been my little homie or Messiah’s crazy ass twin. I never imagined that we would be fucking and having a baby together. The shit was crazy. Still, I would never intentionally hurt her, and I put that on my daughter.
“I can’t wait to talk to your brother about this.”
“Nah, he doesn’t need to know about this right now. He has too much on his plate right now,” I told her and plopped down on the couch.
“I’m gonna call the doctor, you need stitches,” Maliah grabbed her phone and left out of the living room.
“Like what? Retirement isn’t all that glamorous,” Rasheed laughed. “I tried that and was bored the first week.”
“He has cancer,” I hadn’t told anyone and I’m sure that Ghost
wouldn’t want anyone else knowing, but they needed to know.
Messiah leaned up and stared at me. “Are you kidding me?”
“Yeah. He been doing his treatments and trying to be there for Free. She had the baby and he has a heart condition,” It was like diarrhea, once the words came out, they wouldn’t stop.
“I need to go by there today. Why doesn’t he tell me these things?”
“I don’t know… you might shoot him with the way you overact,” I cut my eyes at her.
She stood up. “If I wanted to kill you, you know I would never miss. If you would have stayed still, that bullet would have flew past your ear and into the window shutter. You decided to move.”
Messiah was right. Her aim was on point, so if she wanted to kill me, no moving on my end would have stopped that. “Still don’t matter. You pulled a gun on me and pulled the trigger.”
“You pulled your dick out and fucked my daughter… we’re even. Maliah, I don’t care what your father is saying, get rid of the baby,” Messiah said as she headed out the door.
Rasheed walked over to me and dapped me up. “Get up with me this week. I leave for Egypt next week. I’m surprising Messiah for our anniversary.”
“Keep her ass over there,” I laughed.
“Yeah, don’t tempt me,” he joked. “Maliah, call me when you get a chance,” he called out to her before he was the next one to head out of the door.
Maliah came and sat down soon after they left. “The doctor can be here in an hour. After you can head to the hospital. I gotta make a run to Jersey to check one of the traps,” she informed me.
I stared at her as she consumed herself with her phone. “Why you so quiet?”
I’m fucking embarrassed. My parents come in here asking questions like I’m a child. That shit is so fucking annoying,” she vented.
“You worried I’m looking at you like a little girl or some shit?”
“No, because I know I’m not. I’m just annoyed that they won’t let me live my life. My mother went against my Papi and fell in love with my father. I just want to be able to have a life when I’m done running the streets. I give my twin a lot of shit about what she chose to do, but I admire her too. She wants to have a life.”
“I hear you. I’m not looking at you any different either. Your mother is your moms. She does what she wants and doesn’t care what anyone has to say. We’re good,” I grabbed her and pulled her over to my lap.
“You sure?” she asked and looked down into my eyes. “I don’t want this to come up later on… you can run now,” she chuckled.
“We’re good. Promise,” I reached up and kissed her on the lips. “Plus, ain’t no running now. We’re having a baby together, right?”
“Uh huh. I can’t lie, I’m nervous as hell about this. I never been somebody’s mother. How can I manage this and still handle what needs to be done?”
“What am I here for? Whatever you lack, I’ll pick up the slack and get it done. I want you to promise me something right now.”
“What’s that?”
“That no matter what, you won’t jeopardize our child’s life for the streets. The moment I see that shit happen, Maliah…” I allowed my voice to trail off. “I want to know that my child’s life means something to you; that you’ll step away if that means hurting them.”
She looked at me and nodded her head. As much as she liked to blame her mother for her childhood, she was her mother’s child. They craved and loved the streets. “Promise,” she sealed her promise with a kiss.
“Ight. I’m gonna hold you to the shit too,” I told her and she giggled.
“Whatever,” she got up and went to answer the door for the doctor.
Staten Island University Hospital
The doctor came and stitched me up and was on his way in under an hour. After I changed my clothes, I headed out to the hospital. Priest kept me updated on everything and the closer I got to the room, my heart was beating faster and faster. Why would she go back to fucking around with that shit? She promised me that she would never do it again. My heart broke because this was the reason I wanted to monitor her. She thought I was being overprotective and wanted to act like her father, but that wasn’t the truth. I wanted to make sure she didn’t fuck her life up like she did before. Liberty had more to lose than she thought. As much as her aunt raised Chance, he still needed her more than she knew. I tried to be everything for her, and clearly I wasn’t enough or I was too much. I rounded the corner and saw Freedom and Justice standing outside of her room talking. When they saw me, they rushed over to me and hugged me.
“Did you know she was back using? Is that why you guys broke up?” Free was the first to ask.
I finished hugging them and shook my head. “Nah, she wanted space and ended things. I didn’t think she was back on that shit. If I would have known, I definitely wouldn’t have given her the space she asked for.”
“How did we all miss this?” Justice sighed. The stress was all over her face. It wasn’t too long ago she had her baby, and then had Priest’s dumb ass show up after fucking his ex-girlfriend all damn day. I could tell Sis was tired and now she was dealing with her sister overdosing.
“What exactly happened?” I asked Justice.
She sighed and leaned on the wall. “I was leaving to go see my baby. When I got to her truck, I realized I didn’t have the keys for it. I went back upstairs and looked on my own for it, because I thought she was asleep. When I went to wake her and she didn’t wake up, I knew something was wrong, so I called the ambulance and they came quickly. When they lifted her, there were three baggies with white residue,” she wiped away her tears.
“She needs to go back to rehab,” Freedom comforted Justice and stared at me. “A month isn’t going to cut it; she needs to get the help that she needs.”
“I agree with you. She’s not going to take that coming from me, but I’ll support the decision and put the money up for it.”
“I can pay,” Freedom insisted.
“Nah, I want to,” I told her.
Justice broke down crying. “I’m just so tired of all of this happening. I’m so damn tired that I can’t even sleep at night. I sit and cry anytime I have a moment to myself. First Yasmine, then Priest and now this, how much more can I take?”
“Ma, none of this is your fault so you need to know that we don’t blame you. This is happening to all of us… Yasmine’s my niece too, and Priest is a dick head. Trust you gonna get through this shit, I promise.”
“I don’t even want to stay in the apartment anymore. I’m gonna always look at her couch and envision her laid out unconscious.” Each time she wiped her tears away, more came down her cheeks.
“You can stay with us.” Free offered.
“You live all the way in Jersey. I need to be close to my baby.”
“Stay with me. I have a guest suite that you can use. I’m on Staten Island and when baby girl comes home, you can still stay. It’s just me and I’m not there most nights anyway.”
“Really, Staten?”
“Yeah, I got all that house for no reason.”
She hugged me tightly. “I really appreciate it. I really do.”
“Don’t mention it. You family, I got you,” I kissed her on the forehead. “What are they saying?”
“They gave her some medication to help reverse what she took. The doctor said that it was a good thing that Justice noticed her when she did. If she would have been left…. She wouldn’t have survived,” Freedom informed me.
“Damn. This better open her eyes up to who she is hurting,” I sighed.
Liberty was being selfish. I understood she battled things that she chose not to speak on, but what she was doing was fucking selfish. She had all these people that cared for and loved her, yet she still felt the need to go and do that shit. Her son should have been the top of her list of people that needed her, but she continued to go and get high. I’m tired of loving and wanting the best for her, more than she wanted for her
own self. That shit was tiring, and I was tired of fighting somebody to love their life and want better for themselves.
“She awake?”
“No. The doctor gave her some stuff that would keep her asleep. Once they were able to get her up, she was fighting with them, so they sedated her,” Justice replied.
“How long you both been here?”
“Since Justice called me this morning,” I looked at my watch and it was around six in the evening. Both of them had babies they needed to get home to.
“Go see Yasmine, take my car,” I handed Justice the keys to my whip. “You head home and be with Ghost and the kids, they need you. I’ll sit here with her and see you both tomorrow,” I told them.
I could tell the both of them wanted to protest, but knew I was right. They had been up here for hours and needed to go and relax. Sitting up here while she slept wasn’t going to do them any good, and they both knew it.
“Okay,” Free finally agreed. “I’ll be up here tomorrow morning.”
“Nah, you will be up there with Ghost while he gets treatment, then you’ll go and see Samoor because he gets out of the NICU soon. I’ll update you when something changes. I love Liberty, but your sister did this to herself and you and Justice can’t keep putting shit off in your lives because she keeps relapsing.”
“She’s my sister, Staten,” Free’s voice shook as she said the words. I could tell she wanted to break down and cry.
“Yeah, and she knew what the fuck was going on in your life when she went and got high. Call it for what it is. As much as you care for her, you can’t abandon your family that needs you.”
Freedom wanted to curse me out and tell me I was wrong, yet she knew that I was right. Liberty knew what was going on in both her sister’s lives. She still decided to go and get high. Freedom couldn’t drop her life because her twin chose to continue getting high. She had kids that needed her, a new baby with a heart condition and a man battling cancer. As much as she wanted to be here for her sister, she needed to go home and be with her family. Liberty was grown when she made the decision to get high and now she had to be grown and face the consequences of getting high.
