The Case Manager

by Latoya Chandler

  “Shit! Shit! Shit! We have to try to think of something, because Samantha’s words are now engraved in my head. Hope House is no place for babies.”

  “It’s no place for females, period.”

  “I’m going to ask Tracy to come in here and see what she thinks. Maybe the three of us can come up with something together.”

  Walking toward Tracy’s room, I could hear her sobbing through the door. Without thinking twice, I kicked the door open. “Get the hell away from her!” I demanded.

  “Nakita? I’m in here alone.”

  “Well, until Judith or Samantha gets back, you will be bunking with us. You don’t need to be alone.”

  “I’d appreciate that so much. I am so afraid.”

  “That’s what we wanted to talk to you about. You want to grab some of your things and come into my room now?”

  “Sure. I don’t need much, just my blankets and the blow-up mattress that I sleep on and I will be fine. Your room is just down the hall if I need something.”

  “Why do you sleep on a blow-up mattress and you have this big bed?”

  “It is extremely uncomfortable.” Pointing to her stomach, she explained, “This little one does not like that bed, and if I lie on it, she jumps and kicks like she’s in a marching band.”

  “Now that’s funny. Oh, my goodness. I didn’t know you knew the sex of your baby.”

  “Yeah, I found out this morning. I had planned on sharing it with everyone during breakfast, but the girls going into labor ruined that.”

  “Yes, they did. I feel bad that Samantha’s little guy has to spend a month or more in the hospital because he’s under five pounds.”

  “He’s better off there than here.”

  “They don’t like little boys, so he would have been good.”

  “I’m not too sure about that one.”

  “Hold that thought. Let’s get back into my room so Candice can hear this one.”

  “Candice, shit just got real around here,” I divulged as soon as we walked into the room.

  “Hey, Tracy. How are you feeling?” she probed with her eyes fixated on me.

  “I am all right, considering.”

  “Yeah, there’s a lot of that going around. I need you to fill us in on why you’re not sure about Paul’s and Anthony’s sexuality.”

  “I know they’re into guys as well.”

  “How the hell did you know that, and why am I just learning this?”

  “When Officer Greg came to see me, he told me he’d been in a three-man relationship with Paul and Anthony.”

  “And you’re just disclosing this?”

  “I think I was so excited that he was helping us get out of here that I forgot to mention it.”

  “She’s right, because Judith and Samantha made themselves go into labor,” Tracy added.

  “What do you mean made themselves?”

  Tracy went on and enlightened us to what she, Samantha, and Judith witnessed during their morning walk a couple days ago. While strolling through the yard from the path in the back, they overheard moaning, and they peeked through the window where they witnessed Paul and Anthony having sex with one another. Samantha and Judith went into a frenzy following the eye-soaring visual, saying they had to do something to get out of Hope House and needed to have their babies right away. They went so far as to plan to have a social worker take them and their babies. Being that both of them had been pregnant with boys, they assumed their babies would have been next in line once Paul and Anthony got tired of all of us.

  Judith’s and Samantha’s sudden panic prompted them to put castor oil in their food as well as take shots of it throughout the day. It had worked like a charm because their water broke the following morning during breakfast after another shot of castor oil. The plus side to their castor oil things had been the moment Judith laid eyes on her son. She suddenly had a change of heart. She couldn’t imagine giving him away. Samantha, on the other hand, turned ice cold. She couldn’t even look at her son. She told the nursing staff to take him away the moment he came out.

  “This is crazy.”

  “It really is. I just couldn’t do that to myself. You never know what could have happened. Now look at Samantha’s son in ICU hooked up to tubes and shit. I couldn’t put myself or my baby through that. We’ve been through enough already.”

  “I agree wholeheartedly. Well, we agree, which is why I came to your room originally. We were thinking of possibly talking to Ms. Jasmine and telling her what’s been going on. Maybe she can help us like she’s helping and taking in Samantha’s son.”

  “For the sake of these babies, we have to take a chance. I just pray she doesn’t have a clue as to what’s going on and our children end up motherless.”

  “I guess we will have to cross that hurdle when we get to it, because right now it’s the only alternative.”

  “Actually, it’s the best solution that we’ve ever had.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Tag Team: My Sister’s Keeper

  Candice

  Samantha and Judith returned without Samantha’s son. He had to stay in the hospital until he weighed five pounds. She hadn’t even considered giving him a name, Ms. Jasmine did. She was currently working with social services to get temporary custody of Micah. I thought this was Samantha’s breaking point. She had been a walking zombie. Her pupils looked spellbound. Like if you stared at her for too long, you would be taken under the same spell that she was under.

  She sat still in the same spot for hours like she was paralyzed. Every time I laid eyes on her, my heart ached. Tracy came back into the room with me and Nakita, because she said Samantha was freaking her out. She woke up the other night to use the restroom and Samantha almost scared her into labor. When she turned on the bathroom light, Samantha was sitting on the floor by the tub staring straight at her. She screamed so loud that everyone in the house ran to their room to see what was going on. None of us slept in our own rooms anymore, so we automatically assumed she was in labor.

  Ms. Nancy said Samantha was suffering from a serious case of postpartum depression and the medication that she was on had her spaced out. All I knew was it was too much, and they needed to give her a lower dosage or something.

  There was a new girl who arrived at Hope House that morning. Out of fear for her, I had been lying awake trying to listen out for her just in case the welcoming committee struck. They were entirely too friendly with her. More so Anthony. Paul just stood there looking like a lost child. We had no idea another housemate was expected. While we were talking with Ms. Nancy, the doorbell had rung. Before anyone could get up to answer it, Anthony and his shadow appeared from nowhere to let in a caseworker and who we now knew as Simone.

  Just thinking about Anthony’s little performance nauseated me.

  “What are you, like six feet?” he said.

  Rolling her eyes, she snapped, “No, I am only five feet eleven.”

  “If you don’t mind, what nationality are you?”

  “Anthony, don’t be so rude. I apologize. Gwen, thank you for bringing her. It completely slipped my mind that she was coming today.”

  “No problem at all, Nancy. How are things here?”

  “Great! The girls are doing well, and we now have some beautiful little new additions.”

  “So I’ve heard. Well, if you or the girls need anything, you know how to reach me,” she noted, closing the door behind her.

  We knew she didn’t mean a word she said. The only time we’d see her was when she dropped us or someone else off. I had no doubt she knew what was going on. Maybe they were paying her handsomely to keep quiet. After all, she worked for the state and Paul was a police officer. This was sick. Why were they doing this to us?

  “So, is anyone going to tell me her nationality?”

  “Anthony, show some respect! What has gotten into you?”

  “I’m sorry, Nancy. I was just messing. The girl is a beauty though.”

  “Yes, she is very tal
l and a sight to see. How are you feeling? Simone, right?”

  Simone was gorgeous. She looked like she was possibly Korean and black. I thought Korean because of her chinky eyes. She resembled Kimora Lee Simmons. Simone was just a little prettier though.

  “Yes, my name is Simone, and do those guys stay here too?” she asked.

  “You’ll learn they’re harmless. This is my brother Paul, and this one is Anthony.”

  Anthony giggled as he shook her hand as if he were having a high school crush moment. The rest of us introduced ourselves and gave Simone a tour of Hope House.

  During the walk-through, we learned that Simone was from Virginia. She was 17 years old and had been in foster care since she was an infant. When her foster parents learned of her pregnancy, they got in touch with a high school friend who happened to be Ms. Gwen. Two weeks later, she was expressly shipped to Hope House.

  I’d been trying my best to stay awake, but I appeared to be fighting a losing battle. Sleep was clearly the winner. I decided to just say a prayer for Simone, gracefully bow out, and allow sleep to have its way with me.

  * * *

  “Someone please help me. Please help me.”

  Unsure of my surroundings, I scanned the room, realizing I must have dozed off. I was not dreaming. That was the new girl Simone screaming for help. Yeah, the new girl was screaming for help, I convinced myself, shifting to my left side.

  “Oh, my God! I am not dreaming. The new girl. Nakita, Tracy, get up. The new girl!” I shouted, jumping out of the bed.

  “Stop yelling, Candice, before you wake Adrianna.”

  “I am sorry. I knew they’d bother her.”

  “How do you know if you haven’t gone in there yet?”

  “I know that scream, Nakita. Hell, we all do.”

  “Well, are we just going to sit here and talk to each other, or are we going to go and check on her? She’s still screaming for help,” Tracy cut in.

  The moment we stepped into her room, we all froze in the spot we stood in. No one said a word as our horror story of a reality stared us in the face. Was this our fate? Would we ever be able to escape this, or would death be our only way out? This had to stop.

  “Why are you all just standing there staring at me? I was raped. It was two of them. Two masked men. Oh, my God! When I woke up, I thought I was dreaming, but I wasn’t. Look, there’s blood everywhere!”

  “Is everything all right? What’s going on?” Ms. Nancy investigated as she entered the bedroom.

  Completely hysterical, I cried, “Simone said someone came into her room and attacked her, Ms. Nancy. She’s bleeding. I think we need to call the police,” I suggested. “Look.” I pointed, pulling the blankets to the side, allowing Ms. Nancy to get a full view of the stained bedding.

  “Oh, no! Not again. Someone please call Paul,” Ms. Nancy said, panicked.

  “I’ll call the police,” Nakita volunteered.

  “What do you mean, not again? This has happened before? Where in God’s name am I?” Simone wailed.

  No one uttered a word at that point. We silently cried, looking to Ms. Nancy for answers. At this point each and every one of us needed comforting. Simone was assaulted. However, we’d all been in that same vulnerable state in which she sat, soiled in blood.

  “Right now, we want and need to focus on you. Nakita has gone to phone the police. I am so sorry this has happened to you. All I ever wanted to do was protect you girls and be the support system you never had. I am so sorry,” Ms. Nancy sobbed.

  * * *

  The police had finally left with the exception of the patrol car out front. Because the incident took place at his home, Paul wasn’t the investigating or lead officer. The assigned officers stayed at the house most of the night, asking questions after a fight to get Simone to cooperate. A female officer hadn’t arrived, so she lost it. Every male who went near her or came into the room upset her, and she’d scream and throw things at them. It was to the point where we had to dodge for cover so we didn’t become casualties. Once Officer Pettaway arrived, the rest of us were asked to leave the room, and we were then questioned together and individually. Now we are all sitting at the kitchen table in silence. Ms. Nancy accompanied Simone in the ambulance.

  “This shit is getting crazier and crazier,” Tracy admitted.

  “I am so sick of it. Those bastards couldn’t care less, and we’ve allowed it for far too long.”

  “I know, but Paul is a police officer. Look what happened when one of his own tried to help us. Can we trust any of them right now? If we do, will something happen to them as well? Besides, Ms. Nancy is sick. She won’t be able to handle this blow. We don’t even know what’s wrong with her. What if the news kills her?” Tracy cross-examined me.

  “So, we just sacrifice our children’s safety and put up with this shit forever is what you’re trying to say? Ms. Nancy’s illness has nothing to do with us. Hell, what Paul and Anthony do to us clearly has nothing to do with her. She is turning either a blind eye or deaf ear to it all, but either way, she is responsible because we are in her care,” Nakita lashed out.

  “I don’t think that’s what she was insinuating, Nakita. Maybe we all need to do like a neighborhood watch for one another until we can figure something out.”

  “A neighborhood watch, Candice? Is that your solution? I think one of us should talk to the lady cop. They’re still out front. We should just give it a try.”

  “You know what? I’ll go talk to her.” I waddled from the table.

  Unsure of what I was going to say, I headed in the officer’s direction. She appeared to be looking in the opposite direction, preventing her from seeing me heading her way. The closer I got to her, I could see what was holding her attention. Anthony! Of course he’d be the reason she wouldn’t see me coming. Unsure as to I should do, I continued heading in her direction. I was already out there. I might as well stick to the task at hand. Just I was arm’s length from Officer Pettaway, I caught her attention.

  “Is everything all right, young lady?” she addressed me.

  “I wanted to know if you think you’ll be able to find the persons who hurt Simone. This is like the second time something like this happened here.” I blurted out the first thing that came to mind as Anthony joined us.

  “We will do what is necessary to apprehend the perp. It might be difficult, because young girls don’t always tell the truth when making those kinds of accusations.”

  “You know, my brother Paul says that same thing all the time.” Anthony winked at me.

  Feeling as if my heart had been snatched out of my chest, I thanked her and made my way back inside. What would make her say something like that? Why would anyone lie about being raped? This was insane. They were all in on it. There was no way she just happened to have made that statement. There had to be a way out of this. This couldn’t be our life.

  Unsure as to what to think or say, I took a deep breath and opened the door.

  “What happened? What did she say? Did Anthony say anything to you?” Nakita, Judith, and Tracy took turns drilling me.

  I was filled with trepidation. My heart began thumping so loud, I was sure the girls heard it. I could see their mouths moving, words flying past my head, but I couldn’t get passed my own thoughts. What did I do to deserve this?

  “Candice, you’re trembling. Please sit down. You look like you’re going to be sick.” Nakita ushered me to the kitchen table.

  “She said that young girls don’t always tell the truth when making those accusations.”

  “This can’t be happening. I am going out there to tell her the truth. No one is making anything up,” Nakita fumed.

  “No, please don’t. If she is in on it, it will make things worse for us. She’s a cop. She’s one of them.”

  “I don’t care. We aren’t safe here. Look what they did to Simone. This time the cops were here, and nothing. It’s like they’re giving those bastards permission to do whatever they want to us.”


  “We will find a way to get out of here. We have to. But until then, before you go left, maybe we can all move into one room and have shifts to shower, eat, everything. No one left behind, or alone in this case. We can be our sisters’ keepers.”

  “For one, some of us have babies now. All of us will not survive or fit in the same room together. I know I need my space. Especially dealing with y’all pregnant mood swings.”

  “It’s not a bad idea though, Nakita,” Tracy defended.

  “I’m not sharing a room with all of y’all, sorry. We can have two to a room since there are six of us now. Me and Candice in one room. You and Simone, possibly, and Judith and Samantha,” she suggested, looking around the kitchenette. “Speaking of Samantha, where is she? I don’t think I saw her at all today.”

  “You’re right. I didn’t see her either.”

  “Oh, my goodness, I hope she’s all right,” Judith broke her silence.

  Before anyone could utter another word, Nakita jumped from the table and ran toward the staircase with Adrianna strapped to the front of her. The rest of us followed suit.

  “Oh, my God, she’s gone!”

  “What? What do you mean?” I asked frantically, out of breath as I graced Samantha’s bedroom threshold.

  “Read this,” Nakita cried, putting a piece of paper in my hand.

  “What does it say?” The rest of the girls dreaded hearing it.

  “Hold on, I am going to read it aloud for everyone,” I exhaled and read.

  Dear Sisters,

  Our abandonment and pain united us as one. We became sisters despite our differences, backgrounds, or issues, and for that, I will keep all of you in my heart. I have never been taught to love, nor have I allowed myself to get close enough to anyone for them to love me, or for me to love them back. However, you girls managed to break that barrier down, especially you, Judith. I want you girls to do whatever you have to do to be safe. Hope House is like a haunted house, so no good will ever come out of it because of the evil spirits that are here.

  I couldn’t say goodbye because seeing your tearstained faces would have made me stay. If I stay, I will end up taking my own life, so I must go. I love all of you. This is not a goodbye. It’s a “see you later.” Do whatever it takes to protect each other. We are all that we have.